Executive Coach.
Thought Partner.
Author & Dog Dad.

My typical client is a Series A-C startup founder.

I love working with startup leaders because: (1) their courage in the face of uncertainty and bias toward experimentation help them get a lot out of coaching, and (2) given that their companies are still in the early days (relatively), our work can have a major impact on the entire company culture and trajectory.

Though I predominately coach startup leaders, I've worked with a variety of people over my career, ranging from accomplished family business leaders to non-profit executives. It all really comes down to fit at the end of the day. We are likely a good fit for each other if:

• You are the leader of a company or team.
• You have a large degree of freedom and autonomy in your role.
• You are hungry to learn from direct yet supportive feedback.
• You want to learn new leadership tactics, but you are also interested in evolving into a wiser, more complete version of yourself by challenging long-held assumptions and perspectives.
• You acknowledge that your growth as an executive = your growth as a person, and you're excited to see how your professional growth could impact other areas of your life.
• You are energized by the thought of working with a coach who is committed to cultivating a long-term, deeply trusting partnership built on equal parts care, challenge, and accountability. One full of "aha's", resilience, increased possibilities, and moments where you change for the better forever.

Put simply: their goals.

Each of my coaching engagements focuses on 1-2 top goals chosen by the client (usually informed by self-reflection exercises I provide as well as by feedback from their team and from me). These goals range from "inner work" on things like mindset, resilience, and emotion management, to "outer work" on things like interpersonal dynamics, public speaking, and company culture. These goals provide the heartbeat of our work together, and in the vast majority of cases, my clients achieve them.

My approach is referred to as “co-active” coaching, which means that my clients and I are equal partners in the coaching experience. Though I am deeply knowledgeable about leadership and development, I am not an all-knowing expert on my clients' situations and dilemmas. Accordingly, my coaching is not a one-way relationship where clients come to me with questions and I dispense expert advice. Instead, we discover the right answers together by each bringing something to the conversation. My clients bring their goals, industry- and team-specific knowledge, honest self-inquiry, and best thinking, and I bring a range of techniques to help them uncover insights and identify new actions to take after each conversation.

During coaching conversations, I...

• ask lots of open-ended questions;
• listen actively and help my clients clarify their thoughts;
• supportively challenge any assumptions I hear my clients making;
• notice and name any blind spots or patterns my clients may not see;
• share helpful tools, frameworks, and resources;
• engage in role-plays;
• brainstorm solutions with my clients, including sharing advice when what we’re discussing relates to my circle of competence; and
• ask my clients to commit to actions/experiments in between sessions.

Fundamentally, my coaching approach helps my clients achieve their most pressing goals by deepening their awareness (of themselves, of situations), and helping them see more choices.  As they do so, they become wiser, more effective, and more fulfilled.

There are a few things about me that — especially when combined together — make me relatively unique in the coaching world:

Balance of warmth & strength. I show up with warm care and empathy, coupled with a rooted male strength. I'm open and honest about my care for my clients, and I regularly share the joy and excitement I feel as they take risks and make progress. I hold space and create safety. As one of my clients says, "I know you'll have my back even if I spill my guts." I'm also clear when I'm concerned, disappointed, or want to challenge my clients to stay the course.

Keep it real. I strive to show up as my full human self in each coaching conversation. This means no weird power dynamics, no overly jargon-y riffs, no suits, and no ego. It means I bring my full kindness, curiosity, intuition, and playful irreverence each day. My clients and I share openly about ourselves, and talk in plain terms about the challenges and dilemmas they're facing. We laugh, celebrate, push, reflect, and shed tears together.

Focus and accountability. Many coaches set the agenda for each session by asking, "What's on your mind today?" While this style often provides real-time emotional relief, it leads to an unfocused and overly reactive coaching process. My approach is different. Though I certainly try to show up for my clients when they have a pressing issue du jour, my main job is to help them achieve their most important goals. This means helping my clients clarify meaningful goals at the outset, and regularly setting our session agendas with those goals in mind. It also means holding my clients accountable; asking them if they did what they said they would and what they learned in the process. I tell my clients what I see and ask them the questions that most people shy away from—all in service of them staying accountable to the goals they have for themselves and their companies.

Beyond tactics. Though I regularly discuss frameworks and tactics with my clients, my approach extends beyond that. Most meaty growth requires going beyond what we do and looking at how we think. I regularly ask my clients to explore their underlying fears, beliefs, and assumptions because updating them is the key to unlocking new possibilities and true growth.

Whole person. Although my coaching typically focuses on my clients' professional growth, I see my clients as whole people. I see them as siblings, and sons, and mothers, and spouses, and friends. If my clients realize a pattern we're exploring shows up in their non-work life, I'm happy to discuss it. If something going on at home is impacting them at work, it's totally in bounds. If they decide they'd like to set a goal that is predominately related to their family or friendships, I'm game. The reality is our lives are not bento boxes. Growth in one area inevitably touches other areas. I'm here for it.

I particularly enjoy working with leaders who want a long-term, deep partnership with their coach – so most of my clients work with me on annual retainer, meeting either 2x per month or weekly.

My sessions are between 60-75 minutes long via phone or video call, and I’m available to all my clients by phone, text, or email between sessions (within reason).

Though most clients are on annual retainer, no blood oaths required. My engagements can be cancelled and prorated at any time.

My clients tend to want a trusted partner who will be in their corner through multiple chapters of their company’s journey. I'm grateful that my practice reflects this today: my average client engagement is 4 years.

My fee for my coaching varies by engagement and depends on if I'm providing any additional coaching, training, or facilitation services as part of the contract. To give you a sense of if I'm in your ballpark fee-wise, you should expect to budget at least $3000 a month. I do accept equity-based compensation on a case-by-case basis.

Yes.

I have extensive experience helping co-founders strengthen, improve, and repair their relationships. Typically, these engagements involve each founder signing up for one of my annual retainers and then we thoughtfully distribute our coaching time between pair sessions and individual sessions.

Rarely.

My first priority is always to my individual (or co-founder pair) coaching relationships, and this work takes up the majority of my time — so I typically say no to group or team training requests. One exception to this is the “live 360 feedback training” I offer as an à la carte option for most of my 1:1 engagements. If you’re looking to train managers, I encourage you to explore the startup manager training I helped create. For any other team-based work, I will gladly connect you to other talented coaches or trainers.

As for retreats and workshops, I do occasionally get my clients together for best-practice-shares, interpersonal learning labs (T-groups), and kitesurf retreats (exhilarating, restorative, and learning-filled, I promise). I announce these opportunities to current and former clients as they arise.