About Me

Meet Tara - the concise, happy ending version

There was a time a few years ago that I was feeling very conflicted by work…some thoughts I had were...feeling a nudge that I could not deny, crippled by the thought of change, identity tied up in my job, something just not feeling right anymore about my job/role. I suppressed all those feelings for many years and watched my husband and others make bold moves while I sat on the sidelines in awe and envy.

Over time, I realized awe and envy are a crap place to be (one star, don’t recommend).  I finally paid attention to my feelings.  I started to picture living my life differently and I could see how this new life would positively impact my husband, kids, and even my parents. I could no longer imagine myself keeping things the way they were. So, I committed to making a change, and I did it with a perfect formula of equal parts bold and cautious - which is the only way I could be comfortable with it. I launched my own coaching business in 2021, committed to helping individuals and teams with career growth, career changes and leadership excellence.

Meet Tara - the messier version

We all know things don’t wrap up perfectly as I alluded to in the above paragraph.  There is a lot that went in on the white spaces between each of those sentences.  If you want the full scoop - read on….

I worked in Learning and Development for 23 years. I was employed by two large professional services firms (PwC, Accenture). Most of my projects were in the leadership development space, where I led the design and program management efforts for conferences, in-person and virtual training. l got to work with incredibly fun and talented people. My work checked a lot of boxes that were important to me - travel, work remotely, rewarded for my efforts, interesting projects, leading teams, great company benefits, and more. However, over time I found myself spending less time doing the things I liked, especially coaching and mentoring. I felt less in control of my travel schedule.  I felt like it was easier to be a working mom when my kids were young but as they aged - it became harder.  I saw my industry changing and I was less interested in learning the new skills and platforms to stay relevant.

Concurrent with this, I watched my husband open two successful businesses.  I marveled at how he stayed energized and realized it was because he was aligning his work with his talent.  I watched him advocate for what he wanted and get it. Around this time I reflected on our marriage (10+ years in) and this had me looking at all of my life domains with a new perspective. I realized I had been neglecting some of my needs for a long time. On paper, things looked great.  But I had been making a lot of safe choices, not SELF choices.

So I worked hard on myself and my mindset. I learned how to stop worrying about choices that made sense and started thinking about choices that felt more exciting and aligned with my values. I learned how to move forward, even when I was scared.  I realized I could leverage my coaching and mentoring talents as a full-time job and not a side responsibility like I had at work.  I made the bold move to become a certified coach and focus on career strategy and leadership.

Meet Tara - the personal version

I am a daughter, wife, mother, and friend/co-worker to many. I live in the north side of Chicago with my husband and two kids.

I’d love to learn more about you! Schedule a free consultation to learn what it’s like to work with me.