Hello! I'm Kirsten Henning.

And I thank you for stopping by. 

From Fortune 500 CEOs to Mary J. Blige to students who survived the great tsunami in Japan, I work with people at the intersection of leadership, empathy, humor, and healing. 

In my life I strive to do the right thing by carving out my own path of fearlessness. I’ve worked in international relations, with Native American tribes, with women and girls’ leadership initiatives, and as Ichiro Suzuki’s press liaison and interpreter. (If you don’t know baseball, just pretend he’s David Beckham).

After several years in Japan I returned to my hometown of Seattle to take a position as a communications consultant, and later as interim executive director at the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Washington State. Then I decided to work as an executive in New York for a national nonprofit working to elect women into office. 

Along the way I went on a search for more joy and discovered improv comedy at the Magnet Theater. I’m also trained in empathy and communications through the New York Center for Nonviolent Communication, and I’m a Safe Conversations leader through Relationships First (which by the way, is beloved by Oprah!)

I am a passionate advocate for women and girls’ leadership. Not only am I a lifelong Girl Scout myself, but I won a Telly Award for telling the stories of Scouts at all levels. I'm also a writer and instructor for Funny Girls–a curriculum that teaches girls leadership skills through improv.

I’m a graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University, and also studied at Stanford University in Japan. You can often find me working on projects in New York City, and throughout Alaska and the Pacific Northwest.

Throughout my career I have been interviewed by BBC Newshour, NPR, The Baltimore Sun, The Glasshammer, The Seattle Times, Levo League, and Forbes.com. You can read more about my career path on LinkedIn.