The Network
Creative Thinkers
This collective, human, and adventurous community became the backbone of the framework. Through reflection, feedback, and playful experimentation, we’ve crafted a living model for pacing as a relational and intentional practice.
Founder
Tara Kowalski
BA, MA, ConRes Cert, EI 2.0
Tara's life has been rich with tension, triumph, and messy, magnificent moments. Drawing from decades of experience in corporate leadership, mediation, mental health, sport, energy, project management, IT, science, and more, combined with creative exploration and research across health, music, sports, and conflict resolution, she began mapping how pacing could transform workplaces. Her journey has prepared her to help others navigate the magic and challenge of work with insight, choice, and intention.
The Collaborators
A sea of expertise in research, leadership, mental health, somatic therapies, writing, and conflict resolution.
Raina Siou
MA | Superintendent, RCMP | Creator of Heartfelt Leadership
Raina brings heart to high performance.
A Superintendent with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police with over 30 years of service, she holds a Master’s in Leadership and Management from Charles Sturt University, Australia. She is known for building teams that deliver results efficiently and effectively without sacrificing humanity.
Raina embodies radical care and courageous candor. She has volunteered with Girl Guides, worked closely with horses, and launched a mindfulness initiative within the RCMP. A devoted mother and married for over two decades to her best friend, she is also a loyal and steady friend to many.
As the creator of the Heartfelt Leadership framework and a keynote speaker, Raina teaches leaders how to eliminate toxic workplace dynamics by integrating operational strength with deep care. An original contributor to PACING, her influence is especially felt within the Care, Navigation, and Play pillars and in the powerful connections she weaves between them. She has a gift for applying the framework in practical ways so people don’t just understand leadership they feel it.
She sees leadership as a living system aligning operations, organization, and people so cultures can truly thrive. Authentic, relational, and transformational, Raina turns leadership into a “giddy up” moment: purposeful, powerful, and deeply human.
Victoria Johnston
Certified Facilitator in the LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® Method | Agile Practitioner
Victoria is energy in motion grounded in design. With over 20 years as a civilian member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Victoria earned a reputation for working where things get complicated at the boundaries between people who think they can’t understand each other. As a boundary spanner, she specializes in helping cross functional teams bridge operations and administration, field and headquarters, technical and non technical teams solving complex problems by making implicit knowledge visible and building the shared language that allows different worlds to coordinate. An original contributor to PACING, Victoria has an affinity for the Play pillar a natural fit for someone who came to understand, through her own creative life as a harpist, knitter, and photographer, that the permission to experiment without the pressure of immediate mastery is the best approach to new challenges. Victoria is a certified facilitator in the LEGO® Serious Play® method and an Agile practitioner, and believes that the fastest way to insight is often through your hands, not your head. She is the creator of the podcast Talking Harps and is currently the lead project manager for the BC RCMP’s security operations at the FIFA World Cup 2026™.
Stephanie Potter
PHD, PCC™, CERTIFIED INTEGRAL MASTER COACH™
Stephanie Potter has a Ph.D. She is a certified Integral Master Coach™ and Professional Certified Coach (PCC™) who has spent the past decade leading the workplace wellness initiative in one of Canada's largest federal departments. I'm known for creating workshops and coaching experiences that are supportive, energizing, and genuinely transformative. Stephanie helps leaders and teams build mental fitness, move through stuck places, and meet complexity with clarity and resilience. She has a rare ability to see the whole system and the whole person weaving the PACING pillars together like a tapestry that makes sense in real life. Before coaching full time, I spent many years designing and leading research and evaluation projects focused on health, disability, immigration, and labour market attachment among First Nations and Inuit, persons with disabilities, immigrants, and others facing systemic barriers. This work nurtured my love of learning and strengthened my ability to stay human centred within complex systems. Outside of work, I'm an "amateur athlete for life," a soccer coach and Board Member, and an energy medicine student. I'm also a long time practitioner of meditation, mindfulness, and soap making. For three decades, my husband and I have raised four children alongside two dogs, two cats, and a flock of hens in rural Ottawa. Stephanie is the weaver and navigator of pacing. She has wisdom and insight that touches on all the pillars weaving them like a pacing tapestry. Whether navigating complexity or strengthening confidence in the PACING framework, Stephanie helps people come home and into their energy.
Annie Pier
RN, MSN | Senior Advisor, Workplace Psychological Health & Safety
Annie-Pier anchors the Care pillar of PACING. A Registered Nurse with a Master’s degree (MSN), for over 15 years she specializes in psychological health and safety in large corporate organizations. As a senior advisor, she designs and implements evidence based workplace well being strategies that integrate individual health, team dynamics, and organizational culture. She has facilitated more than 150 workshops, coached leaders at all levels, and advised senior executives on complex mental health and organizational challenges. Annie Pier excels at translating big, nuanced mental health concepts into practical, compassionate action. To her, PACING represents the future of leadership integrating the bio psycho social spiritual dimensions of self, teams, and systems. She creates safe spaces where meaningful dialogue and sustainable thriving become possible.
Terry Neiman
PhD | Editor | Conflict Resolution Specialist
Terry Neiman, PhD, is a conflict resolution specialist, professor, and expert in communication, negotiation, dialogue, and multiparty problem solving. A faculty member at Douglas College and the Justice Institute of BC, and a Research Associate at the Vancouver School of Theology, he brings decades of experience navigating complex human systems. Prior to all of this, he was an Astronaut. We met during the redesign of the JIBC conflict resolution program, where his wisdom and steady presence quickly made him both an ally and friend. As an advisor to this project, his insight has been invaluable. A devoted family man, grandparent, model plane craftsman, and thoughtful editor, Terry’s guidance, generosity, and friendship have my sincere gratitude.
Tobi Nifesi
Editor, Author, Journalist, Ghostwriter
Tobi Nifesi helps leaders transform their ideas into powerful nonfiction and memoirs that amplify their voice and create lasting impact. As a skilled ghostwriter, book coach, and editor, he ensures each manuscript is clear, compelling, and true to the author’s unique tone and message. He brings both craft and care to the writing process guiding aspiring authors confidently from draft to publication. A devoted family man and lifelong learner (currently learning Spanish), Tobi has become a trusted friend and steady presence in organizing and shaping the PACING content for readers. He has been an invaluable supporter of this work, and I am deeply grateful for his encouragement, editorial insight, and partnership as the PACING book prepares to launch.
Hanan Hammad
Copy Editor | Communications Strategist | Health Journalist
Hanan Hammad works at the intersection of communication, strategy, and social impact. With research roots in women’s health and neurology at the University of Calgary, and experience across organizations such as Deloitte, the Canadian Human Rights Commission, and Employment and Social Development Canada, she brings analytical depth and editorial precision to every project. She has a remarkable gift for transforming complex ideas into accessible, engaging content. Her ability to synthesize early drafts into clear, digestible structure was instrumental to this work. Newly married and deeply devoted to family, Hanan’s thoughtful presence and sharp copyediting eye have been a true gift. Even more, she has been a companion in perspective helping me see the work, and the world, through a fresh and relational lens. I am incredibly thankful for her contribution.
Kathy Hartwig
Facilitation Expert | 38-Year Policing Leader
Kathy brings wisdom of action. With 38 years in policing, Kathy has led in high stress environments shaped by conflict and systemic challenge. A skilled facilitator and seasoned investigator, she brings sharp critical thinking, grounded decision-making, and the ability to guide difficult conversations toward clarity. She understands what it means to fight for fairness from the inside. Deeply committed to equality and trauma informed practice, Kathy has spent her career navigating complex terrain with curiosity, courage, and a talent for building meaningful relationships along the way. A breast cancer survivor, mother, and grandmother, she knows resilience as lived experience. Within PACING, she offers powerful insight into action, when it serves us, when it costs us, and how to balance striving with pause, strength with softness, and momentum with meaning. Anonymous Contributor | Author, Peer Support Specialist & Advocate This remarkable contributor prefers to remain behind the scenes, yet her impact is unmistakable. An author, fur mother, artist, photographer, caregiver, and specialist in peer to peer support and barrier free working experiences, she brings generosity, creativity, and wisdom to everything she touches. She helped me put a name to something I was experiencing calling it PACING and has been exploring, playing, and refining the concept alongside me ever since. A true warrior for kindness, inclusion and respect, she models how to treat people with dignity while navigating complex challenges. Her perspective, insight, and unwavering care have been a guiding light. I am deeply grateful for her friendship, generosity, and the joy she brings to this work. I want to give a big, heartfelt shout out to the amazing collaborators behind this not yet launched book your brilliance, patience, and creativity have carried this project further than you know. I’m so grateful for each of you, and I can’t wait to keep building what’s next together!
Jory Faibish
Jory Faibish was a magnificent human being who loved people deeply and lived that love out loud. He was an architect, conflict resolution expert, coach, teacher, mentor, loved being a father and husband, son, brother, friend, landlord, adjudicator, dog parent and business partner. He collected antique clocks, loved photography and so much more. But more than any title, he was a presence. People felt better simply being around him.
He died of ALS in 2019 and somehow, he died as beautifully as he lived.
Jory paced his death with the same intentionality and character that shaped his life. Grounded in his values, he adjusted with every turn and surprise. He made decisions in advance. He asked for help. He shared his wisdom freely. He shared his joy generously. Even as his body weakened, his spirit expanded.
He created a grounding philosophy he called PPG. Positive. Present. Grateful. With special emphasis on grateful. He recognized that when he looked too far into the future, anxiety and sadness crept in. When he lingered too long in the past, he drifted into contemplation. And when rumination in either direction became toxic, he would gently return himself to Positive. Present. Grateful. Especially grateful.
Jory was my soul brother cherish and beauteous. I had the privilege of recording some of his stories with his beautiful family, and one day I will share that gorgeousness with the world.
Here is a short video of him playing and teaching in his natural way.
Love you, bro. Thank you for continuing to guide me, even as we walk in different spaces. PPG forever!
Ready to Do the Work?
- Do you want this? Why? How much does it matter?
- Are you open? What fears are in the way? If you’re ready, we’ll help you face them.
- Leading a team? Are you willing to roll up your sleeves and resource real change?
We help individuals and organizations pace with purpose through sharp questions, honest reflection, creative training, and practical change plans that plant seeds and make them grow.
We don’t “fix” you.
We walk with you.
We spotlight strengths.
We challenge what’s stuck.
We bring wisdom and expect you to bring willingness.
A boy once told his father, “I want to move that boulder.”
He pushed with his hands. His feet. Even found a stick for leverage. Exhausted, he gave up: “I can’t move it.”
His father said gently, “Did you use all your resources?”
“Yes,” the boy replied.
“No,” said his father. “You didn’t use me.”
Sometimes progress isn’t about more force.
It’s about partnership.
Pacing With Purpose is that steady hand beside you
when you’re ready to move the boulder.
You're not alone
Join the Pacing Community
We love meeting people who are ready to explore, experiment, and create movement with purpose. Share your story, your insights, your optimism. Together, we’re building something meaningful.