Amanda Nachman

Organizational Thought Leader, Expert on Rejection & Best-Selling Author

Amanda Nachman

Organizational Thought Leader, Expert on Rejection & Best-Selling Author

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Biography

Amanda Nachman is the CEO of College Magazine, TEDx speaker, and bestselling author of #Qualified: You Are More Impressive Than You Realize. She's also a keynote speaker and the host of Find Your Passion Career. Amanda has appeared on Good Morning America, Cheddar TV, and ABC10. Her advice has been featured in Business Insider, NBC News, Today, and MarketWatch. Her speaking audiences include universities, associations, and organizations who are eager to create meaningful change and live intentional lives.

As we recover from the pandemic, Amanda's message is more powerful than ever: you are qualified. She relates to all of us who have ever felt unqualified to go after our dreams and helps young professionals create an intentional life, with human interactions filled with caring and gratitude, to create a sustainable world.

At the age of 21, Amanda felt qualified to launch her own business, College Magazine. Two years later, she didn't question if her business was investor-worthy. She knew her magazine was special from seeing her student writers graduate and grow into their dream careers at NBC, National Geographic, Washingtonian, US Weekly, USA Today, Vox, Random House, and more. And as print magazines went digital, she didn't question if she could learn online publishing. She was fearless.

After growing to reach millions of readers at CollegeMagazine.com, Amanda took another career leap, launched the podcast, wrote her book, and now speaks to thousands of young professionals nationwide with this important message: You don't need permission to follow your dreams. You are qualified.

Amanda is on a mission to help young professionals create an intentional life, with human interactions filled with caring and gratitude, to create a sustainable world. She lives in San Diego, CA, surrounded by a community of friends and her dog, Frankie.

Speaker Videos

Choose Confidence

TEDx: You Are More Qualified Than You Realize

Making Connections

Top Tips to Get Hired | GMA

Maximizing Your College Experience

You Are More #Qualified Than You Realize

Unleash Your Strengths

Find Your Passion Career

How to Make Courageous Connection

See Fewer Videos

Speech Topics

Fighting the Fear of Rejection to Fuel Success

What’s one of the biggest stumbling blocks to leading a successful, happy life at work, school and home? It’s the fear of rejection. When people are afraid to fail, it can kill their potential, stymie great ideas, make them reluctant to take chances or never try anything new. Fortunately, there is a silver lining to all of this, says Amanda Nachman, an expert on rejection. In this talk, Amanda lays out the science of rejection and the tools you need to make sure you and those around you are rejection-proof. Because when you are able to normalize the fear of failure, a successful future can be all yours.

Amanda customizes her content for specific audiences, including:

Business: Do you dream of a culture where morale is high, your leaders shine, your team is crushing it every day and innovation is the norm? Amanda shows you how to get there by giving you the tools you need to normalize the fear of failure.

Non-Profits: When it comes to fundraising, the fear of rejection is real. Amanda shares how to stay motivated and confident in your abilities, courageously connect and view rejection as an opportunity instead of a failure.

Educators: Is the fear of rejection crippling your students, stopping them from achieving their goals? Amanda will give you the tools to help them discover their value and conquer this fear, so they feel confident to take on any challenge and never doubt their strengths again.

Students: Amanda helps you discover the steps to build new connections, gain confidence in your abilities and rejection-proof your life.

Finding Your Passion Career: From Day One on Campus

You were meant to do something meaningful. And there’s a ripple effect. When you love what you do, you are happier, you produce higher quality work and you make a greater impact in the world. Amanda Nachman, author of #Qualified and CEO of College Magazine, has worked with hundreds of students and graduates and all of them have felt stuck on their career journey. They doubted their strengths, felt discouraged by rejection and often settled for jobs they didn’t like. So, how do we pursue our passions? With her own passion, humor and inspiration, Nachman breaks down step-by-step how to unlock, seek and achieve your passion career. Learn how to uncover your interests, strengths and values and how to connect these unique parts of your identity to a career. Discover all the nonlinear paths and opportunities that exist that you may not have realized. Tell your leveled-up story to better communicate your why and connect with people who are in their dream field. Leave this event with the tangible steps you need to maximize your college experience and realize your passion career.

You are More #QUALIFIED Than You Think

Join Amanda Nachman, author of #Qualified and CEO of College Magazine, for a virtual career event geared toward sophomores, juniors, seniors and alumni. If you have ever felt unqualified, or doubted your strengths, this event is for you. Don’t wait for someone to tell you that you are qualified to get started. Even in the midst of a pandemic, you can take action today to pursue your dream career. Learn how to armor up with a qualified mindset and see all the ways in which your talents, passions, ideas and skills are transferable. You'll discover how to interview virtually, make courageous connections and build upon your strengths. Learn how to level up your story to grow your personal brand. Leave this event with the tangible steps you need to take control of your career journey. You have incredible strengths and value to offer and Nachman will show you how to get started.

You are More #QUALIFIED Than You Think for Educators

Even though you have the degrees and are extremely qualified, you may be struggling with imposter syndrome, which can be paralyzing and hold you back from pursuing what’s next or to ask for a promotion. But all is not lost. By working in higher education, you are in the best environment to grow and change. Join Amanda Nachman, author of #Qualified and CEO of College Magazine, to learn how to take advantage of opportunities to grow your career. Learn how to leverage the campus community to spark new connections, advance your qualifications and uncover possibilities for your career that you hadn’t considered before. Prepare to adopt a qualified mindset and see all the ways in which your talents, passions, ideas and skills are transferable. You'll also discover how to level up your story in order to make a confident first impression and to grow your personal brand. Leave this event with the tangible steps you need to create your own success.

Creating the Career You Want

Don't wait for permission to make your next career move. Start today, with where you are now. Discover all the value you have to offer in order to take control of your career journey. Join Amanda Nachman, author of #Qualified and CEO of College Magazine, to find out how to create the career you want. Learn how to adopt a qualified mindset by unleashing your strengths and build upon your experience. You’ll start to realize all the value you have to offer. You'll also discover how to spark courageous connections leveraging LinkedIn and level up your story to grow your personal brand. Make a big leap in your career with confidence. Leave this event with the tangible steps you need to achieve your dream career.

Glow Up Your Personal Brand

You're a person, not a brand, right? But to stand out in a competitive job market, you must communicate your value. Discover how your personal brand will leave an impression and help you demonstrate your passion. Amanda Nachman, author of #Qualified and CEO of College Magazine, breaks down how to glow up your personal brand through four different platforms: LinkedIn, Instagram, a personal website and podcast. (Did you know that 14 million new people have become podcast listeners in the last year?) First, you'll identify your strengths and level up your story in this interactive workshop. Then you'll declare your first action step in building your personal brand so that you can take full control of your career journey.

Your Students Are #QUALIFIED

Do your students doubt their strengths and undersell themselves? Join Amanda Nachman, author of #Qualified and CEO of College Magazine to help them squash their imposter syndrome and see all the value they have to offer. Uncover how your students’ interests, strengths and values differentiate them as they seek internships and pursue their dream career. Using the #Qualified method, students will discover how to seek opportunities, build new connections and interview virtually. Even if your students don’t feel confident, they can leverage Nachman’s tangible steps in order to show up professionally and learn the blueprint for their career journey.

Testimonials

"Amanda Nachman was a great keynote speaker for our community. Her message was relevant to our students and left them empowered to take action on their goals. She was so easy to work with and went out of her way to customize her sessions to meet the needs of our campus."

- Saint Peter's University

"Amanda totally lit up the energy and kicked off our conference with grounded, motivating and encouraging words. Empowering our 300+ team members to find their path and remind them that they are #Qualified was the EXACT spark that our team needed. So many people on our team reached out to me to let me know how much they resonated with her message. I highly recommend her!"

- UC San Diego Student Affairs

“Amanda Nachman was a wonderful speaker. In her #Qualified Workshop, first generation college students and alumni felt seen, heard, and encouraged to pursue their dreams, combat imposter syndrome, and take their careers to the next level. I would highly recommend Amanda for your next speaking engagement if you want to level up and have a few good laughs along the way!”

- Reality Changers

"Amanda's keynote left our worldwide audience feeling inspired and confident about their future, prepared to take action. We all get tired of our own story—Amanda's advice on leveling up for courageous connections hit home."

- CEO Meetup

“Step-by-step, Amanda leads you on a journey to your passion career. She empowers you through personal stories and practical, clear advice to make courageous connections that will change your life.”

- Former Executive Vice Provost, Johns Hopkins University

“Amanda strikes the perfect balance and tone in her discussion of what it takes to achieve your best career life at any age. Her book encourages readers to give themselves important permission to question and explore their career passions in a way that inspires positive, long-term change and career satisfaction.”

- Director, Undergraduate Career Services at Bentley University

"The students at Colby Sawyer felt inspired by Amanda's message and the chat was on fire with students sharing their interests, strengths and values during her keynote! We loved that Amanda customized her talk to feature local examples for how students can discover opportunities that connect to their passions. The best part was hearing how students could level up their stories. I know that these exercises give them the confidence they need to network and to find careers they will love."

- Colby Sawyer College

"Amanda's Qualified presentation engaged our students in thinking about not only their future possibilities, but also what they can offer right here, right now. From making courageous connections to developing compelling personal narratives, our students left with noticeable confidence in being active in creating their own future rather than passively accepting opportunities."

- Associate Director, Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland