Ann Jillian Speaker Biography
Three-Time Emmy & Golden Globe Award Winning Actress, Breast Cancer Survivor, & Sought-After Motivational Speaker
Ann Jillian is a celebrated performer and leading motivational cancer survivor speaker who has inspired audiences for nearly four decades. With a career spanning television, film, Broadway, and the concert stage, she brings both star power and heartfelt authenticity to every keynote. A three-time Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner, Ann transitioned from entertainment icon to powerhouse public speaker in 1985. Since then, she has delivered compelling keynotes across the country, offering audiences a unique mix of humor, wisdom, and resilience. Her talks are tailored for corporate conferences, healthcare conventions, and women’s leadership events. Not only does she share personal stories of survival, but she also uplifts listeners with a message of strength, health, and renewal. Through her own journey with breast cancer, Ann became one of the most sought-after voices in motivational speaking. Today, she continues to captivate crowds as a leading motivational cancer survivor speaker with substance, sparkle, and sincerity.
Cancer Survivor
After being diagnosed with breast cancer in her 30s, Ann Jillian faced her greatest battle with grace, grit, and optimism. Although her diagnosis was life-altering, it transformed her career path and deepened her life’s mission. As a leading motivational cancer survivor speaker, she now channels that journey into talks that are both poignant and empowering. Her signature presentation combines heartfelt storytelling with live music, creating a unique keynote experience. A skilled vocalist, she often integrates songs into her programs, heightening the emotional impact. She speaks candidly about motherhood, illness, recovery, and rediscovery—connecting deeply with medical professionals, patients, caregivers, and general audiences alike. Betty Ford once praised Ann’s message as both powerful and healing. Whether on stage with a pianist or in front of a corporate team, Ann infuses every event with humor, humanity, and hope. Her talks not only entertain—they transform how people approach adversity.
Career
Ann Jillian’s entertainment résumé is as impressive as her speaking credentials. She has starred in over 25 television movies and made hundreds of guest appearances on screen. Her acting chops range from comedic to dramatic, but perhaps her most famous role is one rooted in real life: The Ann Jillian Story, a top-rated TV movie that chronicled her battle with breast cancer. The film reached millions and became a cultural touchstone for breast cancer awareness. Moreover, her stage presence extends to Broadway and national concert tours, earning critical acclaim for her musical talents. Good Housekeeping and other major media outlets have recognized her as a woman of courage and conviction. Even after decades in the spotlight, Ann continues to evolve—always finding new ways to connect with audiences. Whether performing or speaking, she brings emotional depth and fierce determination to every stage she steps on.
Working Mom
Following her recovery, Ann Jillian embraced a new chapter as a mother—adding another dimension to her story of resilience. Becoming a parent after surviving cancer made her message even more powerful. It’s not just about surviving; it’s about thriving. As President of 9-J Productions, she manages her own speaking career and creative projects. Ann remains committed to using her platform to empower others, especially women juggling careers, families, and health challenges. Her ability to balance professional success with personal healing sets her apart as a leading motivational cancer survivor speaker. She understands the emotional landscape of her audience because she’s lived it. In every keynote, she reminds people that it’s possible to laugh again, love again, and live fully—no matter the odds. Book Ann Jillian today to bring warmth, humor, and heartfelt inspiration to your next event.
Ann Jillian Speaking Topics
Never Had a Bad Day in My Life
When audiences know that the person speaking to them has been through the toughest of times, both personally and professionally, the speaker can convince the audience that they never really had a "bad" day in their lives. Such realizations help to inspire and motivate those people onward in taking their own life to a more rewarding and satisfying level. Sometimes we get careless and forget the incredible possibilities that wait for us to seek them out. In such cases, Ann is able to help each individual listener focus more on the positive, attainable goals and less on the things that matter least.
The Winner in You
When Ann delivers this motivational lecture and states that "There Is a Winner in every one of you", audiences at once can see that she truly believes it. Ann has never met a person in whom she could not find potential. While you laugh heartily at Ann's comical perspective of those, she found more challenging to find "potential" in, the end result will be an audience motivated to identify and develop their own "Winner" from within to the utmost. Belief ignites belief and consumes those in its path with inspiration to rise to the occasion. Gently, humorously, sometimes poignantly, she draws the willing audience out of themselves and into her experiences, rekindling the fire, sometimes forgotten, of their own "belief" in themselves. For example, to a group of new car dealers who were having a bad year, "Ladies and gentlemen, let's put matters in perspective here. The problem? You're having a tough time selling a fine automobile, that is everything a new car buyer could want. I can relate. My problem? I was an actress fighting for my life against breast cancer and how could I get the TV networks to continue buying shows from me after I lost both my breasts to cancer? Talk about losing your edge! Over kill I'd say! But seriously, I could still act, still deliver a performance, so I polished myself up as best as I could, and confident that I could still deliver the "goods," I walked into the network meetings and showed them I believed I was every bit as good as I was before. It became clear to me; I believed, so they believed. And Brandon Tartikoff, then president of NBC, must have believed a whole lot because he ordered a TV series, and three TV movies of the week from me! You must still believe in your product and in yourself if you ever expect others to. I'm such an admirer of those great old songs that told us to ...(she sings a few bars here) "pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and start all over again!", and when she sings from her song "The Winner In You", that ended her acclaimed "The Ann Jillian Story" movie, audiences go home with a renewed confidence in themselves and their own unique potential.
Surviving & Thriving
"Let's face it, the one thing we all have in common is the struggle to survive! Finding the recipe to thrive as well as survive in today's world is not an easy task for anyone. Sometimes "reinvention" of yourself, your product, may be required. The old-fashioned approach of making lemonade from those "lemons" life seems to like to roll our way." Watching and listening to Ann Jillian as she winds her way through her own numerous reinventions’, as we find out what worked and what didn't work in her business & personal life, is a formidable lesson that audiences have applied in their own lives with great success. The focus here is on what's important to sustain not just 'surival', but a rewarding and fulfilled life. It's forward to basics and more. She will tell you the contents of her father-in-law’s "little gray travel case", that is key to a life of excellence!
