Liz O’Riordan | Breast Surgeon, Best-Selling Author, Leadership & Resilience Speaker | Speaker Reel

April 13, 2026
To learn more ab out Liz O’Riordan or to customize her keynote speaking topics, visit https://mollieplotkingroup.com/speaker/Liz-O’Riordan/
One of the most overlooked skills of a high-performing leader is being a leader who can last. High performers don’t fall apart loudly. They go quiet, and then they’re gone. And I know it’s true because it happened to me. But as a surgeon, I didn’t wait for my patients to collapse. I intervened early, and that’s what I now teach leaders to do for themselves and their teams. We know that vulnerability doesn’t push people apart. It’s actually a sign of strength, and it brings people closer together. It’s not emotional exposure, it’s strategic humanity. Most organizations wait to act until a leader is visibly struggling, but by then it’s too late for them, their team, and for the business. I give leaders a practical framework to protect their performance, their relationships, and their ability to lead before the pressure becomes a crisis. I want to teach you to intervene early. Now, in medicine, we call it prehabilitation or prehab. Think about your highest performer. First in, last out. They never complain. They never ask for help. They look like your most dependable person until the day they hand in their notice. I spent 20 years as a surgeon teaching doctors to lead under pressure. I now work with organizations in the tech, finance, pharmaceutical, and healthcare sectors, giving them clear, actionable strategies that help leaders stay calm, think clearly, and communicate effectively when the stakes are high. Who would you be if work stopped tomorrow? I had to learn that my life was important, and I want you to know that your life is important, too. I can’t stop the stress. No one can. I want you to reconnect with the things that make you smile. The impact of my framework continues long after I’ve left the stage. One leader told me she woke up the morning after feeling, in her words, a little more invincible, and another said it was the first time his team had ever talked openly about what leadership really costs. Imagine your team being able to perform under pressure without sacrificing themselves. It’s real, it’s measurable, and it’s what I create one room at a time.

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