Not Your Average Coach

More than providing you with a tailored program, an effective, proven process, and tangible tools you can use right away, your coaching journey is about connecting on a genuinely human level.

Which is why my coaching approach covers far more - and goes much deeper.

For me, coaching is about more than setting and chasing goals for the sake of it. Or rushing though our 1:1 sessions to achieve some half-baked metrics that don’t benefit either of us.

My clients value my human, holistic approach which includes:

  • Genuine empathy, rooted in a deep understanding of the ups and downs of the tech industry.

  • Key insights and aha-moments that spark self-awareness, self-trust, choice, and accountability.

  • Unleashing newfound confidence and growth that comes from the power of appreciating and harnessing your unique traits, gifts, as you learn to trust your core values and signature strengths.

What sets me apart as a coach.

Some fast facts about me:

In a nutshell: I’ve been there. I know what the heck I’m talking about.

  • As a tech veteran (US & Canada), woman of colour, immigrant, and someone who has lived and worked globally, I have a unique, firsthand lens on the highs and lows of diversity and multiculturalism.

  • I’ve been personally (and dramatically) impacted and lived through three major recessions which saw the tech industry turned upside down as it is right now: the 2000/01 tech bubble implosion; the post-9/11 economic downturn; and the 2008/9 global financial crisis.

  • Over the course of my career, I’ve endured and survived some astonishingly crappy jobs, bosses, and co-workers. And I’ve also thrived in some terrific companies both in senior leadership and IC roles working for and with outstanding, terrific human beings.

  • I’ve changed careers and reinvented myself three times primarily because: I could no longer stand the status quo; I felt trapped/stuck/utterly miserable; my physical and mental wellbeing was being compromised; and because I wanted more and better for my life.

  • My professional credentials include 170+ hours of professional training and 12+ years of experience as a professional coach. You can read all about the impressive blah, blah, blah below.

Once upon a time in tech….

  • I started my working life armed with a degree and professional credentials in international hotel and restaurant management. So, tech was an accidental second career. A happy accident. Go figure! And while it was an incredibly exciting time in tech, it was also when women in tech…let alone women in tech who looked like me…were almost like rare, mythical creatures.

    Over 16 years I held versatile, progressively senior IC and leadership roles in the tech industry at major companies such as Netscape, AOL, Tucows, as well as at several well-funded, high-profile tech start-ups.

    Some of my experiences in tech were fantastic and memorable in the best ways possible. And yet, I also had several experiences that were, without exaggeration, toxic if not outright abusive.

    I experienced this disturbing trend not only in tech but also in other industries I have worked in.

  • Learning to survive and thrive in spite of the really hard times I’ve overcome is one of the things that makes me not only an effective coach, but one that is genuinely empathetic, compassionate, patient, and understanding.

    Here’s a snapshot of a handful of career challenges I’ve overcome and survived. I’ve learnt how to thrive, master grit and resilience, and even how to boldly reinvent myself and bounce forward.

    • First major tech industry downturn: By Nov 2000, most internet stocks had declined by 75% of their highs wiping out $1.755 trillion in value. Massive layoffs were rampant, and tech companies folded like cards.

    • The aftermath of 9/11 on the North American economy.

    • Worldwide recession of 2008/9. You get the picture.

    • 3 layoffs; plus, a company acquisition; plus the stress, worry, and anxiety of trying to lay low and get on with my job when I didn't get cut.

    • Being at the receiving end of deplorable and trauma-inducing bad behaviour by toxic bosses and co-worker (that I was powerless to do anything about) that included various “isms” that today would result in people being fired without question. But not back then.

    As I was saying: We learn and grow through the hard time, rarely through the easy, breezy ones!

  • The significant amount of hard-fought/earned, valuable, and relevant work (and personal) lived experience I bring comes not only from working in Canada and the US in tech and financial services but also from all the experiences of having grown up, lived, and worked in the Middle East and Europe in my previous career in international hotel management.

From Hotel & Restaurant Management, to Tech, to Professional Coaching…

ICF-Accredited Coach Training.

In early 2012, I trained and certified as an Adler Trained Coach (accredited by the ICF, International Coaching Federation).

I have 12+ years of experience working with corporate and individual clients under my belt. My clients come from all walks of work and life spanning the following industries which include global multinational as well as Fortune 500 companies :

Tech; Banking & Financial Services; Corporate Law; Government; CPG; Corporate Communications; Health & Wellness.

Professional Designations and 170+ hours of Coach Training

  • Coaching certification with Adler Graduate Professional School Canada (ICF, International Coaching Federation accredited Coaches’ Training)

  • Master Practitioner in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) through NLP Canada Training Inc.

Additional Certifications.

  • Meditation & Mindfulness Certification (Natural Way of Living)

  • Ayurvedic Self-Care Certification (Institute of Traditional Medicine

And on the personal side of things…

I’m as proud of Canada (my adopted home of 25+ years) as I am of my eclectic South Asian heritage and rather nomadic and multicultural international upbringing spanning 4 countries and 3 continents.

Even though at times this sometimes all this sizeable diversity has caused me to feel as if I belong everywhere and nowhere (a figurative square peg in a round hole), I do in fact see it as a precious and valuable gift.

And this gift of sizeable diversity gives me a unique, versatile lens, and perspective; and, a sense of curiosity, empathy, inclusivity, authentic cultural/ethnic sensitivity and understanding, and a wealth of lived experience to draw upon on so many levels - as a coach, as a woman, as an immigrant, and as a human being.

A few personal stories and adventures.

  • I’m a professionally trained cook with a degree in hospitality management. I originally started my working life in the hotel and restaurant industry. Hands down, there’s no harder industry in which to learn about communication, difficult conversations, conflict management, dealing with rapid change and ambiguity, dealing with different types of people etc.

    And yeah, it’s exactly like in “The Bear”!

  • Once while scuba diving, I managed to unknowingly find myself in the middle of a school of barracuda. And I couldn’t for the life of me understand why the Dive Master leading our group was frantically trying to get my attention. I simply waved cheerfully and gave him a nonchalant shrug. Sometimes ignorance truly is bliss.

  • I was 9 years old and devastated that I’d missed the episode of The Muppet Show with Luke Skywalker and R2-D2. So, I wrote an urgent letter to the local TV station (context: I grew up in Dubai and there was only one TV station back then) begging and pleading with them to air that episode again. They never did.

  • Canada’s been home for the past 20+ years, but in fact I grew up in Dubai...long before it looked like this!

  • Admittedly, I was late jumping on the “Ted Lasso” bandwagon (At first I thought the premise of the show sounded ridiculous). Then the show received a truckload of Emmy nominations - I was surprised and curious. I binge-watched the entire first season in one evening, and have subsequently become one of those incredibly annoying people who won’t stop saying: “You absolutely have to watch Ted Lasso!!! It’s the best thing on TV right now”.