How I Coach

What I’m actually doing in a session

First and foremost, listening.

Not listening to respond. Listening for patterns. Assumptions. Beliefs you’re holding about yourself or your situation that you might not have examined. I’m tracking what you’re saying, what you’re not saying, and what keeps coming up.

When I hear something worth naming, I name it. I put it out in the open so we can look at it together. Is it true? What does it mean if it is? Most of the time, the thing that’s keeping someone stuck isn’t a lack of information or options. It’s something they’ve decided is fixed that isn’t. Getting that thing into the open, and poking at it, is most of the work.

I think of it as collective mindfulness. Naming what is in the room.

What I believe about coaching

Everyone in your life has a stake in what you do next.

Your manager, your partner, your friends, your parents. When you’re trying to figure out what you want or need, those people’s feelings are present whether they’re in the room or not. That’s not a criticism, it’s just the nature of being in relationships. Their needs and motivations are real.

But their feelings should not be the driving force in your figuring out what’s right for you.

A coach is one of the few people in your life who genuinely has no stake in the outcome. I don’t benefit if you stay. I don’t benefit if you leave. I don’t have an opinion about what you should do. My only job is to help you think more clearly about your situation so you can make the decision yourself, and live with it.

That’s the thing that makes coaching different from every other conversation you can have about this.

How I run sessions

Sessions are conversations. Not structured exercises, not frameworks, not worksheets.

I’m direct. I don’t have much of a filter, and I won’t sugar coat things or tell you what you want to hear. At the same time, I care about making our time together feel safe for you. You need to feel like this is a space where you can say the actual thing, not the polished version of it. Both of those things can coexist, and in a good session they do.

If I think something you said deserves a harder look, I’ll say so. If I think we’re going in circles, I’ll say that too. I’m not here to make you feel good about being stuck. I’m here to help you get unstuck.

What to expect

The free call. Before anything else, we get on a 15-minute call to talk through what you’re dealing with and make sure there’s a fit. This isn’t a coaching session. It’s a conversation to figure out whether working together makes sense. If it does, we talk through how the engagement works and schedule the first session.

Sessions. All coaching is done by video call. Sessions are typically 30 to 45 minutes, though we can plan for longer if the situation calls for it. We meet weekly or every other week depending on what works for you and what the situation requires.

No fixed number of sessions. The engagement runs as long as it needs to. The question I’m always asking is: do you feel like you have what you came for? If yes, we’re done. If no, we schedule another session. If I ever feel like we’re spinning our wheels and not making progress, I’ll tell you. I’m not interested in running up your bill.

Pricing

$1 per minute. A 30-minute session is $30. A 45-minute session is $45. You’ll always know what you’re paying before we start, and sessions don’t run over without your agreement.

Who I work with

My background is in tech and digital organizations, so that’s where I’m most useful. Software engineers, product managers, engineering leaders, user experience (UX) leaders, and digital professionals navigating career transitions, career changes, and situations where the path forward isn’t clear.

I also work with people in other fields when the fit is right, and I take on personal coaching in certain circumstances. If you’re not sure whether your situation is something I can help with, the free call is the right place to figure that out.

Background

I’ve spent over 25 years working in and around digital and tech organizations. I was a mentor in Salesforce’s internal mentoring program, and I’ve seen the same career inflection points come up repeatedly for smart, capable people who just needed a clearer way to think through what was in front of them.

I’m currently pursuing my coaching certification through the International Coaching Federation (ICF).

FAQs

FAQ

Common questions

Last updated: May 2026