I am the co-founder and Head Coach at The MJJM Group, a boutique coaching and consulting firm. I am a former marketing and communications executive who turned my passion for helping brands find their true voice, into my mission to help leaders find theirs.
After graduating from the University of Virginia (BA) and St. Mary’s University (MBA), I spent more than 26 years leading and developing teams in organizations large and small – from the US Air Force to USAA, from startups to Microsoft. I know the pressure to deliver business growth, and the pure joy of helping people grow. I bring a breadth of strategic and operational experiences to my role as executive coach, facilitator, leadership development advisor, and non-profit board member.
I believe “who we are is how we lead” – being the best leader you can be starts with knowing and being the best version of yourself. I coach hyper achieving leaders who have lost sight of their “why”, helping to articulate and re-ignite their vision. I coach “change agent” leaders who are actively shifting organizational culture, helping to engage in and drive impact in new ways. I coach aspiring leaders who are beginning their ascent, helping to build confidence in their voice and presence.
I am a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with the International Coach Federation. I earned my coach training from Co-Active Training Institute (CTI), and have since gone on to complete Tara Mohr’s Playing Big Facilitator’s Training and the Positive Intelligence Pioneer Coach Program. I am a Working Genius Certified Facilitator, a SeattleCoach Certified Coaching Leader, and a SeattleCoach Groups & Teams Coach.
I am a wife, mother, only child, and friend who loves to curl up with a good legal thriller or detective novel. I’m always up for a latte or glass of wine. When I’m not working or parenting, you will likely find me out for a walk with my pup, Mayzie, listening to podcasts or audio books. I believe that sunshine is good for the soul. I am known for my energy, my consummately positive attitude, and my ability to get to the heart of the matter.
I am delighted to partner with Annie Ricci Coaching to support women leaders to create change. You can find out more about me https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliaatalla/
Through the years, I’ve seen Julia genuinely engage with curiosity, questioning and listening in all the situations we’ve been in together. As my coach, she recognized moments when I needed advice and mentoring, while not letting me off the hook when I needed to dig deeper into my own heart and mind to find answers for myself. She created the space for me to explore at my own pace, challenging and supporting me along the way, and helping me clearly identify achievable and concrete next steps. With Julia’s coaching, I’ve tackled complex business, organizational, and leadership issues with confidence and a presence that is authentic to me.
Julia’s style is warm and engaging, establishing trust quickly with nearly everyone she meets. She is an astute listener and makes each person with whom she interacts feel like they are the most important person in the room. If you are a leader looking for inspiration and support on your leadership journey, Julia is the coach for you.
I highly recommend Julia as an individual and/or team coach. She has an authentic and comfortable style instantly setting the stage for open and honest conversation. After a year spent in virtual isolation due to COVID, my team was experiencing fatigue, exhaustion, and lack of enthusiasm in their roles. While we were all very supportive of one another it still felt like something was missing. Julia took the time to learn about our team and developed a coaching session around her learnings which felt customized and as if she knew us prior to leading us through a session of awareness and team-building. Julia brought us through enlightening exercises, reflections on individual strengths—SuperPowers—and helped us all see the value each team member brings to the overall success of our organization. At end of the day, we experienced a shift in our appreciation of one another as individuals as well as our effectiveness as a team. The experience was magical and I hope to work with Julia again in the future.
My coaching skills are increasingly more central to my change management leadership; and it’s coaching leaders like Julia that inspire me to keep going. As my coach, her questions and interventions were powerful because they evoked awareness. And when I got to the epiphany she’d help further it until it became an accountability. She knew how to balance when to ask and when to listen. And the listening was always fully present. Thank you for being an inspiration Julia!
During our coaching engagement, Julia helped me rebuild my confidence, focusing my time looking to the future where my energy and my happiness lies. She actively listened to the words that were swirling in my head, helping me discover what was important to me, seeing new possibilities with clarity, and “getting out of my head” to take the first step. I now realize that making big changes wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be – and that I can inspire others through my actions.
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