Vance Brown

Executive Elder, Negotiator and Mediator

Helping Founders and CEOs Survive and Thrive

High capacity CEOs and C-suite leaders often discover that while leading their organizations can be exhilarating, it also can be lonely and fraught with discouragement, anxiety, and unhealthy lifestyles. On top of that, all of us experience life disruptions and obstacles (marriage and family struggles, deaths of loved ones, health problems, life transitions, etc.). These difficult life-events and seasons can cause us to shut down and disconnect, leaving us feeling hopeless, fighting addictive behaviors, and feeling shameful or defective. Burnout and “quiet desperation” are inevitable unless something changes. Alternatively, these hardships can be a catalyst to help us find new meaning and purpose, creativity, effectiveness, connectedness, authenticity, and happiness. The difference is determined by how we choose to move forward.

The good news is that you already have everything you need within you to start thriving physically, emotionally, spiritually and relationally. Most of the time, what is helpful is someone to walk with you and help bring to the forefront what’s already there – your true self. 

I have over 30 years experience in entrepreneurship, law, and corporate CEO-leadership, in both public and private companies. I have grown a company as CEO from a $40m valuation to unicorn status (over $1 billion valuation) in four years; I’ve been named one of the “100 most intriguing entrepreneurs” by Goldman Sachs;  and I have started and led as CEO one of the fastest growing companies in the US from startup to a KKR-backed exit worth hundreds of millions of dollars. I understand achieving worldly success yet facing the emotional crisis and emptiness that often comes with its pursuit. The journey forward is to find holistic healing and wellbeing because we are on a spiritual journey. Whether you are a startup founder or a seasoned C-suite executive, I can help you set the table for your transformation and be where you want to be – a thriver.

Additionally, because a substantial part of my life-story involves unhealthy split-ups amongst the founders, I offer mediation services for C-suite executives and founders who desire to go their separate ways in a manner that is least destructive to the involved relationships and the organization. Additionally, I have negotiated high-level deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars, but most importantly I always try to facilitate win-win outcomes.

Read more ABOUT VANCE (below). What is meant by EXECUTIVE ELDER (below)? Or click on the link to schedule a call with Vance.

CURRENTLY VANCE IS NOT TAKING ANY NEW CLIENTS BUT HE IS OFFERING MEDIATION AND NEGOTIATION SERVICES TO FOUNDERS AND C-SUITE.

Why Executive Elder?
The convergence of coach, consultant, mentor and spiritual director.

I have been greatly blessed in life AND life has been very hard. I have much to offer others regarding how to start a business and how to grow it into a global business with a positive culture. From my almost 30 years of starting and running software companies, and with my legal experience, I am confident that I can help business leaders achieve better operational excellence. This is the arena where I am a coach and consultant. Much of my business framework is summarized in my Thrivers book (see below). 

Additionally, most all my life I have suffered from generalized anxiety, and I have often lived with much fear and shame. For example, I have witnessed my child battle cancer and I have faced my own cancer, both of which felt like emotional deaths. This suffering has been the catalyst for my passionate pursuit of understanding my emotional and spiritual journey. Mentors in my life have been essential in this quest. What I have learned is that life is hard and treacherous;  AND life always offers beautiful redemption and resurrection. 

My first half of life was more about surviving than thriving. It’s helpful to walk with a mentor who is a little further down the often lonely road to give some guidance and perspective. “Mentor” was first used as a word from Greek mythology, as “Mentor” was the name of the counselor and guide of Odysseus. With help from my mentors, I believe there is hope for more peace, contentment and happiness in all aspects of life. I have enjoyed a career in the corporate arena and achieved a lot of worldly success, but getting to the top of the ladder often felt empty, like the ladder was leaning against the wrong wall (a metaphor as described by Thomas Merton). 

Spiritually, I was raised as an evangelical Christian (see my book No Matter the Cost –  my “first-half-of-life” spiritual manuscript). In 2001 I started a men’s ministry called Band of Brothers (bandofbrothers.org). However, I went through a long season of deconstruction of my faith. In the past ten years, I have been greatly impacted by the non-dualistic and contemplative message and practices of Fr. Richard Rohr, the author of many books, including Falling Upward (a great overview of the two halves of life). Rohr helped me to reorder my faith through my Christian tradition instead of totally abandoning it and “throwing the baby out with the bath water.” In 2021, I completed the 2-year Living School program, founded by Rohr, at the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC). 

The spiritual journey is the arena where I am a mentor and spiritual director. There is no intention when working with my clients to proselytize any particular religion, but I do reference the ancient wisdom of perennial traditions and truths representing and respectful of different faiths. We will consider the big patterns that are true always and everywhere. 

I typically work with business leaders who are in transition, perhaps questioning the systems, world views and religious beliefs that no longer seem to be working. My model for being a mentor to executives is holistic – Mind, Body and Spirit – where we work to Rewire the Mind, Regulate the Body, and recognize the Spiritual Connection to Everyone and Everything. I believe it is impossible to experience true personal growth and transformation without exploring all aspects of well-being. “Spirituality” is not just for the church – it is the human language of failure, suffering, and glory in all of life. It’s the language of meaning and purpose, which usually is transformed through unwanted yet necessary suffering. I believe that pondering the big questions of life is important to the way we deal with the suffering. Even Albert Einstein commented, “I think the most important question facing humanity is, ‘Is the universe a friendly place?’” Our core belief or view regarding the benevolence, absence, or wrath of the Divine in our lives is a crucial question to ponder. 

I consider myself a “wounded healer” who continues to do life wrong – every day. As often stated by Rohr, “We grow spiritually much more by doing it wrong than by doing it right.” An elder has lived long enough to know that life is very hard, and an elder understands that all will be okay and knows that in the end life is “very good.” Often what we thought were curses were actually blessings as we reflect on our lives looking back. I believe in good endings because I believe that resurrection(s) always follows death(s), a truth that is echoed by the loss and renewal pattern found in nature. An elder also is about being curious, being present, and is about always being a life-long learner. Most importantly, an elder is able to see and believe the good in you and to provide a mirror so that you can find and see your true self. 

Our time together will include my role as a coach, consultant, mentor and spiritual director. Holistically, it is all about laying the groundwork for transformation – which essentially is about surrender and letting go – much harder said than done! This process is not necessarily about helping you fix all the problems, but instead guiding you through them. Rohr describes this as a “three-steps-forward and two-steps-backwards” journey. An “elder” brings a perspective that helps you hold the space, the paradox and the tension between the “very hard” AND the “very good.” Our time together will be less about homework assignments and reading “how to” books (although good books will be recommended), but more about building a relationship and being present with you. The only term that feels inclusive of my role with the business leaders I work with is “Executive Elder.”

 

Richard Rohr writes: “We suffer to
get well. We surrender to win. We die to live. We give it away to keep it. This
counterintuitive wisdom will forever be resisted, denied, and avoided, until
it’s forced upon us by some reality over which we are powerless—and, if we’re
honest, we are all powerless in the presence of full Reality.”  

 

 

The Thrivers Quadrant

Some entrepreneurs’ highest priority is making money (the “mercenary” or pragmatic mindset), while others most value a life of purpose and meaning (the “missionary” or passionate mindset). The reality is that most of us want both. We all lean with a mindset and skill set that favors one over the other, just like most people are either more left-brained (analytical) or right-brained (artistic). The same is typically true of entrepreneurship and organizational leadership. Rarely do leaders excel at both — but we believe with the right training and self-awareness you can be a Thriver. Additionally, where we are typically changes throughout the life-cycle of our respective journeys (i.e. either first or second halves of life). Vance developed The Thrivers Quadrant to help you identify and navigate where you are and where you want to be. This model is fully described in the Thrivers book.

Videos & Media

Special tribute video of Vance Brown, played for his Business Citizen Award from the Colo Springs Chamber

Excerpt of Vance Brown at the 2018 National Cyber Symposium. Vance is a seasoned speaker and enjoys the topic of mind, body, and spirit in the workplace.

In The News

From Colorado Springs Business Journal

On the heels of SOCO Startup Week, the Business Journal had a conversation with Vance Brown about the startup ecosystem in Colorado Springs — which he says is punching above its weight, and drawing attention nationwide. He should know. Brown is executive director at Exponential Impact, the high-tech accelerator he founded in the Springs after decades as a high-tech entrepreneur and CEO. He’s also well known as the former CEO of the National Cybersecurity Center, and co-founded Thrivers Leadership Institute.

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