Why I Finally Claimed the Title of Business Coach.
For most of my life, the word “coach” made me roll my eyes. As a Gen Xer with a finely tuned problem-with-authority radar, I never saw myself as the person in the blazer, asking, “So, how does that make you feel?” while someone else politely nods and walks out with a notebook full of ideas and zero follow-through.
But the more I did the work I actually love—helping small business owners and nonprofit leaders get unstuck, organized, and confident—the more I had to admit something I resisted for a long time: I’ve been coaching all along. I just refuse to do it the way it’s “supposed” to be done.
This is why I’m finally claiming the title of business coach—and what it means when you work with me.
Why Traditional Coaching Never Fit Me
Let’s just say it: I don’t do well with authority for authority’s sake.
When I hired coaches in the past, a pattern kept showing up. I was the one leading the conversation, I was the one taking all the notes, and I was the one walking away with a massive to-do list and no real support to execute it. It felt less like partnership and more like paying to monologue with someone nodding on the other side of Zoom.
Accountability was vague at best. There was no clear sense of, “Here’s what we’re building together and how we’ll know it’s done.” Instead, I was often handed a “proven system” based entirely on what worked for them—and expected to squeeze my very different life and business into that mold.
Same scripts. Same funnels. Same playbook. Different human.
That just doesn’t work for me. And honestly, it doesn’t work for a lot of the people I serve either.
The Coaches Who Made Me Rethink Coaching
Here’s the twist: this isn’t an “all coaches are trash” story. I’ve had some incredible coaches.
I’ve worked with people who transformed how I think about sales, mindset, AI, business systems, and growth. The good ones are a shortcut. They compress time and let you borrow their knowledge, scars, and experiments so you don’t waste months trying to figure out something they’ve already solved.
That experience showed me what powerful coaching can feel like:
Not performative. Not guru-driven. Not a script.
Real questions. Real perspective. Real collaboration.
I just didn’t want to lump myself into the “business coach” category because that label is crowded with shiny promises and very little actual follow-through. So I avoided the title, even as I was doing the work every day.
When I Realized I Was Already Coaching
The shift happened while I was “just helping” clients.
On paper, my work looked like tasks: setting up systems, cleaning up operations, organizing projects, planning launches. But the conversations kept going deeper. While we were building workflows, we were also talking about boundaries, burnout, overgiving, undercharging, and the constant cycle of reacting instead of leading. I was asking the questions of why and what works for the, to get to what the system was they needed and how to build it.
With nonprofit leaders, it was about worth in a different way. They weren’t “less than” because they ran a nonprofit. They were juggling impact, funding, compliance, and community, and still talking like they should be grateful for scraps. We had to shift that story so they saw themselves as leaders who absolutely deserve strong systems and support.
At some point I realized I wasn’t just the “get it done” person. I was the:
Let’s get it done, let’s talk about why it matters, and let’s build a container so it keeps working for you person.
That’s business coaching—whether I liked the label or not.
What My Hands-On Coaching Actually Looks Like
Once I embraced the fact that I was coaching, I made myself a promise: I would never be a checkbox coach.
No forcing everyone into the same curriculum. No rigid framework that ignores your actual capacity or context. No gimmicks, no magic templates, no “just follow these five steps and you’ll be rich.”
When we work together, we’re not just talking about your business. We’re working on it in real time. We dig into:
Your offers, pricing, and capacity
The systems that support your boundaries (or don’t)
Where your time, money, and energy are leaking
The way you talk about and sell your work
For small business owners, that often looks like getting clear on what you really want to sell and at what price, then building workflows and accountability that actually stick.
For nonprofit leaders, it looks like treating your organization as the serious operation it is—designing processes that make board relationships, funding cycles, and reporting less chaotic and a lot more sustainable.
We screen-share. We write. We map systems. We decide. We build as we go so you’re not left alone staring at a long list of “someday” tasks.
Why I’m Claiming “Business Coach” Now
Underneath the systems and strategies, this is all about worth and intention.
I want you to feel grounded saying your prices out loud. I want you to stop apologizing for invoices or treating your nonprofit like it should run on fumes. I want your systems to back up your boundaries so you don’t have to white-knuckle your way through every decision.
And yes, I can feel it when something clicks for a client—that moment when they shift from scrambling to leading. That rush is real, and I’m absolutely chasing it. Not for screenshots or flashy “wins,” but because watching people step into their power never gets old.
So, I’m done dodging the title. I am a business coach.
A hands-on, values-driven, no-guru, sleeves-rolled-up business coach for small business owners and nonprofit leaders who want intentional growth, not generic advice.
If you’re tired of being talked at, handed cookie-cutter plans, and left alone with an overwhelming to-do list, then you’re my kind of person. I’m here for the partnership, the clarity, the systems, and the steady, intentional forward motion.
If that’s what you’ve been looking for, welcome. Let’s get to work.
I didn’t set out to be a business coach; I set out to help people move forward without burning out or selling themselves short. The title finally caught up with the reality.
I coach my way: collaborative, practical, deeply human, and focused on building businesses and nonprofits that actually support the people running them. If you’re ready for that kind of support, I’m ready to be your coach—on purpose, and on your terms.