Supporting and developing leaders who help people and organizations flourish
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At Blooming Branch Group, we believe that the strongest results—and the healthiest organizations—grow from positive, purpose-driven, and authentic leadership and messaging.
In our work together, we co-create a confidential space to explore what matters most to you and how new possibilities can be pursued with courage and intention. Through coaching, you’ll deepen awareness of your strengths and gain insight into how your emotions, mindsets, and conditioning shape your leadership. The result is greater confidence, clarity of purpose, and the ability to lead with positivity and authenticity in complex and changing environments.
My commitment to leadership development is rooted in more than twenty years of study and practice. Early in life I witnessed the impact of harmful leadership, which shaped my determination to pursue a different path. Through research, teaching, and my own leadership experience—including service as a West Point professor and as a C-suite executive—I have seen that authentic, developmental, and caring leaders bring out the best in others while achieving meaningful results.
That is the kind of leadership I am committed to helping others cultivate.
Founder & CEO
Lynn Vidler, Ph.D., ACC
My commitment to leadership development is rooted in more than twenty years of research, teaching, and experience as a West Point professor and as a C-suite executive. I believe that the strongest results—and the healthiest organizations—grow from positive, purpose-driven, and caring, authentic leadership.
Video/Audio
Lynn Vidler--From Ballet to Provost, Leadership Without Toxicity, and Knowing When to Step Aside --Trail Map Podcast
Lynn Vidler was the Provost at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs — the university's chief academic officer. But their first career was as a professional ballet dancer with the California Ballet Company in San Diego, where they'd been training since age four. Lynn left it, went 3,000 miles across the country to NYU, and built an academic career in 17th century Spanish drama that eventually took them to West Point for 12 years, then South Dakota, then Colorado. In this conversation, Lynn walks us through a path that keeps bending toward curiosity. We get into what they learned about leader development at West Point after 9/11 — that you can get results through a positive, authentic approach or a toxic one, and that whichever you choose scales up into the next generation. Lynn talks about coming out publicly as transgender and non-binary at almost 50, and what it's like to suddenly feel the systems that govern how people are treated. And they share what's next: a decision to resign and leave the country, and what leadership looks like when you no longer hold the title. Show notes:
- Lynn Vidler's leadership & performance coaching business: https://bloomingbranchgroup.com/
- Brown University ACT leadership coaching program: https://www.actleader.com/
- International Coaching Federation: https://coachingfederation.org
- University of Colorado Colorado Springs: https://www.uccs.edu
#TrailMapPodcast #LynnVidler #HigherEducation #Leadership #Provost #Ballet #CareerChange #LeadershipDevelopment #NonBinary #Authenticity #WestPoint #Coaching
Forged in Fire Podcast
Leadership isn’t a role—it’s a thing you do when the challenge is too big to face alone.
What happens when a former ballet dancer, West Point professor, and nonbinary academic challenges the way we think about leadership? In this episode, Lynn Vidler discusses the failures of higher education’s leadership pipeline, the transformative power of authenticity, and what it means to lead with empathy in a world shaped by systemic expectations. With humor and insight, Lynn reflects on the harm of abusive leadership, the healing found in self-awareness, and their mission to reshape leadership culture in academia.
Thought Leadership
“Developing Deans: Transforming Academic Leadership” focuses on the intentional and deliberate development of academic leaders within higher education institutions. Under the excellent direction of L. Lynn Vidler, this volume brings together the perspectives of seasoned administrators whose essays go beyond merely explaining how to be a dean and instead advocate for proactive leadership development programs that cultivate specific skills, foster inclusive and collaborative cultures, and address systemic barriers. This collection makes a strong argument for supporting deans as they wrestle with the ever-increasing challenges facing higher education.
Sharon Diane Nell
Dean, School of Arts and Humanities
St. Edward’s University
The Whole CXO: interviews with C-suite Executives
On Donna Carlson's The Whole CXO podcast, L. Lynn Vidler tells the story of their roots as a performer and their leadership journey through academia to lead one of the biggest schools in Colorado.
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Meet Blooming Branch Group
My Background
My Coaching Philosophy
My Coaching Philosophy
Lynn Vidler, Ph.D., ACC (they/them) is an Associate Certified Coach endorsed by the International Coaching Federation. They graduated from New York University before completing their Ph.D. at the University of California, Irvine. Dr. Vidler served as the Provost at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. Additionally, they served as
Lynn Vidler, Ph.D., ACC (they/them) is an Associate Certified Coach endorsed by the International Coaching Federation. They graduated from New York University before completing their Ph.D. at the University of California, Irvine. Dr. Vidler served as the Provost at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. Additionally, they served as Dean of the College of Letters, Arts & Sciences at UCCS, Program Director of Spanish and Associate Dean at the United States Military Academy, and Chair of Modern Languages and Linguistics and Associate Dean at the University of South Dakota. Dr. Vidler has published work in various scholarly journals on leadership development. Their book, Developing Deans: Transforming Academic Leadership, is published by Vernon Press.
In addition to their executive roles, Dr. Vidler co-directed campus leadership development efforts at UCCS and co-chaired the University of Colorado system’s Strategic Planning Committee. They also have provided leadership on various national and community boards.
My Coaching Philosophy
My Coaching Philosophy
My Coaching Philosophy
As a leadership and executive coach, I’m on a mission to awaken and empower positive, purpose-driven, caring and authentic leadership. Whether you are just starting out, or whether you’ve been leading for a while, I’ll partner with you to:
- explore what matters most to you,
- align your actions with your vision, values, and purpose,
- build grea
As a leadership and executive coach, I’m on a mission to awaken and empower positive, purpose-driven, caring and authentic leadership. Whether you are just starting out, or whether you’ve been leading for a while, I’ll partner with you to:
- explore what matters most to you,
- align your actions with your vision, values, and purpose,
- build greater awareness of how your mindset, emotions, and conditioning shape your leadership,
- and begin to reframe the stories you tell yourself so that you support, rather than undermine, the achievement of your goals.
We'll work together to improve your LQ (leadership intelligence), gain greater confidence and clarity of purpose, and get results in ways that both develop people and help your team to flourish..
Client Results
My Coaching Philosophy
Client Results
I am proud to have helped many clients navigate challenging personal and professional environments, take on new executive roles, and transition to more fulfilling lives and careers. Some examples include:
- A medical school professor learned that she didn't need permission to lead change. And then she led the change!
- An emerging non-profit le
I am proud to have helped many clients navigate challenging personal and professional environments, take on new executive roles, and transition to more fulfilling lives and careers. Some examples include:
- A medical school professor learned that she didn't need permission to lead change. And then she led the change!
- An emerging non-profit leader aligned her leadership style with her values and purpose--not just with some random business books.
- A newly elevated CEO gained trust with her team and clarity on navigating change following the company's change in leadership. She has since updated and created new processes and policies, developed team members to take on new leadership roles, and supported the owner (and former CEO) as he transitions to retirement.
Connect with me for a free, exploratory session to see how we can work together for your development.