Jess Robson

I moved to Squamish ten years ago because I was ready to leave big-city life behind. I wanted to live somewhere my nervous system could settle in, somewhere a little quieter and a little more still. Squamish gave me that: a small town tucked into the bottom of the mountains, with an energy for sport, exploration and adventure I hadn't found anywhere else. A decade later I'm surrounded by a wildly supportive community, and growing deep roots here.

My business started as a copywriting practice. Working with small business owners and creative freelancers, I kept seeing how often emotions got in the way of people expressing themselves fully, owning their impact and positioning themselves as the powerhouses they were. Then I saw the same patterns in leaders across larger organizations: reactivity, saying yes when they meant no, committing to more than they had capacity to follow through on. People weren't working with their emotions…they were getting worked by them.

That's when I started coaching. I've been at it for five years, growing a Leadership + Performance Coaching practice built on self-awareness, regulation, emotional intelligence and soft skills. I'm EQ-i 2.0 certified, and have coached more than 50 leaders one-on-one, facilitated workshops for over 500 people and worked with more than 25 teams, with local teams including Tourism Squamish and STARK Architecture.

I love Squamish for its passion. There's no shortage of it: for the community and its history, for sport and adventure, for the work people do every day. The leaders and teams I've worked with here are full of energy and a real desire to make a positive impact. My work helps them regulate and integrate that passion (and all the other very human emotions we dance with) into thoughtful action, anchored in their values and aligned with their priorities and goals.

My approach is unique because of its upstream nature. When individuals and teams build self-awareness, regulation skills and clarify their values + commitments, they move through change and challenge more sustainably, and build the trust psychologically safe teams depend on. Businesses see less downtime and turnover, and more connection, creativity and better results over time, even in intense seasons.

I believe in this work, deeply. I'm practicing + living it daily; it's how I parent my five- and three-year-old, how I move through big life transitions with care, and how I show up every day. And, I believe it's what leadership needs if our businesses, teams and communities want to thrive.

Leadership isn't a title; that it's the sum of all the actions we take, and how we choose to show up every day, in the places that matter most. The Squamish I envision is one where we've taken on that idea; where mindfulness about our individual and collective impact, and our values at the forefront of our decisions leads us into the future. In Squamish, we're all leaders, and I'll be honoured to keep helping us all lead well.