About Maria

My Journey

Like many of the leaders I work with, my path hasn't been a straight line. It's been filled with pivotal thresholds that have shaped who I am and how I serve my clients.

In 2010, while having a successful corporate career, I began questioning the leadership path I was following. This led to a challenging period in a role that was too big for me, ultimately resulting in my departure. Almost simultaneously, my partner of 8 years ended our relationship. These experiences were my first major wake-up call, forcing me to reevaluate not just my career, but who I was as a leader.

This pivotal threshold led me on two journeys: an outer one that took me to Paris (where I fell in love with tango and discovered coaching), and an inner one of profound self-discovery. I realized that despite my professional success, I had been leading from performance rather than presence. I had to completely redefine what authentic leadership meant – to me.

Six years into running my own business, I faced another significant threshold. Despite external success, I felt disconnected from my work and couldn't continue. This led to my first major business evolution and a deeper understanding of sustainable leadership.

In 2021, I reached a point where I was successful by every traditional measure. Yet, I found myself completely exhausted and burned out. The thought of continuing felt devastating, even though I loved my work. I was dragging myself through each day. Once again, I had to cross a threshold – this time learning to lead my own life and business from a place of alignment rather than achievement.

Most recently, in 2023-2024, breast cancer forced me to question everything, resulting in another massive evolution in how I approach leadership and life.

Embracing Thresholds

Through these experiences, I've become incredibly skilled at navigating what I call "leadership thresholds" – those profound moments when who you've been can no longer sustain who you're becoming. I've learned that these challenging periods aren't obstacles; they're necessary passages to reach your next level of authentic leadership.

Over 15+ years, I've supported leaders across diverse sectors: from cybersecurity and technology companies, to global marketing agencies, international organizations, and soul-led small business owners. Working with some of the world's largest organizations and corporations has given me deep insight into the unique pressures and complexities that leaders face at every level, and the impact they have on the world.

I've developed what my executive clients call a "Truth Detector on steroids" – an ability to sense when someone is operating from their authentic power versus when they're performing a role. This insight is invaluable as we navigate the uncertain waters of leadership evolution.

Why I Do This Work

Having crossed multiple thresholds myself, I understand what it looks like when accomplished leaders feel stuck, reactive, or misaligned. I'm passionate about guiding other leaders through their own periods of profound transition.

I create a space that enables deep reflection, authentic exploration, and sustainable transformation. Whether you're stepping into a C-suite role, evolving from practitioner to CEO, or feeling the call to lead differently, I'm here to support you in crossing your threshold with grace and power.

Together, we'll help you evolve your leadership from the inside out, so you can create the impact you're meant to make without sacrificing who you are.

Why Gentle Leadership

Through my own thresholds and years of working with leaders across every sector, I've witnessed the devastating cost of the dominant leadership paradigm. The expectation to lead from burnout, exhaustion, and relentless pushing through has become normalized – but it's profoundly depleting and dehumanizing.

Gentle Leadership was born to challenge this paradigm.

It is my response to a culture that confuses intensity with impact, and grinding with greatness. It's an approach that recognizes every leader has access to deeper resources within themselves – resources that fuel inner peace, enable more grounded decision-making, and paradoxically create greater impact.

When leaders learn to draw from these inner wellsprings rather than their reserves, something profound shifts. They stop operating from depletion and start leading from overflow. They make decisions from clarity rather than reactivity. They influence through presence rather than pressure.

This isn't about being soft or weak. It's about discovering a source of strength that's sustainable, authentic, and ultimately more powerful than anything the hustle culture can offer.

The world desperately needs leaders who prove that you don't have to burn out to break through. That's what Gentle Leadership makes possible.

My Mission

My work is about supporting executives and entrepreneurs as they navigate the profound shifts that sustainable leadership requires. Because the world needs leaders who embody a different paradigm – leaders who demonstrate that you don't need to burn out to break through.

When leaders evolve from the inside out, they create ripple effects that transform organizations, communities, and ultimately, our world. Your leadership evolution isn't just about personal success – it's about modeling what's possible when power serves rather than dominates.

The more leaders who cross these thresholds consciously, the faster our world evolves into a better version of itself.

This isn't just important; it's urgent.

My Credentials

My approach is informed by extensive training including MBA, Certified Co-Active ® Coach (CPCC), CTI Faculty, PCC certification with 4000+ hours, Gestalt and IFS practitioner.

If you're feeling the call to evolve your leadership, let's talk. Schedule Your Leadership Threshold Exploration Session