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James Barnes      

Identity Development & Empowerment Speaker; LGBTQ+ Rights & Transgender Advocate; Transition and Corporate Culture Coach

James Barnes focuses on how core identity development can leverage you into success. Whether you are becoming a parent, coming out as Transgender, or pivoting your company in a new direction, concentrating on your core identity is vital for thriving.

In 2021, Barnes created The Trans Coach brand. He speaks to companies on his transition journey and how understanding the transgender experience can help them better serve their employees and innovate their identity. In addition, Barnes develops courses for Transgender men to build intentional transition plans for better mental health. He also does one-on-one coaching with people struggling through major life shifts and needing to re-align with their core identity.

He has spoken at companies such as Lyft, Del Monte Foods, Comcast, Twilio, Zendesk, and many others. Also, Barnes has been featured in Business Insider and an invited guest on multiple podcasts.

Barnes came out as Transgender in 2015 and started researching coping skills, healthy masculinity, and identity development. Those three factors played a massive role in Barnes becoming the proud father, husband, speaker, and business owner he is today.

Audiences will leave feeling motivated and knowledgeable in defining their core identity, how they can pivot and innovate their lives or their companies, and better understand the transgender experience!

Speech Topics


Innovating Your Identity

Whether you need personal growth or your company needs it, it starts with understanding your identity and defining what to innovate. This talk will clarify where to focus your attention and how to best utilize your time and energy to succeed. You may go through an identity crisis, but how you develop a plan and execute it is what matters in the long run. The audience will leave with definitive action steps to make thriving changes in their life and companies.

Empathy and Understanding the Transgender Experience

More and more employees are coming out as Transgender, and most companies are unprepared. This talk will break down what your employees are experiencing in and out of work, terms that may be confusing, and policies that will make leadership feel empowered, all while helping your employees feel more seen and secure. This talk has been given to CEOs, legal teams, HR, and entry-level. All company employees need to understand the basics of the Transgender experience.

Lessons From My Transition

This talk dives into how confident and prepared a person will be after implementing the lessons I gained from my transition. This is for people from all walks of life, not only for transgender individuals going through a significant life shift. Attendees will learn how to define the best coping skills, identity development, and ways to advocate for themselves. This motivational talk is meant to empower the audience for long-term change.

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