Founder, The Great Exhale™ | Award-Winning Activist | Entrepreneur & Speaker | Top 10 LinkedIn Creator in Inclusion & Diversity | Judge, The Anthem Awards | Forbes Featured | #ActuallyAutistic | INFJ | 🇧🇧🇯🇲🇹🇹🇺🇸

Lisa Hurley is a five-time Anthem Award-winning author, activist, podcaster, second-generation Reiki Master, and rest advocate. Her work centers Black women, and converges at the nexus of self care, community care, joy, and rest. Through her writing, speaking, and community-building, Lisa champions soft living for Black women. 

Hurley is the author of Space To Exhale, a transformational book created to help people beat burnout, embrace rest, and curate a soft life. Part memoir, part manifesto, part meditation guide, Space To Exhale is a self-help book that inspires readers to practice the pause and take time to exhale.

As a champion of rest for Black women, Lisa is the founder of The Great Exhale, a global virtual community dedicated to sisterhood, serenity, and soft living. TGE offers curated rituals, inspiring affirmations, and healing conversations for those ready to say no to hustle culture and yes to a life of ease. It is a healing hub where Black women can relax, lay their burdens down—and exhale.

An Executive Member IADAS, Lisa is also a board member of Yuvoice, and a Juror for the Anthem Awards. A respected figure, she has been honored as one of the Top 20 Entrepreneurs to follow on LinkedIn, voted as one of LinkedIn’s Top 50 Black Creators, and recognized as one of the Top 10 Anti-Discrimination Activists in the world. In addition, Lisa has been honored by Hush Loudly as an Introvert to Watch, and as one of pocstock's Future of Black America Top 50 Leaders. As a result of her activism, her thought leadership has been featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur, Adweek, and more. 

With a passion for speaking out that belies her natural introversion, Lisa is a prolific podcaster. In addition to being the Host and Executive producer of Space To Exhale: The Podcast, a five star-rated show that focuses on self care for Black women, she is also the Co-Founder & Co-Host of The Introvert Sisters Podcast, and a former Co-Host of The Tea on Tap podcast. 

With a strong belief in good vibes, Lisa is known for her inspiring affirmations on TikTok. In her free time, she enjoys bonding with her family, reading a good book, and expressing her creativity through fashion.

Of Caribbean heritage (Barbados, Trinidad, and Jamaica), Lisa is a world traveler with an understandable preference for warmer climes. Her love languages are sunshine, laughter, and naps.

Ready to exhale?
📚 Learn more, and order Space To Exhale: www.spacetoexhalebook.com
🎙️ Listen to Space To Exhale: The Podcast: bit.ly/STEPodcastOnSpotify
🔗 Stay connected: https://linktr.ee/lisahurley

Lisa Hurley

Joyful Liberation Collective

• Partner with Executive Director on strategic planning and fundraising efforts.
• Drive expansion strategy by establishing board systems and procedures.
• Steer board search and establish procedures for advisory board and consultants.
• Streamline processes, contributing to nonprofit buildout and sustainability.
• Complete and submit annual corporate documents to federal and state agencies.

CEO & Board Lead

UPchieve

• Advise Executive Director on strategic planning and financial decision-making.
• Support fundraising efforts to secure resources and drive growth.

Board Member

The Legal Aid Society of NYC

Partner with C-Suite to define and execute strategic program development in alignment with organizational goals, mission, and values. Lead collaborative and high-impact Training Team, while mobilizing additional staff and community partners to implement special projects. Develop cutting-edge training programs for 700+ staff and 100+ supervisors. Experience managing budgets.
  
Key Impacts
• Transformed training department and impressively increased reach and engagement by 63% in 1 year.
• Pivoted programming from in-person to online learning in response to pandemic.
• Introduced systems that streamlined logistics, enabling large capacity trainings.
• Selected to lead hiring project for new advocates, decreasing hiring lifecycle from 4 mos. to 2 weeks.
• Created pipeline of future advocates and promoted brand awareness by directing legal intern program.
• Launched Professional Development Series to deliver ongoing learning opportunities.
• Selected to join city-wide coalition with Housing Justice Leadership Institute.

Director of Training & Professional Development

Sanctuary for Families

Represented survivors of Intimate Partner Violence in complex litigation, managing sensitive caseload. Submitted client narratives in compliance with grant reporting requirements. Supervised attorneys, paralegals, legal interns, and pro bono volunteers.

Key Impacts
• Retrieved and united children from Ohio, Togo, and Nicaragua with custodial parents in NY.
• Promoted client-centered approach to advocacy, teaching staff how to respectfully engage with clients.

Senior Staff Attorney

The Children's Law Center

Advocated on behalf of children in family court proceedings. Collaborated with social work and paralegal teams. Provided trainings on legal updates and DEIB topics.

Key Impacts
• Managed 100+ complex cases annually from inception to trial.
• Developed reputation for favorably settling difficult cases.
• Created professional development opportunities and trainings for legal interns and volunteers.

Staff Attorney

MCDONNELL & ADELS, P.L.L.C.

• Managed and litigated high-volume insurance defense caseload.
• Reviewed health records to draft motions.
• Represented major insurance companies against fraudulently incorporated medical corporations in Civil Court. 
• Conducted examinations under oath and submitted written reports with legal analysis and recommendations to insurance companies.

Legal Associate

U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York

Judicial Intern to The Hon. Randolph Treece

Center for Constitutional Rights

Legal Intern

Albany Law School

Law Intern

Legal Aid Society 

Very much an equity agent. Always and forever will be a systemic oppression hater.

Equity-driven nonprofit leader, powerful community advocate, and dynamic innovator—I am a social justice visionary with a strong executive presence and an entrepreneurial mindset. Fearlessly committed to reshaping our social justice systems, I ask the hard-hitting questions that spark honest conversation, honor diversity of thought, and affect real, systemic change. With over 15 years of experience, I have dedicated myself to enhancing access to justice and providing holistic, culturally responsive services to underinvested communities.

My career journey has shaped me into a compassionate advocate and a catalyst for social progress. By merging my legal expertise with my nonprofit leadership experience, I have developed a comprehensive understanding of how to drive systemic change. I have utilized my legal skills to navigate complex systems, advocate for marginalized communities, and challenge unjust practices. I am passionate about marrying the power of law and the values of social justice to create transformative impact.

Career Highlights
• Serve as CEO & Board Lead for GaneshSpace, a community of mindful changemakers
• Retrieved and united children from Ohio, Togo, and Nicaragua with custodial parents in NY
• Selected to join city-wide coalition with Housing Justice Leadership Institute
• Guest Speaker for Albany Law School, "Leading and Managing with an Equity Lens"
• Transformed training department by innovating content and expanding offerings for multifaceted nonprofit

Specialties
Strategic planning | Program design | Program management | Consulting | Organizational growth | Change management | Process and system optimization | Coaching | Mentoring | Community engagement | Youth representation | Legal advocacy | DEIA | Equity framework | Training and development | Leadership development | Project management | Team management | Corporate partnerships | Fundraising | Resource allocation | Hiring | Onboarding

taplio

The Battle

Lisa Hurley

Kerri-Ann Wright, Esq.

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