Hi, I'm Marisa Santoro

I’m the author of "Own Your Authority: Follow Your Instincts, Radiate Confidence and Communicate as a Leader People Trust" and founder of the gutsy leader career platform, In Our Shoes.

I'm a former tech executive with a 20-year career on Wall St., who transitioned to career coaching, motivational speaking and career leadership training.

Several years ago I shared a simple message to improve how people communicate by removing the obligatory need to apologize called: "Speaking without Apology" which later became a TED talk.

I later began a Gutsy Leadership career platform as I had found that following my gut instinct and trusting myself is what drove my success as a corporate executive.  I figured out there was a system to trusting your instincts which always works when you are willing to put some skin in the game and incrementally take smart risks over time. 

This book is not based on academic research, theory or feel-good advice. It is based on two decades of navigating as a business leader when you struggle with communicating your value,  and leading with influence at any level: midcareer, executive, emerging leader, or consultant. It is also based on years of coaching professionals in all of those shoes. Every story and example shared in the book is pulled from common struggles and challenges I've seen and understood as a business leader and coach.

I never saw this work in my future, but when it came knocking I listened to my gut, shifted in a new direction and never looked back. Here's how it all started...

I grew up in Brooklyn and went to New York University where I landed the only jobs that were coming in on campus to scout students -  those on Wall Street. Fast forward a few years, I worked hard, and put in long-hours until a defining moment in my life took place where I was unequally balancing a career, family and home on what felt like steroids. I wore the shoes of an executive leader in an abrasive securities trading environment and a single mom. I survived desperate economic periods in Financial Services, lost my father in hospice care, and had just begun a divorce with two young children. Still, I suppressed a knee-jerk reaction to spiral into fear mode which at the time was running rampant in the Financial Services industry.

I applied a series of essential practice-building steps that had always worked for me in business, (you may have heard referred to as Gutsy Leadership). Since developing this system, I’ve worked with professionals ranging from midcareer and executive leaders, emerging leaders, physicians, sales leaders, small business owners, coaches and many more. I've spoken in front of groups inside companies, motivating and teaching the steps on how to increase influence, be confident taking risks, make better decisions, become clear on your value so you can communicate those results naturally while using your authentic personality and voice.




When you pull out a mirror and commit to investing in yourself, affirming your bigger vision, that's when others invest in you too. You're no longer settling by taking a "wait and see" approach. You have the tough conversations you need and recognize any fear showing up which you can embrace to help you grow as a leader.  In the book I discuss these growing pains as a necessary step to grow in confidence and trust yourself. 

Gutsy Living 

This approach to making bold moves spills over into other areas of your life: your home, family, health and finances, including your relationship with children who look to you as their best role-model. 

I figured out the system to consistently achieve the things that you want with ease. There wasn’t a secret sauce. I had cracked the code on how to move ahead, ask for what you want and receive; and it didn’t have to be stressful or take years. I have since made a commitment to empowering professionals, showing them how they too can design fulfilling careers that give them the freedom they deserve. Clarity is power that people feel the minute you walk into a room.  You don't have to say a word. That's how strong your energy becomes.


Thanks so much for stopping by.  To learn more about taking a mindful, instinctive approach to leadership visit us at In Our Shoes and join our gutsy leader village. We're a community of mindful professionals who like you, believe we have the potential to increase our impact through our talents and passions in spite of Imposter Syndrome and that inner crow of self-doubt. It's all about making those gutsy moves in your career and life. 

But before I forget, click here to grab your bonuses that I've released with the book!