About
I was good at the job that wore me out.
Now I help people who are 10+ years into a career they were good at, and tired of guessing, build the next one on what they already know.
The short version
I stayed way too long.
I started in higher ed, running leadership education and civic engagement programs. Then I moved into customer success and instructional design at an EdTech company. I was good at all of it.
My company won Best Place to Work. Then came the org updates, the layoffs, and my boss going out the door. My workload quadrupled and I was told to be grateful. I quit four months later.
What I wish somebody had told me is that being good at something and wanting it are two separate questions. I built everything I teach to help people answer both.
Today I'm a burnout and career pivot coach, a speaker, and the host of The Balanced Badass Podcast®. I've spent 15+ years in leadership development and coached 100+ clients since 2025, most of them people 10+ years in who can't tell if the problem is them or the job. I also work with teams on the roles and structures that wear people out.
My own pivot
Every stop gave me something to carry.
Most of what I do with clients is point out how much of the last job comes along to the next one. Here's my own list, oldest first.
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Where it starts
Student
Graduate, undergraduate, high school, middle school, elementary school, and preschool. Every non-linear career starts with being a student, and it's okay to be new at something and still figuring it out.
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Graduate school
Graduate assistant for student government
I handled conflict and tension in group settings, built structure for student organizations, and noticed the patterns in what kept going wrong so I could adjust the system.
Took with me: looking for the pattern before blaming the person.
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First full-time role
Director of student activities
I ran a portfolio of programs and events from start to finish, supervised and coached student leaders, and negotiated contracts with vendors and performers.
Took with me: coaching people while the work is happening, and asking for what the work needs.
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Next
Residential learning coordinator
I handled high-emotion situations, built relationships fast, and planned community-building and educational programming.
Took with me: staying steady in a room where somebody is upset.
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Moving up
Assistant director of leadership and service
I built partnerships with community organizations, marketed programs so people would actually use them, and set up feedback channels so each round could be better than the last.
Took with me: good ideas still need an audience, and the audience will tell you what's off.
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Higher ed, the long run
Director of leadership and civic engagement
I managed a web of stakeholders, designed and delivered leadership programs, and coached people through resistance and change.
Took with me: resistance usually has a reason, and it's worth hearing before moving on.
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The EdTech years
Client success manager
I asked better questions to diagnose the need, facilitated live training and demos, and built content that cut down on repeat questions.
Took with me: diagnosis comes first, and the advice comes after.
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Same company
Instructional designer
I translated expertise into clear frameworks, diagnosed learning and behavior gaps, and wrote tight scripts and microcopy that got people to act.
Took with me: a framework is only useful if somebody can use it on a Monday morning.
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April 2024
The quit
The layoffs happened, the workload quadrupled, and I was told to be grateful. I left four months later, and by then I'd forgotten what I was good at. I felt defeated and short on confidence.
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Now
Career coach and multi-hyphenate content entrepreneur
Burnout and career pivot coach, speaker, and podcast host. Nearly everything above turns up in a coaching call, usually before I notice it.
Hi! I'm Tara. We spend too much time at work to be miserable.
Get to know me
A few ways I'm built.
These explain a lot about how I run my calendar and my calls.
My top 5, from GallupCliftonStrengths is a Gallup assessment that ranks 34 natural talents from strongest to weakest. Mine lean toward structure and finishing things, with a soft spot for getting along.
- DisciplineI like structure, routine, and a plan with clear steps. It's why my frameworks have numbered parts and my calendar looks the way it does.
- AchieverI have a steady drive to finish things, and a day feels complete once something real got done. That's probably why my programs have a start and an end.
- HarmonyI look for common ground and would rather solve a disagreement than win it. In a session, that means helping people say the hard thing without burning anything down.
- ConsistencyI care about fair treatment and clear rules, so everyone gets the same shot. It's a big reason I look at how workplaces treat people, and not only at how people cope.
- LearnerI enjoy the process of learning as much as whatever it leads to. You'll see it in the research behind my content.
Working with meExpect clear steps and real follow-through from me, and a calm hand when a conversation gets tense.
My top 5, from the VIA Institute on CharacterThe VIA Survey comes out of positive psychology research. It ranks 24 character strengths, the qualities you tend to bring to anything you do, and these are my top five.
- Love of learningI like mastering new skills and topics, on my own or in a class. I started out as a student, and I never really stopped.
- PrudenceI think ahead and choose carefully, so I'm unlikely to say or do something I'll regret. It's also why I tell clients to test a pivot before they quit.
- HumorI like to laugh and to bring some lightness to the people around me. Burnout is heavy enough without a stiff coach.
- LeadershipI like helping a group get things done while keeping good relationships inside it. After 15+ years in leadership development, that's no surprise.
- PerseveranceI finish what I start, even when it gets harder than I planned. It took me a while to see that the same trait can keep you in the wrong job.
Working with meExpect curiosity about your situation, care with big decisions, and some humor along the way.
Type 5 with a 6 wingThe Enneagram is a personality system with nine types, each built around what a person most wants and most worries about. I'm a Five with a 6 wing, which people write as 5w6.
- The Five in a lineFives are the researchers of the Enneagram. We gather information, think it through, and then act, and we like to feel capable before we weigh in.
- How that helps as a coachI listen first and advise second. I prep for every session, so your time goes to your situation and not to catching me up.
- What the 6 wing addsSixes are the loyal planners who think about what could go wrong. It gives me a backup-plan mindset, and it keeps me in your corner when a decision feels risky.
- A growth edgeFives tend to hold back what they know until it feels finished. I'm still practicing sharing earlier, and I recognize the same habit in clients who research forever and never start.
Working with meI'll do my homework on your situation and stay loyal to your goals, and I'll push you to test things sooner than feels comfortable.
From my MyHumanDesign chartHuman Design is a personality framework that blends astrology, the I Ching, the chakras, and the Kabbalah into a chart built from your birth date, time, and place. Plenty of people use it to reflect on how they work best. Here's mine, for fun.
- Type: ManifestorManifestors are described as initiators who start things without waiting to be asked. A person who walks out of a job and builds a business, a podcast, and a cohort fits the description.
- Strategy: InformingA Manifestor's strategy is to tell the people affected before acting, so nobody feels blindsided. It's one reason I like clear expectations up front.
- Profile: 3/5, the Great Life ExperimenterThe 3 learns by trying things and finding out what doesn't work. The 5 is the practical problem-solver people turn to when things go sideways. I've tried a lot of paths, so a client's crooked one doesn't rattle me.
- Authority: SplenicDecisions arrive as a quick gut read in the moment, and it doesn't repeat itself. I've learned to take that first read seriously.
- Signature: PeacePeace is what this type feels when things are working. Anger is the signal that something is off, so I treat it as information.
Life theme: Right Angle Cross of Rulership (22/47 | 26/45). In Human Design, this is the theme of your life's work. Mine is about gathering people and resources around something I'm building, and doing it with some grace.
Working with meI'll tell you up front what's coming, and a path with detours won't make me flinch.
CliftonStrengths® is a registered trademark of Gallup, Inc. This page is not sanctioned or endorsed by Gallup in any way. VIA Character Strengths results come from the VIA Survey. Human Design details come from my chart on MyHumanDesign. The descriptions of each strength are my own summaries.
Good to know
A few things before we talk.
Where I live
The NC coast, with my husband and five dogs. My clients are all over the world.
School
Virginia Tech for a BA in Communications, with minors in Psychology and Sociology. Then an MEd in Higher Education Student Affairs from the University of South Carolina.
Before coaching
Leadership education and civic engagement in higher ed, then customer success and instructional design at an EdTech company.
On my own since
April 2024. My LLC started in February of that year and my first paying coaching client came in April 2025.
You may have seen me in
Indeed, Newsweek, Fast Company, Inc., Nasdaq, and YourTango. More than 205,000 people follow along on social.
The podcast
The Balanced Badass Podcast®. A new episode comes out every other week.