Facing Transitions: 1:1 coaching for senior leaders and business owners
Get to the other side of your transition. Steadier, and sooner.
A new role. A growing team. A decision you can’t take back.
Facing Transitions is focused 1:1 coaching that helps you stop circling the change and start moving through it, so your best energy goes into the work ahead, not into second-guessing it.
30 minutes. No cost.
You’ll leave knowing your next steps, whether or not we work together.
Does any of this sound familiar?
“I’ve got the new title. Now I need to show I belong in it.”
“I want to make a strong first impression, without anyone seeing me second-guess myself.”
“I’m stuck. No matter what I do, nothing changes, or it just gets more complicated.”
“I’ve already spent money on solutions that didn’t change a thing.”
“I keep waking up at 2 a.m., rehearsing the same decision over and over.”
“The business is growing faster than my plan for it.”
Transitions come in many forms: a new job or promotion, a step toward the C-suite, a team that’s growing or being reshaped, a business entering its next stage, a decision that will set the direction for years. Whatever form yours takes, it asks more of you than your job description ever did.
The highs and lows are normal. Riding them alone for months is not a requirement.
Why waiting costs more than you think
The first weeks of any transition carry extra weight. The impressions you make, the habits your team picks up, and the first decisions you take tend to become the shape of everything that follows. Every week spent circling the change is a week of your best energy going into worry instead of work. And if you’ve already spent money on fixes that didn’t move anything, you know how costly guessing can be.
With a dedicated thinking partner beside you, the transition starts to move:
- You stop replaying decisions and start making them. Choices that were taking weeks get made in days, because you’ve tested them with someone whose only agenda is your success.
- You walk in knowing your first moves. New role, new team, new stage: you arrive with a plan, not a hope.
- You lead the way you want to be seen. Executive presence becomes something you build on purpose, not something you wait to be granted.
- Your team feels the difference. When you’re steady, the people around you settle faster too.
- You get your nights back. The 2 a.m. rehearsals go quiet, because the thinking is getting done in daylight.
This is how you trade the weight of the transition for the work of it, and reach the other side: with less strain and far less time lost along the way.
At the beginning of my coaching, I shared how I was having so much difficulty connecting with my target market and feeling like I didn’t fit in at networking groups.
Mona Baker,
I am so grateful to Catherine for her skillful insights that have become so transformational for me. I walked away with greater clarity of my target market and message. Now I am finally able to set a stepping stone pathway of opportunity into place to move forward in my business.
Actionomics Enterprises, LLC
Built for leaders who don’t have time to waste
Both programs are 1:1, fully virtual, and shaped around the transition you’re actually in.
- Focused coaching sessions with Catherine. 40 minutes, roughly every two weeks, booked ahead so your momentum doesn’t depend on a crowded calendar.
- SPARK™ Transitions Activities. Practical worksheets and tools selected for your situation, not a generic workbook you’ll never open.
- Just-in-time coaching between sessions. When something lands mid-week, bring it to your private coaching portal instead of carrying it for two weeks.
- Curated resources. Book summaries, articles, and checklists, chosen for where you are right now.
- Work from anywhere. Everything happens virtually, so the coaching fits around your life, not the other way around.
Two ways through. Choose the one that fits your crossing.
| Portage | Voyageur |
|---|---|
| For one clear change in front of you. | For the bigger crossing. |
| A portage is the stretch where you carry the canoe overland from one waterway to the next: short, demanding, and done with focus. This program is built the same way. You know what the transition is: a promotion, a new role, a team change, or a key decision with a deadline attached. What you want is to handle it well, and quickly. Portage gives you two months of focused coaching to work through that one change and act on it with a plan you trust. | The voyageurs paddled Canada’s rivers by canoe, carrying furs across thousands of kilometres, and were celebrated for their strength and endurance. They knew the route wouldn’t be easy. They also knew it was worth it. Voyageur is for the transition that’s bigger than a single decision: a shift whose opportunities and challenges you haven’t fully mapped yet. Over four months, we work on both sides of it. First, getting clear on what’s ahead before the change arrives. Then, staying steady and effective once it lands. |
| Length: 2 months | Length: 4 months |
| Coaching: 4 x 40-minute 1:1 sessions, about every two weeks | Coaching: 8 sessions: 7 x 40-minute 1:1 coaching sessions, about every two weeks, plus a 1:1 assessment debrief |
| DISC Leadership & Motivators assessment: a personalized read on how you naturally lead, communicate, and what drives you, so you can use your strengths on purpose in new terrain | |
| Tools: SPARK™ Transitions Activities chosen for your situation, plus curated resources | Tools: SPARK™ Transitions Activities and curated resources as you need them |
| Between sessions: just-in-time coaching through your private portal | Between sessions: just-in-time coaching through your private portal |
| You leave with: your first moves made, and made well | You leave with: the change navigated from both sides, and a leadership approach that fits who you are now |
Which one is you?
Portage is likely your fit if:
- You can name the transition in one sentence
- It has a clear start point, like a new role, a promotion, or a team change
- You want focused support to handle it well, and fast
Voyageur is likely your fit if:
- The change touches several parts of your work at once
- You sense opportunities and risks you haven’t fully mapped yet
- You want support before the shift and after it lands
Not sure? Good. That’s what the Ignition Call is for.
Many leaders discover in conversation that what looked like one change is really several, or that a big, tangled shift comes down to one decision. You don’t have to choose before we talk. We’ll work out the right path together.
Your guide for the crossing
I’m Catherine Rocheleau, MBA, VMP, founder of Ignite Leadership International®. For 30 years I’ve worked alongside senior leaders, executives, and business owners as a leadership and change strategist. I’m also an award-winning executive coach, author, and international speaker.
I’ve navigated my share of transitions, too. After an extended time away from my work, I came back, relocated to Victoria, and rebuilt. I know how disorienting the middle of a change can feel, and how much it helps to have someone steady beside you.
My belief is simple: the quality of your thinking shapes the quality of your outcome. My role is to make that thinking sharper, faster, and a lot less lonely.
Start with a conversation, not a commitment
Before you invest anything, you’ll know whether this is the right fit. Your Ignition Call is 30 minutes, at no cost.
Here’s what happens:
- We explore your transition and the parameters around it: what’s changing, what’s at stake, and what’s making it hard.
- We talk through your next steps and which path, if any, fits.
- If you decide to move forward with me, we get you started.
Either way, you’ll leave with a clear idea of the steps to take next, even if we don’t work together.
FAQs
Where do sessions take place?
Everything is virtual, so you can join from your office, your home, or wherever the transition has taken you.
What’s the investment?
We’ll cover this on your Ignition Call, once we know which path fits. Payment plans are available through our partners if you’d prefer to spread the cost.
What if I’m between the two programs?
That’s common, and it’s exactly what the Ignition Call sorts out. You don’t need to decide before we talk.
What happens when something comes up between sessions?
You don’t have to wait two weeks. Bring it to your private coaching portal and get just-in-time feedback while it still matters.
My transition hasn’t started yet. Is it too early?
No. The earlier you start, the more choices you still have. Voyageur in particular is designed to help you prepare before the change arrives.
Can my organization cover the cost?
Many leaders use professional development funds for coaching. If that applies to you, mention it on your Ignition Call and I’ll provide what your organization needs.
The other side is closer than it feels.
You’ve already done the hard part: you’ve recognized that this moment matters. The next step takes 30 minutes. Let’s look at where you are, where you’re headed, and the fastest steady route between the two.
30 minutes · No cost · Next steps either way
As a purpose driven business, we donate a minimum of 2% of top line revenue to charity.