The Leadership Blind Spot™ — 8-Week Group Coaching Program

8-week group coaching program

There are so many leaders out there who don't even know what they can't see.

You got promoted because you were good at the work. Nobody taught you how to build a team that tells you the truth. The Leadership Blind Spot changes that.

8
weeks live on Zoom
8–16
leaders per cohort
1
private call with Donna
CPCC
certified coach

The real problem

The molehill becomes a mountain. And you never saw it coming.

Here is what leaders in your position actually say when nobody is recording:

"I have a problem with someone on my team and I don't know how to handle it."

New manager, tech industry

"I want to give feedback but I don't want to hurt the relationship. So I just... don't."

Director, manufacturing

"We don't worry about the small things. And then those small things become big things. Now I just want the person gone."

VP of operations

"My biggest frustration is myself. I should have just said it. I should have found a way."

Manager, professional services

Why this happens

You weren't trained for this. You were trained for the work.

Most leadership training focuses on how to have the difficult conversation. What it never teaches is how to make feedback so natural, so steady, so everyday, that the difficult conversation almost never has to happen.

So feedback stays rare. And when it's rare it feels like an event. And when it feels like an event, everyone braces for it — including you.

The leaders who build the best teams aren't the ones who are best at hard conversations. They're the ones who never let things get that hard.

"If our leaders aren't the ones driving the culture, we're headed in the wrong direction."

Feedback is just like a pencil. It slowly gets dull — and then you have to sharpen it back up again. The leaders who stay sharp are the ones who practice it before they need it.

The good news: this is a skill. Not a personality type. Not a gift some people have. A skill. And skills can be learned — if you actually practice them.

A note from Donna

I know what it looks like when leadership actually works.

I spent years working for a president who would have pulled a $40 million program just to protect one of his people. When a customer screamed at me in a meeting, he found out and called that customer directly. He said if he ever heard of anyone treating one of his employees that way again, the program was gone.

I cried. Not because it was dramatic. Because I had never felt so completely seen and protected by a leader in my life. And I realized in that moment how rare that was.

My mother was a therapist — kind, curious, honest, funny. When you were with her you could feel her warmth. She wanted a better human race. When she passed in 2014, I went back to work and my VP asked what was next for me. I told her maybe I'd look at becoming a therapist like my mom.

She told me about coaching. I signed up for the entire certification program that day. I had no idea what it was going to be about. I just knew I wanted to help people become better humans.

Ten years later, I'm still doing exactly that.

I've spent those ten years sitting across from leaders at every level — in every kind of organization — and the thread is always the same.

It's not that they don't care. The ones who struggle most are often the ones who care the most. They hold back because they don't want to damage the relationship, discourage someone who worked hard, or come across as harsh.

What they haven't learned is that the care that keeps them quiet is the exact same care that — turned toward honesty a little sooner — would build more trust than silence ever did.

That's what this program is about.

I'm not a polished presenter. Sometimes I might swear. Maybe I'll cry with you when something real happens in the room. I say what I see even when it's uncomfortable. If you're looking for a program that feels corporate, scripted, or carefully managed so nothing real ever comes up — this probably isn't it.

If you're looking for one that actually changes something — keep reading.

The framework

The CLEAR™ framework — five practices that make feedback feel human.

Eight weeks. Five practices. One shift in how you lead. Every week builds on the one before it — by the end you won't be learning a new skill. You'll be leading differently.

C
Create the Moment
Leaders don't wait for the right moment. They create it. You learn to speak up while something is still small, workable, and relationship-building rather than relationship-breaking.
L
Lead with Curiosity
Curiosity removes blame, judgment and defensiveness before a single word of feedback is spoken. One rule: never ask "why." It puts people on the defensive before the conversation even starts.
E
Express What You See
Clear is kind. Vague is not. If people felt safe to say what they see, most conflicts could be avoided. You practice saying the thing — directly, specifically, and without over-apologizing for noticing it.
A
Acknowledge the Impact
Feedback without context feels like criticism. When leaders help people understand how their behavior lands on others — not as an attack but as information — change becomes possible.
R
Reach for Real Conversation
The strongest leaders don't just deliver feedback. They create dialogue — two-way conversations where the other person feels heard, takes ownership, and becomes a partner rather than a recipient.

What you will do

Eight weeks. What each one looks like.

Week 1
What you can't see from where you sit
Your blind spot introduction. What it is, why it forms, and the real cost of what's been going unsaid on your team.
Week 2
The cost of silence
You recognize the specific patterns of avoidance in your own leadership. You name what you've been carrying and begin to understand why.
Week 3
C — Create the Moment
You stop waiting for the right moment and start making it. Practice speaking up while something is still workable.
Week 4
L — Lead with Curiosity
Curiosity as a leadership skill. Ask before you conclude. The one question that changes every conversation.
Week 5
E — Express What You See
Say the thing. Practice giving feedback — both positive and constructive — in the moment rather than saving it for later.
Week 6
A — Acknowledge the Impact
Connect your words to their effect. Help people understand impact without making them feel attacked.
Week 7
R — Reach for Real Conversation
Move from monologue to dialogue. Build the conditions where your team tells you the truth without being asked.
Week 8
Your 90-day trust-first plan
You leave with a concrete, personal plan for the next 90 days. Not theory. What you are going to do on Monday.

Is this for you?

Be honest with yourself.

This is for you if...

  • You were recently promoted and privately feel like you're figuring it out as you go
  • You have things you know you should say to your team and you keep not saying them
  • You want your team to trust you — not just comply with you
  • You care about the people you lead and that's exactly why this is hard
  • You're tired of training that doesn't stick because you never got to practice
  • You want to lead the way someone once led you — or the way nobody ever did

This is not for you if...

  • You think feedback is something you do to people, not with them
  • You already have all the answers and just need people to follow
  • You're looking for scripts to read from rather than skills to own
  • You want polished and managed — this program is real and sometimes uncomfortable
  • You're not willing to look at your own role in what's not working

Your investment

Everything that's included.

First cohort — early bird pricing
$797
Full price after first cohort: $997  |  Payment plans available
8 weekly live sessions on Zoom — 60 to 75 minutes each
Weekly teaching sent in advance so live time is richer
Private 30-minute call with Donna at the start of your cohort
The Say It Sooner Playbook — 10 daily habits for feedback culture
Your personalized 90-day Trust-First Leadership Plan
Private cohort community — connect between sessions
Access to session recordings for 90 days
Reserve your spot — $797

Cohort begins August 2026  |  8 to 16 leaders per cohort  |  Questions? donna@elevatedimpacts.com

D
Donna Barragan
CPCC
Founder, Elevated Impacts
Leadership Coach

About Donna

I help leaders become the kind of leader people want to follow — and actually do follow.

I'm a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) with a decade of experience working with leaders at every level — new managers, directors, VPs, nonprofit executives, entrepreneurs. The thread across all of them is always the same. Not lack of skill. Not lack of effort. A blind spot.

I say what I see. I don't have a lot of filters. I swear sometimes. I cry with people when something real happens. And I've learned that the leaders who make the most progress are the ones who stop performing and start owning.

Ownership over accountability. Real conversation over polished delivery. That's what we build in this program.

— Donna

Questions

Answered honestly.

I've been to leadership training before and it didn't stick. Why would this be different?
Because most leadership training teaches you about feedback. This program makes you practice it — in a live group, with real scenarios, with real people watching and responding. The skill only develops through repetition. That's what eight weeks gives you that a one-day workshop never can.
I'm not a new leader. I've been leading for years. Is this still for me?
Yes. The program is designed for new and emerging leaders but the content applies at every level. Some of the most experienced leaders I work with have the deepest blind spots — precisely because nobody has ever told them the truth about how they're showing up.
Will my organization pay for this?
Some will. Many won't — especially for a first cohort program. This is priced so that a leader who believes in their own growth can invest out of pocket without it being a hardship. If you want to make the case to your organization, I'm happy to provide documentation that supports that conversation.
What if I miss a session?
All sessions are recorded and available for 90 days. That said — the live experience is where the real growth happens. The group dynamic, the in-the-moment coaching, the practice. I'd encourage you to treat this like a commitment rather than a course.
What happens after the 8 weeks?
You leave with your 90-day plan and the skills to keep going on your own. For leaders who want to go deeper — into what their team is actually experiencing, into their own patterns — there are options for 1:1 coaching and organizational work. But there's no pressure. The program is designed to be complete on its own.