choice Magazine

Send us Fan Mail Your client’s “I can’t decide” might not be a mindset problem. It might be a nervous system problem. We sit down with cognitive neuroscientist Dr. Irena O’Brien, founder of the Neuroscience School, to unpack a deceptively simple idea with big implications for coaching: choices are shaped by nervous system state, not just logic. When the brain is under threat or running low on energy, it prioritizes survival and efficiency, which can shrink perspective, limit creativity, and ...

Send us Fan Mail Choice is easy to praise and surprisingly hard to access when stress, habit, and old stories take the wheel. We sit down with cognitive psychologist and ADHD coach Eliza Barach, author of “Designing for Agency: Coaching the Moment of Choice,” to get concrete about what agency really looks like inside real decisions, especially for high-performing people with ADHD who often feel trapped between intention and follow-through. We dig into why autonomy is not a luxury in co...

Send us Fan Mail The fastest way to change a coaching conversation isn’t a new tool it’s helping someone see they have options. I’m joined by executive coach, educator, and author Jenn Chloupek to talk about the power of choice and the ABC framework she built to make transformation feel clear, human, and repeatable: Awareness, Behaviors, Connections. If you coach leaders, build a coaching culture, or simply want better conversations, this one gives you a practical structure you can use ...

Send us Fan Mail Conflict can make smart people act out of character. When emotions spike and the stakes feel personal, our thinking narrows, our defenses go up, and “good communication” advice suddenly stops working. We sit down with Cherise Hairston, a veteran conflict resolution professional and transformative mediation practitioner, to unpack what’s really happening inside us during conflict and how coaches can help clients regain clarity without rushing to a fix. We explore why conflict...

Send us Fan Mail A client says, “Nothing I do matters,” and suddenly the coaching work is no longer a checklist, it’s a turning point. We sit down with leadership coach and belonging advocate Jennifer Nielsen to unpack learned helplessness: how it develops, why it’s so common in today’s workplace, and what coaches and people leaders can do when motivation disappears and resignation takes over. We explore the real-world forces that amplify helplessness right now, including workplace burnout, ...

Send us Fan Mail Your mind loves to act like the CEO of your life, but it’s often the last to know what’s true. Garry Schleifer sits down with Lisa Murrell, PCC, to explore embodied choice and why clients don’t actually make decisions with thoughts alone. We talk about somatic coaching in a way that’s practical, grounded, and immediately usable, whether you coach leaders in Fortune 500 environments or support clients through personal transitions. Lisa shares how her work in systemic coaching...

Send us Fan Mail Success can be the very thing that steals your joy, not because you’re doing it wrong, but because the world rewards results while quietly ignoring the cost. I sit down with coach and speaker Cindy Van Eeckhout, author of “Helping Clients Find Joy in a High Pressure World,” to unpack what “misaligned success” really looks like when your life shines on paper but feels heavy inside. We get honest about how high achievers minimize emotions to stay productive, how that builds dis...

Send us Fan Mail What if joy isn’t the finish line but the fuel? We sit down with life coach and former crisis therapist Darlene Berry to reframe joy as a daily, practical practice that can live alongside pain without pretending everything is fine. Drawing from frontline experience, Darlene explains why suffering looks different for everyone and how gratitude becomes the bridge from “I’m hurting” to “I’m healing.” The heart of our conversation is simple and doable: slow breathwork to regulate...

Send us Fan Mail Joy isn’t a perk. It’s a competitive advantage. We sit down with executive and team coach Michelle Chambers to unpack how collective joy fuels psychological safety, deeper alignment, and reliable results—even when teams are under pressure. If “joy at work” sounds woo-woo, Michelle’s stories and tools will change your mind fast. We start by spotting the early signs that joy has gone missing: flat energy, thin trust, and conversations that feel purely transactional. From there...

Send us Fan Mail Joy doesn’t have to wait for a perfect day or a perfect world. We sit down with social leadership coach Gloria Custodio (ICF PCC) to unpack why so many high achievers believe joy belongs to someone else—and how to reclaim it as a practical tool for better thinking, stronger leadership, and sustainable impact. From family scripts and grind culture to burnout and systemic barriers, we map the forces that push joy out of reach, then show how to bring it back with care and rigor....

Send us Fan Mail What if your toughest feelings aren’t enemies to defeat but signals to decode? We sit down with behavioral scientist Charles Jones and executive coach Terry Hildebrandt to unpack Emotional Responsibility, a simple, powerful framework that turns anger, anxiety, frustration, and guilt into clear next steps—and uses joy as concrete proof that our needs are being met. We trace the origins of this work back to research on flow states and explore a core distinction that changes ev...

Send us Fan Mail What if joy isn’t a mood you wait for but a stance you cultivate—especially when the world feels chaotic? Executive and team coach Terrie Lupberger joins us to unpack why joy can be a radical act that disrupts scarcity, separation, and fear in the coaching room and the boardroom. We explore a clear distinction between joy and happiness, how to avoid toxic positivity, and why holding paradox—grief alongside gratitude, urgency with steadiness—makes leaders more effective and co...

Send us Fan Mail What if the strongest lever in your coaching isn’t a better framework, but deeper self-trust? We sit down with social leadership coach Gloria Custodio, PCC, to unpack why grounded presence beats perfect structure, how to navigate “wonky” moments, and what to do when confidence takes a hit. Gloria shares a pivotal training story that reframed her approach: trust your gut, measure impact by client outcomes, and let presence lead. From note-heavy sessions that dull connection to...