There are three cold, half-consumed coffees on a desk covered in post-it notes. An inbox that hasn't been reviewed since Tuesday. The dashboard and the project plan don't exist. The board meeting is quickly approaching, whether you are ready or not.
You know what's in motion, but you're the only one who does. Some of the work is nearly done, some of it stalled two weeks ago, and one or two things are quietly dead; but nobody else can tell which is which, because the plan lives in your head, and the people who could help carry it have never been handed the whole picture (or you haven't yet decided who you trust with it). So you keep holding it together, and from the outside, it looks a lot like being “fine”. Sound familiar?
What happens if nothing changes?
It slows down long before it breaks: the post-its multiply, and the decisions only you can make queue up behind the ones someone else could have made. Each board meeting takes more prep than the last.
Your team can't row in the same direction if they don't know where they are going.
What could get better?
It can get better. You might even finish a cup of coffee while it's still hot.
Imagine the next board meeting with a plan on paper, a definition of “done” that everyone agreed to, and a monthly status update to point to. Picture the decisions each having an owner, and someone other than you knowing what the next call is. You're back where you're useful: the ideas, the strategy, the room only you can lead.
Who will I be working with?
I'm Elizabeth Lemoine. I've been the person holding it together, and I've worked alongside CEOs through rapid growth, pivots, and the weeks when the board meeting, the accountants, and seven different decisions all land at once.
My job is to help you sort the decisions from the noise, get the plan out of your head and onto the page, and take some of the work off your plate; then I work inside it with you until it's real.
What does working together look like?
Working together starts with a free 30-minute Coffee Chat, then a longer conversation and a plan we both agree on, and then work inside your company that starts at about 20 hours a month.
This works in three steps, and the order matters, because each one earns the trust the next one needs. You'll know where we're going before we start; we can change the route along the way, as long as we agree on the destination.
A 30-minute Coffee Chat, free
It goes where you need it to. You don't need the tidy version. Bring it as it is, post-its and all; I'm not asking for the one you'd give your board, just the accurate one. We talk about what's actually stuck, and why. I'll take notes, or record the call if you agree, so I can map it all out afterward.
A plan we agree on
If it feels like a fit, we book a second, longer conversation where you tell me what's on your plate: the concerns, the issues, whatever is keeping the list from shrinking. I come back with a plan, and we work through it together until we agree on what “done” looks like. Nothing starts until you're satisfied.
The work, starting at about 20 hours a month
I work inside your company, with you, your team, or both, whatever the work calls for. Each month you get a status update, and if the work needs more hours, they're available.
What “done” means
We agree on it before anything starts, so nobody has to argue later about whether it counts as a win.