S1 | E4 Melissa Ford - Executive Coach

S1 | E4 Melissa Ford - Executive Coach

Author: Matt Kosterman June 27, 2025 Duration: 1:03:06

I was guided to Melissa by a friend all the way back in 2012, as I struggled mightily in the aftermath of divorce, foreclosure and bankruptcy. I had several one-off appointments until completing the Landmark Forum, where it became very clear I needed EXACTLY what she had to offer. I spent 13 months meeting with her regularly for guidance and the occasional kick in the ass. I'm glad I did. She helped build the solid foundation that carried me through years of transformation.
Melissa Ford is master coach, author, and unapologetic truth-teller. Tune in for a conversation that cuts right to the core. Melissa and I explore what it really means to lead from love, not people-pleasing, and how most of us have been trained to abandon ourselves in the name of "service." She shares her journey from corporate performer to soulful coach, and how choosing truth over comfort led to the most honest, powerful work of her life.
We unpack what fierce love actually looks like in practice: saying the hard thing, standing for someone else’s greatness, and being willing to risk their discomfort for their transformation. Melissa talks about why conflict is often sacred, how real leadership begins with integrity to self, and why approval is a poor substitute for real connection. This episode is an invitation to stop performing, stop rescuing, and start leading from a place of radical honesty and love that includes you.

Melissa's Bio

I’m a business and life coach who works with entrepreneurs, executives, career changers, artists, you name it. Clients seek me out to address leadership and productivity challenges, role transitions, growth and profitability concerns, and other issues that have them feeling unfulfilled or stuck in their professional lives.

In my 20+ years of coaching, I’ve developed a holistic approach to helping my clients. While they are initially focused on a single “problem” or “project,” I help them take a step back and examine the thought patterns that get in the way of crafting creative solutions and approaches to move forward in their work.

A bit about me: I’m a certified PCI Coach and graduate of ACS. I have an English degree from the University of Illinois and a law degree from DePaul University. My legal training has made me an analytical coach with a bullseye focus, pinpointing exactly what will propel clients forward. When I’m not coaching, I can be found “vacationing” at professional development events, visiting my grown daughter in NYC, working out with my personal trainer (aka, my son), and enjoying the love and friendship of my husband.

Website https://melissafordcoaching.com

Special Guest: Melissa Ford.


For fifteen years, a deep healing journey has been the central thread of my life, weaving through everything from personal growth books and meditation to psychedelics, bodywork, and Tantric retreats. That path, filled with explorations of chakras, Human Design, and channeled works, is what I bring to The Permission Slip. This isn't a lecture hall; it's the continuation of those spontaneous, sometimes surprising conversations I tend to start with relative strangers about consciousness and transformation. Each episode feels like granting yourself the space to explore the edges of your own understanding. You'll hear genuine dialogues that delve into the practical and the profound, questioning how we heal, grow, and perceive reality itself. The aim of this podcast is to normalize these wide-ranging explorations, offering a sense of companionship for anyone curious about the tools and perspectives that challenge conventional self-improvement. It’s for those who find resonance in spirituality, health, and alternative education, and who are looking for a candid voice that has been there, digging through the layers. Tune in for a mix of personal reflection and external insight, all centered on the idea that sometimes what we need most is simply the permission to look inward and explore.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 21

The Permission Slip
Podcast Episodes
S2 | E2 Deborah Servetnick - Life Mastery Coach [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:12
In this episode, I sit down with Deb Servetnick. "Grateful Deb" is a life mastery coach, psychedelic guide, bodyworker, and founder of Serve Medicine. Join us for an expansive, unscripted exploration of healing. We begin…
S2 | E1 Dr. Jodie NewDelman, Doctor of Psychology [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:19:07
Dr. Jodie NewDelman shares her evolution from a hard-science neuropsychology background at UCLA studying autism genetics to embracing a more integrated biopsychosocial-spiritual model of care. We examine: • The limitatio…
S1 | E18 Amy Anesi - Dear Friend & Former Spouse [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:46:37
This season-one finale of The Permission Slip is a deeply honest, unsanitized conversation between me and my former wife, Amy Anesi. We were married for 15 years, raised two daughters together, divorced after an affair,…
S1 | E17 Paul Selig - Psychic, Teacher & Author [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:05
I discovered the channeled work of Paul Selig and his "Guides" (whom have called themselves "Melchizedek") in late summer of 2020. I had fortunately been "softened" up considerably with psychedelic work including Psilocy…
S1 | E16 Lisa Parker - Founder, Trilome® [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:11:26
The irony of the fact that it took me 16 episodes to get to somebody who works with psychedelic medicines is not lost on me. Psychedelics (all of them) have been instrumental in my healing process. As somebody who hasn't…
S1 | E15  Janell Riedl - Pilates Instructor & Intuitive [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:15:03
Join me as I sit down with someone who has been a beautiful and powerful force in my healing journey — my Pilates instructor and friend, Janell Riedl. After resisting the call of Pilates for a long time, three years ago…
S1 | E12 Laura O’Malley - Channel & Happiness Coach [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:32:47
This is the first episode I've created that has video. You may wish to watch it to see how Laura's entire countenance changes when she channels the other beings. Link - https://youtu.be/xo72vAcW6-k I'm really excited abo…