David Stamation, Executive Life Coach Most of us have either given it or been on the receiving end of it. Silence. Tension precedes it, and it culminates in the silent treatment. I was good at this. I could deploy the silence, the iciness, the emotional withdrawal to make a point I couldn't make with words. I could list all the ways I help clients work through it, but why not stick to my own experience and pull back the curtain? It's a vicious thing to do to another person, a

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach This question gained serious traction with the male participants at our recent annual Love Retreat. I asked it simply: are you a man of your word? You'd think the answer would come easily. It doesn't. I'm not talking about honoring your work commitments, showing up on time, or paying your employees every two weeks. Not insurance premiums or car payments. Those all share one thing in common: structure. When structure is present, keeping yo

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach The Home You Grew Up In Taught You Something. Is It Still Working? There are always moments of joy in my work with coaching clients. Then there are the nuggets. When a client declares an insight that cuts right through. His came mid-session: "Me being reactive is part of the problem." It landed hard in the way something true does. We had been exploring the turmoil at his dental practice. Yes, the employees are a factor. Insurance is a

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach A Warmhearted Report from our Participants Couples come to our annual Love Retreat for many different reasons. Some are simply curious about how to deepen an already strong relationship. Others are looking for new tools to communicate better or bring more connection and vitality into their partnership. And sometimes one partner hears about the retreat first and invites the other to join them in exploring something new together. Save the

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach Boundaries without values are hollow constructions. Most of us have heard it in therapy, in coaching, from a friend over coffee: "You need to set better boundaries." I've fumbled with this one myself and spent years exploring it, both personally and with clients. I was a man with almost no boundaries. It showed up as anger — sudden, uncomfortable, relationship-straining anger. Nobody wants to be around that. So, I started digging into my

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach When Everything Is Good and You're Still Waiting for It to Fall Apart I've said it myself. I hear it from clients regularly. Everything is going well in relationships, family, business, and yet when describing what's good, many add reflexively: "But I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop." Or its companion phrase: "How long can this last?" It's a pessimism many of us build into our outlook. A hedge. A guard against something we can't see

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach "Track Day in my Evo 9" "I love it when you are in your purpose." Hearing that from my wife felt great. Here's what was happening. I was getting ready for the season-opening track day organizing the road trip, booking a tech inspection at the shop and swapping brake pads in the garage. In the Pacific Northwest, all the tracks reopen in April after winter break. It's a decades-old passion of mine. And apparently it shows. Where We Get It

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach High achievers have a particular relationship with avoidance. It doesn't look like laziness. It doesn't look like fear. It looks like a full calendar, a long accomplishment list, and a life that, by most visible measures, is working extremely well. And underneath all of it, quiet, patient, persistent, is the thing you keep not doing. You know what I mean. Not the tasks. The other thing. The conversation that keeps getting rescheduled in y

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach I've been indecisive. For a long time I didn't think much of it. Then I started paying attention to the energy it took to carry it around. Every unmade decision sitting on a mental to-do list, quietly draining me. When I finally saw what it was costing me, I couldn't unsee it. My emotional block was fear of failure. Everything had to be right before I'd move. So the list grew and grew. My strategy, though I wouldn't have called it that, w

On Mission, Meaning, and What Comes After Dentistry David Stamation, Executive Life Coach Part Three of Three: What You Build Next . The Retirement Series. Here is something nobody tells you about high achievement. The precision. The focus. The discipline to keep growing long after you could have coasted. None of that disappears when you hand over the practice. It goes looking for somewhere to land. And if you don't give it somewhere to land, it turns inward. Restlessness. A

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach A Retiring Doctor’s Worldview PART One of Three: Who Are You Without the Practice? The Retirement Series Over the next three posts, I’m going to walk through the three questions I hear most from retiring endodontists. Not the financial ones. The ones that arrive quietly, usually six months in, when the novelty of freedom wears off and something more complicated takes its place. This first post is about identity. The second is about marria

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach (I don’t mean that, but let’s look at what I am saying.) When we take on a new endeavor, most of us follow a familiar pattern. We set a structure. We promise to commit. Then we move straight into hard work. Productivity. Performance. Discipline. We try to brute-force our way to the outcome. We rush directly into doing, and we skip a crucial step. When the effort falters, which it often does, we turn inward with judgment. I’m lazy. I’m inc

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach If the new year has arrived without the spark, you expected leaving you feeling flat, uncertain, or quietly unmotivated, you’re not alone. This reflection explores why that feeling may be an invitation, not a problem, and how it can become the beginning of your next chapter. It’s also a great alternative to the productivity trap . The Start of the Year Doesn’t Feel Like I Expected it to We’re taught that January is supposed to feel electr

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach If you’ve been wondering whether something is wrong with you or whether your low energy is actually trying to tell you something important, this reflection is for you. Illness or Misalignment? In executive life coaching, one of the most common questions I hear is quiet and loaded: “Is something wrong with me… or am I just in a low season?” High performers are especially prone to mislabel their inner state. When energy dips, clarity fades,

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach Most people think gratitude is about staying positive but what if it’s actually a mirror for your inner world? This reflection offers a deeper way to use gratitude, not as a mood boost, but as a powerful tool for awareness when life (and you) go off track. Gratitude is one of the simplest and most powerful practices I know. Not because it’s polite or positive, but because it’s orienting. It brings you back into relationship with what’s al

Used unconsciously, ‘sorry’ shrinks us. Used well, it builds trust. Once I tuned into it, I heard it everywhere: ordering food, asking a question, making a request. Leaders use it to soften directives. Parents use it to repair relationships. Growing up, when I crossed a line, my dad expected me to be contrite , a sincere apology and a heartfelt “sorry.” That early conditioning stayed with me and sparked a deeper question: what does “sorry” actually signal in adult relationshi

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach Some people hug everyone. Others prefer space. Your “hug reflex” reveals your boundaries, your history, and how your nervous system responds to closeness. This piece explores the spectrum and why intentional, consent-based hugging matters for connection and leadership. Take the QUIZ that’s tucked away in this article. The Hug Reflex As a kid, I don’t remember being hugged by anyone outside my parents and close family. And when they did, I

Why people hesitate to hire a Personal Development Coach and how to move past it.

David Stamation, Legacy Life Consulting Too often, people wait until divorce, illness, or loss forces them to change. But crisis doesn’t have to be the teacher. Coming out of my health sabbatical, I’ve realized my mission is simple: to help people choose growth before life leaves them no choice. The Relationship Between Denial & Change Denial is the first shield we raise when faced with change. It protects us from uncertainty and loss, but at a steep cost: it delays growth

David Stamation, Executive Life Coach After last week’s series on conflict and chaos, conversations with clients highlighted that there’s more to explore on chaos. Read Part 1 and Part 2 Exploring Conflict and Chaos One discussion with an endodontic coaching client offered a fresh perspective. They described chaos in the practice—not as a single problem, but as the system under strain. Here’s what we uncovered: 1. Chaos in an Endodontic Practice Chaos is systemic and undir