Lifefinding - Purpose Based Life Planning
We aren't shy about asking the big questions: What is the purpose of your work? How do your values inform your actions? How are you sustaining your energy for the long haul? What work is actually most meaningful to you now? What's next for you?
The Lifefinding course will give you an opportunity to dive into these questions with others seeking to (re)design their work and life with insight and intention. The four session curriculum involves a mix of small group and one-to-one interaction that provides for connection, creativity and brainstorming that would be hard to match in one-to-one coaching alone. And it’s fun!
Sessions are designed to be as engaging as they are effective and practical. By the end of the course, you will feel:
Purposeful and prepared
More energized and enthusiastic
More meaningfully connected to others
Confident in your next steps
...and you will have:
A clear personal ambition statement
A clarified list of your core values
Multiple possible future career path ideas
A set of action steps you can start immediately
New connections to help you on your way
To hear from past Lifefinding participants, check out this short video.
Who is this program for?
If you are asking yourself what is next for you, how to bring your values and work into closer alignment, how to move from purpose to practice, how to launch a new venture, or how to grow deeper, more meaningful roots where you are, this program will give you the space and guidance to ask those courageous questions in a community of other professionals facing similar pivots.
Registration is capped at 8 so we can provide a meaningful small group experience. You will also receive individualized reflective coaching from the program facilitators whose bios are provided below.
LOGISTICS & DETAILS:
When:
first four Saturdays in October (3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th) from 3pm to 5pm Pacific Standard Time (exact time is flexible if participants prefer an earlier or later time)
Where:
Online
Registration Fee:
We use an honor-based sliding scale. Please choose the price point that works for you anywhere between the minimum and suggested price. Our recommended fee is $500 to cover the time of the group Facilitator and your one-on-one Guide. We set the minimum at $250.
What's included with the registration fee?
Four 2 hour sessions of facilitated learning and reflection (8 total hours) in a small group
2 one-on-one Guide sessions (choice of 1 before the course, 1 during the course, and/or 1 after the course)
All course materials
We are firmly committed to fostering inclusivity and accessibility in our programs. Should the registration fee present a difficulty for you, please contact us directly, and we will work together to identify alternative solutions to ensure your participation.
About Your Weekly Session Facilitator:
Jonathan Gibson - Jonathan is a genuine, caring person who thrives on forming connections and building community. He is passionate about personal growth and self-discovery and has spent his career as an experiential educator honing his skills to facilitate people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities.
Along the way, Jonathan has received extensive education and training in social and cognitive psychology, social emotional learning, leadership, and group development (at Duke University where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, National Outdoor Leadership School, and beyond). He has also sought out valuable life experience in various roles such as Coffee Tour Guide, World Traveler, Mad Scientist, Hug Trainer, Preschool Teacher, and Wilderness Instructor.
About Your One-on-One Guide:
Michelle D. Jones, Ph.D. - Michelle is one of a handful of people who has founded a college from scratch. She has a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Leadership from Claremont Graduate University and two Bachelor's degrees from Trinity University. She taught at multiple universities for almost two decades before starting a college from scratch - Wayfinding Academy - in 2016. She has been featured in The New York Times, The Oregonian, University Times, and The Chronicle of Higher Education and has been interviewed on CBS Sunday Morning and Oregon Public Broadcasting's Think Out Loud. In 2019 she delivered a TEDx talk on "How to do college better" that has been viewed more than 102,000 times. She currently teaches Purpose-Driven Leadership and Human Behavior in Organizations in the Masters in Organizational Leadership program at Western Oregon University.
Michelle has also started multiple nonprofit and for profit businesses and is currently the co-founder of both Smith & Jones Innovation and Sonder Collaborative. She serves on the Board of Directors for several nonprofits, including Stumptown Scholars and Weird Portland United. She lived in a tiny house (85 square feet!) for 15 years until the summer of 2025 when she bought a house ten times that size (small, but not tiny). Her biggest hobby is walking and she takes several trips each year, usually focused on walking, including walking the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage 8 times with groups of students and friends.