William Walker
Men’s Leadership Coach
Forged by Challenge
I have forged my unique perspective on human development and leadership through my own personal leadership challenges as a way of growth. This includes walking the Appalachian trail in the winter for 68 days, living homeless for months as a personal challenge, and strengthening emotional, mental and spiritual resilience through thousands of hours of meditation practice including spending extensive time in monasteries, caves and in the wilderness. Out of those experiences also poetry, articles and books have emerged.
Biography
William combines his profound personal experiences, extensive in the trenches experience working with a wide range of exceptional leaders, and an ability to connect deeply with what matters most to his clients to empower them to identify meaning in their lives, overcome modern constraints and barriers, and actualize the best, most authentic versions of themselves.
Some examples of his transformational work with leaders includes leading a client through 3 day journey of urban homelessness, having executives write and recite poetry, and inspiring his clients mindsets through physical team building activities like building an outdoor sauna and energizing hikes.
William has worked as coach, advisor and educator with diverse adult and youth populations including men, executives, entrepreneurs, thought leaders, community leaders, inmates, adolescent boys, at-risk teenagers and university students. He has coached and facilitated leadership trainings and workshops with hundreds executives and leadership teams from organizations including Standard Chartered First Bank, The Royal Bank of Canada, McGill University, ACASS, St. Royal Entertainment, Blue Rush, GC Biotherapeutics, Emergent Biosolutions and Keyturn Public Benefit Corporation. His coaching, programs and retreats are unique, humanizing and life changing.
William has worked as a management consultant at MNP, one of Canada’s top business consulting firms, as an executive coach and recruiter, and as an outdoor leadership facilitator with Outward Bound Canada and Boys to Men Canada. He has written two books on spirituality and masculinity (Walk of Honor and Stories of Sovereign Man), several articles on men’s health, organizational learning and leadership, appeared on the Fully Integrated Leadership Podcast and presented inspiring talks at international conferences and community events on topics including leadership, personal mastery, and masculinity.
William has a bachelor degree in Recreation and Leisure Studies, an MBA in Sports Management is a certified Integral Therapist, a Wilderness Medical Associates certified Wilderness First Responder, a professionally trained coach and has taught leadership and communication courses at Concordia University, Korea University and Hongik University. He currently teaches part-time in the department of Communication at the University of Ottawa.