Colin Steele
Coach and Editor
I help leaders hear themselves think — out loud and in writing.
About
I help leaders hear themselves think — out loud and on the page.
I believe that words and ideas matter, that clear writing is a result of clear thinking, and that clear thinking is a result of open and honest inquiry.
Unsurprisingly, this has led me to teaching, coaching, and editing.
My coaching style and skills are rooted in Seth Godin's altMBA and Akimbo Workshops. What I've learned from those workshops as a student and especially as a coach is that my work is not about having the answers, but about asking questions and holding space for people to think.
In addition to a coaching posture, I bring a copy editor's eye and a developmental editor's discretion to all work with the written word. I don't write for my clients, but I work with them as they craft more tuned and effective prose than they believed they could. My previous editorial projects have included books, articles, websites, investor materials, application essays, and more.
When I'm not coaching or editing, I'm usually cycling or cooking.
Coaching
LEADERS NEED TO BE ABLE TO HEAR THEIR OWN VOICES
Leadership is known as a lonely role for good reason. You might be the face and voice of the organization, but it's hard to find time and space to hear your own voice — or to sort through all the voices that might be competing in your head.
You'll always be heard by others, but where can you go to hear yourself clearly?
Space to Think
I create and hold space for leaders who grow by hearing themselves think aloud.
If you'd value some time on your calendar to work through the ideas and questions that only you can work on but which you don't want to work on alone, I'd be happy to create that for you.
If you'd like to schedule a discovery conversation, please get in touch.
This tends to work best for intuitive verbal processors who appreciate open inquiry in both directions. It's not for bros who already know — but of course you knew that.
Editing
I also help people hear their own voices on the digital or printed page.
From website copy to investor prospectuses to monographs, writing is often the medium of first and lasting impressions. And for writing that counts the most, the audience that counts should not be the first.
If you'd appreciate an unstuffy editor who's dispassionate about your sentences but invested in your success, please get in touch.
Though I welcome editorial requests from coaching clients, the only prerequisites are a quiet ego and a willingness to do the work.
Get in Touch
The best way to get in touch for coaching or editorial inquiries is by email.
Please send a note indicating which service(s) you're considering, plus some context to help me understand what you'd like to work on.
I look forward to chatting.
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PS: The Covid-19 crisis has been especially challenging for many of the leaders I serve — people who are already hard at work building a new and better normal for us all to look forward to.
But we need to make it there first, and it won't be easy. For the foreseeable future, our task is to keep ourselves, our loved ones, and our businesses as healthy as possible.
There's no telling how long this might go on, but it is clear that our best bet is to go together. Therefore, prices will be flexible during this crisis.
Stay healthy, and please reach out if I can be of service.