Martha
When your relationships work, everything works.
Relational Mentor
I help you navigate the complexity of power, love, and conflict—so you can lead, collaborate and relate without untenable friction or self-abandonment.
I especially like working with women.
You’re capable. You get things done. You show up.
And yet—somewhere in your relationships, things get harder than they should.
You might:
Find yourself stuck in the same old conflict
Hold too much responsibility for others
Avoid saying what actually needs to be said
Come on strong and feel people pull away
Struggle to land your point, even when you’re right
Find yourself not having the connection you long for
Leave conversations thinking, “That didn’t go how I wanted…”
This isn’t about becoming someone else.
It’s about learning how to work with the dynamics of relationship—so your clarity, care, and power actually translate.
I help you cultivate your boundaries, voice & influence.
Your boundaries – knowing when to hold, when to yield, and how to do both cleanly
Your voice – saying what’s true in a way that can be heard
Your influence – being able to move things forward without force or collapse
Most people (especially women) were never taught how these actually work together. So we overcompensate. We hold too tightly—or not at all. We speak—but don’t land. We care—but lose ourselves in the process.
This work helps you find the grounded middle—where you can stay connected and be clear, direct, and effective.
Martha’s sincerity and presence were exceptional. She was meticulously attuned to my emotional discomforts and accurately provided reflective listening. She integrated somatic exercises with our verbal exchange which permitted the release of old patterns and stuck thinking and behaviors. Due to her transparency and genuine concern, I was able to explore some very intimate areas of my life and was given guidance to manage particular circumstances and set healthy boundaries that enhance both my well being and relationships with colleagues and friends. I recommend Martha’s expertise for any adult who desires personal growth and development. – Sophia O., Healthcare Consultant & Educator
Martha’s Approach
It’s All About Relationship
My approach begins with relationship—how you relate to yourself, to others, and to the world—and how that shapes your ability to influence, inspire, and lead.
We explore questions like:
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How do you relate to authority, influence, and accountability?
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How do these relationships affect your level of satisfaction, effectiveness, fulfillment, and sense of ease?
Conversation Is a Portal
As a Conversation Activist, Martha is all about the way we speak—and how we hold conversation—reveals our relational patterns. When we slow down and pay attention to communication, what’s working and what’s not becomes visible. Conversation reflects both our inner world and the larger systems we move within: culture, power, and norms. From here, we experiment with small, courageous shifts that create real, felt change.
You are invited to visit and subscribe to Martha’s Susbstack on Conversation Activism.
Core Orientations
Awareness
Shifting how you relate is tricky, because how you relate isn’t super visible. This is why developing an awareness of our relationship with what is here—within ourselves, between us, and between ourselves and the wider world is a cornerstone of my approach. What do you notice? What do you feel? What becomes visible when you attune to the vastness of the present moment and allow “nowness” to be your teacher?
Compassion & Play
We practice compassion and play – two necessary elements in the learning journey as they soften the ever-present right/wrong thinking that permeates western culture. When we move from the perspective of compassion and play we have more ability to hold the complexity and uncertainty inherent in life.
Ways To Work With Me
Get a taste:
Relational Recipe
Get a personalized video from Martha and a custom relational recipe that is a blend of practices, meditations, reflections, exercises, rituals, and curated resources — designed just for you.
$188
Go deep:
Relational Mentorship
Join me in for a deep dive into unlocking your relational genius. This 3 month container is a space to slow down, become more sensitive and adept at showing up to relationships and conversations with greater agency. Together, we listen for what wants to shift, work with what is present, and translate insight into grounded action.
3, 1 hour sessions for 3 months
$1,800
Meet Martha
Martha Williams is a Relational Mentor and longtime creator and facilitator of conversations that matter. Her work is rooted in the belief that leadership lives in relationship—in how we listen, speak, and stay present with one another, especially in moments of tension or change. It’s about the containers we create and the deep awareness we embody.
Martha is the cofounder of BreakBread World, a community of Conversation Activists dedicated to reweaving our shared humanity. With BreakBread World she designs and leads spaces for connection as well as trains people in Conversation Alchemy, a conversation practice model her and her partner and cofounder created.
She has a creative background in film, dance, writing or whatever she feels like getting her hands on. She also has a long history with sustainability activism, and systems thinking—an uncommon blend that shapes her grounded, intuitive, creative and embodied approach. Martha has an MFA from California Institute of the Arts, has been certified as a Co-Active Coach at the pre-eminent The Coaching Training Institute and certified as a yoga teacher at OM Yoga in New York City. As a former dancer, she brings a deep somatic, spatial and visual intelligence to her work. She draws much of her learning from Regina Thomashauer and Kasia Urbaniak, which both helped her develop her attention practices and helps her to understand how the role of feminine and masculine energies shape our understanding and ways of moving through the world.
She brings presence, discernment, and deep respect for the human terrain of leadership—supporting clients to lead differently, and in doing so, to shift the world around them!
