Assessment

"I have never had such valuable business guidance before. Your grasp of all that I threw at you in the meeting, which you analyzed, itemized and documented - unbelievable. Your email summary doubled the value of the meeting itself; it consolidated the issues, focused the next steps . . . and enabled me to move ahead. It also serves as a model for me to emulate and approach present and future tasks/projects. Thank you again" Education Consultant

"As a CEO, people issues are always a concern, and Debra's help made these issues much easier to address. Debra was very helpful in dealing with multiple challenging issues regarding my staff, and I would certainly engage her in the future." CEO, high-tech company

"Debra was extremely insightful and effective in helping us to downsize and reorganize our organization. She helped us execute a very difficult move as humanely as possible. She made herself available to the management team, despite unpredictable timing. We're glad she's on our team." CFO, emerging company

"Debra is creative. She helped me to make connections between disparate elements and link them in ways I couldn't see before." Artist

"The supervisor of my department asked Debra to speak to all team members in an effort to improve his managing specifically and departmental efficiency in general. Debra created an environment where I felt completely safe sharing with her any and all issues that came to mind. She did an amazing job collecting feelings and stories from me and my colleagues and culling from them common concerns. From her findings we were able to come up with the top three goals for the coming year and also the top issues which we needed to address. Debra was an amazing resource for us. Our supervisor summed it up best when he said he felt the conversation was like therapy! Her one-on-one work and her excellent meeting facilitation got us started on the right foot at the beginning of our busy season." Program Manager

"You did a great job tonight! Your leadership styles is really effective - the way you lay out your ideas so methodically and clearly without at all making anybody feel as if they're being lectured to. I'm sure it does not come without a lot of hard work and preparation. Thanks for bringing your energy to our work." Consulting Client

Conflict Resolution

"Debra has distinguished herself as the anchor for our corporate culture of openness and respect. She has played a critical role in helping employees feel valued. Her expertise in dealing with human crises as they have arisen has earned her the respect of the community." CEO, professional services firm

"Debra ran a meeting at the end of a very complex and difficult yearly project which spans across four departments in our organization. She was adept at facilitating our conversation, asking the right questions, and guiding us to make difficult decisions on some key issues. She also helped us appreciate and celebrate our own success in difficult circumstances, which is so important but counter-cultural in our organization. She was such a hit that team members insisted we invite her back for the kick-off meeting of this year's project. And we will definitely invite her back to facilitate the post-project meeting next year!" Education Administrator

Career Coaching

"I have found Debra to provide a unique voice in my life. As my coach, Debra listens to my concerns, often sympathizes with what I am experiencing, and moves me to action. This combination is powerful. I depend on Debra to help me examine and clearly define my goals. Then, with incredible skill, she encourages me to take action to realize my goals. Using a variety of tools, Debra assisted me to better understand the consequences of my actions. She is up-front, honest, and cares about my success." Management Consultant

"Debra has guided me to effectively negotiate for what I want. Her questions help me assess complex interpersonal issues and organizational dynamics such that my ability to orchestrate a raise, a major purchase, or touchy supervisory situations is greatly enhanced. I am learning a new skill set and a more comfortable approach to getting what I want." Senior Administrator, university

"Working with Debra has made me a more strategic manager and more effective team member; she helps me clarify my goals and provides me practical tools to achieve them." Corporate Counsel

" Debra is an incredibly talented career coach. Through humor and creative ideas, together we worked out an effective strategy to transition to a more satisfying career." Attorney, founder of information technology consulting firm

"Her can-do attitude is infectious." Musician

"After every session with Debra, I am more focused on how to run my two businesses and reassured about my capacity to accomplish my goals." Independent Professional

"Debra challenges me. As a result of spending time with her, I realize that I can turn inward, and that it's good to do so. Much of the world has us focused on the outside. Looking inward can be difficult. But she makes it safer." Freelance Writer

"My experience with connect² was far superior to any other professional development coaching that I have had. Debra has a unique sensibility that allows her to immediately connect with her clients on a deeply meaningful level, and as a result, my takeaway from each of our meetings was clear, action-oriented, inspiring, and fruitful. My productivity benefited immediately upon working with connect². Debra's expertise as a coach, thought partner and facilitator was clear. She asked all the of the right questions from the get-go such that every step of the way I was both creating and following a plan to achieve very high-level goals, and in the end not only did I achieve my goals, but I exceeded my own expectations. I would recommend strongly connect² services, specifically to those seeking to identify opportunities for and implement change in their professional careers." Manager, non-profit organization

"Debra, you listen very well, you know people very well, you have this innate sixth sense, and you're empathetic. I feel I can be honest, tell you where I have weakness, and you fill in that weakness or void. My weakness was writing. It's not an effort for the client. You just fill in those gaps w/out making it difficult. You do it in a manner that makes the whole thing pleasant and it works. You accomplish the goal of doing what we set out to do in a way that's not stressful for me. I wouldn't have known where to start. You have a mature, strong core that has a universal understanding of how humans are; that's the great thing. You seem to customize your methods and approach around each person's quirks. That kind of tailoring to individual needs is what the information age is crying out for." Engineer/Career Changer

"Thanks a lot for the time yesterday. I really appreciate your insights, and ability to listen. I particularly value that you listen on multiple levels, picking up more than just words, and respond to that as well. You help me validate a whole, rather than just the logical, intellectual thoughts alone. Very hard to say in words, but hope you'll get what I mean! " Retail Manager

"Debra helped me prepare to tackle the toughest part of getting a job in consulting: the case interview. She taught me not only to familiarize myself with frameworks for tackling tough business problems on the spot, but how to use them effectively and appropriately. Her patience during mock-interviews and step-by-step debriefing helped me understand where there were gaps in my logic and how to close those gaps by marshalling logical thinking techniques. I went into my interviews feeling prepared and confident-and that was half the battle! " Student

"Thank you so much for your coaching, I really feel so energized by our conversation, you are a truly gifted listener and coach! Identifying that my fears are related to the perception that I am imposing on someone (feeling vulnerable) rather than giving them a business opportunity (feeling empowered) was so simple and yet so KEY! I went home and was immediately excited to begin "getting out there"! The twenty-minute conversation we had changed my life. You helped, in such a compassionate way, me get to a shadow belief that I had not been able to face. The greatness of it was you did not have an agenda, and most of the people we talk to in life do. The tangible effect was that six weeks later I had two experiences of showing my artwork and I was empowered. I was in the driver's seat. All the beliefs I'd had were no longer present. Those attitudes came from places that were there the longest time. We uncorked a demon that was sabotaging me and I was able to say to it - goodbye, I don't need you. Debra, you have done more for me already than you can possibly know!" Entrepreneur

"Debra offered us valuable feedback that helped us refine our message for our presentations to potential investors. We will continue to work with her." Founder, emerging company

"Debra, thank you so much for your help last week. I feel like we covered so much ground and you really helped me clarify some of the things I need to be thinking about. I'm plugging away on my assignments before our next meeting." Independent Market Research Consultant

Admissions Coaching

"Debra Woog McGinty is my friend and admissions coach extraordinaire, without whom I wouldn't have gotten into MIT or Harvard! Debra more than knows her stuff, as she also works with a number of schools on their admissions programs. From laying out a plan of attack and timeline to recommendations and cool adjectives, she makes it happen. She will lay it all out and tell you what she really thinks, no holds barred, something we all REALLY need, a true ally and asset to anyone's admissions process. Even with such words I still don't do her service justice." MBA Applicant

"I'm all done with this incredible process! I cannot thank you enough for all the help you provided - it went well beyond our agreement. Not to mention the methodical approach you instituted that became my guide. I'm ready for whatever comes out of this process because I know I did everything I could and put all that I had into it." MBA Applicant

"I found Debra invaluable in my MBA application process. I came to Debra with a good idea of where I would apply and what I believed would be the major themes throughout my applications. Debra was extremely adept at helping me focus on the aspects of my life, work, and hobbies that set me apart and made me a good fit for each of the schools I was applying to. One aspect of Debra's service which I believe sets her apart from others I've dealt with is her ability to adapt to what I needed. I wasn't looking for someone to tell me where to apply or proof each essay for grammar and typos (though she was of course helpful in that regard) - I was looking for someone to help with themes and ideas. Debra gave me exactly the help I was looking for. I ended up being accepted to every MBA program I applied to and will be attending Kellogg in the fall. I am quite certain I would not have had the same results without Debra's help!" MBA Applicant

"With Debra's guidance, I was able to write focused admissions applications that highlighted my unique qualities. Her attentive, patient & caring manner made our discussions very open and detailed. This allowed her to use her knowledge to identify positive aspects of my own experiences that I myself hadn't realized. The admissions process was truly stress-free and more importantly, resulted in me getting admitted to my top choice school. Thanks Debra, I couldn't have done it without you!" MBA Applicant

"Debra was invaluable throughout my process of selecting and applying to MBA programs. She drew out the qualities that were important to me in selecting a program and helped me to understand my own qualities as an applicant in writing my essays. Her commitment was above and beyond my expectations, and I would not have been able to get into my first choice school without her input and support." Finance Manager

"Debra's insight, experience, and caring manner helped me tremendously with my business school applications. She was incredibly helpful both talking through approaches and ideas as well as editing essays. Debra helps others find their competitive advantage. Now I attend my dream school." Technology Manager

"Debra's ear is fine-tuned to hear the details of people's lives and experiences that truly make them unique. She leads you through a process of self-evaluation and discovery that is invaluable in the Competitive Admissions process. When I began working with Debra, I was focused on the things that I had in common with other top candidates: high GPA, test scores, leadership and diversity. Debra helped me to take a step back and to understand my skills and attributes in a new way. I was then able to communicate them in a stand-out way that was fresh, colorful, and unique, and subsequently was admitted to my top school." MBA Student

"Your help on my personal statement was invaluable. Before I called you, I felt very unsure, and alone in a way, in the application process because my situation as an older student was atypical. I didn't have an advisor or colleagues to bounce things off of. I haven't felt that way since I called you. You never made me feel my questions were silly (even though some of them probably were!). I think I would still be staring at a blank piece of paper had it not been for your support. I'm so happy with the results of our work together. I love my personal statement more every time I read it. I put a year of blood, sweat, and tears into my schoolwork, but I couldn't seem to express my passion for what I'm doing into written words. You definitely helped me do exactly that, and now I can proudly submit a statement that truly conveys my motivation and love for medicine. I think the best thing about the whole process of writing this with you was that even though you guided my ideas, or helped me to organize or express things, I always felt like this essay was mine, and that I was the one shaping it. The final result is a paper that describes in words feelings that come from my heart. I also want to thank you for going above and beyond on the short answer stuff. I know you did more work than we had talked about, and I'm very grateful." Medical Student

"Debra has an amazing capacity to look behind my experiences and pull out the skills, competencies, and attributes that an admissions committee might be looking for. This seemingly simple exercise was not as intuitive as I thought, and took my essays to an entirely new level. Debra showed me how to think about framing my experiences in a new way, the way an admissions officer would look at them. This perspective changed how I addressed their questions, and produced more mature, sophisticated, and thoughtful responses. I would recommend Debra to anyone applying to graduate school. As a professional for whom writing is a key component of my job, and as a published writer, I might have thought that I could meet the scrutiny of an admissions committee. Nevertheless, I wanted to make sure I put the best application possible forward, and I am glad I did: Debra's coaching put my essays in a whole new class." Marketing Consultant

"Debra helped me define my goals, identified the track to get there, and told me where I stood. She was very helpful in providing insight as to what I should be doing to improve and strengthen my profile over the next year before I am ready to apply to MBA programs. I found her to be honest and easy going. She went through all of the issues I had questions on and made me feel comfortable enough to ask all my questions." Investment Analyst

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