Student Endorsements

Amazing Training Endorsements

for the comprehensive ADD Coach Training
I developed and delivered during the most active period of
The Optimal Functioning Institute™

 

Why the geese?  Find out below:

The Goose Story
ABOUT Values and the Goose Story

What some of the staffers had to say:

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All staffers were OFI-ACT graduates or were currently completing their training
— and they were ALL volunteers —
helping me keep the training affordable for a greater number of people
as, together, we pioneered the ADD Coaching field.
(In case you are wondering, I did not draw a salary for 12 solid years,
working 2 full-time jobs: one to support the other.)
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“The OFI training program is so thorough, practical and focused that it has provided me with knowledge and confidence to attract the type of ADD clients I want to Coach. It emphasizes the important strategies, systems, and issues that need to be addressed to meet my client’s Challenges.”
David Giwerc, OFI past president; went on to found ADDCA 
Slingerlands, NY

“I chose Coaching because I wanted to shift my professional focus from mental ‘illness’ to a ‘wellness’ model. OFI’s materials excellently explain the ADD experience and its neurology. I especially like ACT’s emphasis on taking out the ‘shoulds’ the ‘musts’ and the blame!”
Kate Kelly, RN, MSN., CN., A.C.T., OFI Past President
Co-author of You Mean I’m NOT Lazy, Stupid or Crazy?!

“OFI’s TeleClass format, wide variety of participants and excellent materials made getting information easy & comfortable. My entire family now addresses ADD without judgment. Finally! I got what I wanted from the other end of a phone!”
Dr. Francena T. Hancock, past Director of Training for OFI

“I chose OFI after extensive research because high standards, strong credentials and depth of experience are important to me. The text is excellent, with insights into ADD that are breakthrough thinking.”
Denslow Brown, BS, Drury, MO, OFI’s former Coaching Lab Director
http://www.organizercoach.com

“My study with OFI, as student and trainer, has provided me with an opportunity to be in an association, a university’ of Coaches, some new, many experienced. We come from across the United States. Together we learn and share knowledge, resources and skills in the specialized field of Coaching the ADD client.”
Linda Anderson, MA, Doylestown, PA

“It is very satisfying to have so much information presented in one place. ACT really takes advantage of the multi-modal approach that ADDers crave. OFI is extending the capabilities of Coaching in the ADD arena by quantum leaps!“
Marty Crouch, MA, A.C.T., Portland, OR

“OFI’s training has shown me the perfection of ‘imperfections’. The refined communication tools taught in this training are a necessity for anyone who influences others and for smoother navigation through life.”
Josephine Cilluffo, MS, C.C.H.T., San Francisco, CA

“OFI, among many other benefits, has provided a ticket out of managed care. I can have the best of both worlds by functioning as a therapist for self-pay clients and enjoying my second profession as a personal and career Coach.”
Diana E. Edwards, Ph.D., Phoenix, AZ, OFI’s former Conference Director

“I love OFI. It has given me the tools to trust my ability to partner with clients as they change their lives. I credit OFI for developing a community of like-minded Coaches who exchange ideas and give the best Coaching available to ADDers and non-ADDers alike.“
Norma Heller, BA, Norwalk, CT

“In addition to basic Coaching skills, the emphasis at OFI is on understanding the effects of ADD on daily functioning. Whether or not we have ADD, these subtleties are easy to miss and often go unrecognized. Making them conscious has made me a much more effective Coach for my ADD clients.”
Hope Langner, MS, CRC, Albany, NY

“The best thing I have learned at OFI is to come from your strengths, develop systems on how each of us work, and speak from your heart.”
Richard H. Scileppi, CFP., Sayville, NY

“I’m proud to be affiliated with OFI because of their strong commitment to excellence in ADD Coach training.”
Cynthia Elander, M.C, Phoenix, AZ

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What some of the participants had to say:

“For anyone seeking a comprehensive understanding of ADD and solid ADD Coaching strategies, OFI is without equal. You access expertise and insights, plenty of excellent modeling and approaches to specific ADD challenges, and opportunities to grow and learn through the ADD Coaching Clinic.”
Barbara Luther, A.C.T., became ADDCA’s Training Coordinator

“For the last year I have been seeking a Coaches training that is based on ADD Coaching techniques versus Coaching in general. I chose OFI training because it includes over the phone classes & labs with significant time spent on ADD issues, supporting module workbooks, Peer Coaching by recent graduates, and actual “Coaching” of clinic clients over a six month period.”
Mary Jane Johnson – Past president and founder of ADDA
Toledo, Ohio

“This program is probably more extensive than most physicians receive in medical school on the subject, and is more current than most textbooks on MBD, ADD and AD/HD. This is due, in part, to interaction in and out of class. We inform each other of new and changing information.”
John Lose, BA

“OFI gave me the support I needed to shift from my role of assisting ADD adults in finding and utilizing services to providing professional services. ADD Coaching allows me to do what I did and so much more. I wish only that I’d done it sooner, much sooner.”
Lisa Flindt Poast, A.C.T., Bellingham, WA

“I chose OFI because I felt it had the best approach to ADD conditions — focusing not on what people do wrong, but on that they do right. The materials are excellent. MGH has left no stone unturned — everything’s there ! And the genuine positive feedback I receive from everyone at OFI is a really significant piece of the learning.”
Matt Lang, M.P.A./H.A., Oak Grove, CA

“ADD symptoms can vary widely between ADDers. I came to OFI to develop skills that would allow me to Coach all ADDers powerfully — not just the ones with the same “flavor” of ADD I had experience with personally. I also wanted to know ‘why,’ not just ‘what'”.
Camille Gorcey, Costa Mesa, CA

“I’m looking forward to continuing my personal study of ADD in a more structured fashion as I embark on a new career doing professionally what I’ve always done anyway. I am excited about working with ADD clients who, like me, are committed to progress in their lives and have an inkling that there IS an easier way!“
Dawn Hays, Tempe, AZ

“I have specialized exclusively in ADD for the last 10 years and am affiliated with CH.A.D.D., LDA, Orton Dyslexia Society, ACA, and am currently Vice-President and Newsletter coordinator for ADDA-SR. I know the challenges first-hand, having been diagnosed with ADD myself and having an ADD child.”
Melissa Petty, LMSW-ACP, Dallas, TX

“After advocating successfully for my children who have ADD, I’m avidly studying to become a bonafide ADD Coach through OFI. I expect to use all my skills in partnering my clients.“
Madilyn Hurley, BS, MS, Phoenix, AZ

“The parallels between my lifetime education career and OFI’s focus were obvious immediately. ACT models systems development as I will use it as a Coach — & supplies sources for future areas of interest. The material’s research & documentation spans all fields. Masterfully done.“
Patty Kuzmick, A.C.T., Washington DC Metro

“A late-life ADD diagnosis explains why I have had to swim upstream all my life. I came to OFI to help others swim with the current! I feel I will come away with the ability talk powerfully to the ADD world and make a huge difference — one of my core values.”
Beth J. Rosner, JD, Chicago, Illinois

“I am excited realizing the tools I am acquiring in OFI, helping me to understand the multiple facets of ADD. Isolation and shame hide the gifts and creativity of ADDers. This course work provides nitty-gritty tools for practical help. I am delighted with this knowledge.”
D. Bucky Farquhar, MSS, LSW, Bryn Mawr, PA

“My experience at OFI as a student training to be a Coach, as well as being Coached myself, has provided me with the self-confidence and skills to offer others the awareness that I have gained. To self-actualize is to be born again and again.”
Anita Bowers, Bronx, NY

“I am impressed with OFI’s ADD Coach Training program and believe there is a great need for specialists in this area. I look forward to combining ADD expertise with my existing Coaching skills in both the physical and mental arenas as I design a career that is personally fulfilling.”
Meridith Lord, Jacksonville, FL

“OFI provides me with up-to-date knowledge about ADD that is immediately practical, accessible and useful in the Coaching relationship.”
Kelley L. Putnam, MBA, Fairfield, IA

“For my ADD husband and son, I wanted to train to be a Coach before I even knew such a thing existed! I look to OFI for all the knowledge and skills I can absorb. It is vital. This can truly change people’s lives.“
Liz Shaw, Athens, OH

“OFI is a supportive, nurturing environment to practice new skills and develop special abilities. The Peer Coaching structure has been invaluable, and I love participating in the Clinic and being able to workshop client issues in the Coaching labs.”
Laurie Van-Si, BS, MS, Milwaukee, OR

“Suffering alone with ADD so much and for so long, I was eager to train with a community of Coaches to spare others what I’ve been through. OFI came highly recommended by someone who’d trained there, and I’ve found it extremely thorough. As an avid reader, I love that Resources section!”
Rebecca Bencze, RN, Vancouver, WA

“OFI’s training materials are so interesting, intelligent and presented with such nonstop charm and witty style that it was a pleasure digesting all that info! MGH is more knowledgeable about ADD than anyone or any book I have come across. Working with her has been an inspired experience.”
Saundra Drake-Hawkins, Seattle, WA

“I want the time to participate in my very full life as well as a professional career. OFI’s . . . philosophy fits my passions, professional criteria and lifestyle while I hone the skills I want to possess to empower others.”
Dee Doochin, MA, Nashville, TN

“OFI has enhanced my Coaching skills by adding to my ADD information base, but the greatest value has come from being in a supportive community of ADD Coaches. Madelyn really emphasizes this aspect, so now I have a lot of ADD experts to call on for help.”
Holly Hamilton, Tigard, OR

“Originally apprehensive about my value as a non-ADD ADD Coach, working with OFI has assured me how very much I can offer. It’s fascinating to study the principles of systems development after a lifetime of implementing systems.”
Janine Baker, Knoxville, TN

“Sharing the ride as I partner my client’s journey to excellence has been a gift to my life. The individual gifts of each OFI participant gives us all a storehouse of information and skills to draw on as we help our ADD clients function more effectively in a chaotic world.”
Karen Whitworth, A.C.T., Spring, TX

“OFI is education, systems and community.”
Sarah Shaffer, AB, M.L.S., A.C.T., California

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I extend my sincere appreciation to everyone who put their feelings down “on paper,” along with my abject apologies if YOUR endorsement is not included above.  I am gathering email endorsements and testimonials ongoingly, and will add new ones as I find them and have the time to add them to this page.

If you have a website or blog you’d like to let folks know about, leave a link in the comments section below, along with any news of what you have done since and are doing NOW.

I miss you guys!

xx,
mgh

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