Two decades working across cultures and sectors, helping leaders grow into who the moment calls them to be.
Straight out of college, I joined Teach for America and taught high school in Baltimore. I brought the heart and enormous energy of being in my twenties, making up for what I lacked in skills by working long hours and paying attention. I was dedicated to my students and relished helping them discover themselves and their place in the world. I went on to teach, write, and work in school leadership in DC, Chicago, and Paris.
There is no boardroom more intimidating or unpredictable than a room full of teenagers. Those years taught me how to hold a room without controlling it, to notice what was happening beneath the surface, and to understand each person inside the history and community that shaped them.
When what works becomes an Achilles heel.
The drive to prove myself and be helpful served me well as a young teacher. It served me less well when I was building a business, raising three children, and moving our family across countries and continents. Values I held core to my identity were tested and forced to evolve. I had to learn the difference between dedication and over-functioning, how to let the team run with it when I could still see room for improvement. I had to learn how to pause long enough to hear my own wisdom, not just the loud voice that pushed me forward.
Many of the leaders I work with are in a version of that moment. They’re accomplished and relied upon. The role has grown, the stakes are higher, and the relationship dynamics at work and at home are more complex. The strengths that built their careers—dedication, diplomacy, quiet fixing, meticulous preparation—start to cost more than they return.
The answer isn’t becoming someone else. It’s bringing your full judgment to the table.
WHAT I LISTEN FOR
My approach draws on more than 20 years in education, facilitation, life coaching, and leadership development.
01 / The pattern underneath
The immediate problem or opportunity is only part of the picture. I’m listening for the pattern underneath: the dynamics shaping decisions, the tensions between people, systems, and priorities, and the gap between what’s visible and what’s actually driving the situation.
02 / EQ + BQ + VQ
Emotions, our bodies, and the space between us—all if it carries information that most leaders have been trained to suppress. I help leaders recover that intelligence and use it, rather than spend energy managing it away.
03 / People in context
Our history, relationships, culture, and identities shape how we show up. What looks like resistance, conflict, or a lack of confidence rarely exists in isolation. Understanding the context makes it easier to discern what belongs to the individual, what belongs to the system, and where there is room to move.
