Issa Paez: Cultivating Leaders Through Leadership Coaching

Issa Paez has dedicated nearly two decades to nurturing talent and potential in corporate environments. Her passion for developing leaders recently led her to found Arete Leadership Coaching, through which she empowers executives, managers, and teams to maximize their strengths.

Issa's career has taken her through diverse roles focused on enabling others to succeed. She started as an executive assistant at a software company, where she spearheaded community outreach efforts and brought public speaking training into the office. Even without holding a people management position, Issa proactively sought opportunities to motivate and inspire her colleagues . "Leadership is not just leading people or being a people manager," she explains. “It's being able to influence others to take action.”

Over the years, Issa continued finding ways to facilitate training and foster skills development. As a sales effectiveness consultant, she led workshops for new managers transitioning from individual contributor roles. She noticed that while managers were trained in hard skills like hitting targets, they lacked support in soft skills like coaching and mentoring reports.

"My goal for 2023 was to introduce some element of coaching and soft skills into the sales manager workshops," she shares. This growing focus on leadership development led Issa to begin preparing for a potential career change down the line. Though still committed to her company, she enrolled in a coaching certification program and started an independent coaching practice on the side.

The opportunity to fully embrace this new path came sooner than expected. In January 2023, a corporate reorganization eliminated Issa's role. She suddenly faced a choice between returning to a similar corporate position or jumping into coaching full-time.

Fostering Excellence Through Mental Fitness

After months of reflection with her coach and entrusting her fate to her creator, Issa made the leap. She launched Arete Leadership Coaching, named after the ancient Greek concept meaning “excellence in all you do.”

Issa draws on her corporate expertise to help leaders and teams maximize their potential. She focuses specifically on developing mental fitness and a positive mindset. "Our minds control everything we do, how we feel, how we act, the things we say," she explains. "If we don't have a good grasp of our mindset, we end up sabotaging ourselves."   

The keys to mental fitness, according to Issa, are being able to maintain a positive outlook and make clear-headed decisions under stress. This ability to respond positively despite challenges is crucial for leaders. "When you're stressed, anxious, or angry, you're in survival mode," she says. “You don't see how things can move forward or how creative you can be. Your creativity thrives when you're calm and relaxed.”

To help clients build mental muscle, Issa incorporates Positive Intelligence techniques into her coaching. This evidence-based methodology developed by Shirzad Chamine allows people to recognize and rewire their mental patterns. Issa credits it with producing rapid results compared to traditional coaching. "It speeds up the process of gaining insights and building habits so you can sustain what you learn," she explains. “Clients see real shifts in their behavior and actions within weeks.”

Developing Leaders at Every Level

At Arete Leadership Coaching , Issa works with individuals and teams across the corporate landscape. However, much of her focus is on managers. "I see them as a force multiplier within organizations," she says. “If managers can coach and motivate their direct reports, it creates an exponential impact.”

Issa emphasizes the importance of mental fitness for managers, who often get caught reacting negatively to pressure from above and below. "When you're feeling stressed, you end up projecting that energy to your team," she warns. “You create an environment where they can't be productive.”

Instead, she works with managers on maintaining emotional equilibrium in chaotic times. She highlights team meetings as a prime opportunity. "If managers come in already stressed, they'll project anxiety without wanting to," Issa explains. “But if they have the right mindset, they can respond positively and motivate their team.”

In addition to one-on-one coaching, Issa provides team workshops focused on topics like mental fitness, positive leadership, and maximizing strengths. Her goal is to equip organizations to build cultures of learning that enable continuous growth. "Leadership coaching is all about expanding self-awareness so you can positively impact others," she says.

Giving Back By Lifting Up

For Issa, coaching represents a new way to pursue her passion for community impact. She continues supporting organizations like hErVOLUTION, which empowers underserved young women through mentorship and skills training. "I mentor girls on gaining confidence in themselves and their abilities," says Issa. “It's about helping the next generation avoid the pitfalls I faced and showing them what's possible.”

Issa aims to lead by example, demonstrating how women can turn insight into action. "It took perseverance to get where I am today, and I had guidance along the way," she reflects. “I want to pay that guidance forward. My goal is to help other women level up in their lives and careers.”

Leadership Lessons

For leaders looking to maximize their development, Issa recommends starting with humility. "When you're humble, you can admit what you don't know and ask for help," she says. “It allows you to connect more authentically with your team.”

Issa also stresses the importance of continuous learning. "Be open and curious," she advises. “Read books, listen to podcasts, get a coach. There are many ways to grow that don't require big investments.”

Above all, she urges leaders to know themselves first. "Build self-awareness around your strengths, growth areas, even biases and blind spots," Issa says. “You can't effectively develop others until you understand yourself.”

Issa Paez's journey shows the power of finding purpose in service to others. Though she could have remained in corporate management, the desire to fulfill her potential led her to coaching. Issa now combines professional expertise with personal passion to help leaders and teams thrive.

"The best way to find motivation is to motivate others," she says. “When you focus outside yourself, you gain energy and inspiration.”

Through Arete Leadership Coaching, Issa empowers fellow changemakers each day. By developing leadership from within, she creates ripples of positive impact across organizations and communities. Her story stands as a lesson for leaders to let purpose guide the path forward.