Coaching Testimonials from Leaders

I’ve served over 300 leaders through 1500+ coaching hours and this much I know is true…

Individuals and organizations are bringing their full selves to work on a daily basis, yet they’re facing challenges — be it at the personal or corporate level — that leave them feeling unfulfilled, uninspired and out of alignment with their professional goals and values.

Yet, time-and-time again, my clients have shown up to examine their circumstances, look inside, and make strides in their career that create a positive impact on them, the people they touch, and the world at large.

I’m fortunate to have had the opportunity to serve the leaders who have kindly shared these coaching testimonials detailing what they experienced through coaching so that future leaders can get a glimpse of what it would be like to work with me.

If this resonates with you,I look forward to exploring how I can help you or your organization.

Client Outcomes from Coaching Experiences

After being miserable in his role for years, Bill secured a new role with a significant promotion and negotiated an additional $100K signing bonus as well as a more favorable stock allocation

Charlotte left an industry that didn't align with her values and started her own successful business, making more money and increasing her flexibility and happiness

Jacob stepped into a new leadership role and gained new confidence and clarity about what his leadership mission was, how he wanted to motivate his team, and why he was uniquely qualified for the role, setting the foundation for leadership success

Kelcy set her sites on a COO role. She earned it and then shortly after, moved into a CEO role.

And many, many more...

Client Coaching Testimonials

From Stuck to Inspired

Working with Amy wasn’t the work I thought I was going to do; it was the work I didn’t realize I needed to do. I went to Amy expecting to map out the next 5 steps to what I then thought was where I wanted my career to head. This experience truly changed my perspective on not just my career, but how my career fits into my life overall. Amy gave me the permission and the safe space to explore my strengths and passions and define my own vision of success. Inquisitive and insightful, Amy helped me uncover the ‘why’ of what excites and motivates me and helped me look for opportunities to grow in those areas. So much more than a career coach, Amy is a kind, patient and thoughtful mentor. If you’re feeling lost or unfulfilled in your career or held back in your current role - and aren’t sure what the right next step is - I’d strongly suggest connecting with Amy.

Marisa

Senior Director of Marketing

I can't say enough about my work with Amy! I'd had a brief taste of coaching and found that it was something I wanted to pursue on a deeper level as I take on greater leadership at work. Well, we got deep right away! Our work has left a permanent change in the way that I see my own leadership and the ways I best can use leadership to create lasting change. I feel more confident and know that my decisions are based on a framework that reflects my core values and beliefs. This was a great use of my time and will have lasting value. Highly highly recommend.

Jacob

Clinical Professor at Stanford

Customer reviews for Amy Sanchez Executive Coach

I find it difficult to put into words how grateful I am for deciding to explore coaching with Amy and having the opportunity to work with her. When we first connected, I was feeling dissatisfied with my career and struggling to identify the direction I wanted to take and how best to pivot. Amy not only made me feel comfortable from the start but also made me feel understood and gave me the confidence that she could help guide me in the right direction.

Choosing to take the leap and explore coaching with Amy was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I cannot thank her enough for all of her advice and support. I honestly do not know where I would be today had I not decided to embark on this journey with her as my coach. More than that, I appreciate all of the work we have done together and the positive changes I have seen in myself during the same period.

Knowing that I have Amy in my corner gives me an extra layer of comfort as I continue to push myself out of my comfort zone. From the work we have done together, I have gained more confidence and a deeper understanding of myself and my goals. I highly recommend coaching to anyone who feels stuck or uncertain about their life's direction. And if you are looking for a compassionate and competent coach, I cannot recommend Amy enough.

Kamil

Director, Private Capital

I highly recommend Amy Sanchez and Swim Against the Current. I came to Amy as I was trying to decide what to do next in my career. Through our sessions together, we identified what makes me happy at work and what would be my next ideal position. After working with her, I networked and was able to pivot my career and find a new position. It was incredible how her sessions, activities and guidance helped. If you're at a crossroads in your career and need objective guidance and advice, Amy is the person to go to.

Amy's coaching is amazing. She truly helped me in making a career change after being in sales for 23 years. Her coaching was thoughtful, sincere, and extremely insightful. 5 stars are not enough. Thank you Amy.

Carmelita

Head of Client Services, Healthcare

coaching-testimonials-amy-sanchez-swim-against-the-current-Kelcy Cheng

I just successfully launched my own company!!

That statement is something I never thought I would say, even in my wildest dream. I had always been a perfectionist and had to do “enough” to meet the unrealistic standard I set for myself. With that, I rose very rapidly and successfully in my career.
Sep 2020 was the time I decided to invest in myself and reach out for a coach’s support.

Amy stood out - She was personable, attentive, and relatable during our “interview session.” We kicked off the series of Career & Leadership Coaching with her guidance in my journey of setting healthy boundaries at work and self-discovery. Amy is always present, engaged, and highly empathetic throughout our series. Because of her extensive experience in the corporate world and working with different layers of leaders, she’s excellent at asking thought-provoking questions. They deepened my self-awareness and empowered me to take charge of my life.

In 2021, I again engaged with Amy for a series of Executive Leadership coaching to embrace my leadership style so I could lead with conviction focusing on my communication style, delegation technique, and positive self-narrative. I gained a deeper understanding of my strengths and how to lean into them. We wrapped up our series with me being promoted to the COO at work; that was a career goal I set for myself when I embarked on the corporate journey – and I did it with Amy walking alongside me!

2022, I am working with Amy again! This is our third partnership – from career coaching to executive leadership to entrepreneur leadership coaching. I have gone from feeling stressed and inadequate to completely unburdened, having a lot to offer and 100% honoring my values.

Amy has been instrumental in my professional and personal self-discovery journey. She helped me discover my strengths and the belief that I am genuinely a unique leader. Amy was that honest, unbiased person who helped me see myself, trust myself, and feel blessed to make a more significant impact because I am different. I’ve found fulfillment both at home and at work. I am enough. And that, for a chronic perfectionist, to me, is a true success!

If you are at a crossroads, hit a rough patch in life, or are wondering if coaching is right for you, I strongly recommend reaching out to Amy. It is a life-changing learning journey and the best gift you can ever give yourself.

Kelcy

Corporate COO turned CEO of her own company

It was a challenging year work-wise, on a mental/motivational level. I just felt very discombobulated. The team was in a state of flux with return-to-work, integrating many new hires, and adjusting to a new leader. We had a lot of top-down curve-balls and I felt like I was always attending to the latest fire.

At the same time, I really felt myself pull back from work, almost in a defiant way. I didn’t work much on weekends or at night. I didn’t catch up 100% on my emails when I came back from vacations. That’s when I hired Amy- who was incredibly helpful. She helped me transition from the “hustle” ethos of my old ways to embrace a new “flow” style of working - one that was more suitable for me.

She helped me see that my life was really out of balance, and that this was weighing me down and making me unhappy. There are so many aspects of myself outside of work that weren’t getting proper attention - fun, joy, romance, adventure, spirituality, beauty, rest. Not only is it OK to devote time to these areas of my life - I NEED to devote time to them.

THANK YOU for being such a great listener and coach to me. Your holistic/intuitive guidance helped me get to a much more balanced and happy place in my life.

Kate M.

Head of Business Banking, Private Equity and Venture Capital

I was referred to Amy after I had interviewed a handful of coaches. Her approach matched so well with my goals - to manage professional stress, to show up as my best self (both personally and professionally), and most importantly, to reintroduce work/life balance. She helped me identify at its root my purpose, and now am able to live that more consistently everyday. I'm a better person, father, husband, co-worker, and friend after working with Amy. It'll pay dividends for years to come!

Benjamin

Senior VP at Glacier Bank

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What do I do now? Who can help? Where do I go?

These were just a few of the questions I was asking just one year ago having learned that my role and responsibilities after 20 years were being eliminated.

I needed help. My traditional colleagues and mentoring network were useful, but my situation required a focused deliberate discussion on what is next and how best to proceed. It was time to find a professional Career Coach.

I had been following Amy Sanchez on LinkedIn due to the content of her posting being of interest and relevant to me. I reached out and we had an initial discussion to assess my situation and needs. This conversation confirmed Amy would be my immediate next step. It was her ability to ask the clear and succinct questions enabling me to begin designing what I wanted and desired next in my career.

We began a 6-month coaching journey just as I accepted a new role at new smaller organization. Our sessions quickly became a critical part of my path forward, accelerating my ability to add value with this new company. We covered many areas of my development, but most importantly re-enforced my strengths where I am unique and add value.

Today, it’s my 9th month anniversary with the new company and it has been successful. More than expected. First, I built a new team, I designed and staffed two new functional areas within the organization and have been promoted with additional responsibilities to further accelerate the company’s future growth. Lastly, the CEO met with me yesterday and shared much more is yet to come in the next 2 years and my career.

WOW, what difference a year makes!

I needed help thinking through what’s next, how to approach new opportunities and seize those opportunities with confidence, but also with a strategic plan.

Amy Sanchez was critical in career shift required over the past year.

Amy Sanchez does not provide you with THE Answer - she engages you to gain clarity of thinking, prioritization of actions, and ensures you are prepared and confident to owning your Next Steps of the career you choose to live.

Thank you, Amy, for the Coaching and the Partnership at a time when I was not prepared to address the career changes that I was facing.

I highly recommend Amy for your own personalized Coaching to achieve your aspirations and goals.

James

Senior Director, Incentive Comp at Gilead

coaching-testimonials-amy-sanchez-swim-against-the-current-Sara Bender

I was with the same company for 12 years and was presented with tremendous opportunity for career growth. At the height of the pandemic, I entered a role I was extremely passionate about, but I had two toddlers under two home with me and I worked from 7 – 7. At some point I just broke and started to spiral. Fatigue caught up with me and I started to reevaluate my day-to-day life and ability to continue.

I knew I needed to get some help, but I wasn’t exactly sure what that looked like. I had been toying with the idea of calling Amy for some time. We had worked together years ago and kept in touch. I followed her career coaching business on LinkedIn and saw her tremendous success. She seemed happy. I realized I was not. Maybe her personal clarity and purposeful career path could rub off on me.

Amy first helped me understand how underwater I was, both personally and professionally. She helped uncover the root cause to my overwhelmingly intense pace and she listened, closely. Through our dialogue I started to understand my tendencies, little things I accepted or pushed through that I needed to address. I made some immediate personal changes that freed up my mind to explore who I wanted to become next. I hadn’t lifted my head up from the grind in quite some time; she encouraged me to take a breath and open doors of possibility.

I started to get quite a few calls from recruiters. It was almost as if the universe sensed I was ready for a change. When the right opportunity knocked, I saw it right away. I had done enough pre-work with Amy to recognize that this opportunity fit my primary objective of being able to spend loads of time with my kids while also being challenged in a leadership role at work. I moved from a marketing position into corporate strategy and six months in, I definitely feel I have found my niche.

I cannot say enough positive things about Amy. She’s such a lovely combination of life and career coach. She recognizes how much the two intertwine and addresses her clients as a whole. I am so grateful for the kindness she showed while my life unraveled a bit and then started to come back together. She added just enough process and follow through to make our time together extremely successful, but left a lot of room for thoughtfulness and exploration. I will forever remember Amy as my guide out of the fog of this insane pandemic.

Sara

VP of Strategy, iRhythm Technologies

coaching-testimonials-amy-sanchez-swim-against-the-current-Twisha Anand

I would give Amy 10 stars if I could because that is where her coaching sessions have led me. We had a 12 week engagement and in this short time I discovered my sense of self, uncovered my strengths, and learned how to work on my areas of growth. Amy is very empathic, professional, and has the ability to steer you in the absolute right direction by asking the right questions that evoke the right answers from you.

Like a true coach she is not inhibited to show you the mirror when needed and steer you away from going down the wrong path. Amy worked with me to uplift me not only in my career but also in my personal life. The positive changes in me have been noticeable even to my family. I am glad I worked with Amy at this point in my career to map the path forward and to gain much needed self-confidence along with a huge promotion at work.
Forever grateful!

Twisha

Co-Founder & COO turned CEO

coaching-testimonials-amy-sanchez-swim-against-the-current-Robert Calvin

More than just coaching! There were a number of times during my 6 months of coaching with Amy that I asked if she had other clients that needed as much personal guidance as professional coaching, and after our giggles she would reassure me that it was all a part of my growth and the trusted process.

It is difficult to sum up how much Amy has done to help me and the impact that it has on my life. At a high-level, Amy gave me the tools to take stock in who I am, outline what I stand for and should therefore expect from people, and how to build my confidence and influence as a leader. While Amy is an amazing coach helping leaders be more impactful, she is also highly impactful helping her clients pivot from careers and roles when the signs are pointing in that direction.

Personally, I was getting lost on my journey given all of the conflicting signs I was trying to follow-along with. It was Amy that helped me narrow my focus on the route that brings me joy and personal gratification.

I feel confident that I am at the destination that I hoped to be at and am excited to start another journey with the navigation that Amy has helped me recognize was in my dashboard all along. I plan on keeping Amy in my life as I keep moving ahead.

Robert C.

Director of Talent

I worked with Amy for several months when I was considering whether it was time for a job change after many years at my current company. I found Amy to be an excellent listener and great at asking questions to help understand what motivated me and what professional situation I was really looking for. Amy was very good at helping me sort through pros and cons of various options and at offering advice with both professional decisions and some aspects of my personal life to enable me to better support my goals. Amy identified solutions that worked for me instead of just offering cookie cutter advice. I appreciated that she was very flexible and worked at my pace and was always available when I needed her help. Once I had decided to change jobs, Amy provided some extraordinarily helpful advice in negotiating my compensation. I learned a lot through working with Amy and know that her advice was timely, but will also serve me well moving forward. Overall, I am extremely pleased with my coaching engagement and with my new job and would recommend Amy highly for anyone considering a job change or career advice.

Bill D.

Chief Scientific Officer

What an amazing experience. I can't thank Amy enough for the direction she's given me, the empowerment and self discovery process, and the natural skill she has in progressing me to my full self ability and worth. I am honored to find such a treasure, a resource for my professional growth. I have definitely benefited and it was 100% worth the investment.

Sheng M.

Director, Stanford Health Care

Amy Sanchez is simply an amazing career coach! She has incredible skills in empathy, active listening, and an empowering coaching philosophy.

She takes you on a journey of career transformation that progressively builds on a foundation that she works with you to set from the beginning. You don't need to have all the answers. Working with Amy is a process of learning and self-discovery. Amy creates a safe space for exploration, and the result is energizing and fun.

My advice to someone considering working with Amy is to trust the process, do your best to put yourself fully into the process, and communicate your thoughts and feelings with Amy so she can help you in the best way possible. I'm truly grateful and appreciative of Amy's coaching!

Ben G.

VP of Product Management

I am so grateful to have found Amy. When we met, I was in a professional rut struggling to identify solutions for the barriers that overwhelmed me.

Through our sessions, I've learned to show up for myself with confidence and create a toolkit for managing stress both personally and professionally. She has held me accountable on this journey and celebrated each of my successes along the way. I have been moved by her balance of patience and motivation in helping me uncover my strengths and opportunities. As we close our sessions together, I feel clarity and understanding of who I am and reconciliation within myself that I didn't know was possible.

Amy's approach is like nothing I've seen before, and the intentional nudge with which she pushed me towards my purpose has changed my life. I would recommend Amy to anyone who is seeking greater fulfillment in their lives, she is one of a kind!

Emily S.

Head of Events

Amy helped me navigate a career transition and job search. She guided me through several exercises to uncover my core values, strengths, and life goals. Through the process Amy was an incredible listener, often replaying my comments to help me discover patterns that I might not have recognized on my own. Later she helped me to craft an ideal job/company/culture profile that I then used to conduct a targeted job search. When I started actively interviewing, she provided coaching and tools that helped me stay true to my core values while evaluating employment offers. I ended up landing a great job! I highly recommend Amy if you are considering a job search and/or any type of career change.

Brian

VP Sales Operations

Amy helped me discover such important lessons about who I am and what I want to achieve. After working with her, I feel confident that I know what I am meant to do, what my career goals are, and how I am going to achieve them. I have a much deeper understanding of the factors of a job that matters most to me, and I even have a vision of what I’d like my ‘retirement’ to look like and a plan to get there.

Leslie

VP of Marketing at a Tech Company

Amy has helped me make a huge change in my career outlook, and we're not even done with all of the coaching sessions I signed up for! With every single session, she helped me build my confidence, unearth new insights about what has held me back before, and find clarity about my purpose and how I can align my values and priorities with my work. I would highly recommend her to anyone who is motivated to find more fulfillment in their careers, but is feeling stuck or lost. I now feel that I have a blueprint for moving forward and am confident I can make a successful transition to the next stage of my career.

Maggie T.

Lawyer

I initially reached out to Amy through a friend's recommendation when I was considering a shift in my career, and life felt especially uncertain due to the pandemic.

I knew Amy was good at what she did, and I planned on finding a more concrete path towards what I might want to do for a next career step. Instead, what I got was one of the most rewarding opportunities to re-evaluate my perspective on life-- rediscover my core values, my deeper purpose, and what truly defines my happiness.

It's challenging to put a value on such a profound experience, but through Amy's ability to empathize, while asking you to do some tough, but necessary digging, I can easily say my time with her was one of the best investment's I've made in myself throughout my life.

Alyce B.

Account Supervisor

With a career that felt like it was stagnating, I was looking for a change. I needed to find a way to break the cycle of frustration and lateral moves. I started working with Amy near the end of 2018. She helped me to assess my work situation in the context of my current job and past experience. This allowed me to figure out a path to resolve the issues that I had control over and mitigate the frustrations with the issues I could not control. The collaboration we had was excellent and she was quite insightful.

While I originally went into my work with Amy thinking that I would change jobs, I ended up negotiating a sizable raise with additional positive changes in my role. I also feel that I will be far better prepared for my next role because of the work I did with Amy.

Andy

Senior Director of Engineering

I was hesitant when seeking out Amy as a coach because I had never done this kind of thing before. I wasn’t even quite sure what I was hoping to accomplish. Amy quickly distilled these hesitations. She asked questions that challenged me, pulling me out of my comfort zone and guided me. This was exactly what I needed, without realizing it. I came away tools to better manage my day to day and propel me forward. I recommend her to anyone who is seeking clarity, whether it be professional or personal.

Kerrie

Sales/Marketing

Working with Amy is a treat. She's a great coach who strives to understand my background, ask thought-provoking questions, and guide me to identify my obstacles in a non-judgemental way. I feel very comfortable discussing challenges that might hinder my personal and professional growth. Amy is also very good at keeping a focus on our conversation so it would result in assignments towards achieving the grand objective- a fulfilling life and career. I thought I could rely on my friends and family to provide feedback and advice in life, but I certainly benefited from Amy's fresh perspective and approach.

Michael

Entrepreneur

My career thus far has encompassed numerous roles which have given me the opportunity to pick up new skills as well as expand my portfolio to cover a myriad of job functions. Through all this, I felt that I was missing a key ingredient that would help me determine where to steer my career path. Instead of being a ship sailing at the mercy of the wind, I wanted the ability to steer my future on a course that I would chart.

I engaged Amy Sanchez as a Career Coach to help me understand a basic question, "what's next?". Through our sessions, Amy and I delved into the mechanics of what motivates me, what I am looking for and how I could progress towards my goals. What I received was more than the typical exercise to update my resume and draft a really jaw dropping cover letter. These sessions went beyond the norm to help me better understand how my career has progressed and how to move forward. A map has many points and through these sessions I was able to identify the right points to connect to in order to chart my career path.

Engaging in career coaching often carries a stigma that it is only for those individuals who are in a dead-end career. I can attest that the statement is untrue. Sometimes you just need someone to help you remove the noise around you so that you can see clearly. Amy can help you with that. Her techniques, tips and feedback empower you to do more. If anyone is looking to get a fresh perspective on where they are with their current careers, then I would highly recommend that you engage Amy for coaching. Your journey should only end when you want it to.

Razief

Implementation Manager at AT&T Singapore

Amy is a fantastic coach! I was looking for help with fears and confidence issues with a career change--specifically leaving my steady paycheck job to launch a business closer to my heart. I worked with Amy for 3 months+ and learned something important about myself with each session. Along the way, she helped me voice my own answers to blocks that were preventing me from fully embracing the next steps I envisioned. Armed with specific tools and a deeper understanding of my skills and value, I now have an action plan in place that will enable me to launch my new business imminently. If you are searching for a career coach, I can't recommend Amy's coaching services more emphatically!

Judy

Associate Director, Stanford turned Entrepreneur

Meeting with Amy was an incredibly helpful experience. Not only did she make me feel comfortable sharing a great deal about myself and my struggles, by the end of our conversation, but she also gave me the clarity I needed to feel confident in my decision. I’m so glad she’s a trusted resource for me now.

Courtnee

Principal Evaluation Consultant at Kaiser Permanante

Amy and I began working together in August of 2018. Needless to say our partnership has been amazing. I have worked with many coaches over the last few years and I can honestly say that her approach is exactly what I have needed.

Amy's approach is very steady. It is very apparent that she prepares for our sessions together. I have had moments of difficultly remembering what her and I have spoken about, but she has an uncanny way of keeping the totality of our work very present in each conversation, which enhances my own personal accountability and leverages my life & career initiatives.

I tend to prioritize others' needs before my own which slowly starts to result in me losing touch with my own needs. Amy's coaching helped me remember why it was important to tend to myself first and as a result, I've made some tangible changes that enable me to better care for all around me, including myself.

If you are on the hunt for a coach to help you in any form of career transition, who keeps you on track, is steady, and holds you accountable each session, look no further than Amy.

Nicholas

Chief Petty Officer, U.S. Coast Guard

Amy is an amazing coach. I came to her seeking help with some struggles I was having at work, but what I didn’t expect is that I needed guidance in my personal life as well. She is extremely amiable and has the ability to connect with her clients quickly and to begin work with them at whatever stage they’re in at the time. She is trustworthy, always encouraging, and a patient and insightful guide through life experiences in pursuit of goals and dreams. She also offers good value and high integrity. Every session was therapeutic and eye-opening, however, I had to work at it every day to see the results and improvements. The homework Amy assigned during each session were relevant to push me forward, to get me to the place I needed to be and feel positive.

Nicole

Higher Education Administration

Working with Amy was extremely helpful as I was navigating a reoccurring challenge at work. Through her thoughtful and methodical process, she helped me to reframe my interpretation of the situation to one that was less stressful and daunting. Amy helped me hone in on the root of the issue and create an action plan to improve the situation almost immediately. Now, a challenge that used to constantly plague me has significantly lessened and I am able to move forward and focus my time and attention on other areas.   I truly appreciate Amy’s straightforward coaching approach and keen business sense. I wholeheartedly recommend Amy to anyone looking for a career reboot!

Haley

VP of HR at Blue Shield

Starting my career as a corporate lawyer in the UK, I moved to the US, launched a business, and then had my first child. Although I loved aspects of what I was doing work wise, I was struggling to identify the next steps in my career and was feeling increasingly frustrated.

I decided working with a career coach would be a sensible approach in aiding me with finding clarity and I picked out Amy to help me!

I had the pleasure of working with Amy for over 3 months, and I can't express how impactful her coaching sessions were. Amy helped me to identify the type of work I loved to do most, what industry I should operate in, and what my overall values and vision were (in both life and in my career).

Working with Amy has unlocked so much energy and excitement about my future career steps, at a time when my energy levels were feeling depleted.

I wholeheartedly recommend Amy to anyone who is struggling to answer "what should I do in life".

Charlotte

Lawyer turned Entrepreneur

Working with Amy has made me realize that I never really defined my end goal which is why I wasn’t finding it. She’s helped me identify what I want in life overall. There’s something very powerful about Amy’s style that completely put me at ease and helped me be really honest with myself. I call it “the magic of Amy” and I’m so glad I decided to work with her! She’s truly gifted and one of a kind!

Sally

National Accounts Director at Johnson & Johnson

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