Keynotes and conversations that challenge how we lead, build, connect, and show up as humans. No corporate fluff. No pretending anyone has it all figured out.
How people think. How people work. How people lead.
Erin Pash is an entrepreneur, licensed marriage and family therapist, author, and founder who has spent her career studying human behavior and building businesses that challenge the status quo. From growing Ellie Mental Health into a national organization with more than 270 locations to launching new ventures through Pash Company, she brings a rare combination of clinical insight, entrepreneurial experience, humor, and hard-earned perspective to the stage.
The flagships
Disrupt. Build. Lead.
The New Era of Purpose-Driven Leadership
What does it really take to challenge the status quo, build something extraordinary, and lead when the rules keep changing? Drawing from her journey as a therapist turned entrepreneur who built a national mental health company, Erin explores the intersection of courage, creativity, authenticity, and leadership—challenging audiences to rethink success, embrace discomfort, and lead with purpose rather than perfection.
Coping with the Hard Stuff and Embracing Your Perfectly Messy Life
We all have moments when we’re difficult, defensive, overwhelmed, or just kind of an asshole. The question isn’t whether we screw up—it’s what we do next. Based on her book, Erin combines humor, clinical expertise, and relatable stories to explore emotional intelligence, accountability, conflict, and the art of being a better human. Audiences leave with practical tools to understand their own behavior, communicate more effectively, and repair relationships when things get messy.
Ideal for: Corporate conferences, professional associations, healthcare audiences, community events, personal development
Featured keynote
Featured60 minutes · 45-min talk + 15-min Q&A
AI + EI = OH
Finding Balance in Our Digital Age
AI can write the email, book the room and summarize the report. It cannot tell the difference between a teammate who’s disengaged and one who’s quietly drowning. Erin makes the case for a real division of labor: let artificial intelligence handle the repetitive and the routine, then spend the time it hands back on the things it can’t replicate—naming what someone is feeling, building trust, creating belonging. Part science, part confession, part call to action, this keynote walks audiences through the dopamine-versus-oxytocin trap we’re all caught in and leaves them with a practical framework for using AI without losing the human connection that makes work worth doing.
It opens with a song. Yes, the whole room sings along.
Ideal for: Leadership and corporate teams, AI and innovation summits, entrepreneur and startup communities, conference keynotes, workplace wellness events
Leadership & entrepreneurship
Building Businesses Without Losing Yourself
The Human Side of Entrepreneurship
Building a business can be exhilarating, exhausting, deeply personal, and occasionally ridiculous. Erin explores the hidden emotional costs of entrepreneurship—from identity and imposter syndrome to burnout, difficult decisions, and the pressure to constantly achieve—and helps founders build businesses that support their lives instead of consuming them.
Ideal for: Founders, entrepreneurs, business owners, women in leadership, startup communities
From Therapy Room to Boardroom
What Building a National Mental Health Company Taught Me About People, Leadership & Growth
What happens when a therapist decides to build a company that changes an industry? Erin shares the unconventional lessons behind scaling Ellie Mental Health from a single clinic to a national franchise network—hiring, culture, rapid growth, investor relationships, and leadership challenges—an unfiltered look at entrepreneurship through the lens of human behavior.
Redefining Success, Burnout & the Pressure to Do It All
Somewhere along the way, being busy became a badge of honor and exhaustion became a personality trait. Erin challenges the cultural obsession with productivity and explores why high-achieving people often struggle to recognize their own limits—offering a refreshing perspective on boundaries, resilience, emotional wellbeing, and building a life that feels as successful as it looks.
Why Human Connection Is Our Most Undervalued Asset
We measure financial health, physical health, and mental health—but what about the health of our relationships? Erin explores why connection, belonging, and healthy interpersonal dynamics are essential to individual wellbeing, organizational performance, and thriving communities, challenging audiences to reconsider the role of relationships in how we work, lead, and live.
Preparing Therapists for the Changing Realities of Systemic Practice
Clinical training teaches therapists how to treat people—but does it prepare them for the realities of modern practice? Erin examines the growing disconnect between clinical education, ethical obligations, insurance requirements, and organizational expectations, challenging the profession to rethink how clinicians are prepared, supported, and sustained.
Ideal for: MFT conferences, universities, clinical supervisors, behavioral health organizations, professional associations
Supervising in the Crossfire
Ethics, Boundaries & Clinical Preparation for High-Conflict Family Systems
Working with high-conflict families demands sophisticated ethical judgment, clear boundaries, and an understanding of the complex intersection between mental health and legal systems. Erin equips supervisors and clinicians with practical frameworks for managing risk while keeping the therapeutic process grounded in sound systemic practice.
Ideal for: MFT and counseling conferences, clinical supervisors, family therapists, ethics trainings, continuing education
Rethinking Mental Healthcare
Innovation, Access & the Future of Behavioral Health
What would mental healthcare look like if we stopped accepting the way things have always been done? Drawing from her experience building and scaling one of the nation’s largest outpatient mental health networks, Erin examines the tension between clinical quality, accessibility, business sustainability, and innovation.
Emotional intelligence, leadership blind spots, accountability, and repairing trust.
Everybody Works With Someone Who Sucks Sometimes
Workplace conflict, difficult colleagues, boundaries, and healthier team communication.
Everybody Loves Someone Who Sucks Sometimes
Relationships, conflict patterns, expectations, and how to repair emotional disconnection.
The Women Who Look Fine
The hidden emotional weight carried by high-achieving women—and the difference between appearing successful and feeling well.
Stop Emotionally Micromanaging Yourself
Self-criticism, emotional perfectionism, and developing healthier responses to difficult feelings.
Maybe You Don’t Need to Heal Everything
Challenging the pressure to endlessly optimize ourselves—and recognizing when acceptance matters more than self-improvement.
Every audience is different. Every presentation should be, too. Erin works with event organizers to tailor the experience to your audience, industry, and goals.
Formats
45
Minute keynote
High-energy, thought-provoking, and packed with actionable takeaways.
60
Minute signature keynote
The full experience—storytelling, humor, research, and practical strategies.
90
Minute interactive presentation
A deeper dive with audience engagement, reflection, and real-world application.
½–1
Day workshops
Customized learning experiences for leadership teams, organizations, and professional associations.
★
Panels, fireside chats & retreats
Candid conversations about entrepreneurship, mental health, leadership, and the human experience.
A little inspiration. A lot of real talk.
Whether you’re bringing together thousands of industry leaders, hosting an intimate executive retreat, or looking for a speaker who can make a room laugh while challenging everything they thought they knew—let’s make your next event something people actually remember.
