It is my experience that everyone who works as a professional in the world of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD, also called ADD and AD/HD) does so for personal reasons. For me it started with my son. Someone who inspires me daily by exhibiting both astonishing gifts and commensurately frustrating challenges. There is nothing ordinary about this young man, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Being gifted with this child allowed me to discover my own greatest gifts and to gain clarity into what is most important to me. This is why I do what I do.

Sarah’s Vision, Values, and Mission
I envision a world where brain-based differences and disabilities are so well understood, managed, minimized, and destigmatized, that they are of no significant impact in a person's life.  Read more…

Sarah’s Background 
My journey to becoming a professional personal coach specializing in working with people who have ADHD may surprise you. Learn about my education and personal and professional background. Read more...

Sarah's Education and Affliations
Just in case you're curious. Read more…

Testimonials
Find out what my clients are saying. Read more…

Sarah's Vision, Values, and Mission

Sarah’s Vision
A world where brain-based differences and disabilities are so well understood, managed, minimized, and destigmatized, that they are of no significant impact in a person's life; a world where everyone is celebrated and rewarded for whatever he or she is genuinely good at.

Sarah’s Values
Service. I value sharing what I know, and helping clients develop less stressful, more rewarding, and more illuminated lives. I value cultivating and nurturing the best in everyone.
Relationship. I value friendship and "being there" for my clients with appreciation, compassion, empathy, integrity, and humor.
Personal Growth. I value personal growth and well-being in myself and others. I value the effort and the courage this kind of work takes.
Excellence. I value doing things well.

Sarah’s Mission
My mission is two-fold.

As a specialist in ADHD I work with other professionals and the general public to develop a better understanding of ADHD, how to minimize its negative aspects, and how to live with it successfully. I do this through presentations and publications.

As a life coach, I work with people who wish they were more effective in life. People who wish they could:

• start and finish things, • know where to begin and what to do next, • figure out how to get organized and stay organized, • have more fun and be less frustrated.

I help my clients master these challenges by working with them to better understand their own way of doing things, how to be at their best more of the time, and what puts them into their zone. I help my clients by working with them to create personalized systems and strategies for their own unique situation, then staying with them, encouraging them as they implement these new habits on their way to success.

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Sarah’s Background

I am a professional personal coach, one of the few in the nation trained specifically to work with people affected by ADHD. I have also been a teacher, organizer, program manager, resource director, and corporate executive. I have years of experience guiding projects from beginning to end, and know how to manage details without neglecting the big picture.

I grew up in a suburb of Boston with my parents, two siblings, and a dog, then headed to California for college. I graduated from Stanford University where I studied Geology and German, and then from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where I earned a second degree in Geology. After graduating and finding there were no jobs for someone with my specialized training, I made my first career change, training on the job and becoming a software engineer at a geophysical R&D firm. A couple of years later I made my second career change when I was offered position at a startup aerospace company. I began there as a line engineer developing software to control small satellites.

As I gained experience in the work place I was given increasing responsibility, and thus discovered what I was born to do. I found I was skilled at employee development, team building, project management, and systems development. I discovered I was particularly good at listening, communicating, problem solving, and keeping people on track. And I also noticed that I was a stabilizing influence for the brilliant and creative people I was privileged to work with. By the time I left that company, I was Executive Vice President and in charge of the people-related aspects of the company.

In the period that followed, I home schooled my son who has been diagnosed with ADHD and Asperger's Syndrome, and re-assessed what I wanted from life. Wanting to build on both my life experiences and the skills I had developed in a corporate environment, I enrolled in the Optimal Functioning Institute's comprehensive ADHD Coach Training program, and later in a year-long NLP training course with a focus on ADHD. Having made the decision to leave the corporate world behind, I now use my talents to help my clients discover their own gifts and use them to lead more successful, effective, and rewarding lives.

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Sarah's Education and Affiliations

Education
Stanford University, BS
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, MS
Optimal Functioning Institute, ACT
NLP Certified Practitioner

Affiliations
Member, International Coach Federation (ICF)
Member, ADHD Coaches Organization (ACO)
Member, San Diego Professional Coaches Alliance (SDPCA)
Member, Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder (CHADD)
Member, Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA)

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Testimonials

I won the lottery when I started working with Sarah. Sarah is easy to talk with and has the intelligence and experience to cut through the useless stuff and help me stay on point. Since I started working with her I have made great strides in many areas and am more relaxed and less emotional. It can be difficult, especially for a man, to ask for help, but it is absolutely worth doing! Sarah’s experience allows her to recognize in rapid fashion what is really going on and coach each individual along the path that will ensure their best opportunity to succeed.
J.H. - Writer and Entrepreneur

My productivity has significantly improved thanks to Sarah's helping me identify and harness my strengths and what motivates me (rather than through traditional, rigid structure). Her experience in the field of ADHD, vast arsenal of tools/exercises, high emotional intelligence, and very patient demeanor proved to be the working mix I needed to take my "game" to the next level.  
N.S. - Entrepreneur

I was too embarrassed to ask for help. After all, as an adult, shouldn’t I be able to manage money, time, and other responsibilities? Do better? Be better? After meeting Sarah and knowing her for over a year, I finally asked for her help in learning to manage my life. She is non-judgmental, solution-oriented, and very practical. Within weeks there was a feeling of being in control of my life. That feeling has grown into a feeling of competence, and that has grown into greater self-esteem, self-respect, and self-responsibility. Working with her was painless, easy, fun, and is producing lasting results. Thanks, Sarah!
J.K. - Fitness Instructor

Thank God for ADD coaches! You understand it's physiological-not psychological. You understand that no amount of guilt-ridding counseling will make me any more able to cope. You understand that I do value myself, and that the problem is actually my lack of being able to be organized enough to transition into things that are good for me. And you understand that unlimited venting only wears me out. What I need are practical applications for dealing with the situation. I felt like the therapist and I were speaking two different languages. Thank God you speak the same one I do!
S.G. - Writer

This is really making a difference! Coaching with you has really helped me helped me to know who I am and how my mind works. I don’t feel like I have to do it all anymore, and I don’t feel as overwhelmed all the time. It has helped me to get some order into my life, to set boundaries, and to be able to say no when I need to. I’m also learning to set deadlines and to meet them.  It’s all coming together for me!
S.A. - Artist

Thank you so much for helping me understand my man. He knows he has ADD, but neither he nor I knew what that really meant, nor how it impacts his life and our relationship. The information you shared with me really helped me get it, and I now feel less angry and frustrated with him. 
J.H. - Insurance Broker

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