A true icon of determination and inspiration, Karen inspires audiences to rebuild after setbacks and foster a culture of unwavering resilience and hope.
4.00 of 5
Top rated!5 of 5
If Resilience had a face, it would be Karen’s. What she has overcome and how she responds to injustice, pain, and suffering is just incredible. So empowering in how she shares her story with a smile and deep empathy inspiring her audience by the minute.
Justine Katz
Belgian TV reporter
Turn adversity into your organization’s greatest asset with Karen Northshield, miracle survivor of the Brussels terrorist attack, bestselling author, and award-winning keynote speaker. With a story that defies all odds, Karen empowers teams to embrace change, build resilience, and thrive under pressure. Her powerful keynotes inspire action, spark courage, and leave lasting impact on leaders and employees alike. Fluent in four languages and recognized internationally, Karen is the voice of resilience your audience will never forget.
Keynote Speaker Karen Northshield is globally recognized for her extraordinary story of survival, strength, and resilience. As a victim and miracle survivor of the 2016 Brussels terrorist attack, Karen defied all medical odds, overcoming life-threatening injuries and more than 60 surgeries. Her gripping story is not only a testament to the human spirit but a transformative journey that offers powerful insights for organizations navigating change, crisis, and complexity.
Through her impactful keynotes, Karen helps corporate audiences unlock resilience, boost morale, and build emotional stamina. Her message resonates deeply with leaders and teams striving to stay motivated, focused, and agile in today’s high-pressure business world. She shares actionable strategies for facing adversity, enhancing well-being, and turning challenges into growth opportunities, making her keynotes both inspiring and practical.
Fluent in four languages and the author of a bestselling book, Karen brings global relevance, emotional depth, and a commanding stage presence to every event. Whether you’re planning a leadership summit, wellness initiative, or company-wide transformation, Book Karen Northshield for your event to deliver a keynote experience that leaves a lasting impact.
5 of 5
If Resilience had a face, it would be Karen’s. What she has overcome and how she responds to injustice, pain, and suffering is just incredible. So empowering in how she shares her story with a smile and deep empathy inspiring her audience by the minute.
Justine Katz Belgian TV reporter
0 of 5
I do not know many survivors of a war crime or terrorist attack that are able to transcend and transform their adversity in the way Karen does, with positivity, optimism and faith! She is a survivor of a terrorist attack turned fighter turned motivational speaker who unveils her vulnerability to make a strength out of it. What a lesson. What an example for all!
Martine Valcke Board Member of Femme d'Europe
5 of 5
I have had the chance to listen to Karen on several talks. Karen is not only polyglot, her talks are also polyvalent. She speaks about resilience, gratitude, determination, hope, forgiveness » It is such a privilege to hear Karen speak and be empowered by her positive energy. Just amazing!
Alain Patte Member of Aspria club
5 of 5
If Karen can do it, we can all overcome our challenges. Is it so inspiring how Karen survived and made something of her story. Where she was destined to be and remain a simple victim with a pessimistic outlook on life, she was not prepared nor weaponed for such a life battle, yet somehow she overcame it. She gives us tools to overcome our own personal and professional challenges and adversities. What a gift. What a life lesson. THANK YOU Karen Northshield!
Christèle Duvieusart Board Member of C&V
5 of 5
There are no words for what Karen has been through.We have immense gratitude for her resilience and life lesson that she shares with the world. She not only delivers her story with a smile and a touch of humour, she make us reflect on everything we can be grateful for and to stop making little complaints in our lives.
Members of the Board, Rotary Club Ostende
Watch Karen Northshield in action!
Watch Karen Northshield in action!
In this keynote Karen shares how life sometimes gives you the unlucky card and how you can transform it into your Joker card for life!
In other words, you can either make adversity your excuse or your motivation. Through her inspiring talks, Karen teaches her audience the hidden power behind our adversities. Although when we're faced with a challenge that comes as a major roadblock in our life, we may often apprehend the challenge as a fatality or as pulling the unlucky card.
As every coin has two sides, there can be a hidden interpretation to our challenges. Like flipping the coin over, we can use a different approach when facing and overcoming our challenges.
Karen demonstrates through strength and will, how it's possible to not only overcome a life adversity (surviving a terrorist attack with 0 chance of survival) but also how to turn one’s survival (or challenge) into a strength and opportunity for transformation and empowerment.
Karen delivers, in her powerful talk, how we can reposition ourselves when faced with adversity or a challenge. Asking ourselves the right questions in life allows us to either make it or break it. Like a pitcher who throws a curveball in baseball, you can either hit a home run or strike out. Questions have this potential. They can be uplifting and empowering or they can pull you down and deplete or even diminish you.
By using powerful metaphors and anecdotes, Karen not only demonstrates how she overcame her life challenge when up against all odds, with the use of one powerful question and how we can all ask ourselves the right questions in life to hit a home run.
One of the key themes in Karen’s talks on resilience is the power of the Black Swan event -- an unpredictable, life-threatening moment that challenges everything we know. Based off of Nassim Taleb's theory of the Black Swan, Karen is able to translate and weave his teachings in her talk and simplify for all. Having faced and transformed her own profound Black Swan experience, Karen has developed a powerful three-step model to help others navigate their personal turning points.
Black Swan events aren’t just global crises; they can be deeply personal and profoundly challenging. While many aspire to wealth and happiness, the true question is: how does one find joy again after a life-shattering event? How does one reclaim prosperity and embrace life with renewed purpose?
With warmth, wisdom, and a touch of humor, Karen guides her audience through the journey of resilience, proving that even after the darkest moments, a new and fulfilling chapter awaits.
In her powerful and inspirational talk on surviving an improbable terrorist attack, Karen Northshield delivers a profound message on Gratitude -- not just as a response to life’s challenges, but as a force that strengthens and enhances resilience.
With a compelling story of rising from the ashes, Karen shares a message of hope and transformation. Drawing from Viktor Frankl’s "Man’s Search for Meaning," she reframes her own harrowing experience as an unexpected gift -- one that led to a profound 'rebirth'.
Once an all-round athlete and successful personal trainer, she has reinvented herself in giving meaning to her life today by inspiring and sharing her story worldwide. She helps others in believing in themselves, in forging character and determination by practicing gratefulness and gratitude among other attributes of strength.
Through her journey, she demonstrates how adversity, no matter how overwhelming, can become a catalyst for reinvention, enabling us to embrace life with grace, meaning, and gratitude.
