Sometimes life cracks us open.

Other times, it calls us deeper.

Either way, the invitation is this:
to move closer to what feels aligned, alive, and ours.

To be of service with our unique gifts.

To speak and act from a grounded center.

To feel at home in our own skin.

To tend relationships that are generous, generative, and reciprocal.

To live more boldly, more bravely - in full color.

Maybe you're at a crossroads in your work or life. Navigating complexity that defies simple answers. Ready to question inherited patterns and live in greater alignment. Wanting to be led by desire rather than fear.

Wherever you are is where we begin…

What Is Coaching?

Think of coaching as thought partnership for navigating fundamental questions about how you want to live and lead.

We’ll work together over months, weaving together deep excavation, creative exploration, and wise action. Sometimes you’ll need to talk things through. Sometimes we’ll explore through making or writing. Sometimes we’ll just sit with what's emerging.

I'm not here to give you answers or fix you. I AM here to help you discern what's true, question what you've inherited, and figure out what you actually want to do about it.

We go deep. We get creative. And then we figure out how insights become action in your real life today, tomorrow, next week.

Together we might explore…

Your Work and Leadership

Maybe you're stepping into a bigger role and your old playbook is calling to expand. Maybe you’re finding your voice in spaces that weren't built with you in mind. Maybe you want to lead in ways that feel like you, not like someone else's template.

Your Life & Identity

Maybe you're at a crossroads where the life you built doesn't fit anymore. Or trying to integrate the different parts of who you are - your cultural identities, your professional and personal selves. Maybe you're ready to design what comes next with intention instead of defaulting into what’s familiar.

Your Expression and Contribution

Maybe you want your work, your writing, your leadership, your creative practice to actually feel like yours. Or you're tired of performing or playing small. Maybe you want to contribute meaningfully without burning yourself out.

Coaching might be for you if…

You're at a real inflection point, questioning fundamental things about how you want to live and lead
You want to go beneath the surface, not just collect tips and tactics
You're tired of compartmentalizing and leaving parts of yourself at the door, choosing between authenticity and success
You trust your intuition, your body's knowing, and what emerges through creative practice - not just thinking harder
You care about alignment between your values and how you actually live, lead, and parent

What People Are Saying About Coaching

"Working with Alice helped me integrate aspects of leadership I had been taught to suppress particularly my intuition, my emotions, my lived experience as a woman of color. By reconnecting with my inner wisdom, I've become a more effective and authentic leader."

-Victoria, Founder & CEO

"Alice sits with me in beautiful and uncomfortable realities. She helps me imagine possibilities I can't yet see. Working with her is one of my greatest joys. She enriches my life, “gets” me, and asks fabulously intuitive questions."

-Jenn, Consultant, Author, Mother

“Trough insightful questions, provocative exercises, and an earnest ear, Alice has helped reveal new dimensions to my values, holdbacks, and dreams. She challenges and affirms me in equal measure. Through our work, I’ve become a more grounded human, father, and leader. I’m navigating the sometimes heartbreaking realities of the world with more hope, compassion and creativity.”

-Rob, Founder, Strategist, Father

The Practicalities

How it Works

Start with a consultation to explore whether we're aligned. Investment varies based on scope and length. We'll discuss this in our consultation.

If we work together:

Meet every 2 weeks for 55 minutes
Typically 3-6 months minimum
Video and/or phone calls with asynchronous support between sessions

Our rhythm evolves based on what you need.

Are you the coach for me?

It’s a good question, and I'm glad you asked.

My style and approach often resonates with women, leaders from underrepresented backgrounds, third culture individuals navigating multiple worlds, and people who've spent years overriding their inner knowing.

If you're walking in two worlds at once - the one we're living in and the one we're trying to create - and you know that personal transformation isn't preparation for collective change but part of the work itself, we might be made from the same fabric. Let’s chat and see.

I'm Alice Chen, and I've been in human development work for 18+ years—starting in education and community organizing before moving into leadership and personal development.
I hold a Bachelor's degree in History, Geology, and Theatre (yes, all three) and a Master's in Education. I'm a Certified Professional Coach (CPC), a yoga teacher, and I have certifications in everything from trauma-informed coaching to strengths-based development. I'm also a mentor coach, which means I train other coaches in their craft.
I've worked with Fortune 500 executives navigating complex leadership challenges and with people rebuilding their lives after major transitions. My clients have ranged from tech founders to mothers reentering the workforce, third culture individuals to leaders of color in predominantly white spaces.
But here's what matters most: I'm also a creative with my own daily making practices. I sew most of my own clothes, knit, create art, and approach life as an ongoing design project. This isn't separate from my coaching work—it's integral to how I think about transformation. I believe we become different by doing different things, not just thinking about them differently. So my approach weaves together reflective practice, creative exploration, embodied work, and multiple wisdom traditions.
The people who work with me tend to value this integration—they want someone who understands both the strategic complexity of leadership and the messy, creative process of becoming.
Both. I don't separate professional and personal; we work with the whole of who you are.
Therapy is clinical healing work with licensed mental health professionals. It’s often focused on diagnosis, treatment, and processing past trauma. Coaching is creative partnership focused on growth, transition, and building forward. I'm not a therapist, and if you need clinical support, I’m happy to direct you to people I know who do this important work.

That said, I'm trained to hold deep emotional work. We'll touch tender places. You might cry. We might work with grief, anger, longing. I can be with all of it. And I'm also attuned to when we might be approaching clinical territory. If I sense you need therapeutic support I haven't been trained to provide, I'll name it and help you find the right resource.
Many people work with both a therapist and a coach. They complement each other beautifully: therapy for processing and healing, coaching for building and becoming.
My approach integrates reflective work with creative and embodied practices. I draw on multiple traditions, and I'm not neutral. I'll reflect back honestly what I hear, offer perspective when appropriate all while inviting you to claim what feels true for you.
No. Some come when things are falling apart. Others when things are going well but something deeper is calling. The thread is you're ready for fundamental questions and committed to seeking your own answers.
Investment varies based on scope and length. We'll discuss this in our consultation.