What my clients say
In my journey as a new division chief, I had the great fortune of having Dr. Andrea Shaw as my executive coach for a year. She immediately facilitated a highly collaborative relationship in which I found her to be consistently accessible, nonjudgmental, and particularly effective. Andrea stimulated authentic reflection and taught me how to convert self-discovery into transformational change. I left each session with new insights and goals as well as specific action items geared to establishing new habits for conceptualizing, reacting, and behaving as an effective leader. Each increment of growth was meaningful personally, and impactful to my role as a new chief. We met weekly initially and less frequently as the year progressed. Each session built on the previous and incorporated new exploration while leaving time to address acute challenges. What emerged was a self-perpetuating process of self-awareness, an armamentarium of strategies with which to face new challenges, and the capacity to continuously grow as a leader. I am thankful to Andrea for enhancing my professional and personal life through this extraordinary coaching experience.
Howard W. Francis, MD, MBA, FACS
Professor and Chief, Division of Head and Neck Surgery & Communication Sciences Duke University Medical Center
Andrea’s executive coaching skills have helped me immensely. She guided me through stressful periods at work and home. Along the way, she helped me develop time-management skills, focus on what is important, and navigate personal and professional conflicts. Above all, she listens and helps me refocus my energy on the positive and productive areas of my life and career. I could not have made the progress I have without her professional help and advice.
David Murdoch, MD
Associate Professor of Medicine Duke University Medical Center
Dr. Shaw’s breadth of expertise is truly exceptional, and she guides transformation through a remarkable combination of being wise, compassionate, and strong. Even though she has all the knowledge, experience, and training to simply advise, she instead takes the much harder (and more long-lasting) approach which is to skillfully guide the search for self-developed answers. Dr. Shaw has been the best executive coach I could have imagined as I have navigated numerous complex intersections in a high intensity work life. The outcome for me (and those around me) has been profoundly life-changing. To be a good leader and to function well in challenging work environments, the crucial and hardest piece is to know oneself. That’s the journey that Dr. Shaw has expertly guided. I feel deeply privileged to have been able to work with her.
Sheila Patek, Ph.D
Professor, Duke University
My work with Andrea has been transformative. For much of my career, work was life and life was work and that was fantastic. When you love what you do nothing else matters, until it does. I reached out to Andrea in a state of exhaustion and completely focused on perceived external pressures. Through deep inquiry and reflection with Andrea, I uncovered many long-standing and unhelpful approaches to work and life that had compounded over the years to undermine my sense of happiness and fulfillment. With Andrea’s guidance and support, I’ve developed and implemented strategies that have reinvigorated my joy in work and life. I will be forever grateful to Andrea for her expertise, her insightful straight-forward approach, and her compassion.
Michelle J. Lyn, MBA, MHA
Assistant Professor and Chief, Div. of Community Health, Dept. of Family Medicine and Community Health
I had the privilege of working with Andrea as my mentor coach for the ICF certification at the Associate Certified Coach (ACC) level. She was so very professional, thorough, and explicit in her mentorship. She is amazingly talented, and a great teacher. I learned as much from her as I have anyone in my entire coach training process, and she made it a gentle but effective experience. I highly recommend her if you need a mentor coach, or any other kind of professional coaching.
Sharon Hull, MD, MPH, PCC
Andrea was the mentor coach I didn’t know I needed. She was supportive and real in her feedback. She helped me unlearn habits I’d held onto from coach training that were serving neither me nor my clients. She provided practical guidance on how to handle situations in which I, as a coach, felt stuck. She noticed patterns in my style that were getting in the way of me being a more effective coach for my clients. To be able to learn one-on-one from a MCC coach who was so giving of their knowledge and experience was incredible. Andrea not only reminded me that everyone coaches differently, but helped me keep in mind certain pillars of coaching that should undergird my practice. I’d recommend Andrea to anyone looking for a caring mentor coach who will provide a meaningful and deep learning experience to take their coaching to the next level.
Lee Bateau, Ph.D, ACC
I've worked with a few Mentor Coaches over the years and couldn't be more impressed with Andrea. Her expertise in psychology and coaching is a breath of fresh air. She provides feedback in a way that's clear, direct, and supportive of next level development. She has a keen sense for the nuanced strengths and opportunities observed during audio or videotaped session segments and she cares enough to debrief in a way that supports deep learning. I'm grateful to have found her and look forward to our ongoing work.
Leah B. Mazzola, PhD, BCC, ACC
Managing Director, Lead Coach Trainer, & Practicum Supervisor
Andrea brings people to their deepest sense of self. From that position of confidence, executives learn to expand their leadership skills, moving others to manage with empathy and trust. She inspires, stretches and persuades leaders in all levels of management to go beyond business as usual.
Andrea is a coach's coach! She walks her talk with integrity and lightness. I have found her to be true to her highest principles and capable of listening with such attention and acute engagement that my own thinking and wonder is improved, enhanced and taken to the next level...every time! I never fail to leave a conversation with Andrea without knowing that she brings me home to myself!
Sande Churchill, PhD, MCC
Executive and Personal Coach, www.futurebychoice.com
Andrea helped me to realize that in order to reach my goals it was time to leave my then position. That freed me to pursue other opportunities that would help me to fulfill my wants, needs, and desires. At the executive level, making that kind of shift can be a daunting task. I applaud Andrea for her ability to assist me in putting all of the issues in sharp relief while helping me to find the courage to seek my true passion. She has many talents and so much skill. She provided tools that made my transition from corporate executive to entrepreneur, not only possible, but deeply satisfying and life sustaining. I would highly recommend her to anyone that wants to make life changes.
Jock Putney
Founder & CEO, Somna Corporation
Andrea's coaching enabled me to recognize what I wanted for myself and then develop a plan to get there. She helped me articulate my vision of having a clean and organized living and working space. Her questions led me to dive deep to grasp what was important about that. I'd been doing things for others, the "outside", and now my motivation was coming from within. Initially, I was overwhelmed. I didn't know where to start or how best to spend my time. I learned about myself, my drivers and my barriers. Her suggestion to start with one small step changed the way I do things. I began by simply keeping one counter-top clean . . . all the time, no exceptions. That was the catalyst which launched feelings of being responsible, of caring for my home and myself and flowed into other areas of my environment. My values of responsibility, good stewardship and respect were finally active. Andrea's thoughtful inquiry took me forward to a more self-honoring way of being. Her intuition, skill at reading energy, genuine interest and listening skills, created the foundation for a trusting coach-client relationship. She truly is a master coach.
Chandra White
Integrative Health Coach - Greer, South Carolina
I lost 100lbs in eight months and I could not have done this without Andrea Shaw. She was a fabulous coach for me. Our work gave me the foundation to take care of myself for life. As the weight was coming off, one day I bent down and I realized that I could tie my shoes again, without pain. This came from hard work with a great collaborative partner! I never realized how important having a coach was. Her consistent interest, encouragement and support made the difference. Her great questions helped me think in new ways. That led me to new behaviors. I always felt encouraged, never judged. I began learning other approaches. We’d think things through together, and she’d be there with kindness, yet also with an eye toward whether I did what I said I would. If I got off track, she’d nudge me back. Over the course of eight months, I learned how to eat correctly, to exercise, to manage stress, to work things out in relationships when I was bothered by something. My work with Andrea Shaw, at Duke Integrative Medicine, was a totally positive, life-changing experience. I would recommend her to anyone. She’s calm, insightful, very sweet and open. She knows her stuff.
Dee Dee McClean
Pharmacy Technician, Duke Medical Center
I was hesitant to commit to coaching but it turned out to be an excellent decision and a wise investment; I reap benefits daily from our coaching nearly 6 years after the experience. I contacted Andrea to address health challenges. I have a chronic auto-immune disease with impaired cardiac function that was impacting energy levels, caused significant insomnia and malaise. Because of fatigue and overwhelm, it was difficult to manage my personal and professional obligations and I wasn’t enjoying life. One goal was to develop a schedule to manage work and home calendars without completely overdoing one day and crashing for the next three. We worked on establishing better sleep hygiene and learning to say no to work and social activities that didn’t support changes I was making. We problem solved how to increase my energy levels by modifying my daily routine. It helped to feel that I had someone who was on my side. After several years of implementing the good sleep hygiene and the revised daily routine, my insomnia is essentially gone. I enhanced the dietary changes we implemented and because of that my overall health and cardiac function improved. When I started coaching, my husband and I didn’t think we were going to be able to have children. Due to the improvements in my health, sleep and energy levels, we decided to have a baby. Maintaining the positive changes I made through coaching is even more imperative now and that has allowed me to successfully manage a household and be a mother. I wouldn’t be where I am in my life without the coaching with Andrea. I am very grateful for all of her wisdom, patience, guidance, and encouragement.
Danielle Holthe
California
I didn’t know whether to stay with my company or find a new job. I was deeply unhappy; I felt trapped, and lost. I came to Andrea with the question of finding my career path, but I ended up finding myself. With Andrea’s support I stepped back, looked at my life, and I didn’t like what I saw. I was suffering from near-constant migraines and high stress. Andrea helped me untangle the knots, which included my career path and what I ultimately wanted to do. We worked on better health habits which greatly diminished the migraines. I learned to set better boundaries at work. My focus and productivity increased while my stress level decreased. I worked fewer hours, but accomplished much more. I stopped trying to please everybody. I am more grounded and content. My problem wasn’t the job itself it was how I was living. I could not have done this without Andrea’s expert coaching. I needed the objective, thoughtful, and kind outside observer to help get me unstuck. She asked strong questions and gave honest feedback. Everyone needs an Andrea, someone who unconditionally supports them yet challenges and helps them find and act on solutions. I always felt Andrea in my corner, even at my worst. The cornerstone for me is being clear about my values and living those every day, including decisions I need to make on the job. The choice to receive coaching was the best investment in my life. I benefited far more than I ever thought and it has brought me lasting positive change. Right person, right time!
Tammy Klein
Consultant & Strategic Advisor, Providing Analysis & Intelligence on Transportation Fuels
Andrea is excellent at helping me get to the root of issues or blocks to achievement. However, her greatest skill has been in helping me overcome them with practical solutions that streamline my path to success and allow me to enjoy the process/life along the way.
Kristi Bedard
SVP, Internal Audit, Everi Corporation
As a veterinarian with a busy practice, I had begun to see the results of chronic stress on my body and in my relationships. I had joined the ranks of forty-somethings that tried to keep all the balls in the air without a lot of time to breathe. I was referred to Andrea and we started our work together eliminating things that were draining my energy, and focusing on goals that were important to me. My wife thought I was nuts at first, hiring someone to coach you at life, but as she watched the inner me return she wanted what I was having. After a few months of working together, it was obvious to me that the goal was much larger than what I’d originally thought. What attracted me to coaching was that it is results oriented, but Andrea’s background and vast experience in therapy ended up being a welcome bonus. Working with Andrea was a turning point. Her approach is honest, insightful, keenly supportive, and results-oriented. Our work put my relationship with myself at center stage. I have been amazed at how different my life looks after a few months of work.
I am the Director of a busy not-for-profit social service agency, and I reached out to Andrea after my husband suffered a serious medical event. Between a very demanding job, many professional commitments and the tasks that I needed to attend to in order to support my husband's recovery, I felt completely overwhelmed and in need of support and focus. I am generally a very organized and diligent professional who has extremely high standards for my work. Andrea has a very thoughtful, focused, stepwise approach to creating a path forward. She is a deep listener and a sensitive and attentive thought-partner. She did a marvelous job helping me to clear my thoughts, identify priorities and concrete steps to achieve them and to track my progress week by week. I am very grateful to her for her support at a time when I truly needed it. Presently, I feel far more comfortable, in control and optimistic that I can continue my successful path forward.
Julia Jean-Francois, PhD, LCSW
Director, Center for Family Life
Andrea is expert at helping me identify career challenges and designing solutions to help me resolve them. Understanding the psychology of my workplace and how I fit within it is her special skill. With creativity and integrity, she sees both the intentional and unintentional patterns of behavior that keep me from achieving my professional goals, and helps me create new patterns to overcome those barriers.
Andrea’s intuitive, practical and encouraging approach is enormously valuable. She gives no-nonsense help, has a wide breadth of knowledge, and a tremendous capacity to understand and quickly synthesize. She is one of those uniquely talented individuals who provide skillful, focused attention on all aspects of leadership, which includes the internal condition of the leader. She guides me to reflect on my values and to stretch beyond where I would have gone myself. She helped me discover better ways of organizing my professional life, which greatly reduced my stress level. She is a highly effective, skilled consultant and coach. I recommend her to anyone who wants to develop his or her full potential as a leader.
Billie Straub
CEO, The Training Network www.trainingnetwork.com
Andrea is a passionate advocate for me. I experience her as focused, determined, and sincerely devoted to helping me achieve what I want. She utilizes her perception and experience to help me unlock answers to the challenges I face. Her warmth, humor, and candor make this journey of self exploration richly rewarding and always worth it. I have gotten stronger, clearer, happier and calmer in the six months we've been working together. I have made steady and significant progress towards my goals. Our weekly sessions always provide me with deeper insight and motivation to take meaningful action.
CEO, Software Development Company, Massachusetts
Our work together clarified my core values and provided the support I needed to make leaps personally and professionally. Andrea’s candor encouraged me to be systematic in my work and her skilled listening and insight created a comfort and trust you might expect from knowing someone for years. Perhaps most importantly, her guidance helped reveal my strengths and created a base for ambition and focus I didn’t know I had. Andrea is especially skilled at cultivating a calm outlook and teaching how that calmness can be a place of untold discovery and opportunity. In some ways she folds time – enabling you to accomplish more, with more depth, health and balance, even with more sleep at night – all while not adding a single minute to the day. In the end, my work with Andrea has been some of the most transformative of my life. Andrea is a gifted coach. I would recommend her to anyone who is ready to discover a new capacity for ambition, generosity, productivity and happiness.
Robyn Williams Heeks
Architect, Tise-Kiester Architects, Chapel Hill, NC