All You Need Is A Plan

In this episode, we are joined by a)plan coaching advisor and social impact leader, Marcus Walton. Announced as President & CEO of Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO) in 2019, Marcus shares how he and his staff transformed GEO's culture to prioritize racial equity in all areas of the organization's operations—all while navigating a world-altering pandemic and a generational racial reckoning. By combining coaching and racial equity principles, Marcus helps individuals lead and create change while navigating inequitable systems. He and his staff at GEO (and by extension, the global GEO community) serve as high-impact leaders who often must venture into uncharted territories with dignity, integrity, confidence, and vision. Listen as Marcus shares what it takes to tackle major goals, how to operationalize equity within organizations, and how more companies can effectively improve their DEI commitments in practical yet powerful ways.

In this episode, we are joined by Darla Lannert, her a)plan coach, Bill Rentz, and Darla’s sister, and a)plan coach, JoAnne Bangs. As a transgender woman, Darla is a leading activist in the Transgender Rights movement, and her story casts a spotlight on the importance of living one’s truth. For Darla, living her truth meant coming out as trans, a decision she describes as life or death. Darla talks about the courage involved in coming out to her large Midwestern family (including JoAnne), bringing awareness to the trans community as a prominent speaker, and the day-to-day challenges of living in a country that doesn’t sufficiently support the LGBTQ community. Through some of her biggest hurdles, Darla has leaned on coaching with Bill as a means of getting clear on what she really wants, then building up the courage to pursue those goals. Bill describes Darla as a fun client to work with, and someone who is always taking on big, ambitious work - a statement made clear by many of the topics covered in this episode.

In this episode, we are joined by a)plan coaching client, Caryn Stone. Caryn has worked with co-host of the All You Need Is A Plan podcast, Susannah Ludwig, for more than 2 years and her story is a true testament to the power of coaching. As with many coaching users, Caryn pondered the idea of working with a coach for some time. When she finally made the leap, she realized it was everything she needed and then some. Caryn shares how coaching helped push her out of her nest, to embrace being uncomfortable, to not worry what others think, and ultimately how to stop feeling “stuck.” It was through her work with Susannah that she learned to get clear on what she wanted in life, get proud of it, then go get it -- a theme we encourage many times over with clients at a)plan. We’d like to thank Caryn for offering us a window into the experience of a coaching newbee-turned-veteran over the course of 2 life-changing years.

In this episode, we turn the mic around to Susannah Ludwig, a)plan coach and co-host of the "All You Need Is A Plan" podcast. Susannah led a successful career as an Academy Award-nominated film producer.  After crisscrossing the country, she craved a more stable career. When she met a)plan coaching founder, Michael Counts, in *2018*, she had started to realize that she loved the “people part” of film producing, and she had been supporting colleagues in ways that resembled relationship coaching. Susannah became a certified a)plan coach specializing in relationship and career transitions, as well as health issues—based on her own intense medical experiences. Today, clients sing her praises. Susannah discusses her career trajectory, her coaching philosophy, and personal stories that will inspire listeners to consider their own choices,  life and relationships in new, healthy ways.

In this episode, we are joined by a)plan coach and core values expert, Peter Walsh. Peter’s specialty lies in helping his clients recognize their unique core values, and mapping out ways to live and work in accordance with those values. In our discussion with Peter, we dive into the Core Value Index (CVI), a tool used by Peter to help clients understand whether or not there is alignment between their values and their work. Having done his own major career pivot from business to psychotherapy and coaching, Peter has experienced first hand just how powerful it is to find work that better aligns with one’s purpose. Now he pays it forward, supporting others to find their own paths defined by alignment, fulfillment, and presence.

In this episode, we are joined by longtime a)plan coaching client, and the Founder & CEO of Rockness Music, Michael Napolitano. A close friend of a)plan founder, Michael Counts, the two enjoy a lighthearted discussion around Michael’s experience with coaching over the years. As someone who has gone through phases of using coaching then taking breaks, Michael shares exactly how coaching enhances all areas of his life – from relationships, to business, to stress, to creativity, and more. As a creative business owner, Michael sees coaching as more of a necessity than a trend. In his own words, “a)plan is great when I’m doing well, and great when I’m not.” It's our whole-person approach to coaching that has changed the lives of hundreds of a)plan clients, and we are honored that Michael is, and continues to be, one of those clients.

With a vision to share methods of creative problem solving that he learned from his father, Dave Ellis planted the seeds to become one of the first major figures in the coaching industry, more than 30 years ago. He started in education, teaching and coaching students using the tools that he invented and refined over years of study. This work led to his writing, "Becoming A Master Student," which went on to become the best-selling textbook in American colleges and universities for more than 20 years. With this backdrop, Dave had created the ideas and approaches that were the earliest beginnings of what is now the coaching movement in America.

Eventually this work took the shape of a company that was one of the earliest business entities to operate with a Triple Bottom Line. That is, the needs and wellbeing of employees, clients, suppliers, partners, and investors were considered alongside what Dave considered to be “higher level goals,” like the end of abject poverty, environmental integrity, and human rights.

In pursuit of that vision, Dave was joined by many, including Bill Rentz, who began as a shipping clerk in Dave’s company. Bill went on to become one of very few Master Certified Coaches, by the ICF, as well as a top coach in his own right and a)plan’s Head of Coach Certification.

In this episode, we get a deep look into the origin story of Dave and Bill's work together, Dave’s coaching of 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Dr. Mohammad Yunus, and his contributions on many levels to the industry and the founding of a)plan coaching.

In this episode, we are joined by visionary entrepreneur and a)plan supporter, Jessica Rolph. Jessica is the co-founder of Happy Family, a mom-founded and parent-operated organic baby food company that sold to Group Danone in 2013. Turning her attention from nutrition to brain development, Jessica then co-founded Lovevery, a company focused on creating developmental experiences in the lives of new babies and families. Now with 160 employees, Lovevery helps parents feel confident that they are creating the perfect developmental environment for their little ones. The common thread with Jessica’s work is that she’s a changemaker to the core. In discussing her social entrepreneurship journey, Jessica shares how the fast pace of a startup environment can rapidly create social change. Under the umbrella of foundership, we also discuss how to allow employees to be themselves, trusting them to do great work, listening to all perspectives, and choosing curiosity over judgement when things aren’t going well. At the center of these values, a)plan coaching proudly serves as a supporting resource for Jessica and others at Lovevery.

In this episode, we are joined by the wonderful a)plan coach, Brianna Freiheit. Brianna brings nearly 20 years of experience working in and with government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and private sector partners to her coaching. In our discussion, Brianna shares her perspective on embracing a healthier spin on “work-life balance.” For changemakers whose work so closely reflects their values and beliefs, work and life inevitably begin to blend together. For Brianna, it’s about moving away from the binary framework that “work” and “life” make up two distinct parts of a person’s life. Instead, individuals, leaders, and organizations must find new, consistent ways to stay well-resourced and nourished all at once.

In this episode, we are joined by Climate Resilience Officer for the Urban Sustainability Directors Network (USDN), Kristin Baja (‘Baja’). Baja and her colleagues at USDN are change makers to the core, dedicating their lives to some of today’s most critical challenges – namely, climate change, racial equity, and sustainability. With more than 249 local governments and 1,700 practitioners in its network, USDN is a members-led non-profit that continues to grow as these challenges increasingly gain attention on a global scale. Our discussion with Baja centers around a reframing of the way we view ourselves, our communities, our relationship to power, and our planet altogether. We explore how effecting change in a larger-than-life space like Sustainability comes with a unique set of obstacles – and why practitioners in this world have so much to gain from coaching, which offers the adaptability to address those obstacles in a way that meets each individual’s bespoke needs.