Focus of the work
Consuelo was already succeeding in her role by nearly every metric, so we didn’t focus on “fixing” her approach. Instead, we went beneath surface behaviors and leadership tools to support her in finding her center and leading with greater clarity, presence, and steadiness under pressure.
Our work empowered her to:
- Delegate more effectively without losing integrity or care
- Find a more sustainable pace without sacrificing impact or care
- Shift from scarcity-driven leadership toward team trust and resourcefulness
- Reduce internal stress and fear-based urgency
- Lead with greater groundedness, discernment, and agency
Our engagement blended a somatic approach with practical leadership inquiry, facilitating real change in how she led her organization day to day.
Measurable outcomes
Across six leadership dimensions, Consuelo rated improvement in every area. All outcomes were self-reported on a 1–10 scale at the beginning and end of the engagement.
Individual areas of growth included:
- Resourceful, trust-based leadership: 40% improvement
- Pacing and sustainability: 75% improvement
- Decision-making clarity and reduced fatigue: 300% improvement
- Engagement with peer support and leadership community: 25% improvement
- Reducing daily stress: 30% improvement
- Creative and joyful expression at work: 300% improvement
These gains translated into visible changes in how she led—delegating more effectively, making clearer decisions, and showing up with greater steadiness and confidence.
What shifted
Over the course of our coaching, Consuelo reported clear, tangible shifts across every leadership goal we tracked. Here are the core transformations Consuelo experienced:
Increased trust, delegation, and shared leadership
Early on, Consuelo described making nearly every decision herself. Over time, that began to change:
“I used to make every decision on my own. Now I’m genuinely grateful not to have to.”
She moved from closely holding decisions herself to experiencing real relief and support from her leadership team—allowing her direct reports to lead without micromanagement and experiencing greater ease as responsibility was shared.
From fear-based urgency to inspired perspective
She noticed a shift in what was driving her leadership decisions:
“I’m coming more from how great things could be, instead of how awful it would be if this doesn’t work.”
She recognized that worst-case thinking had a place in long-term planning—but no longer needed to dominate her daily leadership experience.
Clearer decision-making and less fatigue
Rather than treating every issue as equally urgent, Consuelo began pacing decisions more intentionally:
“If I get a hard question at 4pm, I don’t force myself to answer it. I come back to it at 10am when my brain is clearer and more capable of tackling nuance.”
This helped reduce rumination, improve clarity, and conserve energy for the decisions that mattered most.
Sustainable pacing without losing commitment or care
One of her early fears was that slowing down would mean “not caring enough.” That fear turned out not to be true:
“Now that I stop working at 5:30 and don’t check email at night, I know for a fact that I care just as much.”
She began recognizing that much of the pressure to respond immediately was self-imposed—and that while the work matters deeply, not everything required instant action.
Developing discernment helped her pace herself without disengaging from impact.
Identity separation and leadership maturity
A meaningful shift came from disentangling her sense of self from her role:
“If this job didn’t exist, I’d still be someone who cooks, dances, and creates. This isn’t my entire identity.”
This allowed challenges and mistakes to feel less personal and supported a more grounded, accountable response to leadership complexity.
She also recognized her own agency in how she is perceived and known—understanding that people can only respond to the parts of her leadership she made visible.
Final reflections on my approach
Consuelo entered coaching unsure of what to expect from my blend of strategic and somatic coaching, anticipating it might focus only on “letting go” or abstract tools and frameworks.
What stood out to her instead was the combination of depth of support, space to truly pause, and compassionate challenge—which helped her make immediate improvements to her team and organization, as well as consistently tap into her own truth and lead from a more balanced, effective place.
Our work supported her in finding a leadership style that felt like her own and made a real difference for La Peña.
She also recognized her own agency in how she is perceived and known—understanding that people can only respond to the parts of her leadership she made visible.
“What felt so heavy at the beginning now feels lighter. I’m carrying the work differently.”
– Consuelo Tupper Hernàndez, Executive Director, La Peña Cultural Center
No great leader does it alone.
Hi, I’m Caitlin. I’m a leadership and executive coach with 20 years' experience inside fast-growing startups and mission-driven orgs, where I helped build systems, strategy, and teams across operations, HR, brand, marketing, and communications. I’ve advised CEOs and senior leaders responsible for teams of six to nearly 2,000, making and influencing decisions that directly affected staff and culture.
I also care deeply about empowering women and femme leaders to build capacity, agency, and presence—because sustaining yourself inside this work is a crucial part of honoring your mission.
If you’re curious or want to learn more, let’s start a conversation.
Schedule a 30-min call >
"Working with Caitlin made a tangible impact on our organization...
delegation with my leadership team is easier and more effective, and we’re sharing responsibilities and operating with greater trust and grace...I'm more confident in my ability to lead well. I’d recommend Caitlin to anyone navigating the complexity of leadership roles—juggling the many levels of responsibility leadership demands is hard! Caitlin brings the joy back to it."
– Consuelo Tupper Hernàndez, Executive Director, La Peña Cultural Center
