Connie Paglianiti Speaker Author Educator

Connie Paglianiti Speaker Author Educator Keynote speaker, #1 bestselling author in 5 countries, and workforce reinvention expert. Prison at 61. Degree at 66. Bestselling author at 67. Top 50 Speaker 2026.

I speak to organisations about reinvention, age diversity, and multigenerational retention. Connie Paglianiti is a keynote speaker, #1 bestselling author in 5 countries, and one of Australia's most compelling voices on workforce reinvention, age diversity, and multigenerational retention. Her story is unlike anyone else on the corporate stage. She went to prison at 61, earned her university degree

at 66, and became a bestselling author at 67. What could have ended her life instead became the foundation of a second chapter that has inspired audiences across Australia and beyond. Connie works with organisations on retention, reskilling, and building multigenerational workplaces where people of every age are valued and engaged. She delivers keynotes and workshops that combine raw personal experience with practical, research-backed insights that leaders can act on immediately. A four-time Top 50 Speaker and former judge on Next Top Speaker, Connie is also an ISA Certified Speaker and has been featured in Marie Claire Australia. Based in Melbourne, Australia.

So I now have a Meccano set in my arm.You might have noticed I've gone quiet. Broke it a few weeks ago and ended up in h...
04/09/2026

So I now have a Meccano set in my arm.

You might have noticed I've gone quiet. Broke it a few weeks ago and ended up in hospital. Screws, plate, the lot. Bionic Connie, apparently.

Typing this one handed, so bear with me while I get back into the swing of things. Normal posting resumes shortly.

Thanks for sticking around 💛

With Shanul – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉
09/08/2026

With Shanul – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉

Success attracts all kinds of people.Some help you build the table.Some are invited to sit at it.And some later tell peo...
09/08/2026

Success attracts all kinds of people.

Some help you build the table.

Some are invited to sit at it.

And some later tell people they built the entire room.

Nine years ago this month, Eventcepts, the company I founded and owned, brought the incredible Susan Sarandon to Australia for a very special leadership luncheon.

Looking through these photographs has brought back so many memories.

I worked on my own to create, plan and produce this event, just as I did with the events I created featuring Sophia Loren, Goldie Hawn and Jane Seymour.

Of course, I engaged suppliers and professionals to help deliver each event. No major production can happen without venues, caterers, technicians, photographers and many other people doing their jobs.

But the concept, negotiations, contracts, planning, responsibility, financial risk and overall production rested with me.

I am incredibly proud of what I achieved.

Success, however, has an interesting way of attracting people who want to attach themselves to it.

Over the years, I have watched people turn a small involvement into a leading role, attendance into ownership and association into achievement.

Let me be very clear.

Being in the room does not mean you created the event.

Having your photograph taken with the talent does not make you the producer.

Helping with one component does not mean you carried the responsibility, financial risk and enormous pressure of producing the entire event.

People see the glamorous photographs, the celebrities and the finished occasion.

They do not see the months of negotiations, contracts, planning, sleepless nights, logistics, media coordination, guest management and the hundreds of problems that had to be solved behind the scenes.

That was the real work.

I will always acknowledge the suppliers and professionals who genuinely contributed to delivering these events. Proper credit should always be given where it is due.

But there is a big difference between giving someone credit for their contribution and allowing them to rewrite your history.

I may no longer own Eventcepts, but that does not erase what I created through it.

These events are part of my professional history, and I will not make myself smaller or remain silent simply because someone else tells a different version of the story.

Success may attract passengers.

But the person who drove the journey knows exactly who was behind the wheel.

Be proud of what you built.

Document it.

Own it.

And never let anyone rewrite your story. 💛

I can’t quite believe this was nine years ago today.On 7 August 2017, Eventcepts, the company I founded and led, had the...
07/08/2026

I can’t quite believe this was nine years ago today.

On 7 August 2017, Eventcepts, the company I founded and led, had the privilege of bringing the extraordinary Susan Sarandon to Australia.

We began with an intimate leadership luncheon hosted by the gorgeous Ann Peacock. It was one of those extraordinary rooms filled with remarkable people from business, media and entertainment, including Dannii Minogue, Janine Allis, Jo Hall, Turia Pitt and Em Rusciano.

The incredibly talented Shanul performed for our guests, and as always happens in events, I also found myself stepping in at the last minute to take over as MC and keep everything moving.

That evening, we moved to the Regent Theatre for An Evening with Susan Sarandon. Carrie Bickmore was our wonderful host, and Sarah C performed songs from Susan’s films in front of a packed theatre.

It was an extraordinary day and remains one of the proudest moments of my more than 40-year event career.

But looking at these photographs nine years later, I see far more than a successful event.

I see a woman standing at the top of her profession, surrounded by some of Australia’s most recognisable and accomplished people, while privately carrying struggles that nobody in that room could see.

Within a year, my life would begin to unravel.

That is the strange thing about photographs. They capture the moment everyone else can see, but not the private battles taking place behind the smile.

For a long time, I allowed what happened afterwards to overshadow everything I had achieved before it.

I don’t do that anymore.

I can acknowledge the mistakes I made and the harm they caused, while still being proud of the capable, determined and hardworking woman in these photographs.

What came afterwards did not erase her.

Nine years later, I have rebuilt my life in ways I could never have imagined on that day.

Your darkest chapter does not cancel everything that came before it, and it does not get to decide everything that comes next. 💛

The latest reports about a Victorian prisoner receiving approval for Ozempic treatment and related surgery at taxpayers'...
15/07/2026

The latest reports about a Victorian prisoner receiving approval for Ozempic treatment and related surgery at taxpayers' expense have once again sparked public debate.

Many will remember this is the same prisoner who was previously granted approval for IVF treatment while incarcerated, although that ultimately did not proceed.

As someone who served time in a Victorian prison, I feel I can offer a perspective that many people can't.

I knew this prisoner while I was inside, and from what I personally observed, together with what has now been reported publicly about her diet and the contents of her cell, I understand why many Victorians are questioning these decisions.

Let me be absolutely clear.

I believe every prisoner deserves access to proper medical care. Healthcare is a basic human right, regardless of why someone is in prison.

But my experience was very different.

While I was incarcerated, I developed medical issues that were not properly attended to until it was too late. Waiting weeks, and sometimes months, to see a doctor or receive treatment was not unusual. I saw many other prisoners facing similar delays for basic healthcare, dental treatment and specialist appointments.

That is where I believe taxpayers' money should be directed.

What concerns me is a system that appears able to approve very expensive, non-urgent treatments while so many prisoners cannot access timely, essential healthcare.

This isn't about denying people medically necessary treatment, nor is it about punishing prisoners.

It's about priorities.

If we have limited public funds, surely the first priority should be ensuring that every prisoner has access to prompt, quality basic medical care before approving costly treatments that many law-abiding Victorians couldn't access without long waiting lists or paying privately.

My concern isn't just this one case. This case simply highlights what I believe is a much bigger policy issue.

Having experienced the Victorian prison system firsthand, I think it's time we had an honest conversation about where taxpayer-funded prison healthcare should draw the line.

I'd genuinely like to hear your thoughts.

article link in first comment...

Two years ago today, I posted something I nearly didn't post.I'd stepped in to help Kaley in the final two weeks before ...
11/07/2026

Two years ago today, I posted something I nearly didn't post.

I'd stepped in to help Kaley in the final two weeks before the 100 Speakers Summit. No big plan. I just wanted to help.

I had no idea that one yes would change the shape of my life.
Since then: a bestselling book, TEDx, my Diploma of Event Management, Top 100 Speakers, and stages I never pictured myself standing on.

And then, two years to the day, it came full circle. I led event operations for 100 Speakers - Rock the Stage, a six-day event across three venues, wrangling speakers, logistics, suppliers, volunteers and everything you don't see from the audience.
None of it was one giant leap. It was one opportunity, one conversation, one person willing to take a chance on me.
Thank you, Kaley, for opening that door.

Has someone opened a door for you that changed everything? I'd love to hear it in the comments.
❤️

The story I once wanted to hide is now reaching more than 150,000 readers in the United States. 🇺🇸Life has a funny way o...
06/07/2026

The story I once wanted to hide is now reaching more than 150,000 readers in the United States. 🇺🇸

Life has a funny way of coming full circle.

I was recently invited to write an article for FORCE Magazine, a US publication with a readership of more than 150,000 people.

They didn't ask me to write about success.

They asked me to write about starting again.

So that's exactly what I did.

I shared the real story.

The story of betrayal. Gambling addiction. Going to prison at 61. Rebuilding my life from the ground up. Returning to university at 66. Becoming a bestselling author at 67. And now, at 68, standing on stages encouraging others to believe that their past does not have to define their future.

The article is called "It's Never Too Late to Start Again", because those words aren't just a title. They have become the way I live my life.

If my story helps even one person realise they haven't missed their chance to rebuild, then every difficult chapter has been worth sharing.

Thank you to the team at FORCE Magazine for giving my story a voice and the opportunity to reach readers around the world.

💛 I'd love you to swipe through and read the article.

And I'd love to ask you one question...

Have you ever had to start again?

I'd love to hear your story in the comments.

Funny where life takes you...Yesterday I was doing one of my least favourite jobs... my tax return.I was searching throu...
05/07/2026

Funny where life takes you...

Yesterday I was doing one of my least favourite jobs... my tax return.

I was searching through old emails looking for receipts when I came across an email from my publisher, She Rises, that I'd received almost a year ago.

At the time, I only took in one sentence.

From the Shadows into the Light had become a bestseller across five countries.

I smiled, felt incredibly grateful... and got on with life.

Yesterday, I actually read the rest of the email.

Not just five countries.

Twenty-five bestseller categories across those five countries.

🇦🇺 Australia – 6 categories
🇩🇪 Germany – 7 categories
🇺🇸 United States – 4 categories
🇨🇦 Canada – 4 categories
🇮🇳 India – 4 categories

I honestly laughed.

A whole year had passed and I'd only known half the story.

The irony isn't lost on me that I discovered it while doing my tax return!

When I wrote From the Shadows into the Light, I wasn't chasing bestseller lists.

I wrote it because I wanted to tell the truth.

I wanted people carrying shame, stigma or regret to know that their past doesn't have to define their future.

If my story has encouraged even one person to believe they can rebuild their life, then every word was worth writing.

To everyone who has bought the book, shared it, reviewed it, recommended it, or simply cheered me on...

Thank you.

This milestone belongs to all of us.

Who would have thought that one story, written from the heart, would find readers across Australia, Germany, the United States, Canada and India?

Sometimes life has a wonderful way of reminding us just how far we've come. 💛

She Rises Studios Community (Empower, Network, Rise!)

Sometimes the biggest moments in your life happen all at once. 💛The past two weeks have been among the most extraordinar...
01/07/2026

Sometimes the biggest moments in your life happen all at once. 💛

The past two weeks have been among the most extraordinary of my career.

On 26 June, I had the incredible privilege of standing on the TEDx Kew stage to share a message that has been years in the making.

During that same week, I managed the 100 Speakers Event, coordinating eight intense days across multiple venues, working alongside an amazing team to create an experience for speakers who travelled from around Australia and overseas.

It was a week of unforgettable moments, new friendships, incredible achievements and seeing months of planning finally come to life.

What most people didn't see was what it took behind the scenes.

For eight consecutive days, I worked close to 20 hours a day, making sure every detail was in place so that everyone else could simply enjoy the experience.

When it was all over, my body finally called time.

I spent the next four days in bed with a fever, a sore throat and migraines.

Looking back, I'm not surprised.

Would I do it all again?

Absolutely.

Because seeing people step onto a stage with confidence, hearing stories that changed lives, watching strangers become lifelong friends, and knowing I played a small part in making it happen is why I love what I do.

Over the coming days, I'll be taking you behind the scenes of this remarkable journey.

🎤 My TEDx Kew experience.

🎬 The reality of managing a multi-day event.

💛 The people who inspired me.

✨ The lessons I'll carry forward.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me, encouraged me and checked in while I disappeared for a few days.

I'm feeling much better now...
..and I can't wait to share the journey with you. 💛

THE NEXT CHAPTER IS ALWAYS WAITINGThis week I spent three incredible days at The Next Chapter Bootcamp with Kaley W Chu ...
15/06/2026

THE NEXT CHAPTER IS ALWAYS WAITING

This week I spent three incredible days at The Next Chapter Bootcamp with Kaley W Chu and over 180 speakers from around the world.

One of the highlights was learning from Michael Tracy, son of the legendary Brian Tracy. Listening to him share lessons, wisdom, and success principles passed down from one of the world's most respected business minds was truly special.

But what struck me most wasn't just what was taught.

It was the reminder that growth never stops.

Too many people believe there comes a point where it's too late to start over, too late to learn something new, too late to chase a dream, or too late to become the person they were always meant to be.

I know that's not true.

At 61, I went to prison.

At 66, I went to university.

At 67, I became a bestselling author.

Today, at 68, I am continuing to learn, grow, speak, and build a future that once seemed impossible.

Your past is a chapter.

It is not the whole book.

No matter where you are right now, there is always another chapter waiting to be written.

Thank you to Kaley Chu for creating a community that challenges people to think bigger, dream bigger, and become more than they thought possible.

And thank you, Michael Tracy, for reminding us that success principles may be simple, but they remain timeless.

The best part?

The journey continues.

💛🖤💛🖤

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