Stryk Thomas
Coach, Strategist, Thought Partner
“A jack of trades, ‘tis oftentimes better than a master of one.”
—say many leaders in history, when facing ambiguous, complex, or fast-moving challenges
Stryk coaches across industry, culture, and life experience to help us make stronger decisions and cultivate leadership and resilience.
His professional career includes 20 years in corporate strategy and management of economic development programs. His work brought close collaboration with leaders and experts in both technical industries and creative fields. Stryk has worked directly with CEOs, startup founders, four-star generals, engineers, scientists, and artists. This broad perspective has taught lessons in strategy and operations that repeat themselves across industries and roles.
For coaching, Stryk draws from a unique toolkit of anthropology, management frameworks, somatic practice, and of course each client’s own knowledge and lived experience. He speaks three languages and has visited 34 countries. Stryk is also an outdoor athlete and holds a black belt in Shotokan karate. His coaching integrates ways to tap intuition and the body’s wisdom to inform choices great and small.
Stryk is a Certified Integral Coach through New Ventures West and continues to train with peers there and with the International Coach Federation. He studied an MBA at Georgetown University and anthropology at the University of Michigan. Stryk’s writing has appeared in The Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, and elsewhere.
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Common Questions for Stryk
Where do you do your coaching?
Everywhere! Coaching can take place in-person or via phone or video-conference. Face-to-face conversations have obvious benefits for building personal connection and confidence. However, I have found that phone and video call conversations also work well and do not detract from the coaching experience. I have worked with clients around the world by phone or video.
Are coaching conversations confidential?
Yes, absolutely. The content of coaching conversations is held in strict confidence. In situations where a third-party (e.g. a sponsor) requests information about the coaching program and results, I would provide only general status updates. These updates would provide a broad assessment of progress, such as “coaching is going well,” “we’re making progress toward objectives,” or similar language. I work with clients in advance to establish what information is appropriate to share with any third parties.
What assessment tools do you use?
I employ two different assessment tools depending on the purpose and context of coaching. For workplace talent acquisition or development, I often use the Hogan Assessment. For broader life situations, I may also use the Enneagram as a starting point to explore a client’s approach to life experience and approach to adversity. For in-depth engagements, I usually supplement assessment tools with a custom intake process based on the Integral Coaching method to develop coaching objectives that can be measured in tangible outcomes.
I coach the person, not the assessment results. These tools provide value as benchmarks or align with third-party stakeholder goals, such as those of a workplace sponsor or other party with an interest in the person’s development.
What is the difference between coaching and consulting?
To put it simply, consulting solves problems and coaching teaches people how to solve their own problems. While I may offer tactical suggestions for resolving specific issues, the larger goal of coaching remains to enhance one’s own capacity to change behavior, generate solutions, and pursue long-term excellence.
What is the difference between coaching and therapy?
This is a powerful question that lacks a simple answer. I offer that coaching is intended to help healthy people reflect on and expand their intentions, behavior, and accomplishments. Psychotherapy (therapy) is a health care solution used to treat mental illness or trauma. Its practitioners usually have clinical training that differs from that of a coach.
I am a coach, not a therapist. If a client’s interests and needs suggest that support from a mental health professional would be valuable, I may offer referral to a licensed psychologist, social worker, or medical doctor, when appropriate. There is a time and place for both traditions of support.