“In business and in life, regardless of what level you have reached, having someone to help you strategize and offer alternate approaches or viewpoints on a particular situation is critical. I have inherently known this for most of my career, but for one reason or another I never took action on seeking out that assistance. It wasn’t until casually speaking to Dan after tennis one day that I learned of his coaching business and decided to take that action and schedule some sessions with him.
This decision was easy. I had already grown to respect Dan for his wisdom, his analytical and thoughtful approach to helping others, and most of all his sense of humor. After our first session my expectations were exceeded. Dan has a way of challenging you to dig deep and develop a better understanding of what makes you tick. He helped me to overcome countless obstacles I faced in my business and in my life. He made me more self-aware of what I needed to do to truly fulfill my passions, not obsessively inundate myself with work, pursue those things that gave me real internal joy, and develop a better and more healthy work/life balance. He did this all without giving me the answers, rather had me arrive at the right answers that worked best for me.
I highly recommend you take that first step and make the important decision to invest in yourself. I can also save you some time and energy in finding the right guy for the job… It’s Dan. “
Bryan Ottens
Entrepreneur and President PE Schmidt Co
“I had reached a point in my career, where I was feeling burnt out, detached and
unfulfilled. I questioned whether or not I was fully leveraging my core competencies,
while satisfying my interests and goals; honoring who I truly am, at my innermost core. I
looked to coaching for help with evaluating these different areas, in an effort to align my
professional life with my higher life purpose.
Dan provided an easy framework that enabled me to outline my work & personal goals,
identify key interests in each of these areas, and through a core values-based approach,
determine what is most important to me, so that I am able to design a life that fulfills
my goals, while honoring my core values.
Dan was part of the executive leadership team at the company I currently work for. I
have known him for 10 years. He is a creative, innovative thinker, a champion of people.
His warm, humble, and caring disposition makes him a welcoming sound board and
great listener; and he inspires others to do the same. Dan’s wealth of business
knowledge & experience at all levels of leadership, adds to his already versatile and
dynamic approach to coaching, particularly in the areas of professional development
and executive leadership. Dan’s open, honest and curious, which enables him to be a
supportive guide, offering sound guidance and advice, as you proactively evolve in your
own personal/professional development.”
Patricia C. Monks
National Marketing Manager Panasonic, Indoor Air Quality Division
“I was first introduced to Dan in 2016 and I can’t speak highly enough about his results driven approach
and straightforward manner. Dan conducts an approach that helps me to action on strategy and drive
results on a leadership as well as practical level.
In addition, Dan helped guide my career development and continuously encouraged me to take
calculated risks in order to break through from a “management mindset” to that of leadership. Finally,
the partnership with Dan is one of coaching, mentoring, and challenging me that has helped me in my
interactions with the team, board of directors, and senior leadership that has helped me succeed in
attaining the Company’s goals. I highly recommend Dan as your executive coach.”
Lou Fanzini
Chief Financial Officer, Mistras Group
“The reason I decided to pursue coaching was I felt unsatisfied and stuck in my career path. I was having
a difficult time deciding my next step, especially since I just turned 30 years old and felt like I needed
guidance.
Having Dan as a coach allowed be to take a step back and look at what made me happy. He helped me
identify my wants, values and needs, which in turn made me realize parts of my life that inspired me.
This then allowed me to explore and “prototype” different projects and areas of interest at work. This
new value first approach allowed me to stop thinking of what others view as a successfully career, but
instead made me focus on a well fulfilled life. I was then able to stop putting so much pressure on
myself and started to become more confident in my decisions.
Dan has a great ability to make you feel comfortable. He is a great listener and helps you look at
different perspectives, allowing you to make your own choices. At the same time, he is good at making
you accountable. His coaching helped me make new relationships, introduced me to crossways
leadership and become a better listener. After working with Dan, I was more balanced and centered
than ever before.
I highly recommend his coaching services, especially for those in the early to mid-stages in their career.”
Anthony Castillo
Senior Supply Chain Planner Panasonic Eco Systems North America
“I am someone who is open to new ideas and different points of view. Coaching made real sense to me. It was a two way conversation where different viewpoints were always emerging and explored. Dan asks good questions which made me think harder and helped me see the bigger picture though both questions and examples.
As a result of coaching my confidence was elevated, which was one of my goals relative to my more seasoned colleagues. I learned that identifying my values and what they really mean to me was important to help me come up with solutions to roadblocks I was facing. And committing to the values also gave me confidence I was looking for.
What I appreciated most about Dan was his follow up and getting me to stick to commitments. With challenging work schedules it is easy to lose time, but Dan made sure I was moving forward on commitments I had made to myself. He helped me connect dots I could not easily identify, and got me in the habit of asking the right question to help me think through a tough situation.”
Dana Viri
Sr. HR Manager
“I talked with Dan about my career ion and my confidenc. I wanted more clear understanding of what direction. I should take and how to create that direction. I also wanted to learn how to better juggle the work/life balance.
Dan helped me really see things differently, and find myself in ways I had been unable to previously. I learned about my values, about concentrating on myself and what I want and need, not to worry too much about others. I also learned a lot of aspects of American culture. The most surprising thing that became clear was my desire for learning, experiences, and even adventure. Language was a big barrier in my mind-in our coaching it was almost never a barrier. We talked slowly, simply, and clearly.
At first I was nervous doing coaching, because I thought I couldn’t really do it. But I got it! I learned that coaching is encouraging me to go in the direction I really want. To figure that out, then plan how to do it. I still have fears about this, so coaching is helpful. These fears make me want to escape before. Now I have someone who helps me not just want to move forward, but keeps me confident I can do it.”
Kody Hasegawa
Manager, People Advisory Services, Osaka Japan
“I came to coaching to address issues I have long had that I felt were holding me back at work. I wanted a more pro-active action based approach to looking at this issue. What attracted me to the coaching approach was the idea of becoming “unstuck” and less tentative to take action. The agenda for each session was always mine, and Dan was curious in helping me unfold what was happening and how I wanted to deal with it.
From our first get together Dan was solidly “in my corner” and I felt our sessions were lively, thoughtful, and never scripted. We tried different approaches depending on the topic, and were able to shift gears and try different paths if thefirst was not producing results. That strong support extended beyond just our conversations-I felt that what I walked away with, and the progress that I was able to make, really mattered to Dan. His compassion and energy was very helpful in getting me to move forward. Yet he did not shy away from challenging me when what I was saying did not pass the smell test.
The techniques we used were both interesting and usually effective. We looked at different perspectives of a challenge, and things that seemed intractable became manageable. We did a lot of work on what values were necessary for me to thrive, and whether I was identifying and meeting the needs to honor those values. This process revealed a good deal about myself that I had not seen so clearly before. Finally, we looked at my inner voices that were critical of me and trying to hold me back. I learned a way to not suppress these critics, but acknowledge and work with them.
Dan brings to his work a combination of energy, humor, empathy and compassion that helped me work through the issues I wanted to address.”
Doug Andrews
Senior Manager, IT Risk Management, Morgan Stanley