Take Your Life to the Next Level
Find Success on Your Own Terms
This is my story. Sound familiar?
Welcome to Honestly Esquire! My name is Adria Gulizia, and I am so glad you are exploring taking control of your future through coaching, conflict transformation or a consulting relationship. I'd like to tell you a bit about my story. Maybe parts of it are your story, too.
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After graduating with with my bachelor's degree, I chose my future by process of elimination: I didn't want to be an academic, I wanted to do something meaningful, and I didn't want to be broke. Like many excellent students who don't know what they want in life, I applied for law school. After my first year, I drifted into my first job much as I had drifted into law school, interviewing with top firms because that was what students at schools like mine did.
I didn't have a goal. I didn't have a plan. I didn't have a purpose.
As an associate at a large law firm, I experienced firsthand the challenge of balancing the pressures of a demanding profession with relationships, family life and physical, emotional and spiritual health. I experienced the overwhelm, isolation and uncertainty that came with lack of clarity about my personal and career goals. Then, more painfully, I experienced the anxiety and discouragement of finally knowing where I wanted to go, but not really believing I could get there.
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Guides, mentors and allies were invaluable during that period, but I would have saved so much time and heartache if I had been more intentional about discovering my purpose and committing to it. Only when I took the time to craft a vision of my future could I begin taking steps to make it a reality.
I am passionate about helping my clients do just that: turn their struggles into opportunity by diving deep into their own stories to discover their deepest values, goals and dreams - and then fearlessly reflecting those priorities in their lives.
Are you ready to live the life you were made for?
The Power of a Narrative Approach
A Client-Centered Process of Change
Diagnostics. Affirmations. Power poses. Many coaches rely on the same rigid process and limited array of tools for every client - and for the people they work with, maybe that's enough. But you are an accomplished individual on a unique journey. You don't have a cookie-cutter life.
Why should you settle for cookie-cutter coaching?
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As a Narrative Coach Enhanced Practitioner, I am committed to walking alongside my clients on the path of authentic human transformation. That path isn't about "techniquing" you to death with tests and exercises. It`s about acknowledging where you are, envisioning where you want to go, and empowering you to use the strengths you already have to get there. We accomplish this by working with your story in a way that honors every aspect of who you are - personal and professional, body, mind and spirit - leading to client change that is faster, easier and more sustainable.
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A narrative approach puts the client at the center - right where you belong.
My Mission:Â Your Purpose
Qualified. Experienced. Engaged.
Choosing the right coach, consultant or conflict ​resolution specialist is the first step in getting the positive results you are looking for. Of course, no individual can be reduced to a page of text, but I would like to give you a sense of who I am and what I can offer you:
I graduated from, and earned honors at, some of the most prestigious educational institutions in the country - Phillips Exeter Academy, Washington University in St. Louis and New York University School of Law - and have been admitted to several more, including Columbia, Stanford, Yale and Harvard (twice).
After successfully completing a challenging assignment as a Teach For America corps member, I became an attorney. I reached the level of senior associate at a white-shoe Manhattan law firm, where I was the second-most senior African-American associate in the United States at the time of my departure.
I am a trained coach, having successfully earned the designation of Narrative Coach Enhanced Practitioner.
I am a professional mediator and conflict resolution specialist, holding the title of Assistant Director of Community Programs at a non-profit mediation center.
I am a mother and intimately familiar with the unique challenges of balancing professional performance with family life.
I am skilled at cross-cultural communication, having worked closely with people from every region in the United States, and having lived in several myself. I have also lived internationally and possess the sensitivity required to engage respectfully with individuals from varying backgrounds.
As an active member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), I honor the faith journey that many of us pursue, across religious traditions and denominations. I also honor the value and spirituality of those who are not affiliated with a religious community.
While the narrative and understanding-based approach that I take to my work means that my effectiveness does not depend on shared life experience, my personal and professional background does give me particular insight into many of the challenges my clients face. I am committed to leveraging all of my experience and expertise to help you live into your purpose and make your goals a reality.
The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity.
The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.
Winston Churchill
Get In Touch
Want to hear more about how I can help you take your life to the next level? Are you interested in consulting or conflict transformation services? Contact me now to schedule a conversation.
212.634.9392
