Authentic Life & Leadership
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Why Great Leaders Don’t
Try to Know Everything
When Larry and I were newly married and still in college, he had a baseball championship game. I was running late, so as I hurried up the hill toward the field, a group of friends came sprinting down, waving their arms like the place was on fire. “DEANNA! GET UP HERE...
Why Can’t My Problems Just Go Away?
(Lessons from Golden Hour)
I am a HUGE fan of “golden hour.” Golden hour is a period right after sunrise, and before sunset, when the light is much softer than when the sun is in the sky. It’s a wonderful time to take photographs. Many photographers refer to this time as “magic hour” although...
3 Things to Do When You Feel Overwhelmed
Everyone gets overwhelmed at times. I'm no stranger to it and sometimes I've handled it well and other times I've failed and the overwhelm has become even worse. Recently, I was overwhelmed as several huge deadlines converged at once. At the same time, I was...
There’s a Lot I Used to Believe
I wrote a book many years ago that is now out of print. I am so thankful it's out of print because I don't believe at least 25% of it anymore. I have lived, studied, and grown, and therefore some of the things I believe have changed since that time. I disagree with a...
The World Really Is Your Oyster.
Start Acting Like It!
Sometimes we get discouraged about our environment or our circumstances and we can begin to feel hopeless or trapped. And the truth is, we are less trapped or stuck than we think we are. In fact, rarely are we truly trapped, we just don't want to change or move. God...
5 Things to Do When Life Isn’t Cooperating
One of my sayings on a frustrating week that I often say to Larry and to Judi (my friend/assistant) is, "Can't anything just be easy?" Have you ever said that? We've all had those weeks that seem to be filled with small to medium frustrations nipping at our heels. By...
Marriage: 5 Habits That Keep Us Together
I've been married a super long time. Thirty-seven years to be exact. I know, I know... we don't look as if we could have been married this long. (LOL!) Truth-be-told we did get married very young. Larry was still a teenager! I know, it seems crazy. But here we still...
Invite Deanna to speak at your next event!
Deanna is invited to return and speak at many of the same places time and again because the result has been an overwhelmingly positive experience with lives changed, and people encouraged.
BIO
Dr. Deanna Shrodes
Dr. Deanna Doss Shrodes is an author, speaker, and leadership mentor known for helping women lead with courage, integrity, and deep faith. Her work has been featured by CBS News, People Magazine, The New Yorker, Woman’s World, GOD TV, and HuffPost. She holds a Master’s in Ministerial Leadership and a Doctor of Ministry from Southeastern University, where she also serves as an adjunct professor.
Dr. Shrodes currently serves as Women’s Ministries Director for the Pen Florida District of the Assemblies of God and leads the Stronger Leadership Network, where she mentors pastors and leaders through coaching, spiritual formation, and leadership development. The author of five books and a contributing writer to five others, her most recent work, Uncommon Answers, was released by Chosen Books (a division of Baker Publishing Group) in April 2025.
Known for a warm pastoral presence and practical, thoughtful teaching, Dr. Shrodes speaks at conferences, churches, and leadership gatherings on spiritual formation, prayer, women in leadership, discernment in decision-making, and cultivating healthy ministry cultures.
She is married to her college sweetheart, Larry. Together they have three grown children and five grandchildren.
Areas of Focus:
Spiritual formation & prayer
The work of the Holy Spirit
Leadership development
Women in leadership
Mentoring and calling
Healthy ministry culture
Leadership transitions
Marriage and ministry life
Become Your Most Authentic Self
Free E-Book
Are you tired of being who and what others expect you to be, instead of who God created you to be?
If you find the pressure of other people's expectations exhausting and you are ready to be the authentic YOU that you were always meant to be, Deanna would like to gift you with an ebook, 29 Ways to Become Your Most Authentic Self.
It's time to break free and finally live according to your divine design!
