WHAT OTHER PEOPLE ARE SAYING
How often do you get introduced to experiences that change your life at work? Since we started Spinach.io, we decided to invest in ourselves and how we operate as a team. We began our journey with an amazing coach, Debra Sunderland, who has helped us learn not only mindfulness but also how to become more conscious in our leadership. As part of this journey toward becoming conscious leaders, we started meditating as a regular practice, both individually and as a team. We found that not only did we enjoy taking a few minutes during the day to get centered, but also how energizing this activity was. This opened the door to how we could more effectively communicate and collaborate with each other as we delved into understanding ourselves better.
Yoav Grossman | Co-Founder at Spinach.io | Nashville, TN
The work I have done with Debra on being a conscious leader has been challenging but very rewarding. Being more present has not only improved my leadership skills at work but also how I interact with my family and friends. The lessons I have learned about detaching myself from outcomes and taking full responsibility for feelings have been life-changing for me. I am now able to make clear decisions that support business growth instead of short-changing my results by acting out of my triggers.
Will Ivy | Chief Financial Officer at Charter Construction | Nashville, TN
I am so thankful for the positive transformations you have helped me, my partners, and the firm make since RMB engaged with you. A big hug to you who helps others find their joy. I celebrate you!
Sue Christoph | Partner at RMB Capital | Chicago, IL
Debra is an excellent and intuitive speaker. As a board member of a local women's bar association, I worked with Debra to plan her presentation at a recent symposium for female attorneys. Debra went beyond our expectations and provided a thought-provoking and memorable session where attendees were encouraged to respond and engage with her and other attendees. Debra is an effective communicator, which is exemplified in her presentation skills. Debra gave attendees a brief introduction into conscious leadership, and I personally left inspired to make changes in my work life. I would highly recommend Debra as a speaker at future conferences, lectures, or symposiums.
Samantha McNatt | Assistant Attorney General at Tenessee Attorney General's Office | Nashville, TN
I personally want to thank Debra Sunderland for being one of the most inspirational and real individuals I’ve met in a very long time – you are truly amazing! The SBA Thrive cohort would not have been the success it was without you : )
Patrick Rodriguez | Deputy District Director of the Tennessee District Office U.S. Small Business Administration
I have had the pleasure of working with Debra for the last year. She is providing executive coaching to me at a time of career transition. I have found her positive attitude and quiet but firm approach to be both motivating and engaging. She is able to comfortably bridge both the personal and professional challenges in a seamless manner. Her use of Conscious Leadership Principles for guidelines and to learn from has been invaluable, and she knows them cold. She is able to weave the intent as well as the written word into a comfortable and motivating circumstance.
I would highly recommend Debra to others looking for leadership and life coaching. She is a pleasure to work with and highly motivating.
Neil Soskin | Principal Commercial Real Estate Advisor | Houston, TX
We've been working with Debra since the early days of Spinach.io and she's been instrumental to building our team and culture foundations.
The work with Debra, focused on Conscious Leadership, has helped us foster a culture of taking responsibility, openness and connection. Through the work with Debra our team has become better at communicating and collaborating - getting curious about other perspectives, revealing thoughts and working through conflict. It has also helped us optimize for keeping our team in their zone of genius, which has significantly improved outcomes.
The work with Debra around our enneagrams types has helped us both individually and collectively - see our strengths and limiting patterns, and better understand each other's motivations which led to more empathy.
Any team would be fortunate to work with Debra and see the impact her coaching can have. The sky is the limit!
Matan Talmi | Co-Founder & CEO at Spinach.io | Nashville, TN
The knowledge I have gained since working with Debra has impacted not only my work-life but my personal life as well. I have been a part of her Beyond Forum Conscious Leadership Group 2020, which has awakened in me an awareness that I didn't know I had! As part of the group, we have learned from each other and held each other accountable and as a result, I am a more open and curious leader, able to detect when fear is driving my decisions vs creativity. The principles of the Conscious Leadership Group should be read by everyone! They can be applied to all aspects of our lives from the relationships with our children, spouses, parents and co-workers. Working with Debra has truly changed my life for the better!
Mary Pillow Thompson | Co-Founder & COO at foh&boh, Co-Founder at Versher | Nashville, TN
Cannot say enough good things about working with Debra. Her commitment to providing honest feedback in a way that is candid + immediately shows you she means business. Just, you know, a collaborative, honest, human first, excellent, results-oriented, yet joyful way of doing business. Her ability to facilitate a group and quickly get to the heart of what each person is working on (while tying it all into a unifying theme) is so well done. I got more than my money’s worth each time we got to work together, and the world would just be a better place with more Sunderland Coaching in it.
Liza Kawaller | MidMarket & Enterprise Account Executive at MasterClass at Work | Nashville, TN
Debra was an outstanding speaker for our bi-annual women's symposium for women lawyers. She offered tangible strategies for managing stress and elevating our leadership skills. Attendees found her to be thought-provoking and inspirational.
Laura Baker | Attorney & Shareholder at The Law Office of John Day, P.C. | Brentwood, TN
Debra spoke in August 2021 to the Rotary Club of Green Hills. It was helpful to hear her practical guidance on helping us through these challenging times of the pandemic and all the craziness going on in the world and our personal and professional lives. As one of my fellow Rotarians said to me, it was great to be reminded to JUST BREATHE to help us with our stress.
Karen Williams | Partner at MGMTinsight | Nashville, TN
Debra is one of the most fluent verbal communicators I have had the pleasure of working with and the tools she provides professionals are concrete and valuable. Her retreats are life-changing and I don't say that lightly.
Jenny Charles | Assistant District Attorney at Office of the District Attorney | Nashville, TN
Debra and I have been working together for nearly a year now and I continue to grow every day under her coaching and expertise. I felt an immediate connection with her and her coaching style. I've learned so much about myself personally as well as how to be an engaged leader in my organization. The concepts are not simple, but the effect they have are life-changing. I'm grateful to have been introduced to Debra and I'm so happy to be on this journey to conscious leadership.
Jeanette Gawrisch | Partner & Human Resources Manager at RMB Capital | Chicago, IL
I am so lucky to have Deb as a Career Coach and Life Mentor in Nashville, TN. I have been a part of her Beyond 2020 Leadership Forum since January of this year. The strides I have made professionally and personally through her "tough love" and helping me get out of my own way have been remarkable. Working with Deb virtually and in person has been a gift. Her work is a daily practice, and she fully supports the journey through assigning a weekly learning partner; 24/7 access to one-on-one sessions with her; and monthly coaching sessions with our larger group. To move the needle on mental and emotional health, I cannot recommend Sunderland Coaching enough.
Holly Coltea | Owner at barre3 | Nashville, TN
Debra Sunderland brings her whole self into her practice and you are invited to meet her there. Her half day session on Conscious Leadership and the Enneagram gave me another set of tools to apply to my self-work. Her generous resources will allow me to revisit game-changing strategies as I continue connecting myself and others to greater good. Life is a wonder and I'm deeply grateful for the chance to experience Debra's gifts!
Denise Monroe Biggerstaff | Director of Community Engagement at Leadership Everyone, Inc. | Evansville, IN
Debra is a phenomenal presenter. She can take you out of your comfort zone - but in a manner that makes you genuinely examine the “set-in-your-ways” thinking. And that’s how you grow. I found myself really exploring some inner dialogue that was holding me back from exploring my full potential and look forward to continuing that journey. She is engaging, inspirational, and effective.
Carole Schaeffer | President at Schaeffer Consulting, LLC | Madison, WI
I started working with Debra about 18 months ago, focusing what I thought would mostly be a personal development opportunity. it was all that and more! The way Debra integrates personal and professional was incredibly valuable to me in all parts of my life. But it was not easy. I spent a lot of time being uncomfortable (discomfort with change, with recognizing how certain patterns of behavior showed up, with letting go of certain beliefs about myself and others), but that was the process. And I am definitely a different leader now than I was then, in the most positive way. Debra is a terrific human being and I'm grateful for the work we did together.
Buddy Teaster | CEO at Soles4Souls | Nashville, TN
Conscious leadership is something we all need as leaders. Debra came to speak to my Leadership class at Vanderbilt University. My students hungered for her conscious leadership work. They departed seeing that sometimes their closely held perspectives or beliefs were causing them to be anxious or have inner conflict so common in students today. After we met they saw that the answer to their conflicts were already inside of them --and they could only see this by noticing their hidden barriers and choosing a new thought and belief that brought a new result.
Choosing to "lead above the line" is what Debra's work is all about. Gen Z hunger to be engaged in authentic discussions of what it means to be a leader today. Debra knows how to do it! Need a speaker or workshop? Give Debra a call!
Barbara Bell | Professor of Leadership at Vanderbilt University | Nashville, TN
IFMA Nashville recently had Debra Sunderland with Sunderland Coaching speak to our members and guest about “How to Accomplish More with Less Stress”.
Her energy and high enthusiasm added a welcomed change to our membership meetings. The presentation was engaging, insightful, and added valuable tools that our audience could use daily. Debra and her team were very professional and easy to work with in the booking process. We look forward to having her back! You will not be disappointed in hiring Debra for your next event.
Audrey Edwards | Business Development Executive at SERVPRO | Nashville, TN
Conscious Leadership training helped transform our team. We were introduced to Conscious Leadership in the middle of the pandemic. The work is extremely personal and different from any other training we had experienced before. It is not about content, it is about the context of your life. If you work the process - which Debra guides you and your team through - its worthiness will transcend your career and you will see changes in every aspect of your life. During the most challenging year, the Turning Pointe team took on a new mindset through the 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership. I believe it was divinely inspired timing as it gave us the tools to rise above both the common barriers of our mission and all the new ones delivered by the pandemic. Our commitment to awareness will have a lasting positive impact on how we grow our mission.
Carrie Provenzale | Executive Director at Turning Pointe Autism Foundation | Naperville, IL
Working with Debra has enabled me as a leader to go to the next level in understanding both of myself and how to motivate others even more. By exploring my Enneagram type coupled with the Conscious Leadership tools, I have greater knowledge as to how I can react in a better way to opportunities and stresses that present themselves. This has been a true gift, and I have enjoyed Debra’s coaching style and her passion for helping people live their calling.
Amelia Strobel | Global Strategic Insights & Innovation Leader at Mars | Nashville, TN
Initially working with Debra, I soon learned that I was part of the reason that I was not getting the results I wanted. Once Debra showed me how important being a conscious leader (present and curious to learn) is instead of the autopilot baggage cart leader, things started to look up. With Debra’s prompting my senior managers started to gel as a team. We have much work yet to do, but I am finally seeing the leadership potential of each team member emerge. And let’s not forget the work I will be continuing to do with Debra: learning to become the best possible conscious leader of my team! To any leader who has drama and nonsense in the workplace, stop the madness now and improve productivity, worker well-being, longevity, and bottom line by working with Debra Sunderland.
Peter Holsten | President at Holsten Management | Chicago, IL
I am happy to have the opportunity to recommend Debra as a leadership and professional coach. Debra provided coaching to both our leadership team members as well as individuals, and I participated in both. The work is challenging and thought provoking and it is work that produces results. After group sessions, I noticed the change in how people communicated and how they addressed issues and concerns. Debra guided me to a place of self-awareness where I could identify areas for growth and potential. Her coaching is not a lecture on how to change, but collaborative work on breaking down habits and conditioning to focus on your ability and choice to be a great leader and teammate. Extremely valuable time and experience for leaders and teams.
Kerry Straub | Investment Management Operations & Senior Manager at Morningstar | Chicago, IL
Debra is an excellent and intuitive speaker. As a board member of a local women's bar association, I worked with Debra to plan her presentation at a recent symposium for female attorneys. Debra went beyond our expectations and provided a thought-provoking and memorable session where attendees were encouraged to respond and engage with her and other attendees. Debra is an effective communicator, which is exemplified in her presentation skills. Debra gave attendees a brief introduction into conscious leadership, and I personally left inspired to make changes in my work life. I would highly recommend Debra as a speaker at future conferences, lectures, or symposiums.
Samantha Simpson | Assistant Attorney General and Adjunct Professor | Nashville, TN
Debra has fundamentally changed how I think about leadership, my team, and myself. My leadership team and I started working with her about two years ago. In that time, I've grown into leading from heart and gut - and not just the head. I've experienced more energy and joy in my work. I've learned that the world and events aren't happening "to me" but that my perception of them sculpts my reality. Debra is incredibly empathic, kind, and loving yet simultaneously direct, challenging, and inspiring. I'm proud to say I've shed quite a few tears during and after my sessions with her as I've realized new things or grown in new ways. Our team has a higher cohesion and level of trust than I thought possible in a professional setting. I highly recommend Debra if you have the courage to grow. It won't be easy, but it will be worth it.
Tyler Etters | Vice President at Highland Solutions | Chicago, IL
I've worked with Debra in both one-on-one and in group settings and have found her guidance and expertise to be extremely useful and thought-provoking. Debra is an excellent listener and uses that amazing skill to help you identify what you really want and are really good at. The principles she has reminded/taught me have been helpful both personally and professionally. Equally as important is the high level of energy she brings to her work every single day.
Dimitri P. Eliopoulos | Chief Executive Officer at Curi Capital | Raleigh, NC
I was not sure what to expect from our management retreat with Debra, but every member of our senior team was blown away and left eager to continue working with her. She swiftly identified long-standing issues and perceptions that prevented us from working together as an effective team. Using empathy and understanding she gave us several tools we could use to reduce conflict. We're grateful to have discovered someone who can accompany us on the path to becoming more conscious leaders and in the process, reduce the stress and strain that is a byproduct of managing and living an unconscious life.
Rob Gordon | CEO & President at Nashville Public Radio | Nashville, TN
I have been working with Debra one-on-one for a few months now. It’s almost hard to put into words the profound impact our work has had on me as a Leader and as a Person. Debra has a remarkable way of leading conversations to help create self-awareness around the source of behaviors and beliefs. Through our collaborations, I feel I have begun a transformative journey with a whole new perspective on what makes a great Leader. I am always excited to meet with Debra. Her compassion for people and her passion to spark change and awareness is contagious. I would recommend Debra to anyone who is looking to go beyond business as usual and make a meaningful impact as a Leader.
Howard A. Weiss | President at Esser Hayes Insurance Group | Naperville, IL
I am very grateful for the time spent with Debra. She has been a huge blessing in my life and I cannot overstate her impact. Limiting beliefs that I have clung to for years have been called into question and our exploration together has led me to realize how many things have been holding me back. The lens that I look through now is very different. Possibilities and opportunities appear limitless now.
Allen Carter | Executive Director at UBS | Chicago, IL
I began working with Debra two years ago. In that time, I became clear on my own personal "why" and what the true nature of our business is. That clarity has enabled me to lead the organization from a place of curiosity and wondering that has fostered creativity and growth in the business. I am much more focused on the "why" of our business, which is about relationships and connections, than the "how" of our business. As a result, I'm less in the weeds - less stressed, less anxious, and more trusting that "what is" is what "should be." I'm more present to our clients' desires and more conscious of the business dynamics that hold them back and propel them forward. I am more candid, both with clients and staff, and fear less the result of candor, for I know the cost of withholding is far greater. This shift has freed our amazing team to live in their genius - to show up for our company and our clients with all of their abilities. As a company, we stand in who we are much more comfortably today, and we know sooner and with greater confidence when we meet potential clients who will be a good fit. We're protective of our culture and all that it enables, and we celebrate our awesome work.”
LoriLee Sadler Bielski | Managing Partner at Gamma Partners | Bannockburn, IL