Free · Available now
Speaker · Experience Designer · Educator
Return to
The way back to yourself isn't always through more thinking. Sometimes it begins with listening to what your body has been telling you all along.
For over 25 years, Michelle Hillier has challenged the idea that meaningful change happens through thinking alone. Through bold ideas, music, movement, breath and human connection, she brings this work to life. Her experiences invite people to reconnect with themselves, express more of who they are and practice living what they discover.
25+years creating experiences where movement, learning, leadership and human connection meet
1M+people reached through programs and experiences
800+schools and sites across North America
Trusted by
For youExperiences that bring you back to you.
Through music, movement, breath and expression, reconnect with yourself, explore what's true and discover what becomes possible when you bring more of you into your life.
Explore For You
For teamsNot another session. An experience.
Keynotes, customized experiences and professional learning that challenge conventional thinking, bring people together and create something meaningful beyond the room.
Explore For TeamsThe Daily Return™
Make time for what matters. You.
You don't need a big moment to make a meaningful shift.
The Daily Return™ brings together music, breath, movement and reflection in guided audio experiences that help you listen inward, reconnect with what's true and carry that connection into everyday life.
Start with Return to ALIVE, a complimentary 15-minute guided audio experience with me.
Try a free Daily ReturnMeet Michelle
Movement was never the point. It was the doorway.
For over 25 years, I've explored the connection between movement, learning, leadership and what it means to be human. Through the experiences I've created and the leaders I've trained, my work has reached over a million people.
But here's the irony. I spent years teaching others to listen to their bodies while ignoring what my own was trying to tell me. That changed everything.
My work is grounded in a distinctive method of embodied learning, bringing music, movement, breath and human connection together to help people get curious, uncover what's true and explore what it means to actually live it.
Ways to work with Michelle
More than something you attend. Something you experience.
I don't believe in one-size-fits-all experiences. Every room is different. Every group brings something of its own. My work begins there, bringing together bold ideas, creativity and human connection to make something meaningful happen.
Speaking
Interactive keynotes
Thought-provoking, interactive keynotes that challenge the usual sit-and-listen format. Real stories, meaningful ideas and experiences that bring the whole room into the conversation.
Experiences
Customized experiences
From conferences and retreats to team gatherings and special events, I create immersive experiences that invite people to explore, express themselves and connect in ways they might not have expected.
Learning
Professional learning
For educators, leaders and facilitators who want to think differently about how they engage and inspire others. Experience the learning firsthand, then explore how to bring it into your own work.
For you
There's more of you to explore.
The bold parts. The quiet parts. The curious, creative, messy, magnificent parts. All of it belongs.
I believe we spend far too much time trying to be who we think we're supposed to be, and not nearly enough time discovering who we actually are. That's why I create experiences that invite you to explore a little differently. Sometimes we turn up the music and move like nobody's watching. Sometimes we slow right down, breathe and listen to what's true.
There's room for both. And everything in between. Come as you are. See what happens.
The Daily Return™ · Library coming soon
Your time. Your choice. Your return.
Music-led guided audio experiences designed to meet you where you are. The upcoming library will let you choose a theme that speaks to you, then choose how you want to experience it.
Coming to the library
Return to Wonder
Coming to the library
Return to Trust
5 minutes
Express Returns
MoveBreatheBe
Three short ways into each theme. High-energy movement, breath with gentle movement, or stillness and reflection.
15 minutes
Signature Daily Returns
A complete guided experience combining music, movement, breath and reflection in one intentional arc.
Whether you're craving energy, expression, stillness or a little clarity, there will be a way to return that feels right for you. The Daily Return™ library is coming soon.
Experience a free Return
Return to Alive. Your first Return is on me.
Fifteen minutes of music, movement, breath and reflection, guided by me.
You don't need to know what you're doing, and there's nothing to get right. Just press play, follow what feels good and see what opens up.
Return to Alive is on its way.Check your inbox in a minute or two.
You've got something to bring into the world. Let's make it happen.
After 25 years of creating and facilitating experiences, I know there's a lot more to this work than having a great idea. Whether you're a coach, facilitator, educator or creative entrepreneur, I offer personalized mentorship to help you develop your ideas, strengthen your confidence, refine your facilitation and bring your work to life.
Sometimes you need a sounding board. Sometimes you need strategy. And sometimes you need someone who's been in the room, made the mistakes and learned a thing or two along the way.
We can start wherever you are.
Before you go
What are you ready to leave in the fire?
Maybe it's an old story, an expectation, a fear or something you've been carrying longer than you'd like. Whatever it is, you can leave a little of it here.
Type it. Release it. Nothing you write is saved or sent anywhere.
Keynotes · Workshops · Professional learning
Learning isn't just something we think about. It's something we experience.
For over 25 years, I've been challenging conventional approaches to learning, connection and personal growth. My work is grounded in a distinctive method of embodied learning that brings music, movement, breath, expression and human connection into the experience.
I believe people discover more when they're invited to participate, question, explore and make the learning their own. That's where the real possibilities begin.
Trusted by
25years creating experiences where movement, learning, leadership and human connection meet
1M+people of all ages reached through programs and experiences
15+years teaching future educators in Bachelor of Education programs
100sof professional learning experiences designed and led across North America
"Michelle's presence at our HR Conference truly helped shape the day and create a positive and memorable experience for all 1000+ attendees. We could feel the energy vibrating through the room."
"I left feeling clearer, lighter and more connected. Not because someone told me what I needed, but because I had the space to hear it for myself."
"Michelle's energy and enthusiasm is unmatched! She has a phenomenal way of getting the entire group engaged in a way I have never seen before!"
As seen on
Ways to work together
Different audiences. Thoughtfully designed experiences.
Every room is different. I work with organizations to create experiences shaped by their people, their purpose and what they want to make possible.
A room full of people. A whole lot of possibility.
Interactive keynotes
I'm interested in more than holding an audience's attention. I want to challenge how people think, invite them into the experience and give them something worth considering long after the event.
My keynotes blend storytelling, music, movement, humour and honest reflection. I read the room, work with its energy and create moments that are spontaneous, surprising and deeply human.
There's no one way to experience something meaningful.
Customized experiences
From team gatherings and conference breakouts to retreats and special events, I design experiences that bring people together in ways that feel fresh, engaging and genuinely human.
Music, movement, creativity, laughter and honest conversation are woven into the experience with intention. Nothing is there just to fill time. Everything has a purpose.
You can't teach connection from a slide deck.
Professional learning
After 25 years of designing and facilitating learning experiences, one thing I know for sure is that how we learn matters just as much as what we learn.
My professional learning brings educators, leaders and facilitators into the experience themselves. They explore fresh approaches, discover what resonates and leave with practical ideas they can make their own.
Have something in mind?
Let's talk.
Planning a conference, professional learning day, team gathering or something a little outside the box? I'd love to hear what you're imagining.
Worked together?
How did it land?
I'd love to hear how it went, and if you're willing, a few words I can share with other leaders.
Live experiences · Toronto & beyond
Come experience it for yourself.
There's something special about being in a room together. The music, the people, the unexpected moments and the freedom to explore something new.
From intimate gatherings to creative collaborations, these are opportunities to move, breathe, connect and experience a little more of what's possible. Come as you are. There's room for you.
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04OctSun
SAOR Studio
A 75-minute guided experience blending an epic playlist, breath and expressive movement. Move your way and feel more alive.
Link coming soon -
27OctTue
Vicki Tree Wellness
An immersive evening of music, movement, breath and reflection, with space to reconnect and return to yourself.
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01NovSun
Ignite + Exhale
With Esther Willinger
An immersive evening of music, intuitive movement and meditative breathwork, guided through silent headsets. Michelle and Esther bring together movement and SOMA Breath® for an experience of energy, release and deep connection.
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13NovFri
SAOR Studio
A Friday night invitation to move your way, breathe, express, have some fun and feel movement beyond the usual workout.
Link coming soon -
17NovTue
What Wakes Her
With Brooke Yantzi
An evening for women to move, breathe, reflect and connect, as Michelle and Brooke weave their stories and practices into an exploration of what it means to feel, express and move through life's changes.
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25NovWed
PYC Niagara
An immersive, music-led experience in a darkened, heated studio. Through movement, breath and reflection, explore what happens when you turn down the outside world and give yourself permission to move, express and reconnect on your own terms.
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26NovThu
Vicki Tree Wellness
An immersive evening to move, breathe, reflect and reconnect. Leave more energized, alive and more like yourself.
Link coming soon -
15DecTue
Awaken Your Magic
With Carol Elizabeth
A playful, mystical evening for women to explore what they've been holding back through music, movement, honest conversation and a little magic. Leave with one bold choice that's entirely your own.
Registration coming soon -
Soon
Full Circle
A one-night collaboration of music, movement, expression and connection.
Link coming soon
New dates coming soon.
About Michelle
Sometimes you have to burn the house down to find home.
Not always, but sometimes. (Don't let that scare you.)
For a long time, I talked about finding your authentic self. And while I still believe in authenticity, I've come to understand it differently.
I think what we're really trying to find is what's true.
Underneath the expectations, the coping, the proving and all the versions of ourselves we've learned to become along the way.
And I know something about the distance between knowing what's true and actually living it.
I've lived through chronic pain and two hip replacements, addiction and recovery, grief, motherhood and the end of a 20-year marriage. Some of it broke me open. And somewhere in all of it, I began finding my way back to myself.
For a long time, I was also exceptionally good at functioning through it all. I could teach, lead, create, take care of people and keep going, even when I was becoming increasingly disconnected from myself.
Eventually, I had to get honest about who I was, how I was living and what needed to change.
It wasn't a reinvention. It was a return.
That changed the woman I am. And it changed the work I bring into the world.
Today, I create experiences where people don't just talk about courage, connection, authenticity or possibility. We get to explore what those things actually feel like, through music, movement, breath, reflection and choice.
Because knowing something and living it are two very different things.
Truth takes practice. I'm still practicing, too.
Keep returning.
