Figure out what you want. Learn how to go get it.
From wondering to working.
The first job search is the one nobody teaches you how to do. Most young adults reach graduation with a degree and no real idea where to point it. Joan helps them figure out what they want, then helps them go get it. She meets clients where they are, whether that means starting out or starting over.
“A recruiter finds you a job. Joan teaches you how to find your own.”
Two Decades Guiding Young Adults Through the Decisions and Skills That Shape a Career
For twenty years, Joan has helped young adults find the confidence to make the decisions that shape a working life, and the skills to follow through on them: where to go to college, what to study, how to land that first real job. Career coaching is the same work she has always done, picked up at the moment a student walks into the professional world. Most coaches start with a resume. Joan starts with the person.
That is why every client engagement begins with the Birkman, an assessment Joan is certified in and one used by more than 10,000 companies. Most tests tell you what you do. The Birkman tells you why. It identifies the conditions where you do your best work and the ones that wear you out, so everything that follows is built on real information about how you operate.
Joan has also been on the other side of the desk. She holds an MBA from Northwestern and reported for Fortune Magazine before holding leadership roles at Time Warner and AOL. She has hired and managed people, so she knows what a hiring manager considers. She has stayed close to that world ever since, and built a network across industries that she shares with her clients.
Joan's Methodology and Process
The methodology is rooted in the same five steps, with the nuances and approach tailored to each client based on their Birkman results. Twenty years of coaching young adults tells Joan where to push and where to ease off. The five steps stay the same. Each plan is built around the person.
The Birkman Assessment
Everything starts with the Birkman. Joan walks you through your results and translates the insights into clear direction for everything that follows. Learn more about the Birkman →
Self-Discovery and Storytelling
Using her own proprietary exercises and questionnaires, Joan helps you build your personal story and personal brand: a working bio, an elevator pitch you can take into real conversations, and language for talking about yourself in applications, interviews, and networking.
Search Strategy
Joan has spent years in business and years coaching students through this, with a network of connections across industries. She knows which jobs look good on paper but feel wrong in practice, and helps you spend your time where it counts.
Outreach and Networking
Outreach and accountability are part of the process. Joan checks in and reviews every message before it goes out. Together, a personal networking strategy takes shape, creating connections that lead to real conversations.
Interview Prep and Landing
Mock interviews until your answers sound like you, with the confidence to walk in and use them. After you land the job, Joan stays on through your first few weeks in the role. Most coaching ends at the offer. Joan keeps going.
Two ways to start.
The Career Starter Toolkit is a structured launch pad: the Birkman, two coaching sessions, and your core materials, including a professional resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile, plus email templates and direct support from Joan. Explore the Toolkit →
Career coaching goes further. It is the full job search, from strategy and outreach through interviews and the offer.
Not sure which one fits? That is what the first call determines.
The Six-Month Engagement
Career coaching with Joan is a six-month engagement, sessions bi-weekly. If you are still searching at the end of six months, you can continue with Joan on a monthly retainer. Sessions are sixty minutes. The first session is ninety, to walk through your Birkman results in full.
More than resume help
Joan helps young adults figure out what they want and how to go get it. She is calm and steady, which makes the harder questions easier to ask and the weekly work easier to sustain.
Young adults come to Joan when they:
- ›Feel overwhelmed by the options and have no idea where to start
- ›Want more than a paycheck and care what they do all day
- ›Are trying to connect their experience to real openings
- ›Need structure and accountability to stay on track
- ›Want a plan tailored to them rather than a one-size-fits-all program
- ›Want someone who has worked in the professional world and stayed close to it, not just studied it
What you take away:
- ›Clear direction and a short list of roles that fit you
- ›A personal story and personal brand (resume, LinkedIn, bio, and pitch) in language that sounds like you
- ›A targeted search plan and a working professional network
- ›Interview skills you own and can use under pressure
- ›A Birkman report you will reference for years
What Working With Joan Looks Like
Coaching is one on one, in person on the North Shore and around Boston, or virtually from anywhere. Most clients start the same way.
A First Conversation
Joan listens before recommending anything. The first call is short and focused on whether the fit is right.
Start With the Birkman
If you move forward, the Birkman happens early, before any work on materials or strategy. The conversation around your results sets up everything else.
A Plan That Fits You
Joan builds a working plan around your goals and what the Birkman shows about how you operate. The five steps are the same for every client. The plan is yours.
Common Questions
What is career coaching?
Career coaching is the work of figuring out what kind of job you want, then getting clear on what that job calls for and how your existing skills line up with it. From there, Joan helps you build the materials and language to land it. She pairs the Birkman assessment with twenty years of guiding young adults through the decisions that shape a working life. Every engagement is built around the individual rather than a fixed program.
How is career coaching different from working with a recruiter?
A recruiter fills a role for a company that hired them. Joan teaches you how to find your own. Her clients walk away with skills and confidence they keep using for the rest of their career, well beyond the job they land first.
Who does Joan work with?
Joan works with college students figuring out their first move, recent graduates trying to land that first real job, and young adults starting over because they want something different from where they began. Most clients are in their early to mid twenties.
What is the Birkman Method?
The Birkman is a professional behavioral assessment used by more than 10,000 companies. It identifies the conditions where you do your best work and the ones that wear you out. Joan is a certified Birkman professional, and every career coaching engagement starts with it.
How long does career coaching with Joan take?
The standard engagement is six months, with bi-weekly sessions. Clients who want continued support after the engagement can extend on a monthly retainer. Sessions are sixty minutes. The first session is ninety, to walk through your Birkman results in full. Between sessions, Joan is available by text or email for check-ins whenever a decision or opportunity comes up.
Is career coaching virtual or in person?
Both. Joan meets with clients virtually from anywhere, and in person on the North Shore of Massachusetts and around Boston.
What is included in career coaching?
A Birkman assessment with a full results review, two to three tailored resumes, a custom LinkedIn profile, a working bio in long and short versions, an elevator pitch, a cover letter template plus one fully custom letter, proprietary self-discovery exercises, mock interviews, and Joan reading every outreach message before it goes out. After you land the job, Joan stays on through your first few weeks in the role.
What are Joan's credentials?
Joan holds an MBA from Northwestern and a B.A. from Middlebury College. She is certified in the Birkman Method, Myers-Briggs, the Strong Interest Inventory, Academic Life Coaching, and Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction. She is a member of IECA, HECA, and NACAC. Before coaching, she reported for Fortune Magazine and held leadership roles at Time Warner and AOL.
How much does career coaching cost?
Pricing is shared on the discovery call. The scope of the engagement matches what you need, so pricing is a real conversation rather than a fixed package on a webpage.
How do I get started?
Book a discovery call with Joan. The first conversation is short and focused on whether the fit is right. From there, the Birkman happens first, and your plan is built from what it shows.
Experience Behind the Coaching
B.A., Middlebury College
MBA, Northwestern University
Birkman Method Certified Professional · Academic Life Coach (ALC) · Myers-Briggs · Strong Interest Inventory · Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction
Birkman Method · Strong Interest Inventory · Myers-Briggs
IECA (Independent Educational Consultants Association) · HECA (Higher Educational Consultants Association) · NACAC (National Association for College Admission Counseling)
Former Fortune Magazine reporter; leadership roles at Time Warner and AOL.
Ready to Take the Next Step?
Whether you’re launching your career or figuring out your next chapter, Joan is here to help you move forward with purpose and clarity.
