Shelly L Bell, Leadership Coach, Shares the Power of “Unapologetically Her” and Memoir, Girl, You Need a Sponsor at the Table Released
By Jules Lavallee
Shelly L. Bell is a woman who refuses to be defined by a single room. Standing at the powerful intersection of faith, politics, and personal development, she has spent her career proving that you don’t have to choose between a seat at the table and a pulpit in the sanctuary—you can simply build a new building.Shelly is the embodiment of what happens when preparation meets an unwavering “Yes” to God’s calling. Shelly is the Founder of the Fix My Crown event. She is releasing her memoir and leadership book, Girl, You Need a Sponsor at the Table in October.
Tell us about the power of “Unapologetically Her.” Also talk about your coaching business.
“Unapologetically Her” is the freedom a woman experiences when she stops shrinking to make other people comfortable. It is not about being arrogant, unkind, or unwilling to grow. It is about knowing who you are, honoring what you have survived, and refusing to apologize for the gifts, wisdom, ambition, faith, and presence God placed inside you.
For many years, I knew how to serve, achieve, and carry responsibility, but I did not always recognize the power of my own story. Becoming “Unapologetically Her” meant releasing the need for permission. I could be a woman of faith and a woman of influence. I could be compassionate and commanding. I could serve others while still pursuing the vision God gave me.
That truth is at the heart of my coaching business. Through Shelly Speaks and Fix My Crown, I help women rebuild their confidence, increase their visibility, navigate leadership, and create their next chapter with intention. I work especially with women who know they are capable of more but have become disconnected from their voice, confidence, or direction.
My goal is not to create a different woman. It is to help her recognize the woman who has been there all along—and give her the strategy, courage, and support to show up fully as herself.
How have you uplifted women?
Uplifting women has never been a single event or title for me; it is how I live and lead. I have mentored women, encouraged them to pursue public office, helped them prepare for interviews, introduced them to people who could advance their goals, amplified their work, and spoken their names in rooms they had not yet entered.
That distinction is important to me. Encouragement is beautiful, but advocacy changes opportunities. Sometimes uplifting a woman means telling her she is capable. Other times, it means making the phone call, offering the introduction, recommending her for the position, or pulling out a chair and saying, “Sit here—you belong at this table.”
Fix My Crown grew from that philosophy. It created a beautiful, affirming space where women could examine what they had endured, release what no longer served them, and reclaim their confidence. The crown represents identity, dignity, and purpose. When I help adjust another woman’s crown, I do it without announcing that it was crooked. I protect her dignity while reminding her of her power.
Whether through Fix My Crown, Elect Women NJ, my ministry, public service, coaching, or personal relationships, I want women to leave my presence feeling more seen, more supported, and more certain of what is possible for their lives.
You are the embodiment of what happens when preparation meets an unwavering “Yes” to God’s calling. Share your personal journey.
My journey has been a series of courageous “yeses”—sometimes spoken with confidence and sometimes spoken while my knees were trembling.
I have served in government, politics, ministry, counseling, community leadership, and women’s development. I became the first African American elected to the Montgomery Township Committee and later served as Deputy Mayor. I have worked inside state and county government, served alongside influential leaders, completed my Executive Master of Public Administration, answered my call to ministry, and built platforms devoted to helping women recognize their worth.
But my journey was not a perfectly designed climb. There were closed doors, professional disappointments, seasons of being underestimated, and moments when I had to begin again. I learned that preparation does not prevent rejection, but it ensures that rejection does not have the final word.
My faith taught me that God can use every room—the celebrated rooms, the waiting rooms, and even the rooms where I was overlooked. Each one prepared me for the next assignment.
Saying yes to God has required me to trust His direction even when I could not see the entire plan. It has meant accepting that calling is not always convenient or comfortable. Today, I understand that my education, public service, ministry, personal challenges, and leadership experiences were never separate journeys. They were all preparation for the work I am doing now: helping women rise, lead, and make room for others.
What lessons have you learned along the way?
One of my greatest lessons is that being qualified does not automatically mean you will be recognized. Women must learn how to communicate their value, build authentic relationships, and become visible without feeling guilty about it.
I have also learned that proximity is not the same as sponsorship. You can sit near powerful people for years and still have no one advocating for you when opportunities are discussed. A true sponsor does more than offer advice; a sponsor uses influence, credibility, and access to help create movement.
Another lesson is that every open door is not a divine assignment. Discernment matters. I no longer say yes simply because I have been invited. I ask whether the opportunity aligns with my values, purpose, and the season I am in.
I have learned not to confuse humility with invisibility. We can give God the glory while still acknowledging the work, preparation, and excellence required to fulfill the assignment.
Most importantly, I have learned that success is incomplete if it ends with me. Leadership is not only about earning a seat. It is about what I do with that seat, whose name I mention once I am seated, and whether another woman has a clearer path because I was there.
Tell us about the themes in your leadership memoir. What is the Legacy Multiplier?
Girl, You Need a Sponsor at the Table explores the difference between being talented and being championed. It is a leadership memoir and practical guide for women who have done the work, earned the credentials, and remained faithful—yet still find themselves overlooked when opportunities are distributed.
The book examines visibility, preparation, relationships, reputation, faith, sponsorship, and the responsibility to make room for others. I share personal experiences from government, politics, ministry, and executive leadership—not because every moment was glamorous, but because every moment taught me something about power, purpose, and perseverance.
The Legacy Multiplier is one of the signature principles in the book. It asks a leader to measure success beyond her own accomplishments. Your legacy multiplies when the access, wisdom, relationships, and opportunities you have received are intentionally transferred to others.
If I enter an influential room and remain the only woman invited, that may be personal success—but it is not multiplied legacy. Legacy happens when I recommend another woman, prepare her for the opportunity, advocate for her when she is absent, and help her create opportunities for the women coming behind her.
The Legacy Multiplier turns individual advancement into collective impact. It moves us from “Look what I achieved” to “Look at what became possible for others because I was here.”
What is your mission for Girl, You Need a Sponsor at the Table? What is next?
My mission is to make sure talented women are no longer left believing that hard work alone will carry them into the rooms where decisions are made. Hard work is essential, but women also need visibility, strategic relationships, strong reputations, and people willing to advocate for them when they are not present.
I want this book to give language to what so many women have experienced but could not explain: “I was prepared. I was qualified. I did everything I was told to do. Why was I still overlooked?”
Girl, You Need a Sponsor at the Table is both a mirror and a roadmap. It helps women see themselves honestly, identify what may be missing, and take practical steps toward becoming visible, sponsor-ready, and influential. It also challenges established leaders to stop merely mentoring women and begin actively sponsoring them.
What is next is bigger than a book. I am building a movement around confidence, sponsorship, reinvention, and legacy. The book will expand into speaking engagements, leadership workshops, coaching experiences, and a six-week course designed to help women reinvent themselves and intentionally build their next chapter.
Ultimately, I want women to understand this: You do not need to beg for belonging. Prepare yourself, honor your value, build genuine relationships, and walk into the room knowing that you belong there. Then, once you receive your seat, do not forget to pull out the empty chair for the woman coming next.
Shelly’s mission remains the same: See her. Encourage her. Speak her name. Open the door. Pull out the chair. Because there is room for more than one woman at the table.
And when God finally opens the door you’ve been praying for, don’t simply take your seat.
Scoot over. There’s another woman on her way.
Shellylbell.org To purchase her memoir from Balboa Press www.balboapress.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/878383-girl-you-need-a-sponsor-at-the-table
