Caroline Adelman, PhD
Clinical Psychologist · TEDx Speaker · Leadership & Resilience Expert
Dr. Adelman draws on two decades of clinical experience and deep expertise in psychology and behavioral science to help individuals, leaders, organizations, and families thrive. She translates the best available research into practical tools for well-being, leadership, workplace culture, and resilience — giving audiences strategies they can use immediately, grounded in science they can trust.
TEDx Speaker — Navigating in Darkness: Stories of Resilience (TED.com)
About Caroline Adelman, PhD
Dr. Adelman is a licensed clinical psychologist, founder of Chicago Psychotherapy, PLLC, and a sought-after speaker and consultant for corporations, law firms, schools, non-profits, and professional organizations.
Her corporate work focuses on the intersection of behavioral science and leadership – helping senior leaders and their teams navigate organizational change, build psychologically safe cultures, and develop the adaptive capacity that complex, uncertain environments demand. She has partnered with dozens of law firms, coalitions and corporate clients over the past decade, delivering continuing education, leadership development programs, executive workshops, and firm-wide keynotes on topics ranging from adaptive leadership and evidence-based communication to resilience and burnout prevention.
In schools, non-profits and clinical settings, Dr. Adelman is a trusted voice on child and adolescent mental health, equipping parents, educators, and school leaders with research-backed strategies for managing anxiety, fostering resilience, and supporting healthy development in a rapidly changing world.
Her TEDx talk, Navigating in Darkness: Stories of Resilience, was delivered during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic and is published on TED.com. She holds a PhD in Clinical Psychology from UNC Chapel Hill, completed her predoctoral and postdoctoral fellowships at the Yale Child Study Center, and is currently based in Chicago.
Speaking Topics
Dr. Adelman offers keynotes, half-day workshops, and multi-session leadership programs tailored to the needs of each audience. Each talk is grounded in research and best practices, and designed to leave participants with practical, immediately applicable strategies. Topics below are examples of recent themes in Dr. Adelman’s work, and can be adapted for executive teams, all-staff events, professional conferences, school communities, and more.
Talk 1: Adaptive Leadership in Uncertain Times
The science of leading through complexity, change, and ambiguity.
The challenges facing today’s organizations — from AI disruption to shifting workforce expectations — don’t have playbook solutions. They require a fundamentally different kind of leadership. Drawing on the adaptive leadership framework pioneered by Dr. Ronald Heifetz, combined with her expertise in human behavior and change management, Dr. Adelman helps leaders distinguish between technical problems (where expertise suffices) and adaptive challenges (where people must change how they think, work, and relate to one another). Participants walk away with a practical framework for diagnosing challenges, building contextual intelligence, communicating through uncertainty, and leading change without burning out themselves or their teams.
Best for: Senior leadership teams, executive retreats, law firms, professional services, leadership development programs.
Available as: Keynote (60-75 mins) · Multi-hour leadership workshop · Multi-session leadership series
Talk 2: Psychological Safety as a Performance Strategy
Evidence-based practices for building teams that think, innovate, and communicate better.
Psychological safety isn’t a feel-good perk; it’s the single best predictor of collective intelligence in workplace teams. Drawing on landmark research from Google’s Project Aristotle, the work of Dr. Amy Edmondson, and the neuroscience of how our brains respond to social threat and reward, Dr. Adelman makes a compelling, data-driven case for why psychological safety is a strategic advantage. She then equips leaders and teams with concrete communication practices — from situational humility and growth-oriented feedback to structured problem-solving conversations — that build trust, reduce preventable failures, and create cultures where people do their best thinking together.
Best for: Managers and directors, HR and people teams, Continuing Education programs, all-staff development days
Available as: Keynote (60-75 mins) · Interactive workshop (2–4 hours) · Team development series
Talk 3: The Resilient Professional
Evidence-based strategies for sustainable high performance in demanding environments.
Resilience isn’t about pushing harder — it’s about understanding how your brain and body manage energy, stress, and recovery, and building sustainable practices around that science. In this engaging, research-rich talk, Dr. Adelman introduces the “body budget” framework from affective neuroscience, explains the critical difference between exhaustion and burnout, and walks participants through the evidence on what actually builds lasting resilience (and what doesn’t). Audiences leave with a personalized understanding of what drains and replenishes their capacity, and practical strategies for sustaining performance, well-being, and engagement over the long haul.
Best for: Firm-wide keynotes, wellness days, professional conferences, retreats, working parent programs
Available as: Keynote (60-75 min) · Interactive workshop (90 min–half day)
Talk 4: Raising Resilient Kids in Anxious Times
What the science of anxiety and resilience means for families and the adults who support them.
Anxiety among children and adolescents has surged in recent years, and well-meaning adults often respond in ways that inadvertently reinforce it. Drawing on clinical research (including exposure-based CBT and the SPACE program for families), developmental neuroscience, and two decades of work with children and families, Dr. Adelman helps parents and educators understand what anxiety actually is, how it operates within the family system, and how to respond in ways that build genuine resilience rather than short-term relief. Warm, practical, and deeply informed, this talk gives audiences both the science and the specific strategies to support young people in developing the coping skills, confidence, and courage they need to thrive.
Best for: Parent education events, educator professional development, pediatric and family conferences, corporate family wellness programs
Available as: Evening talk (60-90 min) · Parent workshop · Educator professional development workshop (variable length, depending on depth – ideally 2-3 hours)
What Partners Say
Book Dr. Adelman
Interested in bringing Dr. Adelman to your organization, school, or event? She is available for keynotes, workshops, multi-session leadership development programs, and ongoing consulting partnerships.