Life Design Coaching for Young Adults
You did everything right. So why does it feel like you’re stuck while everyone else is moving forward? Maybe it’s work. Maybe it’s motivation, confidence, or just not knowing who you are yet outside of school. Let’s figure out what’s really going on and get you moving again.
(And for parents who are quietly worried, you’re in the right place too!)
Does any of this sound familiar?
You have the degree (and the student loans). But the job you’re working now doesn't feel like a future.
You moved back home "for a little while." That was a while ago.
You're lowkey panicking because you turn 26 soon and you'll lose your parents' health insurance.
You're doomscrolling LinkedIn, Insta, TikTok, watching everyone else "make it," and wondering what's wrong with you.
You want to make your mom and dad proud. Right now, you mostly feel like you're letting them down.
If you nodded along, you're not lazy, you're not broken, and you're definitely not alone.
We’ll talk about the hard parts too.
Coaching is not just about job hunting. We'll deal with this stuff head-on, because it's usually what's keeping you stuck, not your resume.
Shame: about living at home, about the job you have, about where you thought you'd be by now
Perfectionism: rewriting your resume for the eleventh time instead of hitting send
Fear of failure: because when you've been told you're smart your whole life, trying and not getting it feels worse than not trying
Comparison: the friends from high school who seem to have it all figured out (spoiler: most of them don't)
Wanting to make mom and dad proud: and feeling the weight of every "so, any news on the job front?
Put visual here?
I’m Shannon.
I grew up in a middle-class family. I began college as a pre-med student, but came away with a degree in musical theater. My family was not thrilled with my decision.
My parents worked hard, but they didn't have connections, and nobody was going to make a phone call to open any doors. They said to me, “You can always move back home and live with us for free…but we’re not paying your rent in New York City.”
So I figured it out the hard way. I built a 25-year career in technology, ran my own boutique web design studio in New York City, and bought a home here on my own. Along the way I worked with companies like Centene, Procter & Gamble, eBay, Prudential and Teradata, and I've coached and managed plenty of junior designers and engineers over the years.
I know how hard it was to get started back then. I can only imagine how much harder it is now. That's why I’ve become a coach.
My Methodology: Life Design
Good technology teams don't build a product and hope it works. They explore the problem, try small ideas, test them in the real world, and learn fast.
My coaching method is called Life Design. I take the same design thinking approach technology teams use, and leverage it to help young adults design their own unique path forward.
It's flexible, it's judgment-free, and it turns "I should really figure out my life" into a game plan with real actions and clear measures of success.
Here’s the best part about experiments: there’s no failing. A job that isn’t a fit, a move that doesn’t work out, a stretch back at home. Those aren’t losses. They’re information. You learn something, adjust, and try the next thing. Plenty of people look back years later and realize the jobs they tried along the way added up to a career.
The Life Design Process:
How we work together
Our 1:1 private sessions will be held on Zoom for 50 minutes each. The sessions are part practical (setting goals, planning next steps, and trying small experiments) and part personal (how you’re doing, what’s getting in the way, and how you’re treating yourself through it).
I'm not here to analyze your childhood. I'm here to help you figure out what you want, build a plan to get it, and hold you to it.
You will come away with:
A holistic review of your life across all five areas
A personalized action plan with experiments and measures of success
A trusted partner to brainstorm with and confide in
A person in your corner every week who will work to keep you accountable
Is this therapy?
No, coaching isn’t therapy. I don’t diagnose, and we don’t dig into the past. We focus on where you are now and where you want to go. If anxiety, depression, or anything else is weighing heavily, I’ll encourage working with a licensed professional alongside our coaching.
The topics we can explore:
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Finding your direction and fit
Job search strategies that work now
Résumés and using AI as a tool
Networking and informational interviews
Showing up professionally
Interview practice with honest feedback
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Rebuilding structure and energy
Breaking the scroll-and-game cycle
Changing how you talk to yourself
Knowing who you are beyond your LinkedIn
Moving past the fear of failure
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Real human connection beyond the group chat
Connecting with yourself and your future
Escaping the comparison trap
Living at home as an adult
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Simple guardrails for independence
Budgeting on any income
A real plan to move out
Spending habits that feel better
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Rediscovering what makes you feel like you
Trying new things offline
Finding community through shared interests
Rebuilding energy and confidence
Coaching that fits with real budgets
I believe coaching shouldn't only be for people with money. That's why I offer a sliding scale. Pick the tier that honestly fits your situation. No proof required.
Tier 1
$60 / session
For young adults making under $35K per year and are covering their own costs.
Tier 2
$100 / session
For young adults earning $35K to $60K per year, or getting some help from family.
Tier 3
$150 / session
For young adults earning above $60K per year, or parents are covering costs.
For parents
You’ve seen them struggle. Maybe it’s the job search, maybe it’s motivation, maybe they just don’t seem quite like themselves.
You may have sent them to college because that's what opened doors for your generation. Now you're watching your smart, capable kid stall out, and you don't know how to help without making it worse.
If you’re quietly worried, you’re not alone. And if you reach out to me before your young adult does, that’s a great place to start. I can be the neutral, experienced partner in their corner. They set the agenda, and our conversations stay between us. I can offer sessions to keep parents in the loop, as long as we all agree on what will be shared, and what will remain private.
Let’s talk
It won't always be easy. But there is real reason to be hopeful, and you don't have to figure it out alone.
Questions? Email me at shannon@shannon-brown.com, or schedule a free consultation [link].