Build the Skills Behind Academic Success
Success isn’t just about hard work — it’s about having the right tools.
Professional support makes all the difference in developing a toolkit to help organize work, manage responsibilities, and achieve academic milestones.
Our one-on-one coaching for parents and students turns executive function challenges into better grades, a smoother home routine, and a brighter future.
Sound Familiar?
Falling behind in schoolwork and grades
Overwhelmed with a big transition or daily responsibilities
Communication breakdowns and big emotions at home
Having trouble focusing in class
Appearing “lazy,” “scattered,” or “unmotivated”
Feeling stress or anxiety around test-taking
Need better study skills or just “don’t get it”
Difficulty picking up on social cues
Stress and frustration for both students and parents
Not knowing when to ask for help
Did you know that strong executive function skills are some of the most important predictors of student success?
At The How Skills, we use research-based, customized one-on-one coaching to help adolescents and young adults cultivate academic, social, and life skills that teach them how to find their focus, practice discipline, and remain resilient when they experience setbacks — so they can manage real-life situations with more confidence and independence.
Our coaches are trained educators with master’s or doctorate level degrees and subject matter expertise in executive function, study habits, and organizational techniques. They work collaboratively with students and parents to develop tools and strategies for life-long academic and personal success.
How It Works
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Schedule A Free Consultation
We'll discuss challenges your experiencing, answer any questions you may have, and whether coaching is a good fit with your needs.
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Your coach will collaborate with you to set and prioritize goals during your first meeting, then create a coaching plan aligned with these objectives.
Meet Your Coach & Set Goals
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Build Your Customized Toolkit
Your coach will introduce you to new tools and guide you on how to implement them to build sustainable habits and achieve your goals.
Testimonials
“The transition from middle to high school was tough. I remember struggling to focus on school and not taking opportunities that would help me in school and life. I took my coach’s advice to heart and took risks I didn’t expect myself to take. I connected with my high school teachers more, participated in a lot of extracurricular activities, managed to find what I am passionate about, and through it all, I encouraged myself to work hard in everything I do and not lose hope. I will forever be grateful for my coach and the bright knowledge she passed down to me.”
“Coaching is a great way to hold yourself accountable, and gain tangible skills and tools to make significant steps. Coaches at The How Skills are full of knowledge and compassion—a winning duo.”
“My coach gave me easy, accessible, tangible steps I could implement very easily but made a huge difference.”
“As a single mom, I didn’t have anyone to share all the things I have to do for my family to get feedback on what to prioritize and what next steps to take next for something I’ve been putting off and feeling bad about. I have a special situation too, where among many other things, I’m supporting a child with a lot of needs. I needed someone who could understand what I’m dealing with around my kid’s school accommodations, etc. My coach had a background in education and met me right where I was at. Every week I could just unload all of it and talk through what I needed to do next. Sometimes this was a “let’s do it together” and other times it was “ok you have your list, now go forth!” Just so helpful.”
“We couldn’t be more pleased with the support that our son received. Everyday used to be a constant struggle, but his coach has helped him develop the skills to get his homework finished, do better in classes, and overall has made things go a lot more smoothly in school and at home. Now we get to focus on being parents, not managers.”
“My coach was super supportive and kind. She gave me very valuable tools that changed my life. I am now much more confident in communication and decision-making in particular. She was so understanding and sweet and didn’t judge me.”
FAQs
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We work with adults of all ages and students as young as 10 years old. We also commonly work directly with parents/guardians to provide them with tools to help their children.
We specialize in overcoming executive function challenges for folks with ADHD, autism, anxiety, dyslexia, blindness or low vision, braining injuries, learning disabilities, PTSD, chronic illness, and mental health conditions.
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All of our coaches are former educators with master's or doctorate degrees and backgrounds in fields specializing in neurodiversity and disability. Each coach goes through a intensive onboarding program during their first six months at The How Skills to learn our methodology and approach to coaching, as well as get experience co-coaching with a senior coach. We continue to invest in the development of all coaches through weekly training and professional development.
One of the biggest differences between The How Skills and other coaching providers is that all of our coaches are full-time employees. This ensures all of our coaches meet our rigorous coaching standards and allows us to provide a consistent client experience. The vast majority of other providers send clients to coaches who are contractors, so they're not able to enforce a consistent methodology and approach to coaching. This creates a disparity in the quality of coaching received for different clients with sub-optimal outcomes for many.
Check out our blog article for more on what to look for when selecting a coach!
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We survey clients during and after coaching to measure the effectiveness of our coaching program and to collect feedback on how we can improve. We ask questions related to the impact, quality, and overall satisfaction with coaching. Ensuring successful outcomes is at the heart of everything we do, and our survey results reflect our strong commitment to our clients.
Check out our testimonials to hear directly from our past clients!
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Executive Function (EF) is a term for a set of cognitive skills that help you manage your behavior and achieve goals. These skills include things like:
Planning and organizing: Making a plan to reach a goal and figuring out the steps you need to take.
Flexible thinking: Adjusting to new situations or changing your approach when something isn’t working.
Self-control: Managing impulses, emotions, and behaviors so you can stay focused and act appropriately.
Basically, executive function is like the brain’s “management system.” It’s what allows you to think ahead, focus, solve problems, and regulate emotions — all the things that help you get things done efficiently and effectively.
When people have trouble with executive function, they might struggle with things like starting tasks, keeping track of time, remembering what they were supposed to do, or staying calm under pressure.
Check out our page about executive function to learn more!