Chief Heart Officer®
Most people want close, healthy relationships. But when conflict, stress, or disconnection shows up, it can be hard to know what to do next.
The Chief Heart Officer® helps people build stronger relationships with Heart Skills®, practical tools for real-life moments.
Find My ProgramWhat the Chief Heart Officer® Does
Communication can break down quickly when people do not have the tools to handle hard moments. Arguments repeat. Trust weakens. Parents feel distant from their children. Youth struggle to feel supported. Couples get stuck in the same patterns. Teams lose connection.
The Chief Heart Officer® leads Be Strong International's Heart Skills® work, helping people learn practical relationship skills they can use at home, at school, at work, and in the community.
Heart Skills® are practical tools to help you communicate clearly, handle conflict in a healthier way, and rebuild connection with the people you care about. These tools help people listen differently, speak with clarity and courage, repair after conflict, and build stronger bonds over time.
Through coaching, workshops, trainings, conferences, and community programs, the Chief Heart Officer® supports real relationship change for youth, parents, couples, families, teams, and organizations.
Meet Michelle Shirley
Chief Heart Officer®
Michelle Shirley is the CEO and Chief Heart Officer® of Be Strong International. Since 2005, she has helped grow Be Strong into a trusted healthy relationship education provider serving youth, families, couples, schools, organizations, and communities.
Michelle created the Heart Skills® framework to give people practical tools for real-life relationships. Her work helps youth and adults communicate clearly, handle conflict in healthier ways, rebuild connections, and build relationships that feel safe, trusting, connected, and joyful.
With degrees from the University of Miami and Barry University, along with nonprofit leadership training at Harvard, Michelle brings both compassion and strategy to Be Strong's mission. Her leadership continues to shape programs that support relationship building, youth coaching, parental coaching, and stronger communities.
Through her work as Chief Heart Officer®, Michelle reminds people that healthier relationships are possible, one Heart Skill® at a time.
Heart Skills® for Youth, Parents, Families, and Teams
Be Strong International's Chief Heart Officer® helps people strengthen the relationships that shape everyday life.
Youth Coaching
Young people need safe spaces where they can feel heard, supported, and equipped for real-life relationships. Through youth coaching and Heart Skills® education, youth learn how to handle conflict, build healthy friendships, strengthen belonging, and make choices that support stronger relationships at home, in school, and in the community.
Parental Coaching
Parents want strong, connected relationships with their children, but hard moments can make that connection feel out of reach. Parental coaching gives parents practical Heart Skills® to communicate with more care, build trust, set healthy boundaries, and stay connected through each stage of family life.
Couples and Family Support
Every family faces tension, misunderstanding, and moments of distance. Heart Skills® help couples and families reconnect, repair after conflict, and work through challenges with more calm, trust, and understanding. Stronger families start with healthy relationships.
Team and Community Training
Workplaces and community spaces need trust, clear communication, and meaningful connection to thrive. The Chief Heart Officer® brings Heart Skills® into team trainings, workshops, seminars, and community events to help people work through tension, strengthen communication, and build more connected cultures.
Relationship Building That Works in Real Life
The Chief Heart Officer® approach is practical, human, and rooted in everyday relationship challenges. People need tools they can use when the conversation gets hard, when trust feels weak, or when connection starts to fade.
Be Strong International helps people build Heart Skills® for:
Heart Skills® create deeper relationship habits that people can carry into real life.
How It Works
Start With a Conversation
Tell us what kind of support you are looking for. You may need youth coaching, parental coaching, relationship-building support, family workshops, or training for your team or organization.
Find the Right Be Strong Program
Our team will help connect you with the right program, workshop, coaching option, or training experience. Every path is built around practical tools for real-life relationship challenges.
Build Stronger Relationships
Practice Heart Skills® in everyday moments. Learn how to listen with care and communicate with courage to build relationships with the people who matter most.
Transforming Relationships One Heart Skill at a Time
The Chief Heart Officer® represents Be Strong International's belief that stronger relationships can be built with the right tools and support.
When people learn Heart Skills®, hard moments can become opportunities for stronger bonds. Families feel closer. Youth feel more supported. Parents feel more equipped. Couples rebuild trust. Teams work with more connection and care.
Be Strong International helps people create healthier relationships at home, at school, at work, and across the community.
Start building stronger relationships with the Chief Heart Officer® today.