meet your coach
Hello! I'm Brandy DeOrnellas. I'm a strategic partner and encourager here to help you pursue the future you want.
A little background.
I studied at UC Berkeley, Harvard Law, and UC Davis. I practiced law for several years before transitioning to coaching.
My transition from law to coaching led to a deep interest in life design and life transitions (more on this below).
A lifetime of experiences led me here. I worked as an advocate for seniors in long-term care, but wanted to do more to promote their joy and reduce suffering. I transitioned to public policy, but realized I am motivated by face-to-face engagement, not macro-level reform. In my law practice, the most fulfilling moments were when I offered encouragement and compassion, not legal advice.
Each of these experiences revealed my design and led me to become a coach. Now I support others through their own journeys, led by their innate design.
I'm based in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, with my office located in the East Bay in Berkeley. I serve clients in California, but also have clients who live across the United States and Internationally.
Harvard Law School
JURIS DOCTOR
EQUAL JUSTICE FELLOWSHIP RECIPIENT
HARVARD PUBLIC INTEREST FELLOWSHIP RECIPIENT
BORCHARD FELLOWSHIP RECIPIENT
MS. JD FELLOWSHIP RECIPIENT
UC Berkeley
BACHELOR OF ARTS, SOCIAL WELFARE
DEPARTMENT HIGHEST HONORS
BACHELOR OF ARTS, POLITICAL SCIENCE
DEPARTMENT HIGHEST HONORS
UNIVERSITY HIGHEST HONORS
Coaching Certifications
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, DAVIS
CERTIFIED PROFESSIONAL COACH FOR LIFE AND WORK
INTERNATIONAL COACH FEDERATION
PROFESSIONAL CERTIFIED COACH (PCC)
PREPARE/ ENRICH CERTIFIED RELATIONSHIP COACH
HARVARD MEDIATION PROGRAM MEDIATION CERTIFICATION
From lawyer to coach.
It started with some introspection - what matters to me? I wanted to tap my potential. I wanted to help people. And I couldn't do that disengaged and depleted.
I noticed the "bright spots" in my work were the moments when I was coaching others. I felt like I was making a difference; I felt alive.
People would ask: "Won't you be giving up too much if you stop practicing law?" But I knew all I was giving up by staying. So I took the leap - and it was worth it.
My family.
I live in the San Francisco Bay Area with my sweet family.
My husband, Jason, works in education. Our son, Avery, is a happy, busy toddler who keeps us enthralled most days (and exhausted on others!). We're finding ways to savor each chapter of his young life.
We also have a pup, Poppy - if your a dog lover, you can spot her on my Instagram!
Untethering worth.
Something that I've explored a lot personally and professionally is how we strive to prove our worth.
I thought my worth fluctuated based on my productivity, my accomplishments, my effort, my impact. It meant a lot of striving and not a lot of rest. It meant doing a lot of things because I should, not because they felt right.
I later came to believe that human worth is unconditional - it exists because we exist. And that liberated me to re-think and re-design my life.
I'm all about
INHERENT
worth
SAVORING
nature
CHERISHING
relationships
WATCHING
the sky
PURSUING
essentialism
"The way of the Essentialist means living by design, not by default.
Instead of making choices reactively, the Essentialist deliberately distinguishes the vital few from the trivial many, eliminates the nonessentials, and then removes obstacles so the essential things have clear, smooth passage."
Greg McKeown, Essentialism