Carolyn Sharp

Therapist/Author/Speaker at Secure Connections

Professional Training and Coaching

Education: Rhodes College - Portland State University
West Newbury, MA, USA
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Biography

Carolyn Sharp, LICSW, is a therapist, relationship expert, and international speaker with over 30 years of experience helping people deepen connection in every area of life. She speaks on topics including relational intelligence, emotional resilience, burnout recovery, and long-term intimacy. Carolyn is the author of Fire It Up: Four Secrets to Reigniting Intimacy and Joy in Your Relationship and a trusted voice on the neuroscience of human connection.

Passion

Helping people reconnect to themselves and each other in ways that grow kindness, clarity, and courage is what puts a smile on my face. Whether I’m teaching, speaking, or guiding a retreat, my passion is creating spaces where real growth happens and connection becomes a powerful force for good.

Best Story

Here is an example of a recent story I told to teach a point to a couple I was working with:

My husband and I recently got into tense and silly standoff over the dishwasher. I was frustrated that he didn’t rinse the dishes; he was frustrated that I was so agitated over it. What we were really fighting about had nothing to do with plates. It was about feeling seen, valued, and understood.

It took me years into my career as a therapist to see exactly how much harder we make it on ourselves by reacting to symptoms instead of tuning in to the signal underneath. I wasn’t mad about spinach, I was needing care. And he wasn’t careless: he was overwhelmed. Once we stopped defending and started getting curious, everything shifted.

We’re wired to protect ourselves, but real connection comes when we pause, soften, and lead with curiosity. This is something I teach everyday in my work, in my writing and in my retreats.

Origin Story

I grew up in a home shaped by trauma and emotional disconnection. That early pain became fuel. I became a social worker to help others build the kinds of relationships I longed for but didn’t see modeled. I spent years supporting children, families, and individuals, studying everything I could about attachment, healing, and communication. But no one had trained me in how to navigate romantic relationships.

In my first marriage, I struggled. I was insightful and compassionate—but I didn’t yet know how to bring those strengths into the intimate partnership I most wanted to thrive. My divorce was painful, but it became a turning point. It lit a fire in me. I became fiercely curious about what makes love work, and what causes it to fall apart. I did this work for my daughter, and for all the lost people out there who think change is out of reach.

That commitment became the heart of my passion. I’ve used it as a therapist, a supervisor, a healer—and now, as a wife. Geoff and I are both determined not to repeat the mistakes we made the first time around. We practice what I teach. Not because we’re broken, but because we believe connection is something we build on purpose.

Now, I teach others to do the same: in their romantic relationships and beyond. Because relationships are the key to everything. How we show up with each other shapes our families, our workplaces, our communities. My business motto, Building Stronger Relationships for a Better World, isn’t just personal. It’s everything.

Example talks

Bold Choices, Strong Connections, and the Power of Relationships: The EmpowerHer Keynote

In this dynamic and heartfelt keynote, relationship expert and author Carolyn Sharp delivers a powerful reminder: our greatest opportunities for growth, success, and leadership come from how we show up in our relationships.

Blending neuroscience, attachment theory, and 30 years of experience coaching women and couples, Carolyn challenges the myth that strength means doing it all alone.

She reveals how the real superpowers in business, love, and personal growth- curiosity, compassion, and connection- transform everyday irritations into opportunities and help women lead with clarity, courage, and heart. This is a call to lead differently, love more deeply, and build the kind of relationships that fuel lasting success.

Link to Clip of Talk on Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/1101624661/1718a6dc41?ts=0&share=copy

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Topics

teamwork in personal relationships relationships building strategic relationships building relationships communication skills emotional intelligence emotional intelligence in the workplace emotional healing romantic relationships neuroscience attachment attachment theory powerful connections compassion womens leadership authentic leadership self care team leadership workplace conflict reduction handling conflict bridging differences power of curiosity empowering women interpersonal skills humor and leadership teams clinical supervision and training therapy social work practice psychotherapy womens empowerment empowerment personal empowerment collective leadership female founder women entrepreneurship coaching heart centered leadership heart centered career and family authenticity burnout prevention balance community psychology inspiring insight authors relationship management podcast generation x mental health mental health trauma recovery marriage and family cultivating resilience neuroscience of confidence mindfulness mindfulness in the workplace parenting coparenting creating trust with people you cant see therapist marriage and family therapists social workers female entrepreneurship developing emotional intelligence emotional iq social and emotional learning social and emotional needs

Best Story

Here is an example of a recent story I told to teach a point to a couple I was working with:

My husband and I recently got into tense and silly standoff over the dishwasher. I was frustrated that he didn’t rinse the dishes; he was frustrated that I was so agitated over it. What we were really fighting about had nothing to do with plates. It was about feeling seen, valued, and understood.

It took me years into my career as a therapist to see exactly how much harder we make it on ourselves by reacting to symptoms instead of tuning in to the signal underneath. I wasn’t mad about spinach, I was needing care. And he wasn’t careless: he was overwhelmed. Once we stopped defending and started getting curious, everything shifted.

We’re wired to protect ourselves, but real connection comes when we pause, soften, and lead with curiosity. This is something I teach everyday in my work, in my writing and in my retreats.

Origin Story

I grew up in a home shaped by trauma and emotional disconnection. That early pain became fuel. I became a social worker to help others build the kinds of relationships I longed for but didn’t see modeled. I spent years supporting children, families, and individuals, studying everything I could about attachment, healing, and communication. But no one had trained me in how to navigate romantic relationships.

In my first marriage, I struggled. I was insightful and compassionate—but I didn’t yet know how to bring those strengths into the intimate partnership I most wanted to thrive. My divorce was painful, but it became a turning point. It lit a fire in me. I became fiercely curious about what makes love work, and what causes it to fall apart. I did this work for my daughter, and for all the lost people out there who think change is out of reach.

That commitment became the heart of my passion. I’ve used it as a therapist, a supervisor, a healer—and now, as a wife. Geoff and I are both determined not to repeat the mistakes we made the first time around. We practice what I teach. Not because we’re broken, but because we believe connection is something we build on purpose.

Now, I teach others to do the same: in their romantic relationships and beyond. Because relationships are the key to everything. How we show up with each other shapes our families, our workplaces, our communities. My business motto, Building Stronger Relationships for a Better World, isn’t just personal. It’s everything.

Example talks

Bold Choices, Strong Connections, and the Power of Relationships: The EmpowerHer Keynote

In this dynamic and heartfelt keynote, relationship expert and author Carolyn Sharp delivers a powerful reminder: our greatest opportunities for growth, success, and leadership come from how we show up in our relationships.

Blending neuroscience, attachment theory, and 30 years of experience coaching women and couples, Carolyn challenges the myth that strength means doing it all alone.

She reveals how the real superpowers in business, love, and personal growth- curiosity, compassion, and connection- transform everyday irritations into opportunities and help women lead with clarity, courage, and heart. This is a call to lead differently, love more deeply, and build the kind of relationships that fuel lasting success.

Link to Clip of Talk on Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/1101624661/1718a6dc41?ts=0&share=copy