From a childhood shaped by cultural transitions and conflict to an international career dedicated to human and organisational transformation, Viola Edward demonstrates how resilience, conscious leadership and a commitment to humanity can become powerful forces for positive change.
Some people build successful careers. Others build something that reaches beyond professional achievements, touching lives, inspiring change and creating opportunities for others to flourish. Viola Edward belongs firmly in the latter category.
Born in Kirkuk, Iraq, to an Iraqi Assyrian father and Lebanese mother, Viola spent her early childhood in Iraq before moving to Lebanon and, at the age of 13, to Venezuela. Growing up across different cultures, languages and social environments shaped her understanding of identity, belonging, resilience and the human capacity for adaptation.
Today, married to a British man and based in Cyprus, Viola is an internationally experienced transcultural psychotherapist, strategic mentor, entrepreneur, author and business consultant, with more than three decades dedicated to human and organisational transformation.
As CEO and Co-Founder of GRIT Academy, which she established with her sister and business partner, Layla Edward, Viola integrates psychotherapy, mentoring, conscious breathing and organisational development to promote a human-centred approach to leadership, emotional health and sustainable success.
Central to her philosophy is the conviction that lasting transformation begins within. Drawing on her diverse training and expertise, including the GRIT Method®️, Management by Emotions and Breath Intelligence®️ (BQ)—methodologies she has co-created—Viola supports individuals and organisations in understanding the relationship between emotional patterns, conscious breathing, human behaviour and effective leadership.
Her work challenges conventional approaches to professional achievement by placing emotional health, human connection and conscious responsibility at the heart of organisational development.
In a world where success is frequently measured through financial performance and productivity, Viola offers a broader perspective: businesses flourish when the people within them have the opportunity to flourish.
She advocates for organisational cultures where emotional health, strategic clarity, compassion and ambition are complementary strengths rather than competing priorities. For Viola, leadership is about creating environments where people can develop their potential, build meaningful relationships and contribute with purpose.
Mentorship is another essential dimension of her international work. As former President and Co-Founder of the Global Mentoring Network (GMN), and former President and active Board Member of Red Global de Mentores (RGM), she contributes to the advancement and professionalisation of mentoring, promoting knowledge sharing and meaningful relationships across generations and cultures.
Her commitment to women’s leadership, creativity and entrepreneurship is reflected in her position as Executive Director of Creative Women Platform (CWP), an international community connecting women leaders, entrepreneurs, artists and innovators through collaboration, cultural exchange and global initiatives.
As President of the Sustainable Art & Fashion Academy, Viola also advocates for creativity, sustainability and the transformative role of art and fashion in society.
Her humanitarian involvement includes serving as Honorary President of Charity on Wheels – Fashion for a Cause, supporting initiatives that connect leadership, social responsibility and meaningful action.
Viola’s international engagement has brought her to influential gatherings and initiatives across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and beyond, including the Global Leadership by Women Summit, Women Shaping Wealth Symposium, African Fashion Week London, Women in Tech Global Summit, SHE – Society of Hispanic Entrepreneurs, LOANI and international mentoring forums.
Through these platforms, she contributes to conversations on conscious leadership, women’s empowerment, emotional health, sustainability and human connection.
An author and co-author of more than 20 books, Viola has explored themes ranging from personal transformation and emotional wellbeing to leadership, relationships and human development. Two of her authored books, Breathing the Rhythm of Success and Who Makes the Bed?, have been accepted into the collection of the prestigious Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt.
Having lived across different cultures and speaking English, Spanish and Arabic, Viola understands diversity not merely as something to acknowledge, but as a source of creativity, resilience and collective enrichment. Her transcultural perspective enables her to bridge different ways of thinking, communicating and understanding the human experience.
She also brings a distinctive perspective to the relationship between emotional health and leadership. Rather than viewing emotions simply as reactions to be managed, Viola understands them as fundamental dimensions of human experience that influence relationships, decisions, behaviour and organisational culture.
Her approach encourages individuals to develop greater self-awareness, address unresolved emotional patterns and cultivate the inner stability necessary for conscious action.
At the heart of her mission lies a belief in human potential, the power of love and the responsibility to transform awareness into meaningful action.
For Viola, leadership is not defined solely by position, visibility or achievement. It is expressed through the quality of our relationships, the opportunities we create for others and the legacy we leave through our actions.
Her story is ultimately one of continuous transformation: from a young girl navigating cultural change and uncertainty to an international voice advocating for emotional health, conscious leadership, mentoring and human flourishing.
Her journey reminds us that true success is measured not only by what we achieve, but also by the lives we touch, the possibilities we create and the humanity we bring to everything we do.
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