Pod coaching
You don't have to go it alone. Find personalized coaching, peer learning, and a community of support in a pod.
Pods bring together groups of 4-5 peers from around the world for a dynamic and supportive coaching journey.
With the guidance of a coach, you will:
- Clarify a personal intention for the program
- Identify your unique strengths and areas to develop
- Receive customized feedback from your coach
- Challenge assumptions and try new practices
- Listen and learn from each other's experiences
- Recognize that your challenges are shared
Pod coaching is a more affordable option than individual coaching — ideal for emerging leaders and resource-constrained organizations. It’s an excellent way to build cross-border relationships and solidarities. Past clients called their pods “insightful” and “life-changing”.
Who pod coaching is for
- Executive directors and senior leaders
- Managers leading teams and collaborations, and navigating growth or transitions
- Emerging leaders stepping into more responsibility
- Activists and movement leaders
- Changemakers seeking clarity about the next steps in their career
- Anyone wanting to strengthen clarity, confidence, and sustainable leadership practices
- Teams, networks or alliances
- Cohorts of grantees
How it works
- A virtual pod coaching program is typically 6 sessions over 6 months (1.5 hours)
- Sessions are available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Mandarin, Cantonese, German, Dutch, and Indonesian
- Get matched with a coach and 4-5 other participants based on your goals, area of work, language and time zone
- Includes practices after every session you can try right away
Examples of what you can work on
- Strengthening clarity and strategic thinking
- Navigating conflict and tension with more intention
- Letting go of perfectionism or outdated patterns
- Managing stress, overwhelm, or burnout
- Building confidence and making grounded decisions
- Setting boundaries and rebalancing work-life rhythms
- Delegating more effectively
- Reconnecting with purpose and leadership identity
What pod coaching participants say
Despite our differences in race, age, and nationality, we created a space where honesty, vulnerability, and growth flourished. I learned that shared learning is powerful—when people come together with trust, the growth is exponential. Through this experience, I feel empowered, healed, and stronger—more equipped to communicate openly, trust myself, and embrace challenges with resilience.
I was surprised by how fast I progressed from being scared to being able to step into my leadership more fully, owning and even enjoying the more challenging aspects of it.
My coach was incredible! She was very attentive and thoughtful with her feedback, which contributed to decisions and changes in my performance as a leader. She was fundamental during this period when I was facing personal difficulties and helped me avoid becoming discouraged professionally. It was absolutely worthwhile.
The coaching sessions had a significant impact on my work and my organization. Personally, I developed a deeper understanding of wellness and work-life balance strategies, which I was able to contribute to strengthening our organization's policies and practices in these areas.
My coach was relaxed, non-judgmental, pleasant, and soothing. I learned to de-dramatize (or "stop catastrophizing"), to try to stay in the present moment during interactions with strangers, and to make an effort to stop anticipating a hypothetical discomfort that might never even manifest.
The kindness with which my coach conducted the program—his patience, and his ability to make us feel comfortable—is a major highlight. I have managed to question some blind spots that I didn't want to see, and having addressed them, it has allowed me to notice favorable changes in my work, personal, and family dynamics. I can only thank our coach for the splendid work he carried out. It has been a privilege to have had his guidance. We are going to miss him.
Patricia Rhein R. Manuel
APNIC FoundationPod coaching participant
Cíntia
Agência Mural de Jornalismo das Periferias, BrazilOpen Society Foundations grantee, 2024
Seynabou Deme
Director of Operations and Monitoring and Evaluation, Social Change FactoryAlejandro Chirinos
Board Member/Program Manager, CooperAcción, PeruIf you’re interested in our coaching program, you can fill out the contact form below. Our Coaching Lead, Márcia Kodama, will get in touch and guide you through our intake process.