Testimonials

Client Success Stories

The testimonials below represent a small sample of the Concentrated Coaching LLC client base. I'd be happy to provide additional information and, perhaps, put you in touch with one of my former clients if you're interested.

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Entrepreneurs' Block

"When my venture did not get the necessary subsequent round of funding I got stuck in fear, paralyzed by failure. Other coaches rightfully pointed to the need to replenish my creativity but couldn’t get beyond the tactics. Mark was the one coach who led me deep inside myself to reconnect, rediscover and once again unleash that creative energy and start on my next endeavor as an investor. I am fortunate to have found him."

— Constantia Petrou, PhD, MBA, Entrepreneur & Investor (Past CEO of Konnectology)

"So many of us get caught up in the day-to-day operations of our business that we get stuck in that day, in that task. Mark has a unique gift in making one see the bigger picture, taking you to where you envision yourself to be in the future and gently guiding you to the tools you need to get there. In a few short hours, Mark was able to help me visualize where I wanted to be in 3 years’ time and helped me see how to accomplish that. After my session, I felt re-energized, calm and confident."

— Audrey Chen, Publisher, Natural Awakenings

"In only a few hours, Mark's coaching helped me connect to my core purpose, and uncover and unburden parts of myself that had me feeling I wasn't doing enough. I realized I was on the right track, and put even more focus where it was needed. I'm less stressed, and getting more done expanding an important new business element."

— Bruce Hersey, LCSW, Certified IFS Therapist, and business owner/entrepreneur

"Mark’s compassion and curiosity helped me integrate parts of myself I was ignoring. His work is especially for those who want not only insight but breakthroughs in long-held goals."

— Angela Nesbitt, Principal at Jaziri Group, LLC

"With genuine care and vast professional knowledge, my sessions helped me to clearly identify (and begin to shift my perspective on) both deep and daily challenges in growing my business. From making time for sales and accounting to firming up my boundaries for clients and finding my way back to my true passion as a writer and publisher, Mark provided crucial support at a pivotal point in my professional life, for which I am deeply grateful."

— Kim Nagy, Co-Founder/Public Relations Director, Wild River Review

Read the Case Study: Bringing Leadership Into Focus

Learn More About Entrepreneurs' Block

Executive Presence

"Mark brings unmatched perspective and depth of expertise in business and leadership. I’ve worked with good executive coaches in the past. Mark belongs in a category of his own."

— Alan Youngblood, LMHC, Director - Employee Assistance Program at Merrill Lynch

"From the very beginning of helping me define my central question, through helping me envision the life and work I want to have, to the deep inner work that leads to practical breakthroughs, Mark was a compassionate and wise guide every step of the way. I'm living a much more holistic life, working less, and at the same time having amazing opportunities land on my doorstep without any effort."

— Judi Neal, Ph.D., Chairman, Edgewalkers International

"Mark holds a very special place in my heart for walking me through a dark professional valley. His stellar IFS skills helped me quickly uncover hidden resources inside me when handling a pivotal and complex situation. And he's been there for me for follow up support, as well."

— Julia Sullivan, Partner, Entrepreneurial Programs, SVG Partners; Co-Founder, Latino Business Action Network

"I work with Mark around leadership and relationships. Our coaching transports me to another realm: a safe haven where I can access the deepest voices and parts of myself to heal and integrate. The conversation with him is like no other. No where else have I been able to connect as much with my inner child. As a result I feel more authentic ... have further claimed my fragility ... and at the same time my truth, creativity and spontaneity."

— Anamaria Aristizabal, Certified Integral Coach®, Consultant, and Trained Facilitator

Learn More About Executive Presence

Phobias and Other Work

"I've got this strange thing that's blocking life and work"I’d had a life-long 'tic.' It was unconscious, compulsive, frequent, and it felt impossible to overcome. Mark’s work was transformational: following our 3-hour session, the tic virtually stopped — without stress or struggle."

— Tim Shea, Executive Trainer and Coach

"As a nutritionist specializing in weight management — even with skills in NLP and hypnosis — I still find some clients get 'stuck' progressing in their goals. For these, Mark's been a consummate professional partner, handling all situations with care, understanding, and respect. He conducts the most masterful sessions I've seen, helping clients connect to a larger purpose that gives them more energy, as well as to identify and heal parts of themselves that would have remained hidden and undermined progress. The outcomes are good too. For example, one client went from 'self-blame' to 'fun game' in following her food plan; she's managing herself well eight months out now, embraced a new way of life, and has an attitude about food and exercise healthier than most people on the street. I fully recommend him to others."

— Gail Rector, C.Ht, Nutritionist

"I came to Mark with a curse, I had lost the ability to drive on the freeway, as well as windy and wide roads. Living in Los Angeles, getting around had become a navigational obstacle course and a real handicap. I had tried a phobia specialist, hypnosis, and a traditional psychologist; nothing had worked. After two sessions with Mark, I was once again able to drive on a highway that I hadn't been on for ten years. Mark's gentle, kind, patient guidance, took me through the steps to eradicating this problem in just over three hours. Mark gave me back hours in my day. How amazing is that?!"

— Jana Sue Memel, Storyteller In Chief, The HollywoodWay

Read the Case Study: Overcoming Freeway Phobia

Learn More About Phobias

Writers' Block

Mark and I did a few sessions on different issues, and they just evaporated. What he does works. I have a book on the market now. I never would have done it without Mark."

— Karen Phelan, Author: I’m Sorry I Broke Your Company; Partner, Operating Principals

"I needed help getting unstuck around a book project I had been struggling with for over a decade. One session with Mark significantly reoriented me to the project, and I have been able to be pleasurably productive ever since. I am very comfortable endorsing Mark's skills, presence, ethics and effectiveness ... especially having been a supervisor for him to meet requirements for IFS certification, and following detailed conversations about his work and watching a video of him in action."

— Mike Elkin, LMFT, IFS Lead Trainer

"Before working with Mark, I was struggling with expressing myself creatively. Despite my MFA, I has a push/pull relationship with my art. After only a few sessions, I began drop into the passion I was seeking. Mark's time machine / future visioning exercise was profound. Almost everything I had envisioned happened. I am not only more focused in the rest of my life, as well as happily painting and writing again."

— Gale West, Artist and CEO-Entrepreneur, Sacred Money Mastery

"From making time for sales and accounting to firming up my boundaries for clients and finding my way back to my true passion as a writer and publisher, Mark provided crucial support at a pivotal point in my professional life, for which I am deeply grateful. Most of all, though I still struggle with the demands of my many roles, from writer to publicist to business owner, Mark helped me consider how my skills and talents might work in accord with one another, and as a result, I felt less fragmented and more primed for success."

— Kim Nagy, Co-Founder/Public Relations Director, Wild River Review

Read the Case Study: Coaching for Writers' Block
Read the Case Study: Dissolving Creativity Block

Learn More About Writers' Block

Career Shifts and Workplace Trauma

"I referred a client extremely anxious about negotiating. In two weeks, Mark’s work transformed this client’s perspective of negotiating from a selfish act he didn’t have the “right” or the skills to do, to an authentic way to serve those he cared about. And, the client confidently negotiated a 5 year contract $100,000/year above the starting offer. Mark is a great partner for therapists with clients afraid to act in business-related situations."

— Jean Kirkland, MA, LPC, Certified IFS Therapist

"Mark is a coach's coach. I'm a coach and a consultant who got stuck for a year and a half with creating the next right project work for myself, with the right people, for the right amount of dollars. He told me upfront that because I've been stuck for a longer time, the amount of time we would work together might be a little longer than with other clients. I set a target date for accomplishing my primary goal, and guess what? Right on target, it happened! Length of time: three months! And I believe it happened because Mark skillfully unwound my stuckness primarily through applying the Internal Family Systems process with me. Mark's approach, coupled with my receptivity to him and his coaching style were a perfect fit."

— Jacqueline Fox, MS, Professional Development Services

"Mark's insights, suggestions, coaching and care have unlocked many untapped resources inside of me. And given me the courage and energy to explore 'me' more. Without his help I would not be in the health coaching role I am currently in. Or, with people who respect and support me in my 'adventures' — integrating genetic information into health coaching all the way from nutritional advice to life style choices.

For many years during a challenging personal situation I lived “curled up in a ball” huddled in fear. I am now standing tall ready to do what I was put on this planet to do. I know that I would not be in this space now if Mark hadn't helped."

— Diane Davies, MD, Health Economist

"Mark helped me work through my internal barriers preventing me from taking my career to the next level. His approach was systematic but quickly honed in on what was specifically limiting me. In my case, this meant letting go of past negative work experiences; experiences that had been draining my energy and prevented me from presenting a strong and confident posture required to exploit my in depth experience and capabilities. The coaching work quickly helped me model my situation in a way that I could tap in to a quiet confidence that I have found to be a key to success.

Mark's coaching made a big difference. Not only did the work help crystalize what I should do next, but also cleared the path for me to go after it. If this weren’t enough, Mark also has an extensive network of people who have had the pleasure of working with him. It is through his network that I was introduced to the company where I now work."

— Edmund Cape, MBA, Ph.D.

"We normally think of breakthroughs as sudden and epiphanic ... and they are. Yet, this does not imply that they can be scheduled or that one can control when, where, or how they occur.

When I began to work with Mark I was skeptical but hopeful. I knew that the fix in which I found myself was complex and that no single breakthrough was likely to close the gap between where I was and where I wanted to be. I worried that Mark would become impatient, losing interest when my tangled mess of problems did not self-unravel in three sessions.

I should not have worried. Mark is one of the few people I have ever known with whom I feel-–and am--safe, even as he walks with me into the darkest and scariest parts of my person. He continually surprises me – with his courage, his compassion, his trustworthiness, his insight and his unflappability.

We had our first coaching session, via Skype, in May 2012. Now, 17 months later, I look back in surprise, delight, and admiration at the ways in which Mark has worked with me to bridge a yawning divide. Mark is a seeker, who matches interest, talent and aptitude with generosity of spirit, time, and effort. He is one of a kind. I am grateful to have had the privilege of working with him."

— Sara Wedeman, Ph.D., President, Behavioral Economics Consulting Group LLC

Read the Case Study: Asking for Money

Learn More About Career Shifts