Dorothy Erlanger

INSPIRE, IGNITE, EXCEL

Obstacles Become Your Path to Greatness

The Audience Experience:

Fuel the move from stuck to unstoppable—at any age or stage
Drive engagement and action that continue long after the event
Empower teams with practical tools for navigating change

Put Dorothy on your stage and get:

Real shifts; real tools; real momentum
An unforgettable lived experience of challenges, comebacks, and gutsy goals
True connection. And a message that sticks

Keynotes are

Great for:

Women’s leadership
Aging & vitality events
Health summits
Corporate empowerment sessions
Pharma/Med Device events
Cancer survivor communities
Advocacy conferences
Entrepreneurial and coaching networks

Achieve Your Goals — No Matter the Challenge!

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Insightful, powerful, collaborative, and concise. These 4 words describe Dorothy to a tee – as a consultant, speaker, and seminar leader. If you have the opportunity to hire her in any of these capacities, RUN – don’t walk – to make it happen.

Yes, she’s THAT good.

David Newman

Dorothy breaks the barriers of what is possible. Her triathlon races and amazing stories of overcoming obstacles—pushing past her own perceived limits and the expectations of others—are deeply inspiring. She has worked worldwide with teams and leaders in fascinating situations. She knows and communicates what it takes to build confidence, momentum, and bold results. She is funny and fascinating. Let her inspire your people so they do the impossible.

Pegine Echevarria, Hall of fame speaker, Champion entrepreneur

Keynotes

The Next Hundred Yards: Achieve Your 'Impossible'

Feeling stuck or overwhelmed by a big goal? This keynote shows how to break through by focusing on just your next hundred yards. You’ll learn how to get unstuck, build your own unstoppable momentum, and achieve your ‘impossible’ goals—no matter your age, stage, or circumstances. Whether you’re starting over or starting big, you’ll walk away ready to take bold action—no matter what, no matter when.

Don’t Tell Me I Can’t: Resilience, Reinvention, and the Power of Gutsy Goals

This keynote is a masterclass in defying limits—physical, emotional, and societal. Dorothy Erlanger shares her extraordinary journey from cancer survivor to international triathlon competitor, proving that it’s never too late to start again and that audacity, not age, defines achievement. Blending personal insight with universal impact, Dorothy unpacks the mindset, motivation, and micro-steps behind daring reinvention. Audiences walk away energized to pursue their own “gutsy goals”—the kind that scare you a little and stretch you a lot.

Dorothy Erlanger doesn't talk about resilience from a distance. She has lived it — through a physical disability from birth, early family loss, a 20+ year battle with advanced ovarian cancer, and a corporate world that didn't always welcome women who thought too boldly or moved too fast. What she discovered along the way is that the obstacles weren't detours. They were the path.

Today, Dorothy is a world-class triathlete at 74, a Team USA qualifier, an international business veteran who has worked across 40+ countries, a cancer survivor, and a keynote speaker who has spent decades helping individuals and organizations break through their own impossible-seeming barriers. When she stands on your stage, she doesn't just tell stories — she hands audiences a blueprint they can use the next morning.

Born with a physical disability and shaped by early loss, Dorothy learned young that limits are often other people's definitions. She chose not to accept them — not socially, not physically, not professionally.

Her business career took her around the globe — she has consulted and trained teams in more than 40 countries across the U.S., Europe, Latin America, and Asia. She was among the first women to hold senior international leadership roles in her field, including groundbreaking work in Brazil. She speaks Spanish and Portuguese fluently, and brings that rare combination of global perspective and personal warmth to every engagement.

Then came ovarian cancer. A diagnosis that might have ended the chapter instead opened a new one. More than 20 years later, Dorothy is not just surviving — she's completing Ironman triathlons, qualifying for Team USA, and racing courses against competitors decades younger. She started competing in triathlons after 50. After cancer. She never asked permission.

Her grandfather, Dr. Joseph Erlanger, won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine — and his story of scientific persistence, unlikely partnerships, and legacy-building has shaped how Dorothy thinks about ambition, contribution, and the long view.

Please inquire about additional topics.

All keynotes can be customized to fit the audience and industry, and can be delivered in-person or virtually.

Dorothy infuses her audiences with the high energy, perspective and perseverance she has long used to reach her own goals and overcome obstacles most of either dread or dream of.