Stella Brightly Thomas

Stella coaches explorations in identity that transcend conventional norms. She is the feminine side of Stryk Thomas and an alternative coaching partner for clients.

Confusion, excitement, and fear accompany questions of identity. Questions that can feel lonely to explore. Stella brings her experience as an executive coach to this beautiful journey.

She spent more than 20 years in a professional career, holding roles in strategy and operations in business and government. Her work spans multiple industries and involved seven career pivots (who’s counting?).

Careers are not only jobs but also whole life experiences. Stella has lived everywhere from an African hut to a mansion in Beverly Hills, speaks four languages, and visited 34 countries. Each transition tested what she knew of herself and her capacity for reinvention. Stella is a storyteller by nature, athlete, and holds a black belt in Shotokan karate.

Stella has lived her own journey of self-discovery, peeling away the layers of success and failure towards a deeper understanding of self. She presents publicly as Stella in many environments, has attended business conferences, lifestyle events, and engaged with support groups. This broad perspective has taught lessons in communications, presentation, and self-awareness to explore identity with courage, grace, and integrity.

Stella is a Certified Integral Coach through New Ventures West and continues to train with peers there and with the International Coach Federation. She studied an MBA at Georgetown University and anthropology at the University of Michigan. Stella’s writing has appeared in The Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, and elsewhere.

For more about Stella’s masculine side, please visit’s Stryk’s biography.