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
S1 | E11 Shweta Shyamani - Mind Body Therapist [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:53
In this episode of The Permission Slip, I sit down with Shweta Shyamani, a clinical hypnotherapist, energy intuitive, and co-leader of Rewilding Retreats for Women. Shweta shares her powerful journey from corporate succe…
S1 | E10 Rich Priddis - Conscious Connection and Intimacy Guide [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:41
CONTENT WARNING - in this episode there is some graphic sexual language that may be triggering. In this intimate and eye-opening conversation, I sit down with Rich Priddis, a Conscious Connection and Intimacy Guide and l…
S1 | E9 Ben Goldberger - Breathworking Psychotherapist [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:13:56
In this intimate and wide-ranging conversation, I sit down with licensed psychotherapist Ben Goldberger, LCSW—founder of We Are Medicine. Ben shares his personal journey from depression, disconnection, and rebellion in h…
S1 | E8 Dr. Therese Rowley - Skilled Intuitive [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:21:26
I had the pleasure of experiencing not one, but TWO sessions with Therese at the very start of my transformational healing journey back in 2019. I was so f-ing excited to sit down with her and talk about her work earlier…
S1 | E7 Lizzi Cutler - Intuitive [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:13:33
In this episode, I reconnect with Lizzi Cutler, an intuitive and transformational energy worker who once guided me through a powerful healing process that helped clear energetic blocks around abundance—blocks I didn’t ev…
S1 | E6 Laura O'Malley - Channel [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:29:06
It turns out I had two connections to Laura (at least that I know of) in the 3D. We were first introduced in the summer of 2022. I had my first intuitive reading with her in September of that year. Laura is an absolute g…
S1 | E5 Alefiyah Lindo - Intuitive [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:49
The guest on upcoming Episode 6, Laura O'Malley, introduced me to Alefyah Lindo in early 2024. I was laid up in bed, literally unable to walk on the day of our first appointment. She was kind enough to come to my home an…
S1 | E3 Jonathan Tripodi - Body Memory [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:16:58
It was late 2019 and, in spite of a lot of personal growth work, including a beautiful solo psilocybin journey, guided MDMA journey with an underground therapist and a 12 day Ayahausca retreat in the Ecuadoran Andes, I w…
S1 | E2 Julie Murphy - Financial Advisor [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:28
I was introduced to Julie Murphy in 2019 and she has been instrumental in assisting me in healing from generational money wounds and moving into a life of abundance and optimism around money. In this episode of The Permi…
S1 | E1 Renee LaVallee McKenna - Spiritual PsiKologist [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:42
In the first episode of The Permission Slip, I touch my journey healing from decades of depression, addiction, and physical pain to a place of deep presence and purpose. For much of my life, I felt like I didn’t belong h…