"Companies improve when people improve," says Valerie Sokolosky, recognized in the Wall Street Journal as a pioneer in executive coaching on professional presence and personal branding. Just spend ten minutes with Valerie and you'll recognize her warmth and rare gift of inspiring others to uncover their leadership potential. "I'm dedicated to coaching leaders at all levels to develop stronger people skills - those soft skills that bring hard dollars." The author of eight best-selling books on professional presence, Valerie revealed her passion for people beginning with a broadcasting career at age 16, reputed to be the youngest female broadcaster in the nation. Moving forward, she showed her entrepreneurial spirit by opening an etiquette finishing school, which led her to begin writing professional development programs for companies. Valerie's focus is well-defined - helping emerging and established leaders build a strong leadership brand identity and professional presence that creates trust relationships. You'll hear her say, "People buy YOU first, then they buy what you do! It's all about how well you communicate and connect with people." Valerie enthusiastically shares her story that persistence pays off, "Some naysayers questioned whether organizations would hire me if I focused on people skills!" She forged ahead to create a national reputation as an expert in Executive Presence and Personal Branding, working in Fortune 500 companies including Verizon, Microsoft, Shell Oil, Deloitte, and FedEx Office, to name a few. She is one of 20 internationally certified Master Brand Strategists, an ICF accredited coach, NLP Practitioner, and a WBENC woman-owned business. Valerie wrote ten years for Southwest Airlines Spirit Magazine and is published in Success Magazine, The Washington Post, Wall Street Journal and Glamour Magazine, among others. She is a Fox News Contributor and a resource to ABC, CBS and NBC affiliates.