About Dave Schoof
WHO AM I?
My story:
When I first identified the Disquiet in myself, I had just arrived at work, parked in the parking lot. I couldn’t take my hands off my steering wheel. I sat there. I couldn’t go in. Finally, after what seemed like hours I drove home and called in sick. I knew I was in trouble. I needed help.
That was fourteen years ago. My life looked to the world as having all the trappings of success: rising in a solid career, a great salary, a killer benefit package, a family, a great house in the suburbs. And I could care less. After all that hard work to get where I got, I should have felt like king of the hill. I made it. But I felt empty and confused about feeling that way.
While trying to sort this out, someone told me about a coach that had helped him. So I started a journey that had me leave behind a lifeless career, completely redesigning my life, learn how to get where I wanted to go and how to get back on course when I drifted.
Eventually, I became a leadership coach and developed an extensive and diverse portfolio of middle and top executive clients in the federal government and private sector. While working with executive men, I began to see the patterns of this unease and became fascinated with it.
I am now focusing my practice on this Disquiet in men. In 2006, I started an ongoing study interviewing professional men about their Disquiet. (You can get an initial report about this for free, by clicking here.)
I have been trained in the best methodologies for learning, growth and change available. I know what it takes for a person to change in ways that stick. And I have a lot of experience that you can read about below.
As a result of engaging my own Disquiet, and doing this work, I have a great life! I live in the country not far from the Potomac River where I enjoy kayaking and hiking. I have 2 amazing sons and a wonderful woman with whom I share my life. I enjoy finding ways to drive them crazy. I’m pretty good at it - you can ask them! I have dogs that rule the home – or think they do, deer and wild turkey visiting my garden and the sounds of birds to greet me every morning.
I find ways to contribute and give back including helping a poor family get a fresh start, teaching meditation to different communities, volunteering with a men’s group and doing pro-bono work for special situations. This has provided a richness that compliments the gratitude I feel.
Do I still have Disquiet in my life? From time to time, yes. I have learned to pay attention to it and use it as a signal for me to look at how my life is going, and with help, navigate the new course I set. In fact it was exploring a period of Disquiet that led me to creating this focus on working with men.
And the "Official Story"
I am a Washington D.C. based international consultant who has helped executives and leaders communicate more effectively, build trust, work with cynicism and resistance, navigate transitions and improve personal effectiveness.
I have over 14 years experience in serving the federal, corporate and non-profit sectors. My clients include: Fannie Mae, NASA, Booz Allen Hamilton, ASH, Gettysburg College, ARIN, NRTC, US Department of Veterans Affairs, OPM, the Department of Justice, and the US Department of Health & Human Services.
I have developed organization-wide internal coaching programs for a federal agency and for Booz Allen and Hamilton. I served on certification committees for two coaching schools: Integral Coaching Canada, Ottawa; and New Ventures West, San Francisco. I am certified as a Master Coach by the International Coach Confederation (ICF) and an Integral Coach by Integral Coaching Canada and New Ventures West. I serve on the faculty for the Presidential Management Fellows Program.
Contact me soon to arrange a phone meeting to explore your interest and my availability.
