As an executive coach, I enjoy partnering with leaders who want to enhance and flex their leadership capabilities, and help their teams do the same. I believe coaching is an opportunity to become more adept at stretching into areas of discomfort, whether that area is as broad as leading an enterprise transformation or as narrow as having a tough conversation with a colleague.

My clients say I bring compassion and possibility as I help them be their best, develop others to be their best, and build resilient teams.

Over the past 30 years, I’ve consulted on—and also directly led—cross-functional, geographically-dispersed teams through strategic, organizational, and cultural change. I’ve supported the rollout of strategic change agendas in organizations ranging in size from 30 to 15,000 employees, across a variety of sectors ranging from non-profits, governments at all levels, start-ups, and Fortune 500 companies.

I have BS in Business from the University of Pennsylvania. I also hold certifications in team effectiveness, organizational culture, and leadership development tools like DiSC, the Five Behaviors of Cohesive Teams, and Myers Briggs Type Indicator.

Outside of work, I have many interests. Among my favorites: hiking, kayaking, yoga, golf, immersing myself in the live performance of a string quartet or jazz ensemble, and anything related to the culinary arts.

My Get Real Story

I was ecstatic: A client had green-lit a proposal for a new and innovative collaboration, injecting enthusiasm into my team about their future work. Then my initial excitement quickly gave way to a challenging reality: The client had assigned a lead known for his razor-sharp intellect (great!) and tough and direct questions (also good) and who seemed skeptical of me, the team, and the project (uh-oh).

Our project launch felt chaotic, and my team grew discouraged. Our draft materials seemed uncompromisingly redlined; our meetings with key stakeholders often started late or were awkwardly led by us instead of our client lead; our discussions with said lead tended to devolve into circular and unproductive debates. We were at an early crossroads. These challenges threatened to derail not just this nascent project, but my team’s morale and our client relationship.

Fight/flight/freeze? None of these felt like good options. Neither did our more evolved go-to strategies for meeting these kinds of obstacles. We were going to have to approach this differently.

Here are the three “get real” strategies that changed everything:

• Embrace debates with respectful gusto. We had to gird ourselves for revealing or being shown our limitations and get comfortable challenging each other and the client openly. To our delight, this often opened avenues that yielded solutions beyond what either of us initially envisioned.
• Listen loudly not just to logic or feelings but to language and intent. Our efforts allowed us to pinpoint nuggets and nuances of agreement to build on.
• Discard our professional armor. We built a human relationship based on shared values, not just a client relationship built on the work. This, in turn, benefited not just our client relationships but our own within the team.

The challenging dynamic didn’t transform overnight, but I’m proud to say that by the end of that quarter, we had built a trusting collaboration that was generating outcomes all of us were proud of. It’s also worth noting that the project we started continues to thrive beyond our involvement. And I’m even prouder to share my own personal and professional growth in the process.

Getting a Little More Personal

Words people often use to describe me

Your Go-to GSD* Person—no matter how hard or impossible it sounds, and in a thoughtful and gracious way

*Get Sh** Done

What inspires me

People who visibly love their “craft” and bring mastery and passion to their work

What brings me joy

Connect time with people, especially with a meal; the feel of sunshine; kayaking

What anchors me

Outdoor walks/hikes; yoga & meditation; my spouse; the music of Enya

What drives me nuts

Unproductive swirl; cattiness; apathy; a weak cup of coffee

My guilty pleasure

Artisan level chocolates, French macarons, and a glass of Trefethen wine

A favorite quote

“Light a candle instead of cursing the darkness” (considered a Chinese proverb, but most likely Rev W. L. Watkinson)

What I can’t do without

Exploring new people & experiences, whether in my own backyard or through traveling

My secret ambition

Living by the ocean; becoming a photographer … or food writer