Linda Armstrong Kelly

Biography

Linda Armstrong Kelly challenges parents and leaders, motivates teens and team
members, and lights a fire under anyone who's ever dreamed of making a difference. Delivering dynamic messages about work-life balance and personal potential, this self-made Cinderella shares a captivating life story that sweeps audiences from the Dallas projects where she grew up to the streets of Paris where she watched her son, Lance Armstrong, astonish the world with seven consecutive Tour de France victories. With laughter, love, and a lot of class, Linda speaks about parenting, possibility, and life with Lance; sharing the guiding principles that enabled her to forge a corner office career from an entry level temp job and blaze the trail for a true champion.

Publications

From the mother of champion cyclist Lance Armstrong—an extraordinary story of the resilience of the human spirit and the remarkable effect of great parenting.
Lance Armstrong has dazzled the world with his six straight Tour de France championships, his winning personality, and his poignant victory over life-threatening cancer. Yet the adage that "behind every strong man there is a stronger woman" has never been more true than in Lance’s case. His mother, Linda Armstrong Kelly, is a force of nature whose determination, optimism, and sheer joie de vivre not only nurtured one of our era’s greatest athletes but fueled her own transformation from a poverty-stricken teen in the Dallas projects to a powerful role model for mothers everywhere. This luminous memoir, written with humor and compassion, tells Linda’s story of survival. Pregnant at age seventeen, kicked out of her home, and mired in an abusive relationship, Linda was a perfect candidate for disaster. But armed with a fierce belief in herself as a work in progress, and buoyed by a tidal wave of love for her little boy, Linda flouted statistics and became both a corner-office executive and a no-nonsense, empowering mom whose desire to excel was contagious. Her resolve to find “the diamond in the Dumpster, the blessing in every bummer” set an extraordinary example for Lance—and will inspire everyday moms to dream big and make a difference. Funny, resonant, down-to-earth, and utterly unforgettable, No Mountain High Enough is exhilarating proof that sheer willpower can—and occasionally does—triumph over adversity.

Titles

No Mountain High Enough
You will not only be captivated but also humored when Linda speaks to your audience. As a result of hearing Linda speak, they will have a better understanding of how they may:
•Maintain a positive attitude
•Improve leadership skills
•Achieve peak performance
•Create work/life balance
•Develop and deliver strong work ethics
•Set and achieve goals both personally and professionally
•How to turn a bad choice into a life-learning opportunity

Not to mention, perseverance. She is a walking testimony! Your audience will leave wanting more.

This keynote speech is based on Linda's book, No Mountain High Enough: Raising Lance, Raising Me. Her early life experiences helped her form the values and positive attitude that both she and Lance carried forward into adulthood. Linda believes that living with love and joy, maintaining focus, and risk-taking are at the heart of every successful endeavor and that these things are the foundation for a life well lived.
Linda's presentation speak powerfully to timely tough topics such as:
•Teen Pregnancy
•Domestic/Substance Abuse
•Single Motherhood
•Cancer Survival
•Challenges Women Face in the Corporate Environment

She is ideal for many diverse audiences including corporate clients, students and educators, healthcare and professional associations.