Why Storied Awareness?
Our work uses your everyday life to uncover the stories you tell yourself and the actions you take as a result.
With this awareness, you are able to determine what is true and what is not true - and what is working for you and what isn't.
Finally, our time together helps you become more intentional about the actions you would like to take to create an environment where you can thrive.
The richest path to improvement and change is always at the place where thinking and feeling intersect - and living at this intersection is tough work.
When we challenge ourselves to understand and reflect on our stories and the stories of those around us, we cannot stop ourselves from shifting.
Hi, I'm Michele
I believe the power of connection and understanding is radical.
I've been working, consulting and volunteering in the nonprofit sector for 30+ years. With leadership and directorial positions at many national and local non-profits, I know what it takes to lead an organization from all sides.
By maximizing the capacity of purpose-driven executives, I help nonprofit executives deepen their leadership skills and keep their passion alive so they thrive in their roles, increase their impact and continue improving the communities they serve.
I value my experiences training as a certified professional coach with iPEC (The Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching), head coaching with Akimbo's altMBA, and working with numerous clients in metro Atlanta and beyond.
During my nonprofit leadership days, it was an honor to win industry awards including the Oprah’s Angel Network Use Your Life Award and the Greater Atlanta Community Foundation Managing for Excellence Award. Additionally, my Master’s Degree in Social Work from Columbia University frames my philosophies and constantly grounds me in why I focus my work on nonprofit leaders.
I live in Atlanta, GA with my family of five. We’re in the coaching phase of parenting with our college and high school aged children and the training phase with our elementary school aged child - and it all includes lots of conversations, laughter and creative tension. I enjoy reading, meditating and cooking for my family, and am working on writing a book for those seeking to tap into their spiritual nature.
Testimonials
Michele's coaching was invaluable to me in navigating a new leadership role. She is a deep listener and a thoughtful guide, advising when necessary but more often asking the right questions to get me to the answers I need. Her wisdom and depth of experience has been a gift. I highly recommend Michele as a coach.
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-Kimbrell Smith, Head of School of the Atlanta Girls' School
I reached out to Michele with hopes that I could prevent my own burn-out while leading others through a stressful time of change and uncertainty. As my first experience with executive coaching, I entered with some apprehension about the process, time commitment, and expected transparency.
From the onset, Michele provided structure and a specific focus to each and every conversation. She took the time to learn my style, motivations, and interests and incorporated this knowledge and framework into each session.
I quickly learned what a valuable resource it was to have uninterrupted time and a guided process to work through difficult and challenging issues. Her approach helped me to hone my skills and confidence in addressing complex situations with my existing resources. When needed, she offered encouragement and space for personal care.
Within six months, I was more balanced, mindful, and attuned to the needs of my organization. My time with Michele was one of the most transformative periods of my professional career. This experience is a necessity for anyone in a nonprofit leadership position.
-Jen King, Executive Director, Georgia CASA
The ELI assessment and workshop is an extremely insightful and useful tool that zeros in our your own personal triggers, in terms of how one responds to stress and other factors, and how it impacts you and your team. What is great about the content and interactive workshop is that it provides a perspective on how we working together. I believe in 'energy' levels and it was so exciting and fun to see how this type of awareness exposes the good, bad and indifferent, in all of us.
The workshop delivers practical information that can be applied immediately to our teams’ work, it is educational, and gives great direction on how to change “mid-course” when our energy levels are low! Game-changer! Michele, is an excellent facilitator who helped us not just understand the information but showed us how to use it within our team. She made it fun and engaging.
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- Monica Rowe, Chief Marketing Officer, CARE USA
Michele is an outstanding leadership coach whose approach is thought-provoking, balanced, and incredibly well-tailored to her clients' needs. She has a steady hand, a warm heart, and an innovative mind.
Michele helped me through a complex time at work when my organization's senior leadership was in transition. I was challenged to provide clear direction to my team of 10, continue to meet challenging financial goals, and prepare to onboard a new CEO. My needs changed frequently throughout our coaching period, but Michele provided high quality insight, helpful context, and valuable ideas for prioritizing every time we met. With Michele's help, I was able to stay on target and devise the roadmap I needed to successfully prepare for new leadership . I couldn't have done it without her! I would highly recommend Michele to anyone seeking great coaching and support as a leader. She has the magic touch.
- Emily Pelton, Nonprofit Leader
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“Michele’s work with our team was clear, agile and flexible. Though our process was online, she was able to set a tone that was fun, comfortable and engaging from start to finish. In addition, by quickly recognizing the needs and pain points of our group, she easily adjusted our process and focused us in on what was really important. Michele approached our sessions with a combination of confidence and humility, creating an environment that allowed everyone to be heard, as well as take ownership of our process and our outcomes.”
-Sheryl McCalla, Senior Vice President/Chief Administrative Officer, American College of Rheumatology
"Michele’s understanding of the dynamics of how people can be brought together to make important decisions in a stress-free way made our time with her easy and fun. She brought a depth of experience and a confidence in the potential for creative change that has proven invaluable to our
organization.
She shepherded us through an inspiring array of exercises and activities to bring out previously unspoken insights and realizations that have already changed the way we do business. We are healthier and more proactive now as an organization, and we anticipate that our collaboration will continue to yield fruit."
-Stewart Cubley, Founder and Executive Director of The Painting Experience
“Truly Living Well’s work with Michele was transformational. She was able to listen to our story, learn from our team, and help us map a clear and operational direction towards our future aspirations. With humor, joy and intelligence, Michele was a support for me and our organization in a way that just made sense. I unabashedly support and recommend the work of Michele Reiner.”
-Rashid Nuri, Founder and Former Executive Director, Truly Living Well
“As chair of the The Children’s School’s board of trustees from 2013-2016, Michele initiated and partnered with the board, community and administration on a number of critical and impactful projects. She has a clear and transparent style of leadership that listens well to different viewpoints, offers respect and patience to all, and is inclusive of any difference of opinions while still decisive.
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Her support and ability to shed her own ego aside in favor of the institution’s needs and interests earned her tremendous respect not only from my team and me but from her peers on the board and the rest of the parent community as well. She has had a tremendous influence on my own growth as a leader and head of school. I still lean on Michele for her counsel and guidance and hope to work with her again in the near future.”
-Nishant Mehta, Former Head of School, The Children's School
Get In Touch!
Set up a complementary consultation with Michele, where we get to know each other and explore how a leadership development opportunity may meet your needs. Schedule it here with Calendly.