Startup Coaches, Events, and Resources

I've spent my career at the intersection of technical depth and human complexity, and that's exactly where the most pressing founder challenges live. My background spans three years as Chief of Staff at Khosla Ventures, six years in the Army Special Forces, and a joint MBA/MS in Electrical Engineering from Stanford with a focus on AI and quantum computing. I've worked with dozens of founders at all stages, from bootstrapped through Series A and beyond, on all aspects of the founder journey: company formation, finding PMF, pivoting, fundraising, hiring, and scaling. Drawing on my experience operating as part of high-performing teams in high-stakes environments, I also help founders skillfully navigate the challenges that don't show up in pitch decks but derail companies anyway — cofounder conflict, role confusion, and communication breakdowns. For founders with deep technical backgrounds, my training in physics and engineering and three years inside a deep tech VC firm means I actually understand what you're building, and the identity shift that comes when a researcher steps into the CEO role.

My work with startup founders is grounded in having partnered with them from inside the business, not from the sidelines. I’ve served as a Chief People Officer and advisor to founder-led companies at critical stages of their growth, working directly with founders as they built teams, made early leadership hires, navigated inflection points, and translated vision into an operating reality. I understand the unique pressures founders face because I’ve lived them alongside them: making decisions with incomplete information, balancing speed with sustainability, managing investor expectations, and building credibility as the organization scales. I’ve been in the room for the hard conversations around role clarity, leadership gaps, co-founder dynamics, organizational design, and the moment when “doing everything yourself” stops working. As an operator, I’ve helped founders put real structure in place without over-engineering—establishing early operating rhythms, leadership expectations, and people systems that support growth instead of slowing it down. I’ve also supported founders through moments of reset, including shifts in strategy, funding changes, leadership transitions, and the emotional weight that comes with being ultimately accountable. My background as a C-suite leader with P&L ownership and enterprise-scale experience allows me to help founders think ahead, not just survive the present. I understand what breaks later when decisions are rushed early, and where founders need to invest judgment now to preserve optionality as the company grows. Founders work with me when they want a true partner—someone who understands the reality of building from the inside, who can hold both the business and human complexity at the same time, and who brings calm, practical judgment to moments that feel overwhelming or lonely. My role is not to replace founder instinct, but to help sharpen it as the company and the stakes get bigger.

- Founder 2 AI startups (funding, revenue) - Early employee at $250M startup

I’ve worked across multiple startups, helping founders build products, hire early teams, design systems, and make decisions in the middle of chaos. I’ve taken on fractional executive roles, built AI-enabled workflows, shaped product and go-to-market strategy, and supported teams through the messy but important zero-to-one stages. My background blends strategy, operations, product thinking, and real hands-on execution — which means I can help you work through whatever you’re facing as a founder. My coaching focuses on clarity, momentum, and sustainable decision-making. Whether you’re validating an idea, building an MVP, sharpening your GTM, navigating early hiring, or trying to scale yourself as a leader, I help you break things down, see the blind spots, and move forward with a plan that actually works. You get a mix of strategic thought partnership and practical operator-level support.

I founded TalkMaze, a public speaking and education platform that grew to 20,000 members, 4 million video views, and over 5,000 participants across North America. I raised $150K in funding, delivered 4 TEDx talks, won the national Global Student Entrepreneur Awards, and placed as a national runner-up in a venture capital investment competition. Every one of those outcomes came down to storytelling and pitching. I help early-stage founders take complex or technical products and turn them into clear, compelling pitches. Whether you're preparing for a demo day, a VC meeting, a competition, or an accelerator application, I help you find the version of your story that makes people lean in. I've coached thousands of people through high-stakes moments where the story has to land. If you have a great product but struggle to communicate why it matters, that's exactly where I come in.

As an entrepreneur with a proven record of scaling companies from inception to multimillion-dollar valuations, I have led ventures in robotics, life sciences, and sustainable technologies. My leadership experience spans: Founding two companies with a combined valuation increase of 30x, raising over $25M in financing. Securing 6 successful exits through IPOs and M&A, driving cumulative valuations exceeding $600M. Developing global business strategies, managing cross-border teams, and establishing partnerships with Fortune 500 companies. Holding MBA credentials with honors from Columbia Business School and a Forbes recognition for outstanding entrepreneurship. My clients gain access to: Practical strategies for fundraising, scaling, and market penetration. Expertise in navigating international business landscapes, particularly in AI, robotics, and ESG-driven ventures. Tailored guidance to achieve their unique entrepreneurial goals.

As a VC and former founder, I bring real world experience to help you navigate building your startup, and especially your first fundraise. My toolkit includes frameworks to help with customer discovery, human-centered design, community-building, business modeling, and fundraising strategy. (Please note, while I do invest in early-stage startups at Breakwater Ventures, I would never charge you to pitch me! This platform is solely because I love to advise and coach startups. If you'd like to pitch me your business, please email [email protected].)

As a Founder you can outsource almost anything you struggle with - except your mindset. My approach to coaching stems from the belief that the relationship we have with ourselves reverberates across every other part of our lives. To succeed in your startup, therefore, requires conscientious cultivation of healthy, enabling self-partnership. My practice combines Alderian and Applied Positive Psychology with a focus on human flourishing. Some of the primary pain points I address are: negative self talk, limiting beliefs, burn out, lack of self trust, purposelessness, unhealthy communication patterns, uncertainty about next steps, stress management, decision making under duress, and failure to take consistent action to achieve goals. Prior to coaching, I spent 8+ years as a 3x founder in B2B climate fintech, consulting, and fiscal literacy, 14+ years as a workshop facilitator & educator, and 5 years as an international speaker. Since starting Mountain Tops Consulting, I have coached 18 professionals and facilitated 200+ hours of executive masterminds, 60 development workshops, and 5 retreats. I currently lead programming at the Entrepreneur House of San Diego, the mission of which is to maximize founders’ personal and professional growth.

No one cares about what you think the future will look like. No one will invest in your moonshot idea. Trust me, I have scars to prove it. Your goal as a startup founder is to uncover simple secrets of our world today and find the quickest way to determine if those secrets are true (ie: if people will pay you to reveal those secrets). Don't spend years building aimlessly. Don't waste money when you don't need to. I will guide you in developing your first product and getting your first round of funding. I am a 2x founder, VC Backed. dunly.ai: Gen AI & Fintech - B2B tryrelic.com: Augmented and Virtual Reality - B2C

I am an award-winning entrepreneur and a Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center coach with a passion for supporting global professionals as they start, scale, and soar in their businesses. Founder-led ventures entrust me with board governance & strategic advisory across Travel, Sports, Education, Fashion, Tech, and Social Impact. I have also collaborated with Google for Entrepreneurs & Techstars on various initiatives internationally and mentored hundreds of promising startups through their ecosystem. Some of my personal portfolio include: Culinary Innovation Village x Meza Malonga Rwanda, 2020-2026 ➤ Scaled a proprietary MBA gastronomy course into a UN-recognized global culinary destination; TIME Magazine World's Greatest Places 2025 ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ The Revival Ghana, 2019-2024 ➤ Scaled a grassroots textile upcycling project into a TIME 100 world-leading climate authority with institutional alliances + commercial partnerships incl. the V&A Museum ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Strategic Advisors to Founders & CEOs Vanderbilt Enterprises (Vanderbilt University) USA, 2025 Advised inaugural CEO on Name, Image & Likeness (NIL) initiatives for college athletes Modalyst 2014-2016 ➤ Acquired by Wix, Fashion B2B SaaS The Ideatelier USA, 2021-2024 ➤ Acquired by the CIEN+ Culture Group SOLEcial Studies Community Academy USA, 2022-2024 ➤ World's first learning institution dedicated to sneaker culture and business Pinktrotters Italy & Denmark, 2013 ➤ World's first global community for women travelers Modellist-ID Netherlands, 2013-2014 ➤ Formerly the largest online community of professional models, combined social reach of +40 million ➤ Provided legal, financial, lifestyle, career support to talent represented by IMG, Elite, Ford, Next, Wilhelmina, Women, DNA, etc. ➤ Targeted influencer marketing + in-house social campaigns video production for L'Oréal, Condé Nast, St. Régis, Dermalogica, L'Occitane BGS/Africa Surf International USA, 2020-2024 ➤ World's pioneering water sports competitive performance training program for girls ages 7-17 ➤ CEO media training, feat. by CNN, Good Morning America, BBC - Sports Illustrated, Webby Awards honoree ➤ Brand deals secured: Hulu, Hurley, Disney, McDonald's, incl. a national TV commercial and short documentary for the $300M blockbuster "The Little Mermaid" Happy Meal campaign