Your Partner Through Change
Here's the thing about big life transitions: they can be especially messy, scary, and don’t always happen on our own timeline.
Whether you're facing a career upheaval, advancement, relationship shift, or any major life challenge, I can help you navigate the chaos and find your footing again.
Here's the thing about big life transitions: they can be especially messy, scary, and don’t always happen on our own timeline.
Whether you're facing a career upheaval, advancement, relationship shift, or any major life challenge, I can help you navigate the chaos and find your footing again.
Hi, I'm Nancy Martin.
I help people manage through change and unwind what's keeping them stuck...
so they can move forward with clarity and confidence, and make their life count!
I help people manage through change and unwind what's keeping them stuck...
so they can move forward with clarity and confidence, and make their life count!
The Beginnings of My Own 180-Degree Career Shift
If you had told me 25 years ago I'd become a life coach, I wouldn't have believed it. Back then I was deep in the corporate engineering world – hard hats, steel-toed shoes, and typically the lone women in rooms full of execs or plant construction teams. That's where I learned to find my voice, even when it meant correcting my Fortune 200 CEO after his presentation to group of his peers. (Spoiler alert: instead of firing me, he added me to a shortlist to be his right-hand person :)
That corporate arena taught me everything about taking risks and speaking up when it matters - skills I had no idea I'd need for what came next.
That corporate arena taught me everything about taking risks and speaking up when it matters - skills I had no idea I'd need for what came next.
Here's What Changed Everything
At 27, my world was turned upside down. I lost both parents within five months, and during that time, a serious relationship also ended. Suddenly, my life fell into a fog.
So what did I do? I did what many high achievers do during times of crisis: I coped by doubling down at work.
Yet, even amid that period of upheaval and darkness, something shifted. Even though it felt like my whole support system had just collapsed, I realized I was still standing.
After much soul-searching, I slowly rebuilt myself. That's when I noticed I felt stronger and more confident, as I was now grounded in the unshakable belief that I could survive anything life put in my path.
And, yes, life kept giving me opportunities to test that truth: Leaving the comfort of a 15-year corporate career. Marriage, A cross-country move, Other career pivots. Health challenges. More loss. Motherhood. Empty-nesting...
Every chapter brought change. And every change brought a deeper knowing: I can handle whatever comes next.
At 27, my world was turned upside down. I lost both parents within five months, and during that time, a serious relationship also ended. Suddenly, my life fell into a fog.
So what did I do? I did what many high achievers do during times of crisis: I coped by doubling down at work.
Yet, even amid that period of upheaval and darkness, something shifted. Even though it felt like my whole support system had just collapsed, I realized I was still standing.
After much soul-searching, I slowly rebuilt myself. That's when I noticed I felt stronger and more confident, as I was now grounded in the unshakable belief that I could survive anything life put in my path.
And, yes, life kept giving me opportunities to test that truth: Leaving the comfort of a 15-year corporate career. Marriage, A cross-country move, Other career pivots. Health challenges. More loss. Motherhood. Empty-nesting...
Every chapter brought change. And every change brought a deeper knowing: I can handle whatever comes next.
The Calling That Found Me
Throughout all these transitions, something amazing was brewing. I'd started mentoring people - the younger engineers, a divorced mom breaking into a tough workforce for the first time, a refugee navigating an unfamiliar culture, and people wanting to advance their leadership skills. I found myself drawn to helping people move through fear, grow their confidence, and powerfully speak their truth and tell their stories.
The real turning point came when a mentee sent me incredibly kind feedback about how positive, thorough, and supportive my guidance had been. That's when I had a huge a-ha moment...
I decided to convene groups of women to share their struggles, doubts, and aspirations. I wanted these women to know they were not alone, that they had a trusted guide and caring community encouraging them, and that they could move beyond whatever was holding them back.
Soon after launching these groups, one of these women asked me to coach her. I jumped at the chance!
And let me tell you, I floated out of that first coaching session on a ginormous adrenaline cloud - something about it felt so right. Though I quickly realized coaching was quite different from mentoring, so I immediately enrolled in a rigorous year-long program to learn how to actually be a coach.
Throughout all these transitions, something amazing was brewing. I'd started mentoring people - the younger engineers, a divorced mom breaking into a tough workforce for the first time, a refugee navigating an unfamiliar culture, and people wanting to advance their leadership skills. I found myself drawn to helping people move through fear, grow their confidence, and powerfully speak their truth and tell their stories.
The real turning point came when a mentee sent me incredibly kind feedback about how positive, thorough, and supportive my guidance had been. That's when I had a huge a-ha moment...
I decided to convene groups of women to share their struggles, doubts, and aspirations. I wanted these women to know they were not alone, that they had a trusted guide and caring community encouraging them, and that they could move beyond whatever was holding them back.
Soon after launching these groups, one of these women asked me to coach her. I jumped at the chance!
And let me tell you, I floated out of that first coaching session on a ginormous adrenaline cloud - something about it felt so right. Though I quickly realized coaching was quite different from mentoring, so I immediately enrolled in a rigorous year-long program to learn how to actually be a coach.
Life Now
It's been well over a decade now since I've shifted into this coaching career, which I absolutely love! I've also earned my Professional Coaching Certification (PCC) from the International Coach Federation - the gold standard for coaching.
In my practice today, I have the honor and delight of getting to partner with people navigating their own big, scary, life-altering moments, and helping them ultimately experience the same confidence and calm that I'd learned to carry. And as a business owner, I also get to make time for morning bike rides, hikes amongst the Pacific firs, skiing powder days, and walking my sweet pup.
But the real joy? It's watching clients discover their own strength and step boldly into what's next.
If you're in the middle of your own messy transition, know this: You are stronger than you think. And you don't have to figure it out all alone.
It's been well over a decade now since I've shifted into this coaching career, which I absolutely love! I've also earned my Professional Coaching Certification (PCC) from the International Coach Federation - the gold standard for coaching.
In my practice today, I have the honor and delight of getting to partner with people navigating their own big, scary, life-altering moments, and helping them ultimately experience the same confidence and calm that I'd learned to carry. And as a business owner, I also get to make time for morning bike rides, hikes amongst the Pacific firs, skiing powder days, and walking my sweet pup.
But the real joy? It's watching clients discover their own strength and step boldly into what's next.
If you're in the middle of your own messy transition, know this: You are stronger than you think. And you don't have to figure it out all alone.
