I HELP PEOPLE COURAGE

I have a question I ask myself every day, and it’s a question I regularly ask my clients: can you allow yourself to be radicalized?

It’s more of a statement and invocation, really, than a question: allow yourself to be radicalized.

It’s a life, organization, and institution changing challenge. Are you willing – can you practice – allowing whatever experience you’re having right now and whatever fear/resistance you’re having to that experience to radicalize you? If you’ve received some painful feedback about your white supremacy conditioning: are you willing to let that feedback radicalize you? If you’re being asked to shift the way you lead or love, can you let that radicalize who you are and how you move around in the world?

This is the work I specialize in. Radicalizing your life – and our world – through a practice of courage.

What matters is that laura is someone who’s been living leadership her whole life: both the cost of it, and the way through. laura grew up in the south and knew she was gay at a young age, which meant she learned to hide her identity and authenticity in order to be safe.

As a speaker and coach, she now has a super power that came from her pain: the ability to help leaders and teams who are hiding parts of themselves – and paying the cost of that with imposter syndrome, poor communication, a struggle to innovate and take risks, and with lack of diversity, trust, and inclusiveness in their organizations – bring themselves fully out in order to transform results through authenticity, courage, and connection.

Host of the 5-star podcast “How To Make Love,” laura creates dialogue about love and justice in all domains of her work. She lives in Durham, and loves to surf and use profanity.

laura earned a B.A. with honors from the University of Virginia; her M.A. in Secondary Education from American University; and her Certified Professional Coaching credentials from Coaching For Transformation, an acclaimed coaching school through Leadership That Works which specializes in equality and global impact. She is also a member of and holds her Associate Certified Coach credentialing from the International Coach Federation, and she is additionally a member of the International Leadership Association, Coaches For Equality and Diversity, and Consultants for Social Justice communities.

“As a CEO it is a joy to work with laura. The approach that she is able to take in listening and helping you dig into your core has been critical to my success in showing up as my authentic self and bringing my identity into my work. Our regular reflections have led me to be able to rebuild my team’s morale, elevate the leadership of others in my organization, and row my agency’s budget by 25% in one year. I understand myself better when I work with laura, and as a result, I understand my work more profoundly.”

Jon M.
CEO, San Francisco

“Bold, Brave, Purposeful! Those are the words that come to mind after working with laura. She is extremely skilled at coaching you to uncover YOUR true purpose and creating aligned actions that lead to success. During our time together we explored power, privilege, personal core values, and how your belief about those things impact the decisions you make. Her ability to create a welcoming environment, that is both challenging and supportive, allows for her coaching to truly transform your perspective. I would recommend her to anyone that I cared about because she cares a lot about ensuring that a more equitable world exists and that starts with each person being the best they can be. Her coaching was truly a catalyst that I needed in being bold, brave, and purposeful. I remember that on the days that seem a little tougher than others!”

Sharma B.
Assistant Principal, Texas

“In each coaching session laura takes me further than what I imagine possible for myself and my work in the world. Through her incisive listening and questioning she challenges me to stretch into courageous action, taking bolder steps in my work outside of sessions, in particular to bring more focus and variety of alliance driven projects to racial and Eco-justice in community education. laura lifts me up to live my values more openly. She impacts me that way in large part because she brings authentic gravitas to her speaking which sources from living and working in congruence with her progressive principles. I feel immediately able to shift into a more aligned energized version of myself with her. Just as important to me is the heartful way laura meets me and accepts me right where I am. She gives me safety and permission to get vulnerable with her. After just a few powerful session – I have moved through chronic creative blocks and stultifying limits of self-expression into more effective leadership, and I’m having way more fun in collaboration with co-workers, students,  clients, and community stakeholders as a result. laura’s the “real-deal” helping me make measurable, meaningful change within myself that translates into external results. She’s really more than a coach- she’s a fierce ally”

Michelle N.
Community Resilience Facilitator & Environmental Activist, California