Executive Coaching in Washington, DC
Master Your Sea provides one-on-one executive coaching in Washington, DC for leaders carrying real responsabilities: federal executives, military officers, corporate and nonprofit leaders, and heads of international organizations.
I'm Stefano Calvetti — a retired Navy admiral, Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC), and member of the International Coaching Federation. I've led under pressure at sea, in war zones, and inside a head of government's office, and I coach leaders to do the same in theirs.
Sessions run by video, in English or Italian.
Leading in this city is its own discipline
Washington pressure is its own species: decisions second-guessed in hearings and headlines, authority split across committees and chains of command you don't control, careers turning on budget cycles and administrations.
And everyone around you is impressive, which makes it hard to admit you're struggling with any of it.
Coaching is the one room in this city where the performance stops. And what you build there leaves with you.
Federal and agency executives
SES and GS-15 leaders navigating political transitions and interagency friction.
Military and veteran leaders
From the Pentagon to the transition out of uniform — this work has its own page
Corporate executives and founders
Consulting, tech, and government contracting, where the client is the government and the pressure is the calendar.
Association and nonprofit leaders
Answering to boards, members, and funders all at once.
International and multilateral leaders
Embassies and international institutions. I built my own second career across cultures in this city — and coach in English and Italian.
Who I work with
How I coach
Three prongs.
I spent my life at sea, so yes, it's a trident.
Self-discovery and awareness
An honest map of how you operate, your values, strengths, triggers, blind spots, starting with the iEQ9 Enneagram assessment (optional).
Strategy and navigation
Clarity becomes a course: concrete goals and a plan that survives contact with your actual week.
Resilience and adaptation
The steadiness to lead through pressure without burning down your health or your judgment
The discipline behind it is Co-Active coaching, bound by the ICF Code of Ethics. What happens in our sessions stays there.
Why leaders here work with me
I'm not a consultant with a coaching certificate.
In my thirty-one-year long career in the Navy I had the chance to experience and perform leadership at sea and in war zones, as well as Deputy Military Assistant to the Prime Minister of Italy. Then retirement, an ocean crossed, and a professional identity rebuilt from zero in Washington.
Pressure, visibility, bureaucracy, reinvention: when a client describes them, I'm don't have to imagine it.
Coaching with me starts with a free 30-minute session. That's a real coaching conversation, during which you describe what you want and I show you how coaching works.
Programs run from a single session to a twelve-session engagement with between-session support and optional Enneagram assessment.
Common questions
What does an executive coach actually do? Works on the leader- the whole person: decision-making, self-awareness, presence, resilience, or anything they bring to coaching. This is not consulting, not therapy, not mentoring. You bring the agenda; I bring the questions and total candor.
How much does executive coaching cost in Washington, DC? DC coaching runs from a few hundred dollars per session to several thousand a month with big firms. My programs go from a single session to a twelve-session engagement (see the packages page) and the first 30 minutes are free.
Do you coach in person in DC or online? I coach online, unless it's a workshop or team coaching. I am fluent in English and Italian.
How long before I see results? A first shift usually lands within two or three sessions. Durable change takes real engagement. I generally recommend the twelve sessions package over about six months.
Can I use professional development funds? Often, yes. Many clients pay through employer development budgets, and I provide the documentation. Ask your organization; most leaders never do.
How do I choose an executive coach in DC? Three things: an accredited certification, real leadership experience, and chemistry. The last one can't be faked, which is why the first session is free and a real working session.