SALES AND LEADERSHIP COACHING
To paraphrase a quote by the famous author and teacher Stephen Covey, "Management is making sure one efficiently and properly climbs the ladder to success. Leadership is making sure the ladder is leaning against the right wall. If not, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster." Coaching helps us make sure we're heading in the right direction in our lives and business, avoid painful and costly mistakes, and change our mindset, outlook, and energy so we can lead with passion, achieve our financial and life goals, and live life we love along the way.
As a Silicon Valley Executive for over twenty years, I climbed the ladder from project management to sales, business development and co owner, and eventually CEO and majority owner in my own company. I learned the hard way that much of what I did was not effective, efficient, or aligned with the life and business I truly wanted to create. I ended up making some bad decisions, making and losing a bunch of money, making it back again, and finally having all the things I worked so hard for, but I was stressed out and unhappy for most of my career, until I learned the tools and practices I now teach.
After attending lots of workshops, courses and retreats over the years, I learned a bunch which helped make me a much happier and effective leader and starting, running, and enjoying my coaching business in complete alignment with my calling in life. The coaching process, and the tools I've learned help anyone be more effective and happy in life and business regardless of their vocation. It turns out, the experience gained from working at the beginning stages of five start ups, helping them succeed and grow, over twenty years as a top performing consultative sales executive, and dealing with difficult client, employee, legal, and financial matters has been extremely helpful in my work now with clients facing similar issues and challenges.
One of the biggest challenges I was faced with after I nearly died in a boat accident was finding my why. Why was I doing what I was doing with my life? I realized that the I'd worked six days a week, 12-16 hour days most days, had not taken a vacation in 11 years, and I and almost died while stuck in what I now call the deferred life program. I was putting my happiness and well being on hold until I had at least a couple of million dollars in the bank. I finally come close to meeting my financial goals and stuff happened... I lost it all, and had to create again.
After the accident, my wife filed for divorce, I was in the midst of two law suits with former business partners who embezzled my entire life savings, I was in massive chronic pain and heavily medicated all day. Somehow my company was doing well financially, but I was burned out, and in much need of a break. I hired a coach, and met with him once a week online for what ended up being five years. After a few months it became obvious that I needed to make some major changes in my life. I merged my company with another one so I could take a step down from running my company and focus more on my own life, health and happiness. I took a position as an Account Executive since I'd been a top performer in sales at every company I worked at before and knew I I could succeed at it again. I negotiated six weeks a year off so I could travel, attend workshops and retreats, learn how to heal my physical body, and find something to do with my life and experience which was more fulfilling.
As a result, life and productivity began to transform remarkably and pretty quickly. In the first year of that transition, I closed the largest contract in the company's history at the time, I brought in more new clients than I ever had, and made more money than I was paying myself as the owner of my own smaller company while having a blast and working about 30 hours a week. Who knew that by working less and delegating more, I'd be more focused, productive, and happy?
I took a workshop called non-violent communication which inspired me to take a bunch more courses in communication, coaching, and leadership. I began to practice yoga, meditation and breathwork and spending lots of time in nature, with my daughters, and doing things I enjoyed besides work. I learned about nutrition and the impact a healthy lifestyle and diet had in my life and productivity. I'd gone from a high functioning, but burned out CEO and business owner, numbing myself with alcohol and marijuana most evenings, to a super happy, healthy and productive person, and the funny thing was... I began to actually love my work too.
In retrospect, I saw that I wasn't properly prepared or trained to be an effective leader, I saw that many people in management and leadership positions find there way there like I did, because they excelled at sales or something else or just simply started their own business without the tools or training to effectively lead and inspire the folks they'd be responsible to lead.
At the age of 51, I resigned from my corporate career after closing another record breaking contract for the company and having another best year ever while working less than ever. I was inspired to help others create positive change in their lives like my dreamwork and life coach did for me. Of all the people in the world I've ever met, this one person (my coach) helped me transform my life more than anyone or anything.
In other sections of this website you will learn my standard approach to coaching and optional dream informed coaching. For each person I work with, we agree on a mix of modalities which is most useful for them.