What Others Say About Working With Me
“Gretchen’s candor and skill have transformed my son into a kid focused on learning and self respect, with straight As and Bs. Incredible!!! ~ David, father of an 11th grader
“It’s nice to come to someone who’s not breathing down your neck. Gretchen is very understanding and gives me methods that improve my grades. She’s consistent and she’s always got something new to try.” ~ Wyatt, Age 16
“Coaching sessions relieved my stress because being aware of my commitments made me feel more in control.” ~Niamh, Community College Student, age 16
“Gretchen is curious about everything and everyone. She is a creative thinker and organizer who exudes warmth!” ~ Cynthia Winton-Henry, Collaborator
“In a very short time, Gretchen has become an important part of my survival and growth, giving me a safe place to open up and go with my creative side. I cannot thank her enough.” ~ Al, Fire Inspector
“Gretchen is a personable, highly intelligent problem solver with a strong ability to connect with both parent and student.” ~ Ron and Marcia, parents of a 6th grader
“I felt strongly that Gretchen’s open, out-of -the box, fun personality would jive with my daughter’s. Thanks to skype, I got to work with the coach I wanted despite the distance. ~ Kim, mother of a 7th grader
“I’ve been able to set realistic time lines and actually get things done!” ~ Stephanie, PhD Student
“Gretchen is a wild, artsy, creative spirit with a conscious ability to direct, shape, guide and focus.” ~ Marcus, Graduate Student
I’ve never done anything the normal way.
Born in San Francisco, I grew up traveling the world with my family. As a child we saw kangaroos in Australia and lived in a village along the Nile River in Egypt. When we finally settled in Houston, Texas, I majored in theatre at the High School for Performing and Visual Arts. Later at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, I designed my own major in Intercultural Performance Studies and graduated with highest honors. Not a normal childhood.
After college, my next adventure was on a Fulbright grant to India. Although I loved the prestige of being (insert British accent here:) a “Fulbright Scholar,” I was depressed for most of the year. Looking back on it, the type of research I’d been trained to do disconnected me from the deepest source of my passion and skill: creative expression, teaching and learning, and young people.
Everything changed when I returned to the United States and landed a job as an actor-educator at Minnesota’s CLIMB Theatre. Little did I know that CLIMB’s name — which stands for Creative Learning Ideas for Mind and Body — would inspire an entire career. Ten years later I became a licensed history teacher with a Master’s degree in embodied learning (if you’re interested in what that means, check out my published article).
Along the way, I also became a trained facilitator of InterPlay, a global social movement dedicated to helping individuals and communities unlock the wisdom of their bodies. InterPlay changed my life, helping me balance my brainiac tendencies with an emphasis on ease, playfulness, connection, and creative self-expression.
Now, I’ve built an entire business around helping kids and adults figure out how their brains & bodies tick. I help them break through their learning, organization, and creativity barriers so that they can have more joyful, success-filled lives.
How’d I get so lucky to do what I love every day?!
My Unique Point of View
As a result of this winding journey, I am an academic life coach with a truly unique point of view, including:
- an emphasis on the whole person
- a focus on incremental skill-building
- a relentless brainstorming ability
- laser vision, consistently finding structure amid chaos
- an appreciation of balance between productivity and self-care, rigor and playfulness
- expert use of technology tools to inspire follow-through and measure results
- a lively virtual presence (yes! we can feel just as connected and productive on zoom as in person)
- and much more!
I get all fired up knowing that together, we’ll create a mind-blowing learning experience for you. Check out my blog for all kinds of ideas, or contact me directly for a free 60 minute consultation. You can also sign up for my newsletter, where I send out breaking news about resources, products, and coaching.
My Professional Bio
Gretchen Wegner is an Academic Life Coach who inspires students to uncover their true identities as capable, clever, and creative learners in school and life. She is an internationally recognized expert in how to destressify school by building their executive function skills, teaching teens a unique system for time management, organization and studying called The Anti-Boring Approach to Powerful Studying™. Not only has Gretchen coached hundreds of students in middle school through grad school, she now trains educators all over the world in her unique, powerful, and research-based system for transforming students into voracious, organized learners through her signature courses The Art of Inspiring Students to Study Strategically and the Anti-Boring Approach™ Coach Training Program. A former Fulbright Fellow, Gretchen has a Masters in Curriculum and Instruction and was a credentialed middle and high school teacher. She is also the inventor of the MuseCubes™, a productivity toy that helps people — quite literally! — shake their brains free when they’re feeling stuck. Always an advocate of playful rigor in school and in life, she is also a public speaker, improvisational performer, lindy hop dancer, backpacker, and proud resident of Oakland, California.