You’re here to stand out.

Don’t let words get in the way.

I want you to be seen for all that you are.

We are more than the sum of our parts.

Your company is not an inventory of its niche, products, services, or values. And we as people are not our resumes, job descriptions, expertise, or skills. We are how we show up for others: the critical difference we make, everywhere we go.

The right words make the argument for the good that you can do for others. It’s not about marketing. It’s about freeing you to step up and into yourself; into full ownership of your purpose, power, and value. And it’s the heart of what I do.

“Jean changed the course of my life in the most interesting way. She's magic, with the extraordinary superpower that gives people back themselves.”

— Cat Lindsay, Founder, Cat Lindsay Designs

Magic happens when you shift the focus from nuts-and-bolts to why your work matters.

Your story can be about something bigger than what you do. It can be an invitation into the world you seek to create. And it can make people want to be a part of it.

Building meaningful connection sets you on the path to doing your best work, and more of it.

 Services

  • I lead the way when the positioning, narrative, messaging, and culture need to catch up with the world as it is — or as you want it to be, once your work is done. I bring executive teams and key stakeholders together to talk about their work, and why it matters. Because there’s nothing for us to brand or communicate if we don’t know what’s important. 

    This is the path to breakthrough differentiation, and it is the hallmark of my work, whether we are realigning a brand, or overhauling it from zero.

  • Whether as part of the team, or leading it; building the brief, or executing against it, I have a track record of helping people break open the tough nuts; for finding a new way through when the old paths no longer serve.

  • As coach and mentor, I lead career-changers, job-hunters, entrepreneurs, emerging leaders, and folks navigating major life passages through an intensive process of rediscovering themselves, and reclaiming their power.

    I also offer Tarot sessions for people who are stuck trying to make a decision, or take action in a given area of life or work. Tarot is a great tool for helping us to set aside our bossy, thinking brains and to tap into our inner knowing.

  • I partner with market researchers and innovation-insights-UX teams to bring bring data and information to light, and to reveal the human story within it. I also lead and facilitate workshops, off-sites, and strategy sessions that are as engaging as they are productive.

  • COMING SOON. You asked. I listened. They’re coming. Get on the mailing list now to stay on top of the schedule and offerings.

I help architects, designers, non-profits, innovators, entrepreneurs, and creatives crack the code that reveals their unique identity.

  • Jean recognized that for us the task was not so much about reinvention as it was refocusing: taking the raw materials and putting a knife-sharp edge on them...she gained the trust of our whole team by listening before talking, respecting everyone’s input and eventually guiding us expertly to an outcome that was rational, honest and self-evident.

    Gerry Jue, Founder/Managing Principal, BAMO

  • Jean is a genius strategist who helped me clarify my story and how I go about telling it. It nails the essence of what I do. Working with Jean was pure pleasure. I felt the time was sacred. She’s brilliant and insightful and will help you see what you can’t see in yourself.

    Cat Lindsay, Founder, Cat Lindsay Designs

  • Jean has supported teams throughout the organization, giving time and space for different perspectives, bringing leadership together ...We are stronger, more focused, and more alive in our purpose because of Jean’s talents and hard work.

    Amy Stanfield, Chief Operating Officer, Vitamin Angels

  • For six years at J.M. Smucker, I relied on Jean to lead brainstorms and facilitate complicated discussions. She consistently guided our teams to new ideas or more thoughtful, productive outcomes. Even when I thought the assignment was akin to squeezing blood from a turnip, Jean found a way to elicit new ideas.

    Sarah Miller, Consumer Strategy, San Francisco

  • Jean is one of the most critical and poetic thinkers I have met. It was really amazing to see her at work. I am better for it; we all are. I am so grateful to her for pushing KSP on really thinking about, and finding the right words for, who we are and what we want to be.

    Sara Lundgren, Partner, Krueck Sexton Partners

  • The branding and messaging framework Jean helped us to develop is holding up beautifully. I use the work we did literally every day, and I especially appreciate the process that she went through more as time goes by.

    Jennifer Reik, Director of Marketing, Cal Performances

My clients share an optimism: a conviction that things can be made better. It’s not about being “competitive.” It’s about enlisting clients, colleagues, and communities in a vision of what could be.

Get Ready To

Shed Imposter Syndrome
Enough with the corporate ventriloquism and cookie cutter narrative. Your story will come straight from your lived experience, your relationships, your unique POV — not from an app, a thesaurus, or guesswork.

Be Heard and Seen 
Generic labels and lingo-as-usual are a ticket to blending in with the crowd. We will dig deep to uncover fresh language, insights, and themes that bring to life just what sets you apart. 

Skip to the Good Part
We all know that hit-and-miss feeling of “explaining” what we do. The door to genuine connection opens when you focus on the deeper impact of your work, and what you can do for others.

Save Time and Effort
With a well-structured, clear narrative to frame the argument, creating communications, presentations and proposals won't require constant reinvention of the wheel.

Make Better Choices
A solid story keeps you honest. It helps you to align your choices with your goals, to engage people who share your vision, and to say “no” to opportunities that just aren’t a good fit.

Be Your Own Expert 
Identity isn't fixed. Nor are stories. They need to grow as we do. This work is designed to be a repeatable experiment, so your story can evolve and change along with you.

Just to be clear.

Purpose is your connection to something greater than yourself.

It’s not a banner hung over the door; it’s a truth written on your heart. Purpose is your personal sonar. You know when you’ve hit something juicy, because you can feel it deep in your bones. And getting to know it gives you the power to live into it.

“Jean has this uncanny ability to draw you out, and to find little nuggets of truth. Sure, she’s a great writer, but it’s about how she engages you. She helped us to discover what is important to us, and to appreciate what we're actually doing.”

-Nick Ericson, Ericson + Co. | Skåne, Sweden“