Testimonials
James Owrey
It was a pleasure to participate in Laura’s Maxwell Mastermind Group during Fall 2012. She has a great acumen for teaching and demonstrating principles of leadership, particularly from the works of John Maxwell. Her caring nature combines perfectly with her commitment to accountability. This is an “actions-to-outcomes” approach that keeps participants both engaged and motivated.… Read more “James Owrey”
Tim O’Neal, Manufacturing Leader
I am Tim O’Neal, a manufacturing leader at the Dow Chemical Company in West Virginia Operations. My leadership team played the Leadership Game. From the start, it was clear that this is no game. To my team and I, it was an experience. The principles and laws from John Maxwell are spread throughout the discussions… Read more “Tim O’Neal, Manufacturing Leader”
Margaret Mary Layne
“Laura Prisc was an invaluable asset in helping the Museum solve a troubling personnel issue between two very valuable, professional employees. These two particular members of our staff had to work together on a regular basis and it just was not running smoothly. The sessions that Laura set up and the assignments given to each… Read more “Margaret Mary Layne”
David Rosier, General Manager Toyota North America Toyota Motor Manufacturing, West Virginia
“We engaged Laura because we recognized most of the team we considered our core leaders were not leading at all. In fact, they were so caught up in the details of day-to-day management activities, they weren’t growing themselves or developing their direct reports. We need leaders at every level of the organization if we are… Read more “David Rosier, General Manager Toyota North America Toyota Motor Manufacturing, West Virginia”
Barry Pearson, Group Manager Administration & Quality at Toyota North America
Every successful company strives for the next big idea that gives them the advantage over their competition. Focusing on human development has clearly become an area thru which companies separate themselves from the competition, and at TMMWV, we are no different. Two years ago, we began looking for a more comprehensive approach to human development… Read more “Barry Pearson, Group Manager Administration & Quality at Toyota North America”
Ryan Deaderick
Laura has been a joy to work with. She can seamlessly move between the roles of teacher, mentor, and coach to provide useful insight and challenging questions. I have worked with Laura for over a year and a half, and have grown tremendously as a leader and individual during that time. She has helped me… Read more “Ryan Deaderick”
David Houser, West Virginia Market Manager PrimeLending, A Plains Capital Company
“When you meet Laura, it becomes very clear very quickly that she’s on a mission to wake people up to become their best selves, to become intentional leaders, and to live their lives on purpose! And she’s well-equipped to do it, continually investing in her own growth to ensure she’s ahead of the curve with… Read more “David Houser, West Virginia Market Manager PrimeLending, A Plains Capital Company”
Angela Miller
Laura has been a mentor to several protégés in the Everwise program. Her insight and knowledge has been highly valued and her protégés have made measured progress toward their professional goals. Her commitment to development is evident and she is a delight to work with. Laura brings deep expertise in effective communication, personal brand and… Read more “Angela Miller”
Wes Harvey
When looking for a coach to bring out your inner potential and guide you on a path of self-discovery, one word comes to mind when choosing the right person. Passion! Laura has a passion to become the best version of herself that she can be and in the process is looking to do the same… Read more “Wes Harvey”
Betsy Eberg, CEP
I loved working with Laura! I learned so much about myself during the 6 months I mentored with her. Laura taught me how to be more self aware, and this has shed light into many areas of my life, both personal and professional. I am more intentional in my behavior. I now recognize that intent… Read more “Betsy Eberg, CEP”
James Wells, IPMA-SCP, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Laura presented an excellent program, “Building Healthy, Smart Teams,” during our local SHRM Chapter’s September 2012 meeting. She shared useful information and practical insight into the key characteristics healthy teams possess and demonstrate, which we can apply in our workplaces, volunteer organizations, etc. Laura added value to our Chapter’s meeting and we would welcome her… Read more “James Wells, IPMA-SCP, SPHR, SHRM-SCP”
Melanie Gorman, SVP YourTango.com
It was a joy to spend a weekend with Laura. I reached out to work with her after coming to a realization that the feedback from my supervisor, team, and clients were riddled with my own interpretation. I wanted to know definitely what I’m good at; what my strengths are and where I can be… Read more “Melanie Gorman, SVP YourTango.com”
Peter Hein
Laura provides a service that I feel more people should look into as it is very valuable. It is not just another rah-rah team training seminar, but a well thought out one-on-one program. We started with goals (work and changes in careers) but also how to achieve them which lead into discussions of leadership… Read more “Peter Hein”
Maureen McIntosh, LCT. M.Ed.CCC ACC
I have been working with Laura weekly for the last five weeks. She is personable, reliable, full of integrity and has managed to help me stay focused and on task. She is excellent at holding me accountable, a benefit of working with a great coach. I easily recommend Laura as a great coach that will… Read more “Maureen McIntosh, LCT. M.Ed.CCC ACC”
Tisha Schmidt, MBA
I had the opportunity to work with Laura following a job elimination. Laura led me through a Strengths Finder tool , which produced an updated resume that highlights my strengths rather than a resume that lists job duties and tasks accomplished. Laura also facilitated personal goal setting. I had spent much of professional life working… Read more “Tisha Schmidt, MBA”
Kara Rogers
The word that exemplifies my work with Laura is “intentional”. So many things in my life are on auto pilot, or I am multi-tasking so much I start “flying by the seat of my pants”. While I can and do get things done in both of these modes, it isn’t the best or most efficient… Read more “Kara Rogers”
Amy Dennis
I hired Laura to help me explore ways to broaden my career path. It was a pleasure working with Laura. I learned a lot about myself. I also learned to think more deeply about what I want for myself and why. Laura is a great motivator and pushes you to be your best.
Kyle Mork
Laura has been a fantastic asset for our company and for me personally for well over a year. She has provided both coaching and consulting services, as well as handled group sessions with our managers. She has a unique ability to discern the core issue and help you work through possible solutions. She has become… Read more “Kyle Mork”
Terry Hollandsworth
Working with Laura in communication training improved my self awareness, communication skills, and the relationships with my customers. I highly recommend her services and value her guidance.
Patrick W. Klesel, MBA
Laura is a great listener who positively motivates me to achieve my goals through a proven coaching strategy.
What it means to “Start Well” with Don Davis, Healthcare and Life Sciences Consultant
PodcastBegin with the end in mind. This is sage advice: Discern what it is you are trying to create. Cast a vision and articulate it clearly. Once you’ve done that, you can craft a plan that culminates in the achievement of that goal and one that allows you to “start well.”
This is the jumping off point for today’s episode, a meaningful conversation with Consultant, Don Davis. Davis worked for many years in GE, helping start-ups come to life. As he was contemplating what he wanted to do with his life and work long-term, he recognized he is energized by the entrepreneurial geniuses – people with high energy, curiosity, and a strong growth focus – and wanted to continue working with them. Hence, his consulting firm.
He notes that 90% of businesses die within their first 10 years and goes on to share some of the wisdom he’s accumulated over the course of his career. He and host, Laura Prisc, dive deep into some of those areas, including casting vision, knowing your own strengths, how to build a thriving team, knowing how and from where to receive sound advice, and more.
This is the kind of expertise and insight he offers his consulting clients… and you can benefit from it simply by listening to today’s episode, then follow the links below to get connected with Don.
Don’s Bio:
Don Davis, President and Principal of 5280 Life Sciences Consulting, is an expert operations leader with a 30-year career in healthcare and life sciences. After decades of working for companies like GE, BD, and Roche, Don now helps others improve their operational excellence, program and project management, analytics and KPIs, and IT systems and infrastructure, resulting in increased profitability and improved ability to scale their organizations.
Connect with Don:
Don on LinkedIn
Don Online
Don’s Podcast
Art is Experience: An Exchange of Energy and Ideas Between Artist and Viewer with Laura McRae Hitchcock, Artist and Art Retreat Guide
PodcastI’m taking a break from posting new episodes for the rest of March because there are so many really great ones available already. Like this one with Laura McRae Hitchcock, which originally aired July 13, 2020. Her message still really resonates with me, and I hope it speaks to you, as well. Thank you for continuing to listen… and I’ll be back with new episodes soon.
For Laura McRae Hitchcock, art is a shared experience. The artist begins with a blank canvas (whatever that material or medium might be) and pulls in his or her creativity to create something from nothing. “It’s all energy,” she explains. “I use my whole body when I paint, and my paintings are infused with my energy.”
And if you had a sneak peek into her studio as she’s preparing canvases, you’d see she’s also infusing them with prayers for the viewers – and eventual owners – of her paintings. On the blank canvases, she writes prayers for safety, blessing, joy, love, and more… and then she preps for paint. You may not know it’s there, but you’ll feel it when you see it!
For her, making art is a deeply spiritual act and it’s her way of getting out of herself. She grew up feeling shy and sensitive; recognizing it was getting in the way of her being more fully in the world – to experience it and to impact it – and art has been her way of breaking through those barriers.
Through this conversation, Laura and Laura also dive into the idea and experience of “thin spaces” – the places where it feels as if heaven and earth are both right there and you have this heightened awareness of there being so much more than what you see. Laura shares the inspiration of her Nest Series of paintings as being her recognition she could no longer directly control how safe her children are in the world, as they’ve grown and moved out.
If you’ve ever had a heartfelt or truly visceral reaction to a piece of art, you’ll appreciate this conversation and a view into the heart and thoughts of the artist.
Laura’s Bio
Laura McRae Hitchcock is an award winning, internationally collected visual artist living and working in the low country of South Carolina. She is also a partner and founder of Wild Hair Adventures, a travel company specializing in art workshops and retreats and “traveling like girls.”
Her paintings move between realism and the abstract, in much the same way she moves between the physical experience of being human and remembering who she is as spirit. She believes that artwork creates a portal in which the artist holds space for the viewer to experience the energy of the intention of the art. Through those shared experiences, art heals the heart and soul…whether one does the creating or the looking and appreciating.
Laura lives on a barrier island near Charleston, SC, with her husband of 35 years, and a sweet cocker spaniel named Gunner. She enjoys painting (of course!), spending time with her grown children and 1st grandchild, travel, exploring new places and ideas, collecting lovely sticks, rocks and shells, and gathering with other people for collaboration and celebration.
Connect with Laura:
Laura’s Art Online
Laura on Instagram
Laura on Facebook
Wild Hair Adventures (“travel like girls”!)
Do You Have the Audacity to Assume You Can be Happy and Authentic in the Workplace? Deep questions with Jeff Munn, Executive Leadership Coach
PodcastI’m taking a break from posting new episodes for the rest of March because there are so many really great ones available already. Like this one with Jeff Munn, which originally aired June 8, 2020. His message still really resonates with me, and I hope it speaks to you, as well. Thank you for continuing to listen… and I’ll be back with new episodes soon.
While Jeff poses that very question at a later point in today’s conversation, first Jeff and Laura explore one of the more common threads of discussion around leadership, which starts with the fundamental question: What’s the difference between management and leadership? Today’s conversation dives in with this and an insightful discussion about the activities, tasks, nuances, and expectations for leaders unfolds as Jeff and Laura explore and share their ideas and experiences.
As Jeff has depth of expertise and experience working with CEOs in Healthcare start-ups, the two also dig into the struggles many entrepreneurs face, and both work through with their respective clients – the truth that sometimes the creative genius that conceives and idea for a product, service, or enterprise is not the person who is actually best equipped to carry that idea forward and build a solid, thriving business around.
It’s important to recognize one’s unique gifts, strengths, and contributions… to do the work only you can do in whatever enterprise you’re engaged in, and know that sometimes the best next thing you can do is hand it off to someone else to manage the day to day, or do the marketing and promotion that will allow your creation to shine in the marketplace. This is a tough realization for many, and others understand it intuitively.
Jeff shares some of the questions he asks his clients to allow them to work through their own thinking with greater clarity about what roles they play, how they want to show up in those roles, what others need or want from them. Truly, this is the fundamental work for all of us, and crucial to effective, powerful leadership.
Laura and Jeff discuss life, work, authenticity, Lego, stress-relieving practices, and much more on today’s episode.
Jeff’s Bio
Before becoming a full-time coach and consultant, Jeff spent over 25 years working for some of the most innovative organizations in health care, financial services and employee benefits as both a lawyer and executive. He started out as a hard-charging law firm lawyer and chronic overachiever who had to be the smartest and most accomplished person in the room.
Jeff recognized he needed to change when a series of panic attacks threatened to derail him. In the mid-90s, he began to practice meditation, and later yoga, as a way to cope more effectively with his high stress career. As his practices began to take root, he began a path of deep psychospiritual study that continues to this day.
Jeff discovered to his great surprise that his stress nearly vanished as he got more present.
He also saw that as he let go of his need to be the smartest person in the room, the people he led somehow became more responsive and capable! As he continued to work on his own development, he dedicated himself to learning to teach others the leadership skills that he had considered innate (and at one point, beyond him). His Creating Extraordinary Futures process
is the culmination of his learning thus far.
Jeff has worked personally with internationally known spiritual teachers and coaches such as Peter Fenner, Jack Pransky, Rich Litvin, and Doug Silsbee. He is a Certified Presence-BasedTM Coach and has been awarded ACC certification with the International Coach Federation.
After 13 years in Chicago and almost two decades in Washington, DC, Jeff now lives near Aspen, CO, with his wife and family.
Connect with Jeff and Other Resources:
Jeff Munn Online
Jeff on LinkedIn
Understand Your Builder Profile
Connect with Laura to Understand Your Builder Profile!
The Art of the Brick – Nathan Sawaya