Stronger leaders. Healthier teams.
Better outcomes.

Team and Leadership Development

Customized teaming engagements to meet your objectives. Let’s build trust, make faster decisions, lean into conflict, disarm drama, and more.

LEADER & EXECUTIVE COACHING

I’m a trusted advisor, champion, and thinking partner in your development as a leader.

OFFSITE DESIGN & FACILITATION

Whether at your offices or offsite, I’ll design and deliver interactive experiences that nail your objectives, AND are fun.

ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT COACHING

We’ll get to the bottom of the structural and/or behavioral issues holding you, your team, or your org back.

FACILITATION TRAINING

Learn and practice the basics of facilitation to make your meetings and events more effective.

Speaking Engagements

I’d love to present to your team, organization, or conference. Find more information here.

Who is Traction?

Cara Wilson, MA, ACC

I’ve been coaching leaders and teams from the front line to the C-suite for nearly 20 years.

  • One of my very favorite things about this work is to see a team or leader pick up a new skill or perspective as a result of working with me — and have them say things just feel easier now.  One client said: “Cara has a wonderful way of making hard work feel effortless.” 

    In my nearly 20 years of working with teams and leaders, I ran my own coaching and consulting business, I spent nearly a decade in healthcare coaching physician leaders and hospital administrators, and I spent seven years in tech coaching engineering and operations leaders at Tableau and Salesforce.  I have a special affinity for neurodivergent leaders, as I am one myself.

    My fascination with human behavior began as a young adult in the wilderness, taking unruly teenagers on month-long adventures as an Outward Bound instructor. I got curious about how the things I was learning about teams applied “in the real world” (and if we’re honest about it, I also got tired of being cold and broke). So I headed for a Master’s Degree in Applied Behavioral Science with a focus on Coaching and Consulting in Organizations. 

    When we work together, we will balance gravity and levity. We’ll talk about the hard things and we’ll laugh and celebrate your successes. I will be kind and direct — we won’t beat around the bush. I’ll toast to your strengths and I’ll call on you to step into your potential. I’ll encourage you to take different perspectives on your situation and to think about the systems that may be affecting it. It’s all about the “and.”

    I live on a blueberry farm in Poulsbo, Washington. When I’m not working, you can find me hiking in the woods, riding bikes and motorcycles, doing puzzles, or begrudgingly laboring around the homestead.

CREDENTIALS

  • Bachelor of Science, Outdoor & Experiential Education, Western Washington University

  • Master of Arts, Applied Behavioral Science, Leadership Institute of Seattle

  • ACC, International Coaching Federation

  • 6 Team Conditions 

  • Hogan Leadership Assessments

  • Leadership Circle Profile

  • Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centered Coaching

  • Leadership Versatility Index

Partners & Collaborators

What People Say

  • Cara has a million frameworks up her sleeve, makes complex topics approachable, creates space for people to be real and honest, asks the questions people might be afraid to ask, and most important, makes people laugh like hyenas.

    Grace Brelje, Salesforce

  • Cara is as real as it gets. She’s one of those rare speakers who leads with vulnerability and heart, creating an immediate and lasting connection with her audience. Her presence is grounded, her insights are spot-on, and she brings just the right mix of wisdom, humility, and humor to every talk. Every time I've seen her speak, I walk away having learned something new. Her words don’t just land—they stick.

    Alanna I, Founder of Vibe Coworks and Matchstick Labs

  • As an engineering leader, I'm naturally cynical of most corporate types of training. With Cara it was different - her approach to learning was so refreshing - she cares about her audience and their individual experiences. Cara gave me tools that I could actually use without feeling like a corporate manipulator. I literally use the things I have learned from Cara every single day.

    Colin Merry, Sinclair Digital

  • Cara is simply incredible. She's easy to work with and quickly disarms you with her intellect and sense of humor. I learned so much from our partnership and will continue to lean on her for expertise. If you need a standout coach, facilitator, speaker...she's your gal. I'm a better leader today because of the time spent with Cara.

    Monica Suutari, Salesforce

  • Cara has a knack for asking the right questions and digging in to find the *real* issue behind the problems at hand...she truly makes a difference in transforming individuals and teams for the better. I would work with Cara any time, any where - she is beyond outstanding.

    Sarah Battersby, Tableau

  • I walked away from every coaching session we had with a sense of clarity, validation, and more confidence in myself. Cara created an environment where I felt safe and supported in everything that I shared with her, and knew that any time she challenged me it was coming from a deep place of care and belief. She helped me to reframe a period of uncomfortable change to an opportunity for leadership, and for that I am immensely grateful.

    Taylor Keller, Workday

We should talk.