Called to Coach: My Story
I was called to coaching in the eighth grade—long before I ever knew where that calling would take me.
I still remember being captivated by Phil Jackson’s book Sacred Hoops, drawn not just to the game but to the way he led. He coached from the inside out—focused on presence, depth, transformation. Something about that stuck with me. Even then, I wondered: What would it be like to sit on the receiving end of that kind of leadership? That question has quietly guided my life ever since.
Over the past two decades, I’ve answered that calling in many forms: as a basketball coach, a golf coach, a developer of teams and nonprofit leaders, and now as an executive coach to high-capacity men and women navigating marriage, mission, and marketplace impact.
Each turn—every locker room, boardroom, and wilderness conversation—has shaped how I lead and coach today.
I remember in 2010 telling someone, “I see something like John Maxwell meets John Eldredge.” That vision has become the foundation of what I now call Wholehearted Leadership—an integrated way of leading from the inside out, where spiritual formation, emotional resilience, relational integrity, and bold leadership come together.
So how long have I been coaching?
Technically? Over 20 years.
Spiritually? Since eighth grade.
At my core? I’ve always been a coach.
And now, I help leaders live and lead from their true identity—healing what’s beneath the surface, breaking free from fear, and rising into their God-given potential.
Because I believe this with everything in me:
Healthy leaders change everything.
The Official Bio…
Lantz Howard is a strategist, coach, and mentor for high-performing leaders. Lantz works as a professional coach, marriage therapist, and organizational health guide for CEOs, business owners, and senior leaders.
Lantz speaks on relationship and organizational health and guides leadership marriage expeditions with his wife Jessica.
He hosts a weekly podcast titled “Whole Hearted Leader” and is working on his first published book to help men create a passionate marriage and a killer business without losing their soul.
He believes your life can only flourish when relationships, well-being, and performance work together.
His clients describe his work as excavating the deep crevices of life that move them forward. Bottom line: Lantz is a transformational coach and mentor.
When Lantz is not engaging in deep conversations he is training for a Spartan race or planning an adventure with the family. Lantz resides in Denison, TX with his four girls and his wife Jessica.
EDUCATION & TRAINING
Masters Marriage and Family Therapy
Professional Certified Coach with International Coaching Federation
iEQ9 Integrative Enneagram Professional
Coaching the Whole Person Trained
Advanced Training in Spiritual Contemplation Advanced Training on Enneagram
Birkman Independent Consultant
WinShape Marriage Adventure Leader
Prepare and Enrich Facilitator
DNA Based Health Coach
The unoffical bio…
I was living a divided life.
I bought the lie once I became an executive leader: “It is not safe to talk about leadership struggles.”
I created a false narrative to hold it all together, but on the inside I was frustrated, confused, and angry.
I was the ‘nice guy’ – appearing calm and collected – yet I was lonely and disconnected from my true identity.
I was terrified of being exposed as an imposter.
It took a painful wilderness season for me to see the truth. I had a choice. I could stay stuck in an emotional leadership void, or I could face my silent struggles, begin leading with courage in all my relationships.
Today, I coach executive leaders, teach on organizational health, and train coaches on how to be lead wholeheartedly by overcoming the silent struggles of perfectionism, people pleasing, numbing, exhaustion, and anxiety.
The silent struggle exists in all high performing leaders. Facing it is the first step toward waking up your full potential and leading wholeheartedly.
My Business and Leadership Style
Leadership Profile: Advocate: INFJ, Enneagram 9, Birkman Blue, and DiSC high S. My CliftonStrengths Top 5 are Belief, Futuristic, Maximizer, Individualization, and Discipline. My Grip Spiritual Giftings are Wisdom, Leadership, and Teaching.
I have spent over 20 years in leadership, teaching, and non-proft, coaching and counseling teens, families, and executive leaders and their teams. I have devoted my life to understanding the internal compass that drives individuals who live with meaning. I have researched what makes leaders resilient in the face of chaos, and what tools they use to navigate life’s storms and remain calm and connected to their purpose.
My clients include CEO’s, senior leaders, and high-performers who are pursuing an wholhearted life. They find the secrets to their success, even though on the outside they still experience forces trying to defeat them and the pull of mediocrity.
