I was a people leader for 10 years. I started off confident, thinking I “knew it all.” But soon, I faced every challenge you can imagine: reorgs, layoffs, hirings and firings, staff mental health and addiction issues, union negotiations, balancing paid staff with volunteers, limited resources, sexism, nepotism, top-down abusive leadership, overwork, nonprofit-level pay and benefits for for-profit-level work, promotions without training or support, and burnout.

Through it all, I learned that effective leadership is about creating cultures of connection, collaboration, and productivity—by recognizing that everyone is different and that when people feel seen and listened to, teams flourish.  I focused on creating spaces where people could speak freely, even voicing unpopular, emotional perspectives, without fear.  I learned to put my own ego aside in service to a higher vision.  And I made a lot of mistakes, shot myself in the foot multiple times, and lived to tell the tale.  

At the heart of people management, employees are simply humans trying to navigate their way through systems that are mostly not built for them.  Relationships matter.  Retaining key employees should be every people manager’s focus.  When people can be themselves at work, they give their all.

I now work with leaders at all levels (C-Suite, Director, Manager) who want to lead more humane, meaningful, creative, and generative organizations—leaders who want to grow, support, and inspire their teams while maintaining their own sanity, inner peace, and balance.