About Becoming ⋅ Established 2021
We built the firmwe could not find.
Becoming is a life advisory, established to give a person’s life the same standard of advice that their money, their health and their legal affairs already receive.
Florence Shaffer
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Former CTO, Burberry Americas. Global VP Technology Strategy and Digital Transformation, The Estée Lauder Companies.
From the founder
I’d built a great life. I had access to excellent advice on my career, health, wealth, and just about everything else. But I was still the one trying to make sure it all added up to the life I actually wanted.
And the more success I experienced, the more interconnected those decisions became. What was right for my career wasn’t always right for my health, relationships, or how I wanted to spend my time.
I didn’t need more experts working in isolation. I wanted a team that understood the whole picture. People who could see what I couldn’t, help me find leverage to avoid unnecessary trade-offs, and bring the right expertise to act on what mattered most.
And I didn’t want optimizing my life to become a second job. I wanted to live it.
I couldn’t find that firm. So we built it.
What a life advisory is
A coach teaches a method, and an advisor takes responsibility for the whole.
When your finances are simple you manage them yourself, when they grow complex you hire a professional, and past a certain point you have a team with one advisor accountable for all of it. A life follows the same progression, and we built Becoming for people whose lives have reached that point.
A coach, however good, works from their own method. An advisory is a firm, which means we study how you live and work, bring together the experts your situation calls for, and stay with you while the changes become the way you live.
Our standards
We work for our members and for no one else.
Five commitments follow from that.
- 01
No house method
We have no method of our own to sell, so the only question we ask about any expert is whether they are right for you.
- 02
One source of fees
Members pay Becoming for the advisory, and we take nothing from the experts we bring to you or from any partner.
- 03
One advisor
One person knows your findings and your circumstances, runs your team, and brings in the right expert before you have to ask.
- 04
Measured results
We reassess every ninety days, so the plan keeps pace with your life and you can see what has changed.
- 05
Discretion
We do not publish member names and we do not ask members for public endorsements. Your engagement is run with the discretion of a private medical practice, and what you share stays within your team.
The people
The firm
The people responsible for your advisory.
Florence ShafferChief Executive Officer
Former Burberry and Estée Lauder executive who led technology for global brands. Her work sits at the intersection of innovation, systems design, and human behavior.
Damien FoordClient Development and Delivery
Strategist and Air Force veteran trained in forensic interviewing, whose work for Nike, LinkedIn, Deutsche Bank and GM joined service design with the study of how people work.
Jason HardjosoekatmoVP, Applied Sciences
Cambridge-trained engineer whose work spans advanced computing, neural systems, and human performance. He translates rigorous research into the applied systems behind real behavioral change.
Lauren KeelerHead of Private Clients
Former social worker who moved into luxury real estate with Sotheby’s and then became a wellness entrepreneur. She brings a social worker’s ear and a private client standard of service to every member she advises.
The people
The vanguard
A sample of the experts we assemble around our members.
Each of them is a specialist in one field, and we bring them to a member only when that member’s findings call for it.
Scott Barry Kaufman, PhDIntelligence, creative problem solving, self-actualization
Brent Hogarth, PsyDPerformance psychology, flow mastery, ADHD
Ssanyu Birigwa, MSNarrative medicine, Indigenous bone healer
Greg Potter, PhDSleep, nutrition and exercise science
Olivia Ly Lesslar, MBBSPsychoneuroimmunology, preventative health, functional medicine
Sahil Sondhi, JDTeam and leadership development
Joris Timmermans, DOBody alignment, physio, osteopathy, TCM acupuncture
Barry Brown, MDivIdentity, relationships, meaning and purpose
Manjit DevgunSubconscious patterns through sound, breath and hypnosis
Artur PaulinsNervous system regulation, resilience, intuition
Ryan MurrayDeep unconscious patterns and somatic integration
Before you decide
Meet us in person first.
We hold small, curated salons and live events for people considering Becoming. Attendance is by application and every seat is curated. Come as a guest, meet members and the people on this page, and ask whatever you like.