About Paula Castillo Páez, PCC, MPP
Paula’s path to coaching began after more than a decade in corporate strategy and international consulting. Though she loved advising senior leaders on strategy, and monitoring project impact, her pace eventually led to burnout—a moment that invited her to slow down and listen more deeply. That pause became a turning point. Through mindfulness, restorative yoga, and iRest® Yoga Nidra, she discovered the neuroscience of stress and how the power of presence can transform the way we lead and relate. Coaching became a natural bridge—allowing her to integrate analytical rigor with embodied wisdom and help others lead not just effectively, but sustainably.
Coaching offerings
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Empowering professionals to leverage their strengths, manage blind spots, and develop authentic executive presence.
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Facilitating trust, communication, and collaboration through a strengths-based and neuroscience-informed lens.
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Partnering with organizations to cultivate engagement, wellbeing, and leadership excellence.
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Supporting career transitions and stress resilience through coaching and breathwork.
Paula Castillo Páez is a bilingual leadership and executive coach based in Washington, DC, dedicated to helping leaders and teams unlock their potential and lead with clarity, confidence, and coherence. Her work integrates CliftonStrengths®, neuroscience, and stress-management practices to foster self-awareness, resilience, and authentic leadership in complex environments.
With more than 15 years of experience spanning corporate strategy, leadership development, and international consulting, Paula brings both analytical rigor and human insight to her coaching. She has delivered over 100 CliftonStrengths® debriefs, dozens of 360° profiles, and numerous leadership and team-development workshops for global organizations.
A Certified Gallup CliftonStrengths® Coach and ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC), Paula specializes in strengths-based and neuroscience-informed coaching, helping leaders regulate stress, enhance executive presence, and navigate transitions with composure and purpose. Her integrative approach weaves evidence-based coaching, iRest® Yoga Nidra, and somatic awareness—bridging brain-based insight with embodied practice to create sustainable growth and wellbeing.
Before founding her coaching practice, Paula earned a Master’s in Public Policy from Harvard University and served as a management consultant and economist for Fortune 500 companies, international development banks, and non-profits, advising senior executives on strategy, performance, and organizational transformation.
Born and raised in Colombia and fluent in English and Spanish, Paula brings a global perspective and a deep appreciation for cultural nuance to her work with international and multicultural teams.
Coaching Philosophy
Paula believes leadership is not about fitting into a mold—it’s about knowing yourself deeply, leading from your strengths, and aligning presence with purpose. Her coaching framework helps clients:
Gain clarity in their leadership style and career direction
Develop emotional intelligence and self-awareness
Build stronger, more collaborative teams
Navigate change and challenge with grounded resilience
Her approach balances data-driven insight with mindfulness, creating the conditions for meaningful and sustainable growth.
Why Work With Paula
Certified Strengths-Based Leadership Coach – Gallup-Certified CliftonStrengths® Coach at the PCC level with deep expertise in leadership development.
Corporate & Global Experience – 15+ years in strategy and consulting for Fortune 500s, international organizations, and development institutions.
Science-Backed & Integrative Approach – Combines neuroscience, stress resilience, and somatic coaching for sustainable leadership.
Results-Oriented – Every engagement is designed to generate actionable insights that create measurable impact.
Multicultural Lens – Born in Colombia, based in Washington DC; brings bilingual fluency and cultural depth to global contexts.
Education
Master in Public Policy (MPP), Harvard University
BA in Economics and Marketing (Summa Cum Laude), Suffolk University
SELECTED Certifications & Training
Professional Certified Coach (PCC) – International Coaching Federation (ICF)
Global CliftonStrengths® Coach – Gallup
LINC Personality Profiler Certified Coach
Leadership Circle Profile
Mindfulness & Stress Resilience at Work – University of California, Berkeley
Advanced Team Coaching Training
Restorative Yoga Teacher (Kripalu®)
iRest® Yoga Nidra Level 1 Teacher
A full list of certifications and coursework on Paula’s LinkedIn profile.
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Retreats, Workshops & Speaking
Paula designs and facilitates retreats and workshops that inspire reflection, collaboration, and meaningful transformation. She has led programs for organizations including Jerónimo Martins, #samsales Consulting, and Stitch Fix, integrating CliftonStrengths®, group coaching, and neuroscience-informed facilitation to deepen self-awareness, strengthen team dynamics, and unlock collective potential.
Her most requested topics include:
Speaking and workshops
February - April 2025: Financial Literacy Coaching, StitchFix
October-December 2024: CliftonStrengths Coaching and Retreat Workshop, #samsales Consulting
August-September 2024: CliftonStrengths Coaching and Workshop, Virtual, Jerónimo Martins (ARA)
April 2024: Strengths and Callings. DC 40 + of Greater Washington.
October 2023: Your Strengths Are Calling Workshop. New Jersey Center for Women.
April 2023: Gender equality and the workplace, Panel Member, Colegio Nueva Granada.
March 2022: Feminism and the workplace, Panel Member, Colegio Nueva Granada.
March 2022: Feminism, bias, and empathy. Workshop. Universidad Tecnológica de Monterrey.
compassionate, insightful, and a deep listener. PAULA helped me work through issues that limited my outlook. I’m grateful to continue working with her.
I am better, stronger, happier for it.
-LARA, ENTREPRENEUR