Angie Lion, MS
Chief Soul Officer • Speaker • Facilitator • Author • Business Owner
“You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.” 🌊
I’m Angie Lion, co-founder and Chief Soul Officer of Black River Performance Management. As a business owner, speaker, facilitator, and author, my passion is helping people rise into their highest potential, embrace life’s transitions, and lead with authenticity and love.
With over a decade of experience as a consultant, executive coach, and trainer, I’ve worked with leaders and organizations across industries to strengthen culture, unlock human potential, and navigate change with clarity and confidence. From national conferences and leadership symposiums to team retreats and workshops, I’m known for blending engaging delivery, practical tools, and soulful insight that leave audiences inspired and equipped for real-world action.
My journey has taken me from a challenging upbringing as the daughter of a young single mother, to the high-pressure environment of surgical suites, to stages and classrooms across the U.S. and beyond. 
Along the way, I’ve witnessed how the right blend of compassion and accountability can transform not only organizations, but lives.
I’m also the author of EMERGE: Rise from the Depths, Realign Your Soul, and Reclaim What Matters. 
Woven with personal stories and river metaphors, EMERGE offers guidance for navigating change, reclaiming purpose, and rising stronger through life’s challenges.
As a recognized voice on emotional intelligence, authentic leadership, resilience, and human connection, I’ve been invited to speak for women’s leadership conferences, nonprofit organizations, government agencies, and business associations. My work has been described as both deeply engaging and immediately practical, giving people tools they can use to grow as leaders, teammates, and human beings.
I’m especially passionate about mentoring women in business and advocating for underserved and minority entrepreneurs, using both my platform and my lived experience to empower others to lead with courage and purpose.
“I polish human gems in the workplace and assist them in reaching their full potential.”
"At the end of the day people won't remember what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel"
Popular Keynotes
Leadership From the Inside Out: The Power of Emotional Intelligence
Topics: self-awareness, emotional intelligence, authenticity, resilience, team dynamics
Leadership is more than a checklist or a title—it’s a deeply personal journey rooted in self-awareness, the ability to understand your emotions, behaviors, and their influence on others. This cornerstone of emotional intelligence lays the groundwork for authentic and impactful leadership.
In this session, Angie explores the transformative role of self-awareness in leadership, addressing questions like:
- How can understanding emotional triggers improve decision-making and communication?
- How does self-awareness foster trust and stability within teams?
- What strategies help individuals, leaders, and organizations uncover blind spots and align their behaviors with their values?
Drawing from her own experience, Angie shares how self-awareness enabled her to navigate challenges and build meaningful connections. Attendees will leave with practical tools to embrace self-awareness as a lifelong practice, empowering them to lead with authenticity, purpose, and impact.
The Power of Transitions: Embracing Change With Grace
Topics: adaptability, resilience, growth, purpose, transitional intelligence (TQ)
Change is inevitable, but how we respond defines the outcome. In this session, Angie shares ways to enhance your Transitional Intelligence (TQ)—the ability to adapt, grow, and thrive during life-changing circumstances. She shares the lifequakes she has navigated skillfully and not so skillfully and what she learned from those experiences. She reframes transitions as opportunities for transformation when approached with the right mindset.
Angie explores the emotional landscape of change and introduces three pillars of TQ:
- Adaptability: Staying flexible in uncertainty.
- Resilience: Building strength to overcome challenges.
- Purposeful Alignment: Grounding actions in personal values.
Through practical strategies and inspiring real-life stories, Angie equips attendees to embrace transitions with confidence and clarity. She leaves them with a powerful message: while change is inevitable, choosing how to respond unlocks the potential for growth and transformation. Through small acts of bravery, a fresh start can lead to endless possibilities.
Living BIG: Getting Clear on Values and Setting Boundaries
Topics: authenticity, values, boundaries, purpose, intentional living
Living BIG means leading a life guided by authenticity, integrity, and generosity. In this session, Angie inspires participants to embrace this bold approach by clarifying their core values and setting and respecting other’s boundaries. She shares how aligning actions with values and confidently communicating limits empowers individuals to live with purpose and integrity.
Angie explores two transformative practices:
- Getting Clear on Core Values: Values act as a personal compass, guiding decisions and priorities. Angie helps attendees identify their top values, recognize misalignments, and align their actions to foster purpose and confidence.
- Setting Healthy Boundaries: Boundaries protect our time, energy, and values. Angela explains how they prevent burnout, enhance relationships, and serve as acts of self-respect.
Through practical strategies, including regular value check-ins, effective boundary communication, and prioritizing what truly matters, Angie equips attendees to take small, intentional steps toward living BIG. Real-world stories of transformation illustrate the profound impact of these practices on confidence, relationships, and fulfillment.
The session concludes with a reflective exercise and a call to action: living BIG begins with honoring what matters most and setting the boundaries to protect it while being receptive, understanding, and respectful of other people’s boundaries.
Facing Resistance: Navigating the Expectations of Others
Topics: authenticity, resilience, communication, boundaries, expectations, imposter syndrome
Living authentically often means facing resistance from the expectations of others. In this session, Angie empowers attendees with tools to navigate external pressures while staying true to themselves. By fostering resilience, clarity, and effective communication, she helps individuals maintain their authenticity amidst challenges.
Angela explores key themes:
- Understanding Emotional Resistance: Resistance arises when our choices challenge societal, cultural, and personal expectations, often leading to self-doubt and fear of judgment and criticism.
- The High Cost of Conforming: Prioritizing others’ expectations can lead to misaligned decisions, emotional exhaustion, and a loss of authenticity, which is a real soul-sucking experience.
- Navigating Resistance: Angie shares practical strategies like understanding the perceived and actual threats, clarifying values, reframing resistance as an opportunity for growth, and building self-confidence.
- Finding Flow: Surrendering to things outside your control while learning to lead more empathetically, asserting healthy boundaries, and fostering collaboration.
Through real-life examples, Angie illustrates how individuals have overcome opposition to align with their values and purpose, transforming resistance into strength.
The session concludes with an empowering exercise, encouraging participants to identify one expectation they feel pressured by and create an action plan to address it. Angela leaves attendees with an inspiring reminder: “Resistance is part of the journey to authenticity—it’s where true strength and freedom are found.”
