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Michelle "Mace" Curran

USAF Thunderbird Pilot '19-'21, Fighter Pilot, National Bestselling Author

Michelle "MACE" Curran is a former USAF Thunderbird pilot and national bestselling author who translates high-stakes performance lessons into deeply relatable insights about fear, self-doubt, and the power of decisive action. Her keynotes connect powerfully because people see themselves in her story despite her elite background.

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Bio

Michelle “MACE” Curran is a highly sought-after international speaker known for her dynamic storytelling and expertise in overcoming fear and self-doubt. A former fighter pilot, she spent 13 years in the U.S. Air Force and made history as only the second woman to fly as the Lead Solo Pilot for the Air Force Thunderbirds, performing for hundreds of millions worldwide.

Mace has inspired teams at Microsoft, Boeing, John Deere, SpaceX, Purina, PwC, and more—helping them embrace bold decision-making and push past obstacles. Her insights have been featured on The Kelly Clarkson Show, CBS Mornings, Glamour, and other major media outlets.

Beyond the stage, Mace is an avid writer. She has authored hundreds of articles on personal growth, multiple children's books—including the bestselling Upside Down Dreams—and her newest book, The Flipside: How to Invert Your Perspective and Turn Fear Into Your Superpower, debuted in the top 20 on the USA Today Bestseller list. She also reaches millions each month through her social media platforms as a LinkedIn Top Voice.

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Keynotes

Featured Keynote

Flying Through Fear: How Vulnerability Fuels Success

In today’s high-pressure workplace, teams are not held back by a lack of talent — they are held back by hesitation, self-doubt, and fear of getting it wrong.

In this powerful and deeply relatable keynote, former F-16 fighter pilot and USAF Thunderbirds Lead Solo, Michelle “MACE” Curran, takes audiences inside the real, human side of high performance — where confidence is built, doubt shows up, and bold action changes what becomes possible.

Through gripping stories from the cockpit and surprisingly vulnerable moments behind the visor, MACE reveals how even elite performers wrestle with the same internal fears, second-guessing, and imposter syndrome that exist in every workplace.

Audiences leave with a renewed sense of clarity and focus to quiet self-doubt and take bold action in their work, leadership, and life.

This keynote empowers teams to stop waiting for confidence and start building it through action — by focusing on the small, daily decisions they can directly control and using those choices as the building blocks of a high-performing team.

(Coming Fall 2026) The Space Between: What You Do With Fear When it Matters Most

(Coming Fall 2026) The Space Between: What You Do With Fear When it Matters Most

In this powerful and deeply relatable keynote, Michelle “MACE” Curran explores what happens in the critical space between fear and response—and how learning to use that space on purpose changes everything about how we lead, decide, and show up under pressure.

Drawing on her journey from a shy, overthinking kid to F-16 fighter pilot and Lead Solo for the USAF Thunderbirds, MACE weaves together entertaining, edge-of-your-seat stories from the cockpit with the quiet, universal fears most people carry inside—the inner critic, self-doubt, and the fear of getting it wrong.

She reveals how the brain often reacts to imagined fear and real danger in the same way, and why learning to pause in that space before reacting is the difference between clarity and chaos, confidence and collapse.

Audiences leave with a new mental model for fear, shared language for navigating pressure, and simple, sticky tools they can use immediately to reset, make better decisions, and build trust when everything feels urgent and uncertain.

This keynote equips leaders and teams to respond deliberately instead of emotionally—and to perform at their best when the stakes are high.

Topics

Inspiration & Achievement Trending
Overcoming Adversity

Peak Performance Trending
Resilience Trending

Teambuilding & Collaboration Trending
Trust

Michelle "MACE" Curran Sizzle Reel

MACE's Vimeo Showcase

CBS Mornings: Former fighter pilot shares lessons learned in new book

Michelle "MACE" Curran is a former U.S. Air Force fighter pilot. She is only the second woman in history to serve as the lead solo pilot for the elite show team, "The Thunderbirds." She speaks about her new book, "The Flipside: How to Invert Your Perspective and Turn Fear into Your Superpower," which shares lessons learned in the cockpit and beyond.

The Kelly Clarkson Show: 7 Year Old Aspiring Pilot Meets Her Idol

Seven-year-old Amelia has always dreamed of growing up to be a pilot, and she gets the surprise of a lifetime when her hero—Major Michelle Curran, a Thunderbird Pilot for the U.S. Air Force—shows up to meet her! Plus, Major Curran offers this ambitious little girl a life-changing opportunity to be a Thunderbird for a day.

Fast Company: 5 life lessons from a F-16 fighter jet pilot

Mace spent years operating in high-pressure environments, from combat situations to performing high-speed maneuvers in front of millions of people. But what also came with that career were the moments behind the scenes of self-doubt, the struggle to find her identity, the near misses, and the mental battles that came with the job. Much of what she learned to persevere and triumph as a fighter pilot applies to winning at life.

The Daily Stoic: Silence the 5 Inner Critics DESTROYING Your Confidence | Combat Fighter Pilot Michelle Curran

Michelle “MACE” Curran is a former United States Air Force fighter pilot with nearly 2,000 hours of F-16 flying time. She flew combat missions in Afghanistan and honed her skills across the globe, becoming the second woman in history to serve as the Lead Solo Pilot for the Thunderbirds, the Air Force's elite demonstration team. Known for her signature upside-down maneuvers, Mace performed for millions, inspiring audiences at airshows and flyovers like the Super Bowl, Daytona 500, and Indy 500.

Inverting Your Mindset Newsletter

Bi-weekly stories and lessons from MACE's time as a fighter pilot and beyond. Get actionable and inspiring insights around courage, confidence, and success

2025 The Flipside: How to Invert Your Perspective and Turn Fear Into Your Superpower
2024 What's Your Callsign?
2023 Upside Down Dreams

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Michelle was the consummate professional, yet she felt very relatable and authentic. We were in awe of the dedication and perseverance that it took for a small-town girl to realize her big-time dreams! Truly inspiring!

Leader of Organizational Excellence, AbbVie

Your messages around trust, inclusion, imposter syndrome, allowing failure to happen and be ok, really resonate with our workforce.

Leader, Microsoft

I have gotten so many emails or people stopping me to thank me for bringing you to campus, they LOVED it... amazingly well received, I am so happy about that since you were a departure from the speakers we usually have.

Microsoft CELA Team

Since your talk, I feel more confident and am intentionally using fear as my superpower as I show up in rooms this week. In my executive meetings, I've noticed my inner critic, separated its voice from reality, and reframed doubts with empowering statements. I'm pausing before speaking to respond with confidence and expertise, letting my ideas shine instead of being held back by fear.

Policy Circle

I just wanted you to know that our Elevate 2026 event was amazing! The feedback from our operation is incredible! This is just what we needed to kick this year off, and seeing all the brands together is simply powerful! MACE was the best speaker I have ever heard; she made me laugh and cry.

President & County Manager Fidelity National Title

Are you looking for an amazing speaker? One that will speak on Teamwork, Inspiration, and what it's like to fail and get back up. Without a doubt in the 40+ years that we've been doing this I've never seen anyone come up afterwards and say it was the best ever except this time. Michelle connects to her audience on a personal level and if we didn't cut off the questions afterwards, she'd still be there.

President, Greater Bergen Realtors

I received a call from a trusted colleague raving about Michelle Curran, aka MACE, and a recent speech she gave his organization. I immediately engaged MACE to provide a leadership presentation to PenFed Leadership across the US entitled, “Flying Through Fear: How Vulnerability Fuels Success”. It was a complete success, and her insight and positive, polished delivery will have a beneficial impact on PenFed for years to come.

President, PenFed Credit Union

That is exactly what my team needed to hear! You are so inspiring. The quote of the day was, "If MACE can do that, I can go make that sales call I've been avoiding."

Senior VP, Royal Bank of Canada

Thank you for publicly talking about insecurity, vulnerability and fear. These are all things we all think about but not speak about. The feedback on your session has been overwhelming. You were authentic and genuine which is not something you see every day in the corporate world. Please keep moving this train forward educating, enabling and promoting breaking through barriers!

Vice President, Global Strategic Alliances, Kyndryl

I've been attending conferences for 12 years, and this is the first time I've ever cried from a speaker. Your speech was empowering, raw, vulnerable, and admirable; this brought both happy and emotional tears multiple times. One of my biggest fears is that my daughter won't know her voice in this crazy world, and you are someone I cannot wait to introduce her to. You are what I want my daughter to be when she grows up, and I've truly never said that about anyone before, much less admitted my fear of her future to myself. You are truly inspiring and I hope our paths cross many times because your energy is beautifully captivating.

Women's Leadership Conference

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Michelle "Mace" Curran

Bio

Keynotes

Flying Through Fear: How Vulnerability Fuels Success

Topics

Michelle was the consummate professional, yet she felt very relatable and authentic. We were in awe of the dedication and perseverance that it took for a small-town girl to realize her big-time dreams! Truly inspiring!

Your messages around trust, inclusion, imposter syndrome, allowing failure to happen and be ok, really resonate with our workforce.

I have gotten so many emails or people stopping me to thank me for bringing you to campus, they LOVED it... amazingly well received, I am so happy about that since you were a departure from the speakers we usually have.

I just wanted you to know that our Elevate 2026 event was amazing! The feedback from our operation is incredible! This is just what we needed to kick this year off, and seeing all the brands together is simply powerful! MACE was the best speaker I have ever heard; she made me laugh and cry.

That is exactly what my team needed to hear! You are so inspiring. The quote of the day was, "If MACE can do that, I can go make that sales call I've been avoiding."

Let's find your perfect speaker!

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Keep Up To Date

Michelle "Mace" Curran

Bio

Keynotes

Flying Through Fear: How Vulnerability Fuels Success

(Coming Fall 2026) The Space Between: What You Do With Fear When it Matters Most

Topics

Michelle was the consummate professional, yet she felt very relatable and authentic. We were in awe of the dedication and perseverance that it took for a small-town girl to realize her big-time dreams! Truly inspiring!

Your messages around trust, inclusion, imposter syndrome, allowing failure to happen and be ok, really resonate with our workforce.

I have gotten so many emails or people stopping me to thank me for bringing you to campus, they LOVED it... amazingly well received, I am so happy about that since you were a departure from the speakers we usually have.

I just wanted you to know that our Elevate 2026 event was amazing! The feedback from our operation is incredible! This is just what we needed to kick this year off, and seeing all the brands together is simply powerful! MACE was the best speaker I have ever heard; she made me laugh and cry.

That is exactly what my team needed to hear! You are so inspiring. The quote of the day was, "If MACE can do that, I can go make that sales call I've been avoiding."

Let's find your perfect speaker!

Explore

Quick Links

Keep Up To Date