Executive function coaching
You know what needs to happen. Let's make it actually happen.
For middle schoolers, teens, and college students who are stuck in the gap between knowing and doing, and ready to get unstuck.
Heather Holgate
Executive function coach
What is executive function coaching?
Executive function is the set of mental skills that help us plan, start, organize, manage time, and follow through. For a lot of people, especially those with ADHD or related challenges, these skills don't come naturally. And that gap between knowing what to do and actually doing it can be exhausting, embarrassing, and isolating.
Therapy is valuable. Medication can help. But neither one teaches you how to start a task when your brain won't cooperate, how to break a project into steps that feel doable, or how to build routines that actually stick. That's where coaching comes in.
I think of executive function coaching as the action behind the therapy. It's where things stop being talked about and start getting done.
This is not tutoring. We're building the underlying skills that make everything (school, work, daily life) more manageable long-term.
Who this is for
My clients range from middle school through college. What they share is less about age and more about where they are:
- ✓They know what they should be doing but can't seem to make themselves start
- ✓They feel like they're constantly falling behind, no matter how hard they try
- ✓They're smart, capable people, and frustrated that it doesn't feel that way
- ✓They've tried therapy, medication, or tutoring, and something is still missing
- ✓They're ready to do the real work, not just talk about it
If you're a parent who has watched your child shrink under the weight of feeling like a failure: this work is for them, and for you.
What working together looks like
We meet weekly, in person or on Zoom, whichever works best for you. Sessions are structured but personal. Every client is different, and how we work reflects that.
We start with goals
Together we figure out what's actually getting in the way. Not just the symptoms, but the patterns underneath them. We set real, specific goals that matter to you.
We build the skills, and track what's working
Each week, we work on the executive function skills that will actually move the needle: task initiation, time awareness, planning, or managing the mental weight of a to-do list. Progress is checked in every single session, and we adjust as needed. This is real accountability, not cheerleading. Parent and team meetings along the way ensure communication stays clear.
You leave with more than strategies
Clients don't just learn techniques. They rebuild confidence. The goal is for you (or your child) to internalize these skills and need less support over time, not more.
What changes
Progress in executive function coaching doesn't happen overnight, but it does happen. With consistency, this is the shift:
Before
After
Tasks feel impossible to start
You start without the battle
A loud, crowded mental load
Clarity about what comes next
“I can’t do this”
“I know how to figure this out”
Fighting how your brain works
Systems built around it
One of the most meaningful things I witness is when a client who started feeling like a failure starts to see themselves clearly for the first time. That shift doesn't come from a single session. It comes from showing up consistently and doing the work. Which is exactly what we do together.
Let's talk
Wondering if coaching is the right fit?
That's exactly what the free first conversation is for. Reach out and let's talk it through.
Get in touchI reply to every message myself.