Instinct for Impact
Instinct for Impact
Next Chapter Leadership Coaching
Coaching for experienced professionals ready to build momentum, focus their energy, and increase confidence, and turn it into a practical plan they can actually execute.
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"Across 20 years as a Talent Acquisition leader
You're at an Inflection Point.
You've Built a Career. Now Lead at a Higher Level.
You're a high performer — a senior IC, manager, director, VP, or founder — and something has shifted. Maybe you've hit a ceiling. Maybe the environment has changed and your instincts are telling you there's more. Or maybe you've been wildly successful and you're ready to ask: "What does my highest-impact chapter look like?" The answer isn't a new job description. It's a deeper understanding of how you operate — and how to use that to lead with more clarity, confidence, and force.
Misaligned or Underutilized
High performers who feel out of sync with their environment, their team, or the level of impact they know they're capable of.
At an Inflection Point
A promotion, a pivot, a new challenge, or simply the moment you realize your current approach isn't taking you where you want to go.
Ready to Lead Differently
You've navigated success and dysfunction alike. Now you want to lead with intention — building on your instincts rather than working around them.
What Changes
More Clarity. More Confidence. More Impact.
?
Years of Experience
New or experienced leader? Your history is your unfair advantage — together we will unlock it.
3
Core Outcomes
Clarity on direction. Confidence in decisions. Momentum to move with intention.
25+
Years Advising Leaders
My background in high-stakes team-building and leadership transitions informs every session.
You don't need to reinvent yourself. You need a clear line from where you are to where you want to lead — and the energy and instincts to walk it. That's what my approach delivers.
You already possess the cheat code for impact. But the code is more complex than it was when you first read or wrote it. Your next chapter promises a new, more nuanced reality — and you're looking to create impact at a higher level, in life and at work.
How It Works
Head, Heart, Hands
I've spent 25 years watching talented people get ground down by systems that never asked the right questions. Most coaching teaches you what to do. I'm more interested in what you already know. My belief is that clarity, confidence, and momentum don't come from external frameworks, but from tapping into the wisdom, values, and instincts you already possess. I'm a Seer, not a Soldier – I see what others miss because I listen for the signals beneath the noise. I help you discover the insight (you already possess) into what drives you.
🧠 Head - What's your unfair advantage?
I believe your greatest advantage isn't something to be learned, but something to be uncovered. It's the unique wisdom that already lives inside you, waiting for the right conditions to emerge. The question I ask is:

"What do you know that you haven't said out loud yet?"
❤️ Heart - Why do you show up every day?
Your "heart-set" – your values, your identity, your core "why" – isn't a soft concept; it's a powerful signal. It's the internal compass that tells you when you're on purpose, and when something is deeply, fundamentally misaligned. The question I ask is:

"What does it feel like when you're doing work that matters?"
🤝 Hands - How do your unique instincts drive you?
Your instinctive operating style, your "how," is often so natural to you it becomes invisible. It's the secret ingredient in your secret sauce, defining your unique impact. Yet, it's often the very thing that needs conscious examination when the path ahead demands a change. The question I ask is:

"How do you actually move when the plan breaks?"
The Approach
The Plot Written Backwards. Built Around Your Wiring.
I learned the best business lesson in life during university: "the best plots are written backwards," said my drama professor, a hippy playwright. This truth has fueled my own journey, through career pivots and into the core of my coaching practice today.
My belief is simple yet profound: most people already know where they want to go. They simply haven't been asked the right question yet. My role isn't to hand you a framework, but to ask the question no one else has asked – the one that unlocks the wisdom, values, and instincts you already possess.
Just as "interviews don't reward muscle memory, they reward articulation," I've found that true clarity emerges when we bring your unspoken wisdom into the light. Through the lens of your Head, Heart, and Hands – your unique insights, your deepest values, and your instinctive way of moving through the world – we uncover not a generic path, but *your* unique operating system.
Perhaps you feel uncertain of your destination. But I'll bet you do know how you want to feel and the kind of life you want to live. That inner knowing is the point. If you're not sure where you want to go, it may be because your current trajectory isn't taking you anywhere interesting.
This isn't about teaching you my "cheat code." It's about creating the space for you to discover yours – the one that creates impact and allows you to move with generosity and belonging. It's about hearing yourself, perhaps for the first time, in a way that allows you to define the future you actually desire.
The Written-Backwards Method
01
Name the End State
What does it feel like when you've arrived?
02
Trace the Path Back
Work backwards from that feeling to today.
03
Find Your Wiring
Discover the instinctive operating system you've been running on without knowing it.
04
Move with Intention
Act from clarity, not urgency.
"Do I Need a Coach?"
A Great Coach helps you Discover Your Own Wisdom
When you're facing a real career change — not just a new job, but a new chapter — it's easy to feel like you need help, but hard to know what kind. There are five types of people who can influence your path. Understanding the difference is a helpful step.

You may need a coach if...
  • 🎯 You're ready to take action, but aren't sure what kind
  • 🔄 You're already taking action and not getting the results you need
Not every kind of help is the same. Here's how a coach compares to the other four types of support - so you can find the right fit.
1
🩺 Therapist
Heals what's blocking you from taking action. Addresses mental health, clinical diagnoses, and the deep roots of why you can't take the actions you need to take.
2
🤝 Mentor
Challenges who you are. Someone you deeply trust - personally or professionally - who asks hard questions and helps you confront the weaknesses that may be holding you back.
3
🧭 Coach
Helps you empower yourself to take action. Asks the deep questions that help you surface your own wisdom, so you can move forward with clarity and intention. This is the sweet spot for career transitions.
4
📚 Teacher
Shows you how to use the tools. Guides you in developing specific skills: "I know how to use this. Let me show you how."
5
🔧 Consultant
Builds the tools for you. Does the actual work, delivering the frameworks, systems, or outputs you need.

A coach isn't here to tell you what to do. They're here to help you hear what you already know — and turn it into a plan you can actually execute.
Offer Packages
Three Ways to Work Together
Every engagement starts with a conversation. Where it goes depends on what you need — not what I've pre-packaged for you.
Next Chapter Reset
Best for: When you feel stuck, foggy, or like you're operating below your potential — and you're ready to find clarity and a fresh sense of forward momentum.
Format: 4 sessions (60–75 min)
Here, we explore the questions that illuminate your current situation, helping you pinpoint what truly matters and begin to envision a path to higher impact. You start to see beyond the immediate challenges and gain a renewed sense of direction.
This is often the primary entry point — where many clients begin their journey.
Next Chapter Blueprint
Best for: When you're seeking a more structured exploration of a significant leadership evolution, coupled with ongoing support and insight.
Format: 10 sessions (weekly/biweekly)
The work deepens here. We delve into your unique "wiring," tracing backward from your desired future to understand the instincts and values that will guide your next steps. You'll begin to craft your own compelling narrative for the future, informed by continuous reflection and discovery.
This is an ideal follow-on for those who have completed the Reset.
Instinct for Impact Intensive
Best for: When you need to accelerate your journey and gain profound insights in a focused, condensed timeframe.
Format: 3×90 min or half-day
This intensive experience is designed to rapidly unlock your inner wisdom. We'll collaboratively map your core instincts, connect them to your desired impact, and clarify the foundational elements of your unique operating system. You'll emerge with a powerful alignment between who you are and what you aim to achieve.
About Mike Lee
Coaching Informed by 25+ Years in the Arena
I've spent over two decades building teams, advising leaders, and helping organizations navigate high-stakes transitions in a wide variety of contexts as an entrepreneur/founder and as a leader at Menlo Ventures and The Home Depot. I've worked with 1-person pre-seed startups, scale-ups with product market fit, and I even built a 250-person $2.5B Fortune 25 business. I've seen what happens when talented people get ground down by toxic environments, misaligned roles, and systems that don't leverage their innate instincts, passions and abilities.
Instinct for Impact is the personal coaching front door of that work. This work is focused specifically on experienced professionals who are ready to choose their next chapter with intention. My approach is calm, practical, and direct. I won't give you concepts without application. I'll help you think clearly, move deliberately and (re)discover what you're meant for next.

"My coaching is informed by 25+ years building teams and advising leaders through high-stakes transitions."
Ready to Start?
The Next Level Starts with One Conversation
A 30-minute conversation costs nothing, yet it can be invaluable. It's a chance for us both to listen, to understand, and to see if there's a genuine connection — not just a transaction. The most important thing I can offer you isn't a framework. It's a straight conversation — one where you get to be heard, not pitched.
A Conversation First
Before we talk about where you're going, I want to genuinely understand where you are. This initial, free discussion is about listening, not pitching.
If It Fits, We Begin
When we decide to work together, the first real step is often the hardest — it's about clearly naming what's true for you right now, laying the foundation for change.
The Work Deepens
Some clients journey with me for months, evolving their leadership approach. Others return as new challenges emerge. This work isn't about quick fixes; it's a continuous process of growth, unfolding at your pace. Many who start with a "Reset" (25–40%) naturally progress to the full "Blueprint" when they're ready.
Frequently Asked Questions
Good Questions Deserve Straight Answers
Is this therapy?
No. This is coaching focused on decisions, direction, and execution. It's not therapy and it doesn't replace mental health care. If deeper clinical support is needed, I'll say so clearly and help you find it.
Is it confidential?
Yes. Everything discussed in sessions stays between us. Coaching conversations are held in strict confidence — this is foundational, not optional.
How long does this take?
The Reset takes 4 weeks. The Blueprint runs 6–10 weeks. The Intensive compresses the full Blueprint into a single focused sprint. Most clients feel meaningful traction within the first four sessions.
Who is this NOT for?
This is not for people looking for a job placement service, someone to tell them what to do, or those in an acute mental health crisis. This is for leaders ready to think clearly, decide deliberately, and act with intention — on their own terms. If you work with a therapist, I can be a very helpful complement as you create action plans.
Find Mike Online
Explore my insights, updates, and professional journey across various platforms. I share different types of content on each channel, offering unique perspectives and opportunities for engagement.