Inner Adventurer and Lover of the Great Mystery
I have long been an adventurer, studying, teaching and writing about the inner terrain of the human condition and the relationship between the patterns of our egoic lives and the mystery of who we are beyond the ego. Recognizing that the journey inward is every bit as adventurous, vast and perhaps even more rewarding than the outward journey, my own exploration continues.
Since I was a child growing up in rural America, I’ve been drawn to the preciousness of this human experiment and to the big spiritual questions of life. While I didn’t always have the words for it, I felt deeply connected to the sacred in all that exists, and to exploring the Great Mystery that is the source of the cosmos. After a substantial and painful period of ‘forgetting who I am,’ I found my way back to a deeper guidance while inquiring into the terrain of the human soul and eventually recognizing that the Unknown is inherent in the fabric of life. Beyond my education, training and professional experience, I am deeply inspired by my trust in the capacity of the human spirit that urges us toward manifesting our highest nature for our individual and the collective good.
Thought Leader and Change Agent
After the profound experience of working professionally with individuals with varying abilities and disabling conditions in my early professional life, I served for nearly 20 years as undergraduate and graduate faculty at San Jose State and Boston Universities, teaching dozens of undergraduate and graduate courses in leadership, research, and interdisciplinary therapeutic and wellness-based subjects. I co-authored a leading-edge textbook, authored dozens of articles and gave hundreds of presentations, primarily focused on new ways of thinking, working, and being — both personally and in social systems. Later, I was on the faculty for the Core Strengths Coaching Program created at San Francisco State University by Lauren Vanett, and one of the first university-based coaching programs to be grounded in positive psychology.
In time, I was drawn to focus my attention on growth-oriented professionals, and in 1997, founded an executive and life coaching company. After studying and researching ways to incorporate the profound wisdom of the Enneagram into coaching, my first book in the Enneagram field, Deep Coaching: Using the Enneagram as a Catalyst for Profound Change was published in 2007. Adopted internationally, it led to the development of the Deep Coaching Institute, (www.deepcoachinginstitute.com) offering a robust ten-month coach certification program where I continue to serve as a partner and senior faculty. The school is accredited by the International Coach Federation and the International Enneagram Association.
The Deep Living Institute (www.deeplivinginstitute.com), offering retreats, courses, and in-person and virtual circles to support being at home in oneself and an agent of love in the world, was borne out of my second Enneagram-based book, Deep Living: Transforming Your Relationship to Everything That Matters through the Enneagram. I serve as founding teacher, retreat leader and mentor for the Institute.
Author and Retreat Leader
In Deep Living with the Enneagram: Recovering Your True Nature, Revised and Updated, I expand upon the original book’s purpose of increasing self-awareness and imparting a sense of the powerful healing and transformation available through a presence-based approach to the Enneagram. The intention of this revised and updated edition is to provide ways to build on our innate capacities for developing a strong core foundation to serve as an anchor in today’s uncertain times, and second, to enhance awareness that our personal level of presence — freedom from compulsions of the habitual self and receptivity to new ways of being — makes a difference not only in our own lives but to the well-being of others and the planet.
“This fascinating and penetrating work speaks to one’s soul, as if it recognizes and knows you.”
The “Beyond Duality” retreats explore openings and obstacles to experiencing expanded states of awareness as part of daily living. With a radically compassionate approach to inquiry, somatic and contemplative practices, I use the Enneagram and EnneaCrossings™ as vehicles of wisdom to support the movement toward presence and wholeness. EnneaCrossings™ is a body of work that has been developing since 2012 and is the focus of my next book.
I live with my husband in the beautiful high mountain desert of Santa Fe, New Mexico, where the beautiful, spirit-infused landscape and nature nourish my soul. The ethnically diverse peoples of this land and the creative spirit in its many expressions coalesce, flourish and inspire me.
Accomplishments
- EdD in Learning & Instruction, Counseling Psychology emphasis,
University of San Francisco - MA in Therapeutic Recreation, San Jose State University
- BA in Social Work and Sociology, University of Iowa
- Certified teacher, The Enneagram Institute, New York
- Accredited Teacher, International Enneagram Association
- Certified Coach, International Coach Federation
- Certificate in Mediation
- Founder and Senior Faculty, Deep Coaching Institute
- Founding Teacher and Mentor, Deep Living Institute