Awareness. Choice. Possibility.
You've been
asking yourself
the wrong question.
At 25, it's the next rung on the ladder. Around 40, it's the title or the number. Then the next thing becomes quieter and harder to name. Goals change. Nothing wrong with that. But they answer a question - "What's Next?" - and sometimes that's the wrong one.
13 years running an organization where I couldn't choose my customers or my board, and every decision was public. 10 of them as chief executive. I found out late that the reason I worked the way I did had almost nothing to do with the buildings or the balance sheet.
I found my next question. Now I'm actively building the answer.
I can't tell you your question. But I can help you find it.
Let's have a conversationDirect. Rigorously confidential.Awareness. Choice. Possibility.
asking yourself
the wrong question.
At 25, it's the next rung on the ladder. Around 40, it's the title or the number. Then the next thing becomes quieter and harder to name. Goals change. Nothing wrong with that. But they answer a question - "What's Next?" - and sometimes that's the wrong one.
13 years running an organization where I couldn't choose my customers or my board, and every decision was public. 10 of them as chief executive. I found out late that the reason I worked the way I did had almost nothing to do with the buildings or the balance sheet.
I found my next question. Now I'm actively building the answer.
I can't tell you your question. But I can help you find it.
Let's have a conversationDirect. Rigorously confidential.I build relationships with leaders at every stage of their career. From those just starting out to those who have achieved and have built lasting tenures. My work is to help them understand who they want to be, not who they think they ought to be.
Executive coaching and leadership development for professionals who find themselves constantly asking, “What’s next?”
Early career
You're ambitious and you know it. What's less clear is whether the path you're on is yours or the one you think you should be on. We get clear on what you actually want and how to go after it successfully as yourself rather than as the version you think the job is looking for. That includes the practical pieces.
Stepping into the chair
Whether you're interviewing for your first executive role or you started it last month, the first year sets the tone for every year after. We start with fit because the wrong chair costs years. Then we find your style and the kind of organization and team that will complement it. Then we build the first 30, 60, 90 days.
Experienced executives
Two versions of this. In one, the job still fits and you want the next leg to feel like something rather than more of the same. In the other one, what you're chasing has stopped matching what you're actually after. Either way, we go looking for the thing underneath.
Founder, Coach and Consultant
Every Stage from the Inside
A lot of my life has been on a public stage, whether performing in a band, or making speeches, decisions and taking actions that get measured in public votes.
After a late start, I also benefitted from a quiet fire that carved a path to a chief executive role rapidly. After dropping out, I went back to school at age 29 with 32 credits towards my degree. At 32 I had my Master's in Public Administration.
Six years later, at 38, I was appointed Town Manager - responsible for 18,000 residents, 150 full time staff, and a $100 million budget.
I know the impatience that pulls you forward early in your career. I also know the weight that pulls you down while sitting in the top seat. The one with nobody to hand accountability up to, and where the room studies your face to decide what kind of day it's going to be. And you're responsible for everything that goes right or wrong. Where it seems like you're living life in a fishbowl. None of that really makes me a good coach. But it does give me an understanding of things that can't be expressed in written prose or verbal language.
I like to coach people and teams. I also like to solve problems. They are different things, but we all need them both at points in our lives and careers.
The five C's stand for: Clarity, Congruence, Creativity, Competence, Catalysis.
More about Michael →In Their Words
What clients say
"He asked thoughtful, often very deep questions that took our conversations in directions I would not have anticipated. Those moments consistently turned out to be the most meaningful."
"I felt the ease of connection right away as he brought his whole self to the session. Change is hard, but working with Michael made that change a little bit easier."
"Michael is a very strong coach. Kind and compassionate, but also challenging...and it's the challenging that leads to growth."
Begin
It starts with a conversation, not a contract.
We talk about where you are, what's shifting, and whether this work is the right fit...for both of us. If it is, we design the engagement around what you're actually navigating rather than a package off a shelf.
Let's have a conversation