Meet Shannon
Hi! I’m Shannon, and I’m so glad you’re here.
As a Certified Professional Coach, I’m so lucky to wake up every day and help companies thrive one employee at a time through my coaching work, but first, let me tell you about how it all started…
After graduating from college (WE ARE Penn State!), I spent the first 8 years of my career in corporate finance roles at Fortune 500 companies. I spent most of my time behind Excel building budgeting models and analyzing hotel profitability.
During this chapter of my career, I learned a ton, met some incredibly talented people, and gained valuable experience. I followed the traditional path — get good grades, go to college, get a job relevant to that degree. And while I gained a lot, I was also very burned out.
In a quest for greater fulfillment, I decided to relocate from Washington, DC to Miami. I changed everything on the outside — new city, new company, new job.
After about 6 months, I felt even more unfulfilled. On top of that, I was scared.
What if I’d made a huge mistake and ruined my career?
I felt like complete fool for making all of these big life changes and still feeling so stuck.
In a moment of surrender, I hired my first coach.
It was a big investment, and I was incredibly secretive about the decision to hire her.
On the inside, I felt like there was something wrong with me for needing an outside expert to help me find fulfillment. Why couldn’t I figure that out on my own?
In the end, I didn’t tell a soul and I spent an entire paycheck on the coaching package.
Side note: to this day, hiring her is by far the best investment I’ve ever made, and I’m so glad I leaned into the vulnerability and invested in myself. That being said, I’ve since had the experience of hiring a coach who was a completely bad fit. It’s really important to ensure that you and your coach are the right fit before you invest.
Over the next several months, I got to know myself on a much deeper level.
My awareness of the mindset and behavior patterns that were holding me back gradually expanded, and I finally began to understand why I had felt so stuck. While I had hired a coach in hopes of figuring out my career conundrum (i.e. finding the ‘perfect job at the ideal company’, I gained so much more.
The Lightbulb Moment
My biggest takeaway was learning that sustainable change happens from the *inside* out; not the other way around. Learning this idea clarified everything for me. The fulfillment I wanted wasn’t going to come from finding the ideal job, or the perfect company, or an awesome boss.
Instead, fulfillment was an inside job.
After falling in love with the life-changing process of coaching, I decided to become a Certified Professional Coach and launch my coaching business in 2015.
Now, I’m on a mission to help startups create and sustain thriving workplaces.
I partner with organizations anywhere in the world between 50-200 employees to help them scale their culture as they scale their business.
My coaching work is a mix of 1-1 sessions, group coaching, and interactive, actionable workshops in-person and via Zoom focused on sharing the tools that help people create sustainable change from the inside out.
Over the last several years, I've gained experience working with a wide range of professionals from entrepreneurs and local nonprofit leaders to managers at publicly traded companies and rapidly growing startups.
What’s next?
Reach out today to start a conversation about what's possible for you and your organization! You can book a complimentary initial chat with me here. In this call, you’ll have the space to share what's on your mind, get answers to your questions, and learn learn about next steps if we both feel that it's a good fit to work together. I look forward to hearing from you!
More About Shannon
Pure Barre — I used to be a runner including two marathons (DC and Chicago), but now you can find me at Pure Barre. The workout is so effective and the community of members at my local studio is so supportive and fun!
Reading — as the daughter of a librarian, curling up with a good book is one of my favorite weekend activities. I’m mostly a non-fiction reader, but I’ll occasionally dabble in fiction. Some of my favorite authors are Liz Gilbert, Brené Brown, Glennon Doyle, and Jen Sincero.
Traveling — I grew up learning Japanese in a language immersion program at my public elementary school, and I studied Japanese through college. To me, Japan feels like a second home where I fit (even though I’m nearly 6 feet tall). I’ve traveled there 11 times and hope to go back soon! I also love exploring places in the U.S. (especially being in the mountains and hiking in nature) and Europe. To me, a great trip includes getting to know the history of a town or city, and connecting with locals.