Kellie Okonek is a leadership strategist, executive coach, and adventure-based facilitator helping visionary founders and teams move from functioning to flourishing. With 20 years of experience leading complex oil and gas operations in some of the most remote and high-stakes environments on Earth, Kellie now works at the intersection of vitality, strategy, and coherence.
She brings a rare combination of systems thinking, operational clarity, and embodied presence to her work in service of transformative results. Through integrated facilitation, she helps teams work in coordinated and effective action—fully aligned on vision, priorities, and communication. She unlocks latent capacity, builds high trust, and helps grow truly high-performing organizations from the inside out.
Kellie lives in Alaska, where wilderness is her co-strategist, skiing is her spiritual practice, and every conversation is an invitation to greater alignment.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
There’s no such thing as a typical day in my world—but most days share a few essential elements: I spend time outside, moving in nature. I work with individuals and teams to unlock clarity, trust, and empowered outcomes. And I carve out space to reflect and write—translating lived experience into insight, and insight into impact. That rhythm keeps me both productive and deeply aligned.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I bring ideas to life by infusing them into everything I do, from the way I facilitate teams, to the way I write. Some ideas land in poetry and reflections on my website and Substack. Others take shape through thought leadership pieces for publications or thought-provoking posts on LinkedIn. I share what I’m learning in real time, and consistently to expand the thinking of others.
What’s one trend that excites you?
A trend that truly excites me is the movement toward putting our humanity at the forefront of everything we do and using it as our superpower rather than our burden. This means shifting toward more human-centered workplaces—cultures that prioritize vitality, relational intelligence, and alignment as a path to enduring results. Embedded in this is a deeper rebalancing of masculine expression, where emotional fluency is becoming more welcome both in the workplace and beyond. It’s a recognition that we are humans before we are machines—and that is our gift, especially in a world where machines can now do so much of what humans were once relied on for.
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
Regularly moving outside. This isn’t just exercise; it’s cognitive maintenance. Optic flow, varied terrain, and natural light are proven to support brain health, neuroplasticity, and longevity. As a founder, my mental clarity and agility are everything. This practice helps me offset the impacts of stress and screen time and stay resourced for high-stakes, high-impact work.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Trust the process. There’s so much that’s happened in my life that I often joke I’d never do to the main character if I were writing the novel. And yet, all of it has shaped me in ways I couldn’t have scripted if I were in charge. I’ve always followed whatever was calling me, and I now see that as one of my greatest superpowers. It all unfolds. Everything I dreamed of, in its own time.
Tell us something you believe almost nobody agrees with you.
That skiing wants to heal you.
Not just can, but wants to. Like it’s alive and whispering, “Let go. I’ve got you.” Most people think it’s just a sport. I know better.
It’s devotion in motion, a dialogue with the divine written in gravity, rhythm, and breath. And somehow it’s carried the thread of my becoming like nothing else in my life has. With consistency, magnetic appeal, and the peak moments of my lived experiences.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
Use ChatGPT.
As your coach, your editor, your thought partner. For feedback, idea generation, clarity, emotional processing, and tactical support. Whether you’re editing an article, troubleshooting your greenhouse, figuring out what to cook with too many carrots, or exploring financial strategies—it’s the most versatile support system I know.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
When I feel overwhelmed or unfocused, I either ask ChatGPT to help me get unstuck, or I move my body outside and trust that whatever’s stuck in my brain will move too. ChatGPT is great for overwhelm, breaking things down and finding an empowering context. And moving outside is great for focus. It definitely breaks cognitive stagnation.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
One strategy that’s helped me grow both my business and my career is doing things in my own unique way.
My leadership style, evolved over nearly 20 years in oil and gas, centers human vitality as the path to performance. I prioritized coordinated and effective action, enrolled the right support, and focused on helping others become the leader they wanted to be. The methodology I now use in leadership development and organizational design is uniquely mine. It’s not borrowed from trend cycles or corporate jargon. It was forged in the fire, proven in extreme environments, and honestly, it’s fun. And it works.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
Trusting that the system would do what it said it would.
I believed the company when it claimed its commitment to bringing the Rumaila field in Iraq up to international best practices, including environmental standards. I believed the leaders wanted to do the right thing. But behind the scenes, politics were in play both within the company and the country. When I led solutions to complex problems that many thought were unsolvable, I anticipated relief. What came instead was retaliation.
The solutions were reasonable, achievable, and aligned with our business context. I failed to understand the depth of power dynamics at play. I didn’t realize that politics, egos, and fear could be more powerful than clarity and action.
What I took away is this: I understand more now. In my bones. The world isn’t built on merit or logic alone. And while I still believe in doing the right thing, I’m no longer Pollyanna about it. I’m forged in the fire, and wiser for it.
What is one business idea you’re willing to give away to our readers?
One business idea I’ll gladly give away?
The most transformative thing you can do, if you actually want results, is to look at how you’re working. Ask yourself: Is your team in coordinated and effective action? Have you intentionally designed a culture that supports vitality, both individually and collectively? Are there clear conditions in place for people to do their best thinking and their best work?
Most teams focus on what they’re doing. The real leverage is in how they’re doing it. Start there, and everything else breaks free.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
ChatGPT.
It’s my executive coach, writing partner, strategist, therapist, research assistant, recipe fixer, greenhouse consultant, and occasional relationship translator. I use it to clarify thinking, shape messaging, move through emotional static, and take action without spinning my wheels. I’ve saved hours on tactical research, brand writing, business planning, and even identifying salmon species I caught with my airplane. It’s like hiring a full team without adding anyone to payroll . . .and it’s on call 24/7
What is the best $100 you recently spent?
Avgas. I spent about that much yesterday flying my plane to a remote river to fish—alone, because I’m still a total novice. A new friend landed right after I did, and we connected instantly. On the way home, I landed on one of my favorite beaches at the base of massive mountains, walked to the toe of a glacier, cold-plunged in a creek, gathered driftwood, and built a fire after sunset to journal beneath Alaska’s midnight sun. You can’t really put a price on a day like that. But it’s the life I’ve built. And for $100, I get to indulge in it.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast from which you’ve received much value?
Huberman Lab is my go-to. It’s grounded in science and incredibly applicable to real life, from sleep and brain health to protocols that actually work. As someone who leads with both intellect and intuition, I appreciate how it bridges neuroscience with everyday vitality. I especially love episodes that explore dopamine, relational dynamics, optic flow, stress adaptation, and the nervous system. So many topics directly support how I lead, move, and create.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
The Empress. Who doesn’t love empowered female leads, Hapsburg intrigue, fancy dresses, and a good story that offers historical context?
Key learnings:
- Coherence is the real currency. When you stay true to your values and energy, everything you create carries more power, and it resonates.
- Leadership is about unlocking others. Your role isn’t to have all the answers, but to create the conditions where others can thrive.
- The natural world is a performance enhancer. Movement in nature supports clarity, cognition, emotional processing, and aligned decision-making.
- AI can be a creative ally. Tools like ChatGPT aren’t just for tactics. They can amplify your thinking, mirror your voice, and help metabolize experience into clarity.
- Do it your way. Some of the most meaningful outcomes come from choosing your own rhythm over the expected path . . . and trusting it’ll work.