Flying Through Fear
Creating a Culture of Courage
Fear, self-doubt, and hesitation show up for everyone—from frontline teams to senior leaders. The difference between those who stay stuck and those who move forward is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to act despite it. Drawing from her experience as a combat-tested fighter pilot and former Air Force Thunderbird, Michelle “MACE” Curran shares unforgettable stories and practical insights that help audiences rethink fear, expand their comfort zones, and step into bold action.
Takeaways:
The Space Between
Winning the Moment Between Fear and Action
In high-pressure moments, the greatest risk is often not the challenge itself—but our reaction to it. As a Thunderbird pilot flying within feet of other aircraft at nearly the speed of sound, Michelle learned that performance depends on what happens in the critical space between stimulus and response. In this keynote, she shares actionable strategies for staying composed, thinking clearly, and responding intentionally when the pressure is on.
Takeaways:
Everyone Has a Callsign (workshop)
Reframing Mistakes, Building Resilience, and Creating a Growth Mindset
In fighter pilot culture, callsigns are often earned through mistakes—and worn for life as badges of humility, growth, and belonging. In this highly interactive workshop, Michelle uses this unique tradition to help teams rethink failure, share lessons learned, and build a healthier relationship with mistakes. Participants leave with a renewed perspective on setbacks, stronger team connection, and even their own callsign.
Takeaways:
Michelle brings a very unique perspective based on her experience as a USAF Fighter Pilot which is incredibly inspiring and motivating!!! Despite not being in the Air Force or military at all, her vulnerability makes it super easy to connect and relate to some of her past experiences as a flawed human!
Leader, Purina
Since your talk, I feel more confident and am intentionally using fear as my superpower as I show up in rooms this week. In my executive meetings, I’ve noticed my inner critic, separated its voice from reality, and reframed doubts with empowering statements. I’m pausing before speaking to respond with confidence and expertise, letting my ideas shine instead of being held back by fear.
Policy Circle
Michelle was the consummate professional, yet she felt very relatable and authentic. We were in awe of the dedication and perseverance that it took for a small-town girl to realize her big-time dreams! Truly inspiring!
Organizational Excellence, AbbVie
Michelle had us laughing, some of us even cried. We broke down invisible walls as she moved us towards a better version of ourselves. Each of us walked away motivated and ready to take on more life. Ready to take action, now.
CEO, Pacific GeoSource
Are you looking for an amazing speaker? One that will speak on Teamwork, Inspiration, and what it’s like to fail and get back up. Without a doubt in the 40+ years that we’ve been doing this I’ve never seen anyone come up afterwards and say it was the best ever except this time. Michelle connects to her audience on a personal level and if we didn’t cut off the questions afterwards, she’d still be there.
President, Greater Bergen Realtors
I fall victim to fear a lot. It has held me back on many sales opportunities. Sitting there, listening to Michelle’s talk, I felt like she was just speaking to me. Her speech has inspired me to go out of my comfort zone! Listening to Michelle’s speech froze me. I sat there hearing her talk about her fears, self-doubt, and struggles. Tears welled up in my eyes and I realized she went through the same emotions I have wrestled with about becoming an Account Executive. I told my RVP later that night, that I was ready to make the transition! Thank you for being such a positive influence on so many in our team.
Account Executive, Solutionz
I received a call from a trusted colleague raving about Michelle Curran, aka MACE, and a recent speech she gave his organization. I immediately engaged MACE to provide a leadership presentation to PenFed Leadership across the US entitled, ‘Flying Through Fear: How Vulnerability Fuels Success’. It was a complete success, and her insight and positive, polished delivery will have a beneficial impact on PenFed for years to come.
President, PenFed Credit Union
Michelle’s message of battling your inner critic resonated with our group. It was the perfect message to kickstart our weeklong event focusing on personal and professional development. I highly recommend Michelle if you’re looking for ways to inspire your team to be bold and brave with new challenges or projects.
Leader, John Deere
Powerful! Very interesting to hear her story, and although I cannot directly relate in many respects (I am not a pilot), I felt like MACE was able to communicate in a manner that moves you! She brought everything back to the real world and spoke to our hearts and minds that resonated with me! She shared so many great nuggets of advice that are actionable and empowering to make a change!
Wisconsin Women's Leadership Conference
Thank you for publicly talking about insecurity, vulnerability and fear. These are all things we all think about but not speak about. The feedback on your session has been overwhelming. You were authentic and genuine which is not something you see every day in the corporate world. Please keep moving this train forward educating, enabling and promoting breaking through barriers!
Vice President, Global Strategic Alliances, Kyndryl
