Real Talk Ladies: Who We Are

We are raw.

We own our crazy.

We color outside the lines.

We are dangerously hopeful.

We are on a journey to find a life fulfilled.

We know we don't have the answers.

But, we are seeking them.

We are here to be a sounding board.

We speak the truth.

And we have real talks.

RTL Guides

Kelly Connolly

For Kelly, success and determination are woven tightly into the fabric of who she is. In college, she climbed the sorority and Panhellenic ladders, stayed involved in as many extracurricular activities as fit in her planner, and aced courses along the way.

Following graduation, she did what the best midwestern girls do, accepted the best paying job, married her best friend and moved around the world in pursuit of building her resume with the best titles ... and best money.

At 31, the questions of why, where and how caught up to Kelly and her husband. Questions they answered differently, but promised to remain friends.

With her new life ahead, she added bold and daring to describe herself as she moved to Boston to start a company. After a year, she realized success wasn’t profitable, and moved back to Minnesota with the realization that success is so much more than titles and money.

Kimberly Deann

Kimberly dove right into adulting like all good southern girls do. She checked off those boxes one-by-one: Losing her virginity to her high school sweetheart. Engaged in college. Big wedding and house by 22. A perfectly executed tailgate spread. Done. Done and done.

When 28 rolled around she kicked down the doors of those societal rules -- walking away and never looking back on a quest to live the life her heart always told her was hers. She did the things her ex and townies said she shouldn’t. She hunted down her passion, completed her MBA and climbed to the top of the corporate world. She promised herself an amazing journey to find real people, real connections, true love, financial health, and acquired a Pilates addiction along the way.

Some things remained. Kimberly did not turn in her southern love of a good tailgate, first and goals and touchdown cheers.

How Real Talk Ladies Came to Be

It began with two people -- Karen & Kim -- who met at brunch and instantly bonded over lipstick, travel, and their perfected side eye glances. The girls created a circle of friends where conversations about life experiences, passion for becoming better and helping ease others’ hard knocks. where the norm at bars, pools, lakehouses and wherever the tribe was. This bred Real Talk Ladies, because if we were asking these questions, then many other women were too.

When Kim met Kelly months later, it was clear she was the wisest one in the group. As Karen's life transitioned, there was no question that Real Talk Ladies needed to continue, and Kelly was the one to keep the tribe going.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

It's been the same and will always be that we don’t have all the answers, but we’ll never stop asking questions. Afterall, we’re in this together -- so take our hands and come along with us on this rollercoaster they call life.

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