I empower women to LIVE VICTORIOUSLY!

Featured On

as seenon badge
as seenon badge
as seenon badge
as seenon badge
philly inquirer logo
style magazine logo
the zoe report logo
as seenon badge
as seenon badge
amk featured on marie clair magazine
pbs logo
as seenon badge
as seenon badge
five year marriage featured on growth marriage podcast
as seenon badge
market watch report logo
yahoo finance logo
morningstar

My Empowerment Journey & How You Can Start Yours!

About Annmarie Kelly

Hi! I’m bestselling author Annmarie Kelly, and I’m the woman behind the Victorious Woman Project and The Five-Year Marriage®. I help women – like you – figure out how to have a better life, either as a single person or as marital partner.  

Annmarie Kelly, speaker, author, lifestyle influencer for women over 40 You might be surprised to find out how all that started.  You wouldn’t be the first. Some people find it hard to believe now, but I was a shy and introverted kid. In my “old school” Italian-Catholic family, I knew ,my “job” was getting good grades in school, then get a job, get married, buy a house, and have children. And it better be in that order! OK, the house could come either before or after the children. But the rest of it was sacrosanct.  Today I call that the “pre-program” that so many young girls were given. That and the regular reminder that girls should be seen and not heard.

So, when I wasn’t studying and playing games like Clue, Monopoly, and Scrabble, I read books and watched TV. I read a lot of books and watched a lot of TV. Both of those got me through my childhood and teenage years in a household that included alcoholism and mental illness.

That’s when I first started noticing strong women – ones who were seen AND heard. I loved Nancy Drew and Little Women’s Jo March. I was fascinated by women like Katherine Hepburn, Bette Davis and Mae West. When Billie Jean King came onto the sports scene, it was fun to watch her go toe-to-toe with her male opponent in her famous Battle of the Sexes…and then go on to change tennis for women. And I’d just started running when, in 1984, I was cheering on Joan Benoit as she competed for and then won Olympic Gold.

Those were some of the women who, though I stayed on the good girl path into my twenties, challenged my thinking.  A broken engagement at twenty-two sent me down into “the valley” – a place many women go when life gets too hard. When I came up, the good girl stuff was over.  Then I met Millicent, who told me “thoughts are things” and opened the door to a new world. She introduced me to Jeanne, who taught me “new thought” and was my spiritual mentor for twenty years. They opened up a whole new world for me, one that eventually resulted in a happier and more satisfying life.

Annmarie with husband Joseph Eagle, contract marriageBy the time I met Joseph Eagle, I was independent. I lived alone and liked it. I had a decent job, a good social life and I owned a house. When Joseph wanted to get married, I suggested buying a house and living together. We did…but Joseph still wanted to get married. That’s when I got the idea for the Five-Year Marriage®. When he agreed to the idea, we were married six weeks later (everyone thought I was pregnant!). We had no idea then how powerful that idea would become for us and our relationship.  A year or so later I started my own business focused on helping people create better lives. In corporations I taught communication skill-building and management development. In small groups, I helped women and men design the lives they loved living. In 2001, shortly after 9-11 and a personal health crisis, I got the idea to write my first book, Victorious Woman: Shaping Life’s Challenges into Personal Victories . I interviewed lots and lots of women and chose nine poignant stories for that book. I also began teaching classes designed especially for women. 

Starting over, midlife transformation after 40 My second book, Victory by Design, was created in response to women in those classes who wanted to know how to make their life better – they wanted clear step-by-step details.  All the while I was speaking to groups, giving seminars and teaching workshops. I focused on topics related to women’s empowerment and victory (finding your voice, designing and living your best life) as well as communication skills, mentoring and DiSC® Behavioral Styles. Now, whether I’m working with corporations, women’s leadership groups, couples or couples’ associations, government agencies, or with individuals, I encourage clients to LIVE VICTORIOUSLY – out loud and in living color. I help women – and the men who love them – develop their own personal victory strategy so they can solve problems, transform adversities into opportunities and achieve their goals. I encourage them to embrace their personal power by stretching out of their comfort zones and into authentic, personal leadership. Here’s some of my “official” info:

  • I’m a professional speaker, teacher and victory strategist
  • I’m the author of  three booksVictorious Woman! Shaping Life’s Challenges into Personal Victories, Victory by Design: The Victorious Woman’s Guide to Her Best Life and The Five-Year Marriage® as well as articles on a variety of topics for women, including emotional intelligence, goal achievement, behavior-focused performance improvement, mentoring and life balance.
  • In 2008, I founded The Victorious Woman Project, which focuses on inspiration, education and encouragement by providing resources for women who are “starting over” or “downshifting” into retirement as well as leadership skills for women in the workplace. The annual celebration and fundraiser, The Girlfriend Gala, has raised almost $20,000 to help women who are homeless or in transition through different organizations, including the Victorious Woman Scholarship for women who are of a “non-traditional” age and returning to college to earn a degree in education or nursing. 
  • From 2013-2018 I hosted a weekly radio show focused on life reinventions. I interviewed authors, celebrities and other fabulous people. In late 2018, the Friday Happy Hour became the Victory Chicks Podcast, available on iTunes, Spotify, and iHeart Radio.
  • My professional associations include being a professional member of the National Speakers Association, The Press Club PA and the Polka Dot Powerhouse. I also hold the advanced speaker designation of Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) with Toastmasters International. 
  • In 1999 and again in 2000, I received the Leadership Award from the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD-PHL now ATD). In 2010, I was honored with the President’s Call to Service Award by President Barack Obama. In 2011 I received the Outstanding Service Award in honor of the 100th Anniversary of International Women’s Day. In 2018 I was thrilled to be recognized by Neumann University (I’m class of ’01) as Alumna of the Year. Victorious Woman Project

If you are a single woman, or an engaged or married couple, and want to create a better marital experience through The Five-Year Marriage®, here are three things you can do: 

My most popular programs:

To book Annmarie for your next conference, retreat, or to discuss a corporate workshop,
contact her at 610.738.8225 or annmarie@victoriouswoman.com.

DOWNLOAD ANNMARIE’S BIO (PDF)
(opens in a new window)

Thank you for your presentation yesterday! Thanks on behalf of the West Chester Newcomers Club, but also from me personally. I enjoyed your information and presentation style and it gave me food for thought when I came home. I can imagine I was not the only one who felt that way because you engaged everyone in the audience.
~Brigitte

Excellent flow of material; Annmarie’s presentation was excellent!
~US Government, Department of Defense

Our participants left…with practical, usable skills with which to implement change in their unit. Over time we have noticed the positive results of these changes.
~ Training Manager, AFSC

I’m still hearing from attendees about what an impact [Annmarie Kelly’s] two sessions had on the way they will be doing business in the future.
~ Conference Chair, Century 21

Your advice and coaching was superb…all of the participants found it a valuable experience.
~ Educational Programs Administrator, CHASE

[Annmarie’s] advice and coaching was superb…all of the participants found it a valuable experience.
~ Educational Programs Administrator, CHASE

five year marriage feedback
five year marriage on tamron hall show
growth marriage Nate Bagley's review of five year marriage

Books By Annmarie Kelly

Five Year Marriage by Annmarie Kelly
Victorious Woman - Inspiring stories of midlife women starting over
Victory by Design: Self-help book for midlife women transforming their lives

Blogs: Relationship Advice & Personal Empowerment

Empowerment Tips
to Improve Your Relationship

I’m a Newlywed – again!

stone moon gate for wedding ceremony

After months of discussions, negotiations, renegotiations, & agreements, Joseph & I ended Five-Year Marriage #7. Our plans to marry again didn’t go as expected.

Read More I’m a Newlywed – again!

Relationship Coach Annmarie Kelly Announces the “Summer Romance Challenge” for Couples Who Want to Bring the Love Back

Annmarie Kelly's Romance Challenge - 5 year marriage

WEST CHESTER, Pa., Aug. 2, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — August is Romance Awareness Month, and Relationship Coach Annmarie Kelly is helping couples reignite the love spark in their relationship with The Romance Challenge, which is designed to remind couples why they are together. Couples […]

Read More Relationship Coach Annmarie Kelly Announces the “Summer Romance Challenge” for Couples Who Want to Bring the Love Back

Summer Romance Challenge

Annmarie Kelly's Romance Challenge - 5 year marriage

August is Romance Awareness Month and Relationship Coach Annmarie Kelly is helping couples reignite the love spark in their relationship with The Romance Challenge, which is designed to remind couples why they are together. Couples do one simple love-action […]

Read More Summer Romance Challenge

I’m Not Married to the Same Man Anymore

Marriage and Relationship Advice

Is covid over? Yes and no. A few weeks ago, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy joined the ladies of The View to talk about the emotional toll of covid. As part of the convo, host Sunny Hostin got very real […]

Read More I’m Not Married to the Same Man Anymore

Read More Relationship Tips

Empowerment Tips
to Jazz Up Your Life

Am I Old?

cupcakes with candles lit

Greetings and Happy February!! I recently had a birthday. It wasn’t a “big” or milestone birthday, and it wasn’t exciting. In fact, I was nursing a very painful pinched nerve. So I was chair-bound, needed to be escorted […]

Read More Am I Old?

Two Very Different Memorial Services

transitions and taking act

What will people say at my memorial? Or yours? What is one thing you hope you are known for? Now is the time to decide and purse it!

Read More Two Very Different Memorial Services

2023 Girlfriend Gala Photo Gallery

Thanks so much for joining us for the 17th annual Victorious Woman Celebration,The Girlfriend Gala WOW! What a good time we had last week! THANK YOU for being part of it – it was your presence and your energy […]

Read More 2023 Girlfriend Gala Photo Gallery

Remembering Pink Think

women's history month

Happy Women’s History Month! Sometimes I think we forget how women fought for greater equality, not just personally and at work, but also in marriage. As I’ve been watching Women’s History Month commercials and morning show segments highlighting […]

Read More Remembering Pink Think

Read More Victory Tips

Work With Annmarie Kelly

What Women Have Are Saying:

Great relationship guidance. [The Five-Year Marriage is] a must read for everyone wanting strong, loving, and continuously growing relationships. Family meetings serve as a communication tool to create open dialogue leading to better understanding and acceptance.

~ Kate DiPronio

[Annmarie’s] advice and coaching was superb…all of the participants found it a valuable experience.

~ Educational Programs Administrator, CHASE

Victorious Woman! is an uplifting book EVERY woman should read. The stories are a testament to what can be achieved through the power of purpose and optimism…you are left with a true sense of hope that anyone in any situation can find a way to victory.

~ Theresa Hummel-Krallinger, Laughologist