Mariana Atencio

Peabody Award-Winning Journalist, Bestselling Author, Entrepreneur, Inspiring Storyteller & Host/Moderator

Mariana Atencio

Peabody Award-Winning Journalist, Bestselling Author, Entrepreneur, Inspiring Storyteller & Host/Moderator

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Biography

Navigating change and uncertainty in life is hard. It’s even harder when you’re not confident about who you are. Coming to America from Venezuela as a young girl, Mariana Atencio felt self-conscious about being different. She recounted her struggles to fit in and adapt to her new life in a TED talk that captured the hearts of tens of millions. Mariana’s message: What makes you different is what makes you special – unleash your potential by embracing your authenticity.

Mariana took that lesson into her journalism career as a national news anchor and network reporter. A born storyteller, Mariana worked to build bridges and understanding – reporting with her unique perspective from all over the globe, earning accolades and a prestigious Peabody Award along the way. Mariana’s bestselling book, Perfectly You: Embracing the Power of Being Real, inspires people to leverage their personal and professional authenticity to supercharge their relationships, careers, workplace cultures, and happiness. Mariana continues to pursue stories that capture her curiosity as head of her own media production company. She also elevates the impact of events through her powerful keynotes and skillful moderating, and hosting.

But to start at the beginning.

Originally from Caracas, Venezuela, Mariana graduated from Merici High School and received a journalism degree from Universidad Católica.

When the government of Hugo Chávez shut down independent media outlets in her home country, she participated in student protests for democracy. After being assaulted in an armed robbery, Mariana left for the United States when she received a full-merit scholarship to Columbia University’s Journalism School and received her master’s degree in broadcast journalism.

Mariana got her big break anchoring and reporting at Univision, where she also filed stories for the Documentaries and Investigative Unit. She won a Peabody Award and an Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) Award for her work uncovering illegal weapons sold across the border in Mexico. She also won a Gracie Award for directing, writing, and reporting PRESSionados, a documentary about press freedom in Latin America.

She then went on to host The Morning Show on Fusion, the Disney and Univision joint venture, and co-anchored the 2016 Democratic Presidential debate.

Mariana made the crossover from Spanish to English-speaking television as a national correspondent for NBC News where she was known for her boots-on-the ground, engaging, and empathic field work. Her investigative work on Latin America, the Latino community, cartel violence, women’s and migrants’ rights earned her three Emmy nominations, a Hillman Prize, and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists Presidential Award.

In the course of her broadcast career, Mariana has reported from places like Haiti, the Syrian border, and China, underscoring the common threads in our humanity and that we are all more alike than different. She has interviewed dozens of notable figures, including Pope Francis, President Joe Biden, King Felipe VI of Spain, Nancy Pelosi, chef and humanitarian José Andrés, author Yuval Noah Harari, and director Francis Ford Coppola.

Mariana’s journey is featured on the award-winning HBO series Habla, and People magazine called her storytelling platform “a media empire.” Ten years after she arrived in the United States, Mariana won Columbia’s First Decade Award for her impressive career as a journalist.

Mariana is a 2021 Henry Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute and spokesperson for the American Latino Museum in D.C. In 2022 she launched the hit true crime podcast series Lost in Panama, an investigation into the disappearance of Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon, shedding light on the issue of missing women and girls in the region. Lost in Panama made Apple Podcasts’ top 10 list, and Mariana headlined Foreign Policy magazine’s HerPower summit on tackling gender inequality in the Americas.

Mariana’s TEDx talk “What Makes YOU Special?” is one of the top ten most-watched videos on YouTube. Doubling down on her message, she wrote her bestselling memoir, Perfectly You: Embracing the Power of Being Real.

Speaker Videos

Hosting Reel

Building Trust in an AI World

Be Authentic - Stop Covering

Speaking Demo

Masterclass by Mariana Atencio on How to turn your Book into a Movement

Perfectly You: Authenticity is our best currency | Mariana Atencio | Talent Connect 2019 (CC)

Climb the World's Highest Peaks with Mariana Atencio & Silvia Vasquez-Lavado

Build Legacies for a Better Tomorrow with Mariana Atencio & Nathalie Molina Niño

Las 5 claves para convertirte en un gran líder | Mariana Atencio | TEDxCaracas

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Speech Topics

Real Matters: Building Trust in an Unreal World

Curated feeds. Corporate spin. AI-generated everything. Building trust in modern times is harder than ever. It’s also one of the most valuable assets a leader or organization can possess. Employees, customers, and stakeholders are attracted to what feels real – and they can sense inauthenticity in an instant. When leaders show up with authenticity, they create cultures rooted in trust, engagement, and collaboration – the foundations of high-performing teams. Being real is the most powerful way to stand out in an unreal world of filtered perceptions and manufactured narratives. This doesn’t mean rejecting technology – quite the opposite. It means embracing it without losing the human touch in leadership and processes.

Mariana unpacks how trust strengthens team resilience, drives innovation, and builds credibility both inside and outside the organization. Through strategic storytelling and powerful interactive exercises, Mariana delivers practical insights leaders can apply immediately: how to develop trust with those they lead, build authentic brands, and create workplaces where people want to bring their best every day – because when organizations are real, they thrive.

Key Takeaways:

Identify and leverage your unique leadership abilities to build trust.
Develop the skills to determine, understand, and guide your team through change effectively.
Communicate with clarity, empathy, and transparency to navigate uncertainty.
Unite your teams around a shared purpose to drive collective progress.
Mariana’s interactive exercises make unforgettable lessons and customized experiences.

Perfectly You: Leveraging the Power Within

Everywhere we look, the world pressures us to perform, conform, and be perfect – often at the expense of being true to ourselves. But the truth is, when we show up authentically, we become magnetic and unlock greater resilience, confidence, and purpose. Authenticity not only helps us navigate change and uncertainty – it attracts opportunities and relationships that align with who we really are.

Mariana’s unique energy and interactive dynamics give people permission to drop the masks and discover the bold power of being “Perfectly You.” Through inspiring stories and practical takeaways, attendees will learn how to embrace what makes them irreplaceable and tap into authenticity as a source of strength and well-being to give their best at work and in life. Audiences leave energized, empowered, and ready to stand out – not by trying to be perfect, but by having the courage to be real.

Key Takeaways:

Harness the traits that make you unique (and “Perfectly You”) to resiliently navigate change and uncertainty with confidence.
Discover your sense of purpose and increase your personal fulfillment.
Learn the three-step framework authentic leaders use to cultivate cultures of trust, collaboration, and purpose.
Foster meaningful relationships to strengthen team culture and team building.
Mariana’s energy and empathy create breakthrough moments that audiences remember long after they leave.

Communicating Confidently: Cut Through the Noise and Get Heard

For everyone in business, delivering a message efficiently – internally and in different media – has gotten infinitely more complex in the age of AI. This interactive presentation will help attendees sharpen their communication skills. Mariana equips leaders – from entry level to the C-Suite – with practical tools and tested principles to speak confidently, authentically, and effectively, whether it’s for client meetings, internal communications, Zoom, an important presentation, a traditional media interview, a digital clip and/or a conference stage. Mariana will share tips that took her more than a decade of television and social media experience to learn, working at two of the world’s biggest news networks, in Spanish and English. 45-90 Minutes

Sample Takeaways:

Learn to distill your main message so it resonates across all platforms.
Practical tips and pro tricks for in-person and virtual presentations.
Master the power of persuasion in an era of fleeting attention spans.
Better storytelling to create connection and leave a lasting impact.
Establish credibility and build trust in an era of misinformation.
How to navigate real-time interview scenarios with confidence.

Moderating, Interviewing & Hosting

With experience as a national network news anchor and reporter, Mariana brings warmth and intelligence to each hosting, moderating, and interviewing assignment. Mariana’s curiosity and poise help her get the most out of those on stage with her.

The breadth of Mariana’s experience speaks to her versatility. She’s moderated conversations on embracing a mindset for change at Microsoft, on the rights of women in Iran, on gender inequality at Foreign Policy magazine’s HERPower summit, on media representation at the Paley Center for Media, on financial literacy at Nasdaq, on building a personal and professional brand at Columbia University, a panel on geopolitics and economics at Citi Private Bank’s autumn dialogues with three heads of state from Latin America, a session at the United Nations General Assembly meeting on global healthcare inequity, plus the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, PepsiCo, JP Morgan, Accenture, Spotify, Google, YouTube, Clorox, AT&T, Spectrum, and more.

Testimonials

“Mariana provided some wonderful lessons and insights into her journey and how each of us can celebrate and share what makes us different. It was a fantastic opportunity for our employees to be inspired and to learn more.”

- Director, Global Executive & Employee Communications, Microsoft

“Mariana was powerful on stage, engaging, thought provoking and the perfect speaker for our flagship global annual conference held in Miami. She was such a pleasure to work with that she ended up interviewing and moderating two very critical panels for the agenda. Mariana’s experience and professionalism will make any company that chooses to work with her look great.”

- Director, Marketing & Communications Head, Citi Private Bank

“In a time when dramatic change has brought about immense uncertainty, Mariana’s C.O.N.T.R.O.L. framework provides tangible guidance on how to move forward with intention to build a life that honors our unique purpose. This complete framework helps you evaluate your life with clarity, empower yourself to break through ruts, and make meaningful progress. It’s a true gift to be able to share this framework with our employees.”

- Director of Practice Management & Co-Founder of Latinos @SAP Concur

“Given the uncertainty of the post-pandemic world, you and your organization are in the best hands by hiring Mariana and her GoLike team. We have booked Mariana for motivational keynotes aimed at employees, voice-over work, community programs, and social media campaigns and she has over delivered every time. Her creativity and attention to detail will make your brand stand out in a unique way! She is very dynamic and great at keeping the audience engaged.”

- Senior Manager, Ford Motor Company

“Mariana Atencio brought such energy and honesty to our company-wide event. Mariana’s authenticity allows her to connect with others almost immediately. Thank you for providing us with the tools to be resilient and proud of what makes us Perfectly Unique!”

- Director, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Rapid7

“For the last two years, Mariana has been the host of AT&T’s annual Hispanic Heritage Month events, celebrating employees’ authenticity and contributions toward the customers and communities we proudly serve. Mariana brings employees’ stories to life through her unique engagement and connection with our teams while creating a welcoming, energetic, and memorable atmosphere. Her dynamic stage presence, storytelling, and facilitation skills have positively impacted our events and attendees. We appreciate her commitment to amplifying our brand’s values as well as her partnership and collaboration in delivering unique experiences that support our mission of connecting people to greater possibilities!”

- Chief Strategy and Development Officer, AT&T Inc.

“Mariana’s authentic, relatable, engaging style enabled her to immediately connect with our audience. Through a series of stories, she shared uplifting, relevant, and empowering learnings that all of us can embrace as leaders.”

- VP, Google Cloud Consulting