Exploring Life & Business with Jackie Insinger of Spark Brilliance

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jackie Insinger. 

Hi Jackie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Oh boy, my story… where to start? 

Well, as a little girl (promise I won’t give you a play-by-play 😉 I was always slightly obsessed with how people act, react, and interact. A natural pleaser (in hindsight, a bit too much so), this “gift” served me in two ways – first, it was a wonderful way to optimize relationships, and second, it served as a great coping skill to navigate said relationships. 

I always wanted to learn more about people and understand how they think, feel, and make decisions, so I pursued my passion at Duke and got a psychology degree. After a brief stint in NYC, I went on to design a master’s at Harvard in Human Development and Psychology. At the end of my program, I met two awesome Harvard Business School grads who were starting a “dot.com” and asked me to join them on this exciting journey. Emode.com was built on the concept that insights into human psychology and behavior could be freely collected online through quizzes – and the feedback would create a system for understanding human motivation. I was Head of Content and wrote close to 100 personality tests. The very first one, “What breed of dog are you?” went viral, and became the MOST clicked on link in the world! It was quite nuts. It validated how much people want to be seen, to be known, to be understood. 

We were quickly funded and the small group of us moved to San Francisco to build the platform. 

After Emode (when the dot.com bubble burst) I moved to Denver to be with my (now) husband, Rob. I dove into the research of the blossoming field of Positive Psychology and I started a private coaching practice, taking all that I’ve learned and applying it directly to interpersonal dynamics to help people learn to honor differences and leverage strengths for more meaningful and effective relationships. 

My first focus was on “family teams” and I quickly fell into a fabulous twice-monthly TV segment, Parent 2 Parent. That lasted about 45 segments and was a wonderful experience! After building an online program for families, I decided to shift my focus fully into corporate leaders and teams. 

I found my home in this area. All of the emerging research, my education, and experience provided me a solid platform to create unique and actionable strategies for leaders and teams to eliminate some of the “messiness” and optimize their brain and behavior for success. I started seeing incredible results in employee fulfillment, engagement, happiness, and ultimately, profits. 

After getting a certificate in Neuroscience for Business from MIT Sloan School of Management, I knew it was time for me to put my process into a book, so these simple-to-implement and research-packed strategies can reach more than just my direct clients. 

And, here I am!!! 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I don’t really believe in a smooth road 😉 

I have had a squiggly line to get where I am, and I’m sure I’m still squiggling around to get where I will be! As an entrepreneur, I have been on my own in figuring out what I wanted to do, and how I wanted to do it. With that, comes a bit of a mess! I am someone who loves to welcome opportunities and accept challenges, which can definitely lead to taking on too much and not focusing where I need to. That’s been a work in progress (still is) and streamlining is a goal of mine for 2022. 

Not hiring a team soon enough and trying to do everything myself has caused many struggles, and not following my gut never ends up working in my favor. 

I am excited for what’s to come now that I’m narrowing my focus and have some great people on board! 

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Spark Brilliance is a Leadership and Team Dynamics Consulting Firm that specializes in helping great leaders become extraordinary. 

A key differentiator is the focus on neuroscience and positive psychology research, and actionable ways to optimize your brain and behavior for success. 

The strengths-based approach focuses on establishing authentic connection and then helping individuals and teams make quick and sustainable progress toward their people, product, and profit goals. 

My new book, Spark Brilliance, is a playbook for leaders teaching them how to move their team from burnout to brilliance! I have new leadership intensive programs for leaders of all levels (from the C-suite to high-potentials) to learn how to bring out, honor, and leverage the unique brilliance in each member of their team for higher engagement, performance, and profitability. 

I also love to keynote and spread this positive and actionable message to all audiences. 

How can people work with you, collaborate with you, or support you?
I would love any and all of those things! 

To work with me, I can do corporate leadership intensive programs, executive coaching, or team dynamics workshops. To collaborate with me, please bring me in to your next conference as a speaker or keynote, or connect me with people who would benefit from this work! And if you’re looking to be part of the Spark Brilliance Movement, please reach out! 

Contact Info:

• Email: jackie@sparkbrilliance.com
• Website: www.SparkBrilliance.com
• Instagram: jackieinsinger
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jackie.insinger
• Twitter: @insingerjackie