The CHANGE YOU WANT starts within you

You hire a coach when you want something in your life to be better.

Maybe you wish could be more effective in your current job: more productive, more confident, more direct. You wish your boss and your colleagues would treat you differently. You wish you saw a clearer pathway for growth.

Maybe you've become disillusioned about your organization, or your field. The power dynamics. The jargon. The unrealistic expectations. You wish you could get your sense of optimism and fun back.

Maybe you are questioning whether you should make a career pivot and do something totally different. And the thought of that is so overwhelming, you don't know where to begin.

Working with a coach can help you get the change you want: how to live a more balanced life, reset your relationship with your job, help you figure out what you really want to do, and help you be the best version of yourself.

Could you achieve this kind of change by yourself?

Yes, to a degree -- and there are certainly some terrific books out there that can get you started. (I'm a big fan of Atomic Habits by James Clear).

But changing ourselves is hard. Research (and our own experiences!) show that we often overestimate our abilities. There are real reasons why the vast majority of New Year’s resolutions fail.

If you're really ready for change, give coaching a try. You'll go deeper and farther than you would working alone, or by talking with a friend.

"I learned so much about myself through the coaching process. I knew that my career was burning me out but I couldn’t articulate what I wanted in a career or steps I should take to reach those goals.

Working with Stu has helped me to completely reframe my outlook on work. Thank you so much, Stu!"

Alena

Public health professional

Colorado, USA

What is Coaching?

Most people I know in the nonprofit, nursing and teaching fields have heard about coaching, but they don't know much about what it really is.

Until a few years ago, I didn't know either.

And here's the truth: when I first heard about it, I didn't think coaching was a "real" profession.

I thought: at best, a coach could be a "professional friend", someone you could pay to listen to your complaining, and who might give you some advice. Or at worst, I worried that coaching might be damaging: I wondered if coaches were quack therapists.

Wow. I was really wrong. Coaching isn't any of those things.

Here's how I approach coaching with my clients:

My goal is always to help you bridge the gap between where you are now, and where you want to be, by:

Creating a ‘safe space’ for you to focus on your personal and professional growth. Our sessions are confidential, deliberate and kind.
Actively listening: I will ask you (lots of) thought-provoking questions, and help you see connections between different challenges and ideas you are grappling with
Helping you dream bigger, and expand your consideration of what's possible
Pushing you to commit to action -- at the end of every session, you will walk away with a clear sense of what you can practically do next to move toward your goals
Being your partner, offering encouragement, accountability and support no matter what. I am on your team.

As your coach, I will approach our work together from a belief that you are creative, resourceful and whole. I know you have the capacity to achieve your goals, and my job is to be as curious as possible about how you might go about it. I may offer ideas to expand your thinking, and sometimes my clients ask for mentorship advice based on my past experience. But I will never tell you what to do. That's key to the power of coaching: you get to choose your next step. You are always in the driver's seat.

What coaching is not

I’ve learned that lots of people confuse coaching with other approaches to personal and professional development. This website has a helpful summary of what coaching is not.

If you have any questions about what coaching is, why you should consider it, or anything else, please drop me a line or set time to talk. I'd love to help you figure out whether coaching would be helpful for you right now.

"Coaching with Stu has been really impactful for me.

"I love the questions Stu asks! He helped me see clearly that the solutions are already within me -- and he supported me to come up with practical, concrete actions that I can do to work toward my goals.

"I have always been focused on career career career. But through my coaching sessions with Stu, I have realized that to be successful in my career, other dimensions of my life are important too. I now am paying more attention to all of the spheres of my life in a way that I wasn't before."

Mai

Community Health Manager