Dr. Tracey Gonzales
Dr. Tracey Gonzales is a best-selling author, transformational speaker, and leadership coach with a distinguished career spanning over two decades in military and federal service. She served 24 years in the U.S. Army, beginning as a combat medic and later commissioning as a communications officer after graduating from Officer Candidate School in 1993. Her military career culminated as an Inspector General in Korea, overseeing investigations and ensuring compliance with Army standards. Following her retirement, she continued her service to the nation as Director of Investigations for the Department of the Navy and later as a strategic analyst and business operations/policy specialist at the Missile Defense Agency.
Building on her extensive experience in leadership, policy, and operational management, Dr. Gonzales founded TSG Beauty for Ashes, a company devoted to transformational speaking, coaching, and leadership development. Her approach emphasizes practical strategies, collaborative learning, and measurable outcomes, focusing on helping individuals and organizations grow through actionable guidance rather than motivational platitudes. Known for her ability to combine servant leadership with strategic insight, she has trained and mentored countless professionals, many of whom have risen to significant leadership positions.
In addition to her professional work, Dr. Gonzales holds advanced academic credentials, including a Doctorate in Business Management with a focus on Organizational Leadership from Walden University. She is active in professional and community organizations, including the Association of Inspectors General, and serves as an elder in her church. Her career reflects a commitment to service, integrity, and leadership development, with a philosophy centered on empowering others to achieve success through deliberate action and accountability.
• Effective Organizational Communication
• The Authentic Leader
• Solution Focused Coach
• Army Forces Management School
• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate
• Army Inspector General Course
• DoD Joint Inspector General Course
• Certified Inspector General Investigator
• Walden University
• Saint Leo University- B.A.
• Central Michigan University- M.S.
• Austin Peay State University- B.S.
• Officer Candidate School Hall of Fame Inductee
• Clergy Association
• Association of Inspectors General
What do you attribute your success to?
I really attribute a lot of my success to my parents and perseverance. I will never stop. I had some great mentors and role models and people who gave me just the right nudge along the way. What I learned is that life is not something you can do on your own.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
My father said to me, I hate a liar, and I hate a thief, because you can't trust either. And if I can't trust you, then that means you're not a good person. That stuck with me my whole life, because I'm like, I don't want to be either of those, because I want to be trustworthy. I want to be a person of honor. I want to be someone that my family could look up to, my coworkers, anyone I encounter. I want them to be able to know, if they don't know anything else, they know they can trust my character.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Be yourself. Believe in yourself. Because we all have a story. I tell my sisters, you know what? It's really not me doing great things. I'm just telling the story God wrote for me. And I look at their story, they have awesome stories, but they won't tell them. So, the world won't know how great you are if you don't tell them. We all can be great if we tell it.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge right now is that the field is probably oversaturated. The quality is not the same, and that's driving me crazy, because people are wondering, are you as good as the last one, or are you gonna be substandard? Everyone's trying to get out there instead of making sure they have quality, not quantity. But the biggest opportunity in transformational speaking is that if you get the right platform, you can change lives completely. That blows my mind that you have that kind of influence, potentially, if you do it right.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
For me, I value my time, so I don't like my time being wasted. Time is the one thing we can't get back. And so, if I allocate my time to something, I'm gonna give it my all, full in 120%. And I think people is the greatest thing to put my time in. And so that's where the majority of my time goes, to people in my community, people at church. My sister tells me, you know, you need to start getting paid for some of this stuff. Someone will call me and say, I really need this, but we don't have a lot of money. When is it? Let me see if I can do some work around. And even if it stresses me a little, I'll still do it, because people are the most important to me.