HOW I CAME TO DO THIS WORK:
My first experience of coaching radically changed my life. In 2005 I was working days, nights, and weekends as a corporate lawyer, buried in work I did not enjoy. I felt trapped by $150,000 in student debt and bewildered by the mess I had made. I was fully miserable: stuck and disempowered.
I wanted to radically change my work life but I had no idea how or where to start.
Then I met my first coach.
She helped me clarify my priorities, identify how I was keeping myself stuck, and create a plan of action. Working with her set me on a path that felt like something from the Wizard of Oz; my life went from grayscale to technicolor.
I changed my relationship with money, figuring out how to take responsibility for my finances and pay down my debt without feeling weighed down by it.
I discovered what I loved to do creatively and started dancing.
I found a public interest job that resonated with my motivation for attending law school in the first place, and over time built a fulfilling career in social justice advocacy.
The tools I learned through coaching have helped me to live in integrity with my values and dreams, to advocate for myself in difficult environments, and to take risks that matter to me. Becoming a coach myself reflects the integration of close to two decades of applying coaching skills to my own work life with empowering and joyful results.
MILLIE VANDENBROEK
My clients are often values-driven professionals, leaders of teams, public servants and creatives. You might be: an executive of a nonprofit organization juggling fundraising, human resources, and strategy all before lunch; the owner of a medical practice navigating staff burnout and seismic shifts in the healthcare system; a corporate professional with months of unused PTO but too much on your plate to even consider vacation; a working artist facing new financial or creative obstacles; or a vibrant professional with more to give who wants to create a retirement with meaning.
CURIOUS IF WE MIGHT BE A FIT TO WORK TOGETHER?
Photo credit: Kristyn Miller Photography
MY APPROACH
I focus on coaching for work life because working in our complex economy raises important and challenging questions about the quality of our lives. Work is where we often spend the great bulk of our time. Although your work life is not your whole life, it often has an outsized influence. Sometimes successful work life coaching involves finding what you love to do and making it your job. Other times, successful work life coaching might result in experiencing an existing role differently, changing how you show up for your team, or navigating a difficult transition with your integrity and relationships intact.
I draw on the Integral Coaching methodology which is holistic and integrative of all aspects of life that may be influencing a client’s challenges and goals. I practice compassionate non-judgment, embodied listening, and non-violent communication. At all times, I offer a client-centered approach that is trauma-informed and rooted in cultural humility, socio-political awareness, and respect for client autonomy.
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND
Public health attorney with career focus on addressing social determinants of health for people living in poverty. Advancing equity and inclusion in public benefit systems for survivors of trauma and discrimination. You can read more about my recent advocacy work here.
Co-founder and first Executive Director of a contemporary dance organization that continues to make innovative and progressive work. You can read more about Elm City Dance Collective here.
CREDENTIALS & EXPERIENCE
Certified Integral Coach, New Ventures West, 2023
Juris Doctor, Georgetown Law School, 2004
Master of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, 2004
Bachelor of Arts in History, University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, 1999
SOMATICS & MINDFULNESS PRACTICES
Dancer and lover of all things movement, mindfulness, and somatics.
Personal yoga and mindfulness practices since 2000. Influential dharma teachers include Pascal Auclair, Bonnie Durain, and Rev. angel Kyodo Williams. Additional direct training, coaching, and/or sitting retreats with Sebene Selassi, Judson Brewer, Lama Rod Owens, Jasmine Syedullah, and Kamakshi Hart.
Certified Yoga Teacher (200 hour), Kripalu Center for Yoga and Healing, 2002; Prenatal Yoga Teacher certification, 2009; Certificate in Health Care & Society Intensive in Mind-Body Medicine, Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, 2018; Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction & Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, 2017. Have taught yoga in settings ranging from homeless shelters to Yale University.
Performing member of contemporary dance companies: Elm City Dance Collective, Inc. (2008-2016) and BosmaDance (2006-2008); Guest Artist, Annie Sailer Dance (2016, 2017); Yale Designers and Directors Project (2017); Yale Dance Studies, with choreography by Lee Sher & Saar Harari (2016).