In a professional world increasingly defined by burnout and boundary issues, Michael Goodman has spent over 15 years teaching people something deceptively simple: how to say no, and how to trust themselves while doing it.
Goodman’s approach to leadership and career coaching doesn’t rely on corporate jargon or motivational platitudes. Instead, he focuses on emotional intelligence and self-awareness, working with everyone from CEOs to high-performing individual contributors who struggle with the same fundamental challenges—imposter syndrome, boundary setting, and the persistent voice of self-doubt.
His book “The Year of No” hit Amazon’s #1 Best Seller spot by addressing what many professionals feel but few discuss openly: the exhaustion that comes from constant availability and the difficulty of reclaiming focus without guilt. The premise resonated because it named something specific—not work-life balance in the abstract, but the actual mechanics of setting boundaries and sticking to them.
Building a Different Kind of Leadership Practice
Goodman’s latest book, “Reframe: How to Stop Listening to Fear and Start Leading from Within,” takes the conversation deeper. It tackles the internal narratives that keep capable people stuck, offering readers a way to quiet self-doubt and reconnect with their own leadership instincts. Like “The Year of No,” a page-a-day book featuring 366 daily practices to build boundaries, it quickly became an Amazon #1 Best Seller in both Business Leadership and Self Help categories.
Beyond the books, Goodman created the 30 Days to Great series—practical guides designed to help readers build stronger habits in leadership, emotional intelligence, and professional relationships. The format reflects his broader philosophy: small, consistent actions matter more than grand transformations.
He also maintains two leadership newsletters that extend his reach beyond one-on-one coaching. BRAVO on LinkedIn and Workforce of Joy on Substack both explore what he calls “the human side of success”—the emotional work that rarely appears in job descriptions but determines whether people thrive or merely survive in their careers.
A Human-First Approach to Professional Growth
What distinguishes Goodman’s work is what he describes as his “very human approach.” His coaching practice blends emotional intelligence, behavioral psychology, and modern leadership practices, but the emphasis remains on helping people build careers that align with who they actually are, not who they think they should be.
Over hundreds of coaching relationships, he’s refined a method that treats self-awareness not as a luxury but as a practical tool for better decision-making and more sustainable success. The focus on building what he calls a “workforce of joy” reflects a growing recognition that professional satisfaction and performance aren’t opposing forces.
As book sales continue to grow and new clients seek out his guidance on leadership development, Goodman’s work suggests that the future of leadership coaching may be less about teaching people to project confidence and more about helping them find it from within.
