Hi! It's a joy to meet you.
I’m Katya. My life’s mission is to ignite a more joyful world.
Just like you, I wear many hats: coach, facilitator, runner, organizational development expert, recovering perfectionist, author, friend, public speaker, sunshine-seeker, climber, silly goose.
Beyond these labels is my core belief that human beings are inherently good, and that we have the collective power to make the world a brighter place.
How might we — individually and collectively — enliven human flourishing?
I help others be the best version
of themselves.
Currently, this is in the capacity of coaching and in organizational and leadership development. If we spend so much of our lives working, shouldn’t we find meaning, purpose, and joy in what we do?
I surely think so, and my mission is to revolutionize how we work through empathy, curiosity, and candor — while infusing more humanness and kindness into the workplace.
What makes me feel alive is being a coach for high achievers.
I empower my clients to bridge the gap between best practices and actual follow-through by sustainable, micro-habits. I’ve coached and facilitated learning experiences for over 6,000 leaders and individuals. Nothing brings me greater purpose or joy.
I also love to write.
My first book, Joy in Plain Sight, explores celebrating wonder in the ordinary against the backdrop of our always-on, always-busy world.
For me, the stage is home.
As a believer in big ideas that can make ours a kinder world, I’ve had the honor (and sheer fun!) of speaking to audiences about organizational development, human flourishing, and habit-building (especially on joy!). I’ve presented at engagements like TEDx, Culture Summit, The Massachusetts Conference for Women, and Chief Learning Officer Exchange.
One of my favorite jobs has been an expert leadership facilitator.
I’ve worked with companies like Google, Netflix, and Dropbox, and taught 6,000+ executives, managers, and individuals contributors essential skills like strategic thinking, leading change, communication, and feedback.
Finally, I love learning.
I received my BA summa cum laude in cognitive science and psychology from the University of Virginia (Echols Scholar, Phi Beta Kappa), and my MS with highest honors in organizational development and knowledge management from George Mason University. My prior expertise is in people operations, learning and development, higher education, and consulting.
When not working, I cherish play.
You can find me exploring both city streets and especially wild trails, climbing and doing handstands (sometimes on the same mountain!), and learning about people in their everyday moments.
On a personal note, here's why this work matters.
If you’ve dealt with really hard experiences in your life—I see you.
I grew up standing in food lines. Back in the motherland, which was decimated by political and economic turmoil, my mom and I would wait in the cold for stale bread.
When I was a little kid, my family won a lottery to be able to immigrate to the United States.
We arrived with two suitcases, a wad of cash, and the ability to say only “please” and “thank you” in broken English. (Gotta be polite, even if you don’t know the language!)
As an only child, I was expect to do well, to be the best. After all, we came to America to chase the dream!
And, oh, chase we did!
I remember being overjoyed, when, for my 13th birthday, my mom gifted me Sean Covey’s 7 Habits for Highly Effective Teens. Neat!
The high expectations fueled decades of delving into behavioral science, organizational, personal, and professional development, and cultivating systems and habits of success.
…and much of it was centered on achievement and perfectionism:
✅ get top marks in school
✅ graduate with highest honors in both undergrad and graduate school
✅ land well-paying, “traditionally-successful” jobs
✅ continue doing and excelling (author, TEDx/keynote speaker, corporate trainer, etc…)
You can probably guess where that led…
Burnout. Crying-on-the-driveway soul exhaustion. And an existential questioning.
Underneath all those hard-earned successes, did the American dream really entail this hedonic treadmill of work more, earn more, and then you die?
Despite growing up poor, I missed the carefree playtime with my friends in the streets. I missed the ability to just be versus constantly do.
After all, isn’t there a reason we’re called human beings, not human doings?
So I left corporate and began piecing together the effervescent life I wanted to actively live, not just get through until the weekend.
And now, instead of saying I have to go to work, I get to support other high achievers (like perhaps yourself) in creating what your version of success looks like.
Not just by achieving more at work. But by activating a holistic lifestyle designed to make space for the things that bring you joy. That make you feel effervescent—full of life.
As Glennon Doyle says, we can do hard things.
But we don’t have to do them alone.
Won’t you join me on this journey?
