Authentic Life & Leadership
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Most recent blog post…
Why Giving Up Isn’t the Answer
(Especially When You’re Tired as a Leader)
I’ve wanted to give up on important things in life and leadership more times than I can count. And by the way, it’s not wrong to want to give up. It’s normal. For clarity, when I talk about giving up in this post, I’m not simply referring to stepping down from a...
7 Reasons to Keep Mentoring Even Though You Think You Have Reason to Quit
I’ll never forget the morning I opened social media and saw photos of my long-time mentee — not just a poor choice, but something shocking and public. For a moment I wanted to believe her account had been hacked. It wasn’t. It was real. She had gone off the deep end....
The Uncomfortable Trade Off Between Being Liked and Being Successful
I have never met anyone who doesn’t want to be liked. Most people I’ve met also want to be successful. (Believe it or not, a few have admitted they could care less about success.) Many of us want both. But what if the pursuit of one compromises the other? What if the...
Five Enemies of Intimacy
(and How to Defeat Them)
Every marriage faces challenges. Some are obvious, like financial stress or health struggles, but others slip in quietly, almost unnoticed, until you realize intimacy has been chipped away bit by bit. The good news is, once we can name these enemies, we can fight them...
When the Flames of Persecution Ignite True Boldness and Prayer
Today, our world was shaken today as Charlie Kirk, a prominent conservative activist and co-founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot while speaking at Utah Valley University during his “American Comeback Tour." At just 31 years old, he leaves behind his wife...
What Is Spiritual Discernment?
Are you tired of being deceived by people? I get it. I’ve been taken in more times than I’d like to admit, and I always end up kicking myself for falling for it. Few things are as frustrating as realizing you’ve been led to believe something that wasn’t true —...
3 Things to Do While Waiting
for a Dream to Come True
I know what it’s like to wait for a dream to come true. I mean, I really know what it’s like—because I never stop dreaming. And that means I find myself waiting a lot. I waited 56 years to find my biological father.I waited 58 years to publish my first traditionally...
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BIO
Dr. Deanna Shrodes
Dr. Deanna Doss Shrodes is an author, speaker, and spiritual life strategist whose 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 leads as Women’s Ministries Director for the Pen Florida District of the Assemblies of God and directs the Stronger Leadership Network, where she mentors pastors and leaders through practical coaching, spiritual formation, and cohort-based development. A sole author of five books and a contributing writer to five others, her latest work, Uncommon Answers, was released by Chosen Books (a division of Baker Books) in April 2025.
Known for a warm pastoral presence and clear, actionable teaching, Dr. Shrodes speaks at conferences, churches, and leadership gatherings on calling and purpose, prayer and spiritual formation, women’s leadership, and organizational health. She is married to her college sweetheart, Larry; they have three grown children and five grandchildren.
Areas of Focus: spiritual formation & prayer, the Holy Spirit, leadership development, marriage, mentoring, calling/purpose, healthy ministry culture, making leadership transitions.
Become Your Most Authentic Self
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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!
