I specialize in helping people who are trying to successfully navigate three kinds of issues:

1. The anxiety producing, intensely competitive and sometimes totally perplexing world of career, often in conflict with individual and family needs.  This includes proven ideas and techniques to retain your job & advance;

2. The frequently rocky road down which so many  relationships travel;

3. The struggle to make sense of, and recover from, the devastating blows of loss (health, love, work).

The career work I do is unique in that it is based on my own background, with success in three entirely different careers, and three entirely different cities (NY, LA, and DC).  As a result, I’ve learned a great deal about successful transition - from personal experience.

Career issues can stem from a number of causes. For some, “burnout” is the primary problem: they no longer find the work they do challenging or engaging. For others, interpersonal or political issues may be involved: changes wrought by new management, conflict with a boss, inability to get along with co-workers, Notably, in these perilous economic times, I am finding that insecurity is increasingly a factor. So as to pinpoint the source(s) of the specific issues confronting you, I conduct a detailed review of your work and personal history, paying particular attention not just to “the facts:, but also to such intangibles as body language, facial expressions, type of vocabulary, tone of voice, and emotional intensity. I do career testing, but not frequently, because I find most test results confirm what my clients already know about themselves. I encounter many clients whose problem is that they don’t like what they’re doing anymore (it’s ceased to be challenging or engaging) but don’t have any idea of what they might like and succeed at. I can be of great value in these situations. 

For the portions of a problem or issue that I believe to be emotional, psychological, or spiritual, I utilize all of the knowledge and many of the techniques I’ve acquired as a psychotherapist. In therapeutically-oriented sessions I operate out of the belief that the best answer to my clients’ problems lie within them.  Accordingly, I see my primary role as being a facilitator of conversations that help my clients tap into their uniquely valuable life experiences and wisdom.  The objectivity and years of experience I bring to this process enables me to see patterns or blocks to progress that are often invisible to clients whose deep personal involvement may make them unable to “see the forest for the trees”.   Also, for so many of my successful executive clients I’m able to listen, question and come to understand them in a way most therapists or life coaches can’t, because they haven’t been there and don’t know the territory.

I am often asked “what kind of therapy do you do?”   The answer is: “it all depends on the client”.  My work is eclectic – individually tailored to suit the person and the problem. For many people, what I do isn’t therapy at all, as my function for them is to serve as a source of information,  experience, and insight.  I often assist in improving resumes, or suggesting specific networking avenues. For others cognitive work is where we can achieve the needed leverage.  Behavioral work is essential for those suffering from anxiety, or who have addiction issues.  And I am generally able to connect very strongly with those who are spiritually inclined.  But the one aspect of my work common to all my clients is that it is solution-focused.    The past is examined primarily to gather evidence of previous successes in dealing with changes, setbacks, or disappointments.  Then, building from that foundation, I work to both hone the skills that have contributed to my clients’ past victories and to determine how to best apply them in the present circumstances. And, very often, to develop and practice new strategies, techniques, and skills. 

I will individually tailor a meeting program to accommodate your schedule.  My experience over the years has been that 50 minute once-a-week sessions are fine for certain kinds of issues, but others are more amenable to a schedule of less frequent, and possibly longer sessions.  You may be surprised that the great majority of my clients do not consistently meet with me on a weekly basis.

I am a strong believer in working collaboratively.  In partnership with my clients, specific objectives are set at the beginning of our work together.  Subsequently, I “check in” on a frequent basis to gauge my clients’ satisfaction with both our progress and the process of working together.  

I am also a strong believer in supplementing the work done in session with at-home assignments, which can accelerate progress and reduce the number of sessions needed to achieve the goals set at the beginning of the work.  Assignments can vary from reading to exercise to meditation to taking a long weekend – again, all depending on the client and the circumstances. 

Perhaps most importantly, I consistently strive to create a respectful, trusting, and non-judgmental relationship with my clients.  I passionately believe in the importance of creating and maintaining that relationship because from it flows the best insights, the best ideas, and the best solutions to my clients’ problems.