We were lucky to catch up with Alita Watson recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alita, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

In 2017, I was hired by the CEO of a unicorn startup, Sonder, as an ’embedded coach.’ He knew he would be hiring many new managers and wanted them to practice the same leadership skills and philosophies he had learned in his own coaching journey.

We didn’t initially know how the role would evolve, but I ended up becoming an invaluable resource to the business and its employees. Over seven years, I facilitated over 7,000 coaching sessions, built an innovative HR function while navigating the complexities of confidentiality, and escalated themes that provided insight into the dynamics and narratives at all levels of the company.

I ultimately developed leadership programs and resilience workshops, embedding our customs and principles throughout the organization. At one point, I wrote an article titled “Why I Believe Every Startup Needs an Embedded Coach,” and suddenly, CEOs and HR leaders were reaching out to ask, “How did you design this model? Can you help us duplicate it?”

That sounded really fun and inspiring to me, so I founded Alma with the intention of helping build the soul of the organizations I serve.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Before this experience, I had worked in global aid for 13 years and thought this was my ‘life’s work’ until I realized that I was only putting a bandaid on much deeper systemic issues. For example, when I worked with Smile Network, we would bring medical teams to operate on children with facial deformities. In some areas, we saw a significantly higher number of people with bilateral cleft lip and palate and realized that many had been drinking contaminated water from local vehicle manufacturing plants that hadn’t been following guidelines or been held accountable. This realization led to an existential crisis where I questioned how I could truly make an impact.

That’s when I decided to start serving ‘at the top,’ instead of from the bottom-up. I became passionate about instilling conscious leadership within organizations that had the power to create socially responsible entities and cultures where people felt included, considered, and in integrity. Today I’m passionate about empowering organizations that care about people as much as, if not more than, profit.

I currently work primarily with startups and SMEs in the growth or expansion phases. I seek to understand their unique challenges and then provide guidance, resources, training, workshops, coaching, and fractional work to define and strengthen strategy, culture, and team performance. Additionally, I help HR leaders adopt the Embedded Coaching model, training and placing coaches that can revolutionize the people function.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

Lately, I’ve been focused on ‘change leadership’ and the behaviors we can adopt to navigate this era defined by constant change. Our brains do wild things when we’re in states of uncertainty and fear, often leading to fruitless loops of worrying and catastrophizing. This temporary relief in the belief that if we can prepare, we won’t be rendered helpless can be misleading.
As a leader, how do you inspire your employees when there is no ‘token of hope’ you can offer? How do you get them to stay after their sense of loyalty or passion for the work has been diminished through layoffs, restructuring, and the general state of the world?
My advice: Focus on Connection.
Be real with your team. Model humility by acknowledging that you don’t have all the answers. Openly share how you’re thinking, operating, and maintaining optimism. This authenticity helps people trust that you can relate to and understand their fears and scarcity mindset.
Tell a story of the future that instills a renewed sense of purpose and passion. Connect genuinely with your team, share your journey, and demonstrate vulnerability. By doing so, you create a foundation of trust and hope that can inspire and uplift even in the most challenging times.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

The story I used to believe was that we constantly have to be pushing, driving, building, and working to be successful. This year, after realizing that my business model needed to be reworked, I decided to pause—everything. I took six weeks off to rest, reflect, become more present as a mom and wife, and get involved in my community.

When I came back, I realized I had integrated everything I had been through and learned over the past ten years of my journey. This stillness proved to be more valuable than any of my other strategies. It was uncomfortable but priceless. I was able to see more clearly, respond more strategically, and cultivate new opportunities that aligned with my vision and purpose.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Alitawatson.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conscious_concierge/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alitawatson/
• Other: Substack: https://alitawatson.substack.com/

Image Credits

https://www.instagram.com/theportraitsessions/