Dr. Natalie Pickering, Author at Dr. Natalie Pickering | Organizational Psychologist & Leadership Coach

The Role of Coaching in Elevating Women to Leadership Identity Confidence

Four women standing confidently together in distinct personal styles against a white background — symbolizing the individual identity clarity, leadership confidence, and authentic self-expression that Dr. Natalie Pickering's coaching helps women in leadership cultivate and bring boldly into their careers and organizations

Coaching has emerged as a pivotal force in guiding ambitious women toward achieving their leadership aspirations. The journey to the top, often riddled with unique challenges and systemic barriers for women, necessitates more than just hard skills and perseverance. It requires the transformative power of targeted coaching, designed to unlock and affirm personal potential and … Read more

Going to Higher Places Requires Letting Go

A waterfall in Triple Falls NC, rushing through a bare winter forest under a clear blue sky, with golden leaves and sun rays in the foreground, representing the natural, powerful momentum that follows when leaders let go of old identities, limiting beliefs, and outdated ways of leading in order to rise to higher places

I chose the Dupont National Forest, NC as the venue for my bi-annual personal retreat this year (practicing what I preach to my coaching clients!) And the Triple Falls Trail (pictured) did not disappoint! While these get-aways are in part purposed for me to set goals, vision cast and strategically plan the upcoming half-year, they have also … Read more

How DO We Get to Higher Places?

Hiking boots, jeans, and a fully packed backpack resting on rocks in a rugged wilderness representing the deliberate preparation, necessary unburdening, and courageous forward movement that leaders must embrace on the identity journey toward higher places of authentic growth and purpose-driven leadership

In my early conversations with individuals, team and organization leaders, human resources directors, supervisors, directors, entrepreneurs, and not-for-profit boards, I am often asked, what exactly will we DO…? First, we get clear on goals and how will we know we accomplished them! And for most every engagement, an assessment or several will be part of … Read more

Becoming YOU! Women in Healthcare Leadership Retreat Project

A diverse group of African women healthcare leaders and their allies smiling together in a lush outdoor setting beside a lake — capturing the vibrant community, cross-cultural connection, and identity-first leadership development at the heart of Dr. Natalie Pickering's Becoming You African Women in Healthcare Leadership Identity Retreat

I met the incredible Dr. Britney Grayson on another project during which we connected quickly in our shared vision to support women in healthcare leadership. Dr. Grayson has been training surgery and anesthesia residents from several African countries since 2020. Based on the results of a survey her training workgroup compiled, she invited me to build and … Read more

An EQ Team Tool : Affirmation

A senior female leader at the center of an informal team huddle in a modern office, engaging openly with five colleagues from above, representing the natural executive presence, authentic authority, and psychologically safe team culture that identity-first leadership cultivates in organizations

I’m often asked for practical ideas to support building emotional intelligence. I love working with teams and this exercise is a powerful one that I use sometimes in team development workshops. My business peer coaching group did this together during the holiday season and I found it extremely impactful. The Affirmation Tool is powerful for … Read more

Your mood boost is steps away

A solitary woman seated on a wooden stump at the top of a hill, silhouetted against a breathtaking golden sunset over a wide valley, representing the accessible, mood-boosting restoration that comes from stepping away from leadership demands and reconnecting with nature, stillness, and self

Screen time is a reality and necessity for many people in their work. It’s also not news to anyone that we are hooked to our little screens even when we aren’t at work. According to Datareportal the average American spends 6 hours and 59 minutes looking at a screen every day. And if you want more data, … Read more

Decision-making inventory

A winding sunlit trail through tall pine trees and purple heather leading toward a lake glimpsed through the forest representing the deliberate, reflective leadership journey of taking inventory of who you are, what you carry, and what you need to release in order to lead more authentically and sustainably

I’m working with several people in the midst of decision-making- BIG decisions like career changes and relocation of their family. And at the time of this writing we are in the midst of pandemic-fueled significant global and national crises for extra change challenge measure. This morning while running a new trail system on a work … Read more

Burnout is not a you but a we

A solitary figure seated on a rocky cliff edge overlooking a breathtaking mountain expanse at sunset — symbolizing the courageous leadership pause required at critical decision-making forks in the trail, where checking your inner equipment — your values, identity, and purpose — determines which path you take and how high you ultimately climb

Burnout is Bigger Than a Worker. On this very blog I have posts with hopefully helpful tips for addressing burnout on an individual basis. AND it’s important to remember that we don’t burn out in isolation and that we ask honest questions about the larger system’s contribution to this issue. As a coach working with … Read more

Pottery surprise and life metaphor

A black-and-white close-up of hands shaping clay into a bowl on a spinning pottery wheel representing the slow, intentional, and deeply present process of identity formation that parallels the inner work of authentic leadership development

Throwing pottery has been on my “want to try that someday” list for many years. I was at an Airbnb in Virginia a personal retreat this weekend- I try to build these into the rhythm of my work life but balancing retreat time with important reflection, vision-casting, honest check-in’s. Little did I know that my … Read more

Wholeheartedness for higher

A heart carved into weathered turquoise wooden planks — worn, imperfect, and deeply embedded in the surface — representing the wholehearted, authentic, and vulnerability-embracing leadership that Dr. Natalie Pickering champions as the foundation for reaching higher places of identity, impact, and purpose

While it’s true that our new year resolution-keeping dwindles over the course of time, the good news is that about half of these changes do carry some stick-with-it commitment for at least the first half of the year according to one study. So how do we increase the stick-with-it? There are many ideas and strategies and … Read more

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