Kelm brought her own innovation to Appreciative Inquiry, recasting it as "Appreciative Living," a method of applying positive insights to our personal lives. She has hosted many workshops and presentations in this new approach to positive psychology. In 2006, she conducted a highly successful "study on joy" which tracked a notable increase of happiness in the lives of study participants across the U.S. through the practice of three gratitude exercises. Kelm has been asked to teach a week-long Appreciative Living course at American University this summer, and several organizations and consultants are using and recommending her materials in their training programs.
Kelm lives in Raleigh, North Carolina with her husband and two children.