As a communications teacher and coach I work with individuals, couples, families, organizations, schools, and businesses. I teach by leading classes, workshops, and practice groups; offering support, consultation, and coaching; and by conducting mediations. We can meet in person or by phone, email, or skype.
 
I look forward to supporting you in deepening awareness and appreciation of your own needs and values, helping you better understand what’s behind other people’s words and behaviors, and in developing the communication skills to foster more satisfying, authentic, and rewarding interactions and relationships.

For Individuals/Couples


If you find that:

  • You want more trust and connection in your relationships
  • You want to be honest but are afraid of how you will be received
  • You have a desire to reconnect with a friend or family member but you’re reluctant, or are not sure how to proceed
  • You would like your needs to be considered more often
  • You are feeling stuck around certain topics that never seem to resolve
  • You wish you knew how to communicate so that you and others didn’t get upset
  • You want to move beyond who’s right, who’s wrong, or who’s to blame
 
 

I can help you:

  • Increase your understanding and compassion for yourself and others
  • Become clear about what matters to you and how to communicate your needs in a way that others are likely to hear (and more likely to want to support
  • Become less triggered by what others say or do
  • Defuse heated situations before they lead to conversations that may be regretted
  • Foster trust and honesty in your relationships
  • Apply concrete skills that prevent and resolve conflicts while increasing understanding and mutual respect

Parents/Family members of all ages


If you find that:

  • Your child is not communicating openly with you
  • You want more closeness, and to understand why your children behave as they do
  • You’re using threats, rewards, and bribes to get your children to do what you want
  • You would like ideas for handling anger so it doesn’t escalate 
  • You’re exhausted by arguments between your children or between your child and a friend and are at a loss for how to help
  • You’re struggling to parent in ways that you feel truly good about
  • There is more distance than you would like between a family member and yourself
  • You would like to transform power struggles into opportunities for trust and connection
I can help you:

  • Gain a greater understanding of the needs causing your child’s behavior
  • Parent more effectively without relying on rewards, punishments, or threats
  • Create a quality of connection that will support your family through life’s challenges
  • Work with your children to find solutions that meet both your needs
  • Teach you and your children to handle conflict in more effective and mutually satisfying ways
  • Gain the possibility of having a family member back in your life
  • Through mediating a conversation family members agree to
  • By supporting you with writing a letter, making a phone call, or having an in- person conversation

Organizations/Businesses

If you find that:
 
  • You are reluctant to give feedback even though you know it would be best for the group
  • You’re frustrated because meetings are going off topic and not accomplishing much
  •  Telling staff what needs to be done is met with a lack of enthusiasm
  • You’re uncomfortable when co-workers complain to you about other co-workers and you’re not sure how to respond
  • When you express a problem the response is usually defensive
 
I can help you:

  • Learn to support more fully functioning and motivated teams
  • Develop skills to create better and more productive meetings
  • Use concrete tools that make feedback more useful to others
  • Give feedback that will be much less likely to be heard as criticism
  • Offer constructive responses to complaints about other staff
  • Take clear steps to handle broken agreements
  • Make clear requests that lead to actions being taken that meet your and/or the groups’ needs

Mediation

If you are experiencing:

  • Hesitancy or dread in bringing up certain topics, or anticipating having a difficult conversation
  • A desire to talk something through and would like support with the conversation
  • A sense of futility in talking about situations that aren’t working or in which there is conflict
  • Conflict spiraling downwards
 
I can help you:

  • Become more confident in having a challenging conversations
  • Increase the likelihood that other people will hear what you’re trying to say
  • Have productive conversations around challenging topics
  • Move from thinking that creates conflict to thinking that creates understanding
  • Gain clarity about your needs and the needs of others in a situation, which will help in figuring out solutions that work for all parties
  • By mediating a conversation for yourself and family members
  • Clarify areas of agreement and disagreement
  • Consider options, make agreements, and figure out next steps