2022 Ag Spotlight: Coach Kiah
Meet Kiah Twisselman Burchett, a California cattle rancher turned motivational speaker
Kiah Twisselman Burchett, lovingly called “Coach Kiah” by her clients and fans, is a motivational speaker “on a mission to empower others to love themselves deeper, care for themselves better, and find joy in this messy, beautiful journey of life.”
But before speaking at events and on TV shows like Good Morning America and The Kelly Clarkson Show, Kiah had a much different, bovine audience.
“I grew up on my family's sixth-generation cattle ranch in rural Carrisa Plains,” she said, adding that she started her career in agriculture communications as the director of consumer affairs for the Kentucky Beef Council before returning home. “Today, I am a life coach and motivational speaker working with many individuals within the agriculture industry.”
She travels all across the country keynote speaking at conferences within and outside of the agriculture industry.
So what’s a typical day like for Coach Kiah?
“[It} starts with some joyful movement and a walk on the ranch before diving into office work producing my weekly podcast, coaching women virtually all across the country, and preparing for speaking events,” Kiah said. “My job includes a lot of travel all across the country speaking at events from Women in Ag organizations to Young Farmers and Ranchers Conferences, to women's retreats and everywhere in between.”
One of her latest keynote themes has been "Grow Through It," a pertinent topic for current times.
“I think we can all agree that life comes with many challenges, whether that be a global pandemic, a seemingly endless drought, loss of loved ones, and the list goes on. While we're in the thick of it, it feels as though life has simply taken a crap on us,” she said.
“But what those of us in agriculture understand is that crap is more than just a pile of manure—it's also the world's greatest fertilizer. Within it are nutrients that support us for our greatest growth on the other side of it. So when life feels hard, challenging, and just plain crappy... consider how it may be nourishing you for your greatest growth yet to bloom even more beautifully on the other side.”
It’s no surprise then that Kiah believes the greatest benefit of being a part of the ag community is “without a doubt the people.”
“Perhaps I'm biased having been raised within the ag community, but the salt-of-the-earth individuals that value a hard day's work, family, and caring for the land are unlike any other. That said, the greatest challenge can also be the people within the ag community,” she said. “It is easy for us to stay within our own comfort bubbles and segregate ourselves from the consumer population at large that we are serving. We sometimes fight amongst ourselves and lose sight of the bigger picture. With so few of us (less than 2%) raising the food for the rest of the world, we must stand united and be open minded to the needs and desires of the 100% that we feed.”