I'm a Leadership Coach and Founder of The Courage Factory. Every single day I work with leaders to feel more confident and heart-centered in their leadership.

I haven't always been an entrepreneur. I started my career working at an Advertising Agency in NYC. After a few years I started to realize that I no longer felt connected to my work. I kept trying to make it work, to try different roles, but at the end of the day my heart was no longer in it.

I knew that deep down inside I wanted to work with animals. This had always been a dream of mine. And so I started to apply to every organization I could find that had anything to do with animals or nature. I had quite a few interviews, but the feedback was always the same, "You don't have the right experience".

I was crushed. I didn't know how to translate years of loving animals passionately into dedication or expertise in a job.

So I took another approach. I decided to apply to volunteer with the organizations I desired to work for. And it paid off!

In 2010, I left Manhattan and moved to Asuncion, Paraguay to become a volunteer with WWF Paraguay. I spent 6 months living in Asuncion working alongside some of the most brilliant minds in conservation and learning everything I could possibly soak up about forest protection, sustainable land use, and indigenous and local cultures.

I knew I had found my place and I was committed to making a career out of it. So I started networking. I spoke with anyone and everyone who would talk to me within the organization. I told them about the work I was doing and about my ambition to stay with the organization after my volunteer placement ended.

While in Paraguay, I worked closely with my colleagues in Paraguay and Germany to create a funding proposal for the German Ministry of the Environment so that we could continue our important work in the region.

The proposal was approved and I was asked to lead the project from Berlin. I wholeheartedly accepted.

I cherished those years, working closely with colleagues across the globe on incredibly important work - and relished in every field visit I was fortunate enough to take. But over time, I started to feel something wasn't quite right anymore. I had begun to lose my enthusiasm for what I was doing.

I believed in our work, but no longer loved my role. It was time, I realized, to move on. Skipping the emotional messy part in the middle where it was hard to leave behind an organization that felt like a part of me, I found myself asking big questions, once again.

What is it that I really want to do with my life and career? Where do I want to go from here?

The answer came swiftly. I had developed a passion for coaching and training - something that was new for me until I started learning how to do both within WWF. I knew that these things brought me to life and I once again felt that deep sense of knowing that this was where my career was headed.

I knew that my experience was lacking, but I had a hunger to learn and decided to put myself forward wholeheartedly into the search for my next career. I once again started my search - checking out job boards and reaching out to my network to see who I knew and who might be able to introduce me to the people I wanted to know.

The following role was close to home - after many conversations I decided to accept an offer to work with my own coach in a Director of Design role - designing leadership development programs for world class, global clients. I knew that I had a lot to learn, but I also knew my ambition would carry me through.

And so I entered the world of leadership development, coaching, and facilitation full time. I knew I had landed in the right world - and after learning the ins and outs of the field, I built up the courage to found The Courage Factory.

I understand the struggle that ultimately comes with career change, the questions of identity, the 'what ifs', and understanding who you are at your core. I know the challenges of finding the right fit with the right company (or something even better) and how frustrating and time consuming the process can be.

I also know how to help you find what it is you are really good at, what your strengths are, and what it is that you uniquely bring to the table. I've been perfecting the art of networking my entire life. I can help you learn what I use to open doors that previously felt closed and to present yourself in the best possible way - to truly shine a spotlight on your talents and what you bring to the table.

You deserve to feel appreciated, valued, and excited about your work.

I can help get you there.

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