About Deb Mitchell
I built KindShift because I was that woman.
Not a version of her. Not someone who observed her from the outside and decided to help. Her.
I had the results. I had the loyalty. I had the trust of every team I served and the track record to prove it. I was the person people came to when something hard needed to be done, because I could do it, and they knew it.
And then the feedback started.
Too emotional. Too sensitive. Too nice. Not quite ready. Keep developing.
And somewhere along the way, I stopped questioning it. I started believing it. That's what sustained criticism does. It doesn't just hurt. It rewires.
And once I could see that, I couldn’t unsee it.
So I stepped back. I took time. I stopped managing perceptions. I got quiet enough to remember who I actually was and what I was actually capable of.
And then I got clarity. Not bitter. Clear.
Because I know what it feels like to second-guess yourself in a room where you used to feel confident. To wonder if the feedback is right. To shrink a little more each time, just to make things easier.
I've been there. And I've watched other women navigate the same thing.
That's why I built KindShift.
I launched Inspired Consulting Solutions, focused on organizational change management and leadership. And for over a year, one question kept brewing.
What if the best thing you brought to leadership was the thing they kept asking you to change?
That question became KindShift.
And then I was laid off.
I took the summer. Not to figure out what was next, but to remember who I actually was outside of a job title and a performance review.
I rebuilt my confidence the same way I'd lost it, slowly, deliberately, one small decision at a time.
And then I got clear on something.
I am a good investment.
I am starting my own business.
The credential that matters most for this work is simpler than any certification.
I've been in the room. I know what it costs to lead with kindness in systems that don't always reward it. And I know there's a better way.
KindShift is not a consolation prize for women who couldn't make it work. It's a framework for women who made it work at great personal cost and are done paying that price.
Courageous kindness is not soft. It's strategic.
If you’re done second-guessing yourself in rooms you already belong in, join the Open Circle
A free community for women navigating exactly this.
Or explore the cohort if you're ready to go deeper.
As Seen & Heard
