Life coach

A leader asked me recently how I help people escape the Golden Path Fallacy. The people I’m thinking of are successful. They’ve hit every wicket, taken the next job and the next promotion, most of it on good advice from people who meant well. And then one day they look up and something feels a…

Did the Navy mess up when they selected me to be a commanding officer? That was a real question for me before I took command. I’m hearing a version of it from leaders I work with stepping into bigger roles. They earned the promotion, and they know it. Then they’re in meetings with new peers…

I keep coming back to this idea. That if my purpose is only the next win, then I’m basically signing myself up to need another one as soon as this one is done. Another deal. Another project. Another client. Another thing to chase. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to win. I just think it gets…

How a leader handles things not going to plan is mostly set before anything goes wrong. It’s the mindset they walked in with. “𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵” is one mindset. When it goes off-plan, that’s a tough blow to recover from. Here’s a different mindset. “𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦…

As long as things are working, it is easy to stay in “if it ain’t broken don’t fix it” mode. And sometimes that makes sense. What happens when the environment changes faster than your current way of operating can keep up? AI is an obvious example right now. A lot has changed in the last…

One of the hard parts of stepping into something new is how quickly it can start to feel like it all rests on you. Like you’re supposed to have all the answers. Like you’re supposed to get it right the first time. Like needing help somehow means you’re not ready. I don’t think that’s true.…

I had the honor of connecting with over 200 transitioning service members through 7 Eagle Group. Many thanks to 7 Eagle Group and the service members and veterans on the call for the warm welcome! I shared the perspective that transitioning members can have the “Same Purpose, New Mission.” What an amazing program for any…

The bigger the decision, the less certain you feel making it. That caught me off guard the higher I moved in leadership. You keep waiting to feel sure. To have all the consequences resolved before you commit. On the decisions that carry the most weight, that feeling doesn’t really come. So the real edge becomes…

Out walking yesterday, listening to a podcast. When we hit something hard, most of us treat it as a problem to solve. Get through it, get back to normal. COVID was the version most of us lived. When will this be over? When do things go back to the way they were? But what if…

Have you ever caught yourself doing this on a call? I have. I’m with someone, supposed to be all there for them, and my head is still back on whatever I was chewing on before I got on. The strategy, the money, some problem I couldn’t shake. So I’m only kind of there. The more…

Wondering how to actually work with me? Here’s the simplest answer. If you’re operating at a new level, stepping into bigger responsibility, or moving into a new arena, the first step is a connection call. Not a sales call. A real conversation. A chance to meet, hear what you’re carrying, and see if there is…

An opportunity showed up last week. Pretty aligned with me. My purpose, my skill set. Stuff I’ve actually trained to do. And almost in the same breath, this voice in the back of my head went, “who are you to do that?” Dude. 26 years of leading. Training as a coach. And that voice still…