I’m Dana
A transformational coach, changemaker, modern mystic, and wildly passionate lady boss devoted to helping you remember and become who you really are, not just who you were taught to be.
A born and raised Valley Girl with a keen eye for forging my own path, grooving to my own tune, and having big dreams for humanity, I’m blessed to be of service supporting countless amazing humans in living genuine, purposeful and unapologetic lives.
By genuine, I mean designing your life around the truth of who you really are.
By unapologetic, I mean releasing the internalized stories about how you should be and instead live with liberation and pizazz. Yeah, I said it…pizazz.
Through my work as a coach (and previously as an activist and organizer), I support ever-evolving souls like you in finding clarity, courage and inside-out transformation in work, life, love and leadership. It’s the best.
So How In The Hell’d I Get Here?
I’ve been a big ol’ tenderheart for as long as I can remember. As a young person I was so curious about people’s motivations. Why were some people so kind and generous and why were others seemingly mean-spirited (I found out later it’s because of pain and fear)? I mean, what compels any of us to make the choices we do?
In trying to answer those questions, I found my way to activism. I’ve never had a problem following my passion (boundaries…another issue, but passion? Nerp.) and I expect I never will.
In 2004 with the burgeoning war in Iraq, I found my way to the women’s anti-war group, CODEPINK. And so I gave the better part of my twenties to the streets to try and stop the Bush Administration from destroying, well, everything.
In my service to end war and elevate women’s voices, I did things like: midwife an anthology of some of the most brilliant women on the planet; live in New Orleans post-Katrina relief to organize locally; drive a vanload of Iraqi women from NYC to DC for a nationwide tour of Iraqi Women’s Voices; and perform a live citizen’s arrest of Karl Rove to a sold-out Radio City Music Hall audience (lost my favorite shoe that night). All of it was necessary and humbling and altering.
And then I burned out.
I was bad at saying no. I had lost touch with my own needs and desires. I believe and now know that there are ways to care for yourself and to be wildly present…whether it be for a moment or a movement.
I said a prayer to help me find a way of being that could help me fulfill my purpose and know myself. I found it with the women of We Got Issues (a training institute for the empowerment of young women led by Rha Goddess and JLove Calderon) and in Gail Straub and David Gershon’s Empowerment Methodology, that I now teach and use as a coach.
It was during Occupy Wall Street (best believe I was all up in that mix) that I realized my personal growth was the asset that folks were craving.
People Want To Heal (Or At Least Feel Good)
Sometimes they didn’t know how to heal and sometimes they didn’t even know how to make the space to see they needed it…to make themselves a priority. And I watched our thriving social movements suffer because of that inability. When we can’t love ourselves, or even really know ourselves, it’s so much harder to hold up the world.
I learned how to articulate and make space for my own vision for my life. And because I could do that, I could enroll other people into supporting and co-creating with me. Every beautiful thing I have in my life I owe to the experience of truly understanding my inner nature and having the tools to heal and shift what wasn’t working anymore.
Special Note: I’m not perfect. I make mistakes. I have crap-taco days like everyone else. But I’m committed to bringing you the very best of my critical thinking and feeling — even if in slightly goofy and bizarre packages.
I curse. I quote Beyoncé. I deal in ritual. I ask really good questions. I make you dance. I tell you I love you. I get on your level. And we make magic.
Here’s What It Comes Down To
We belong to each other. I believe we live in a culture where the myth of separation is rampant and we have to work damn hard to see each other and ourselves. Only once we see ourselves and fall madly in love and (in trust) can we bridge the divide.
We create a more resilient, generous and loving society by becoming more resilient generous and loving people.
To get a taste of what I have to offer you can download my audio training and guided meditation “How to Slow The Eff Down (and get the life you really want)”. You can also check out my praise page to get a sense of what my clients have thought about our work.
Whew! Ok! If you made it all the way down here, THANK YOU.
I bow to you.
I love you.
I honor your journey.
It’s unique. It’s necessary.
Your only job is to appreciate it.
