Unlock the capability and confidence to reach your peak performance
If you’re like most founders and CEOs, you don’t struggle because you lack strategy.
You struggle because your beliefs, identity patterns, emotions, and nervous system — the inner operating system running the show — haven’t yet caught up with the demands of your role and your life.
My work is about helping you rewrite that inner OS.
Imagine:
Making difficult decisions without hesitation.
Having hard conversations without fear.
Showing up with the grounded confidence your company needs from you.
I help founders and CEOs perform at their highest levels by removing the internal blocks that hold them back.
This is leadership transformation from the inside out, guided by someone who has actually been in your shoes. I know how exciting, rewarding, and brutally challenging this path can be. I also know how lonely it gets.
I have been a Founder/CEO or founding executive at five startups that raised $100+ million at a combined valuation of over $500+ million, with four exits. I have lived the highs, the pressure, and the cost of operating without an updated inner OS.
And the best part is: When you commit to doing this work, your whole life gets better.
Who Am I?
I grew up in Berkeley, California. I attended Brown University, studied at Nagoya University in Japan (日本語が話せます), and got my MBA at Stanford GSB.
I was a founding exec of Rhapsody, the 1st cloud-based music subscription service in the US and the largest until Spotify entered the market 7 years later. I was Co-Founder/CEO of SingShot (called the YouTube of Karaoke), which was acquired by Electronic Arts. I was also a founder of Ring Research which was acquired by blockchain company Orchid. During COVID, I co-founded a meditation company with renowned meditation teachers Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach, helping thousands of people to build inner resilience and find community through mindfulness practices.
Earlier in my career, I lived in Japan for five years and established the Tokyo branch office of a U.S. technology company. At Stanford GSB, I am a facilitator for the famous Touchy Feely course and coach leaders in the Executive Education program.
I love geeking out on personal development, productivity content, and all the frameworks. But I’ve learned that real shifts don’t come from simply knowing something, they come from being able to act, think, and feel differently in the moment.
That’s why I care so much about somatic and experiential work. It gets underneath the surface. It changes the nervous system, not just the mind.
Because at the end of the day, knowing what to do is easy.
Actually being able to do it, especially in the moments that matter, is a completely different game.
I live in Mill Valley with my family and love spending time outside hiking, mountain biking, snowboarding, playing tennis, and playing pickleball.
Testimonials
"Working with Ranah has been incredibly valuable from both a company building and personal development perspective.
He's helped me navigate everything from fundraising, team dynamics, managing personal stress, and big strategic decisions (not to mention has taught me tons about the value of mindfulness and meditation).
Through his style of both intentional questioning and advice from his experience in the trenches (and knowing when each is the most valuable), he helps me move faster, uncover clearer insights, and get back to action in a way I couldn't on my own.
I've always found Ranah to be incredibly thoughtful and intentional, and stemming from a combination of his genuine curiosity and true desire to help, I often find myself uncovering things about myself that I never could have uncovered on my own.
I've worked with other coaches in the past, and having someone who has actually been in the seat of the founder/CEO and navigated the journey from start to exit completely changes the experience of coaching for the better.
If you're looking for a coach that “gets it”, Ranah is your guy!"
“Working with Ranah has been one of the highest-ROI investments I’ve made in my own leadership. He’s helped me meaningfully “move the needle” on how I show up as a CEO. Our sessions have been a mix of strategic thinking and practical coaching on how to navigate growth, scale, and people. In fact, I take many of my leadership learnings and share them with other leaders in my company so they are empowered.Ranah's also been very helpful in giving me ideas to optimize my time and impact. He's been my best accountability coach. The ripple effects of my sessions with Ranah are clear - I was able to unlock more of my time to focus on the areas that matter most and help my team perform at a higher level. I recommend Ranah wholeheartedly to any founder or executive who is serious about leveling up their leadership."
“Ranah is a creative pleasure to work with. He is experienced, smart, thoughtful, and kind, making him an invaluable asset to startup founders and business leaders. I highly recommend Ranah for the exceptional skills and presence he brings to his work with others.”
“Ranah has been a pivotal resource in my leadership journey. His ability to listen, understand, and provide tailored guidance is truly remarkable. He creates a space where I feel supported yet challenged to think differently and approach problems from new angles. Through our sessions, I’ve gained a deeper understanding of how to lead with intention, manage through uncertainty, and align my actions with the bigger picture. Ranah’s advice is not just theoretical; it’s practical, actionable, and directly applicable to the complexities of running a company. His coaching has had a profound impact on how I approach decision-making and has empowered me to lead with greater confidence and clarity. I highly recommend Ranah to any leader looking to grow and make meaningful progress in their personal and professional life.”
“Ranah has an exceptional ability to navigate the complexities of business and leadership, drawing from his rich experience in running companies. He has a unique way of finding parallels from other companies, offering fresh, insightful perspectives. Ranah helps put all options on the table, even those that are challenging to consider at first, which has helped broaden my own decision-making process. Additionally, his insights into working relationship dynamics from an outsider perspective have been super useful in creating more clarity and understanding. Ranah's guidance is a true asset for anyone looking to enhance their strategic thinking in the business world.”
“Working with Coach Ranah Edelin over just 3 sessions made a real impact during a time of major transition in my career. He helped me push beyond my comfort zone and embrace the idea of re-anchoring while giving myself a 15% buffer period to stretch and grow, all while tuning into my own inner compass. Ranah provides the kind of guidance that stays with you long after the session ends. His style is humble, real, and steady…always grounding me in my core traits so I can continue to grow without losing my voice. He is a constant reminder to keep moving forward, and I am truly grateful for the clarity he brought."
"Ranah has an incredible gift in making teams more effective. He helped our executive leadership team in improving our dynamics, collaboration and communication. He truly listens to others-—making them feel safe, seen and understood. He guides individuals to reflect on their responsibility to themselves and others and speaks truths in a kind, accessible manner. I am inspired by his approach to leadership and feel more confident in my own leadership as a result of the actionable resources and next steps we left his session with. It's incredible to see the development of our team and his lasting impact months after our last meeting with him.”
"As a first-time founder, working with Ranah has been invaluable. He has guided me through an emotionally challenging co-founder breakup, provided clear strategies for high-stakes negotiations, and helped us streamline internal processes. Ranah deeply understands the founder experience. His unique blend of empathy and sharp strategic insight brings clear, practical advice to tackle even the most complex situations. I’m excited to continue learning under his guidance and grow into the best leader I can be."
"Working with Ranah has been an incredible experience, helping me to unlock capabilities and achieve goals that I have been striving toward for years. His sensitivity to the intellectual, emotional, and physical elements of being a successful person are at the core of his practice and the support that he gives to you as a client."
Coaching
Founders hire me when they want to grow faster than the demands being placed on them. My role is to help you see what you cannot see on your own, remove the internal barriers that slow you down, and create the clarity, confidence, and emotional capacity required to lead at the highest levels.
My core practice is 1-on-1 coaching, but many founders and teams engage me in other ways depending on what they need at key inflection points.
1-on-1 Coaching
Your inner operating system drives every decision you make and every outcome you create. In our work together, I help you upgrade that system by removing internal blocks, strengthening your emotional capacity, and expanding the way you present yourself as a leader and as a person. When your inner world shifts, your outer performance accelerates.
Ideal for: Founders and CEOs navigating inflection points, identity transitions, or the emotional complexity of leading in high-growth environments.
Co-Founder Coaching
The quality of your co-founder relationship is critical to the stability and success of your company. I help you align with your co-founder(s) so you can communicate honestly, navigate tension productively, and make smarter, faster decisions together.
Ideal for: Co-founders feeling strain, anticipating major decisions, or wanting to deepen trust for long-term success.
360 Leadership Assessments
You cannot upgrade your operating system without seeing what is actually running in the background. I speak to 4-8 people around you who both know you well and care about your success. This detailed assessment provides a clear and honest view of your leadership impact, patterns, and blind spots. It’s a powerful kick-off to my 1-on-1 coaching engagements and a catalyst for meaningful behavioral change.
Ideal for: Leaders ready to grow, integrate real feedback, and create lasting shifts in how they lead.
Team Offsites
A team’s performance is a reflection of the inner operating systems of the people inside it. Grounded in my work as a facilitator of CEO groups and Touchy Feely at Stanford GSB, I design and facilitate custom experiences that help leadership teams build trust, communicate more clearly, and work through complexity with grounded presence. The result is a team that performs at a higher level because the individuals inside it do.
Ideal for: Teams facing rapid change, friction, or disconnection, or teams that want to elevate from good to exceptional.
My Sessions
As a multi-time founder and CEO, I understand the internal and external demands of leadership. The pressure. The intensity. The isolation. I also understand the inner operating system required to meet those demands with clarity, grounded confidence, and peak performance.
My coaching combines my multi-time experience as a founder/CEO with deep training in leadership, psychology, emotional intelligence, and human transformation. I help leaders upgrade the internal patterns that drive their decisions and unlock the performance they know they are capable of.
Every engagement begins with a structured intake and conversations with a handful of important people in your life and work via a personalized 360 Leadership Assessment. This gives us a clear view of your strengths, blind spots, and the deeper patterns shaping your leadership impact.
From there, our work is highly personalized. We meet a couple of times per month for 60-75 minutes per session and focus on what’s most important for you. I do not follow a rigid playbook because every leader is different, but there are recognizable patterns that, once transformed, unlock new levels of clarity, emotional capacity, and performance. I am here to provide you the support, challenge, and accountability to unlock peak performance and satisfaction in your role and your life.
I am available between sessions via text, phone, or email because leadership does not happen on a schedule. I am a trusted advisor for all aspects of your leadership and growth. My engagements with people typically last years and our coaching sessions evolve as you and your company grow and evolve.
Typical areas of focus include:
Upgrading your inner operating system
Remove limiting beliefs
Leading from presence and emotional clarity
Improving co-founder relationships
Giving difficult feedback
Building organizational trust
Creating high-performance teams
Managing limiting beliefs and internal blocks
Getting unstuck during key inflection points
Making high-stakes decisions with confidence
Fundraising
Building world class teams
Growing revenue
Leading from a place of possibility instead of fear
FAQ’s
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I typically coach Seed to Series C stage companies.
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CEOs make up the majority of my 1-on-1 coaching clients, but I also coach non-CEO founders, and co-founder duos or trios.
I have also worked with with leaders from larger organizations such as OpenAI, Mastercard, Target, McKinsey, and even a former Navy Seal in the US Navy. -
For 1-on-1 coaching, we typically meet for two 75-minute sessions / month. This allows us to get into a rhythm and make real progress.
Additionally, I am available via text, email, and the occasional call. I know that life doesn’t always fit neatly into 2 regularly scheduled sessions. -
I charge $5k per month.
Sometimes I will take a portion of the monthly fee in equity, depending on the stage and situation of the company. I also occasionally take on a small number of early-stage clients at a discounted rate. -
Most clients like to make commitments after each session, so they will work on those as well integrate learnings and insights from the call. Additionally, I will be available via text, email, and occasional calls. I know that life doesn’t always fit into 2 regularly scheduled sessions.
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There is no minimum time to work with me. I charge a monthly retainer, and you can stop any time you’d like. That said, most people work with me for a very long time (years) and consider me their trusted advisor. Life and building startups always brings new challenges and growth opportunities.
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A great therapist will help you process why you are the way you are. I get just enough context from your past to understand how that impacts how you are showing up in the present. Then we work to help you have impact immediately as well as in the future.
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Great! Please fill out this contact form to set up a free intro call to assess fit for my coaching.
Influences
From a young age, I’ve always been a personal development junkie, figuring out ways to improve myself and my performance.
Beyond being a multi-time founder and CEO, I have spent years training in some of the most respected leadership, coaching, and personal development frameworks available today. I combine decades of real operating experience with deep coaching work, which allows me to support you with both the inner operating system upgrades and the practical leadership tools you need to thrive.
Each of these influences shapes how I coach as well as how I lead my life. They give me a wider range of ways to help you see yourself more clearly, move through emotional blocks, communicate more honestly, and lead with grounded confidence. They help me meet you where you are and guide you toward the best version of yourself.
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How it helps: Builds awareness of reactive patterns, strengthens presence, and clarifies decision-making.
Key frameworks: Above the Line and Below the Line, The Drama Triangle, Content vs Context
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How it helps: Identifies hidden limits, deepens somatic intelligence, and helps leaders operate from their Zone of Genius.
Key frameworks: Upper Limit Problem, Zone of Genius, Body Intelligence, Taking 100 percent Responsibility
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How it helps: Provides simple, practical systems that increase organizational efficiency and leadership effectiveness.
Key frameworks: Organizational Efficiency, Practical Leadership Best Practices
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How it helps: Elevates emotional intelligence and makes difficult conversations more honest, effective, and relationally healthy.
Key frameworks: Interpersonal Dynamics, Giving Difficult Feedback
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How it helps: Creates fast and lasting shifts in perspective, state, and behavior by working with the deeper structure of thought.
Key frameworks: Internal Operating System, Conscious and Unconscious Mind, Anchoring and Reframing
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How it helps: Brings clarity and compassion to the different “parts” within you, helping you understand internal conflicts, reduce reactivity, and lead from your most grounded and centered self.
Key frameworks: Parts Work, Self-Energy, Unblending and Integration
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How it helps: Supports deep emotional pattern recognition and helps leaders release long-standing behaviors that no longer serve them.
Key frameworks: Cycle of Transformation, Changing Negative Patterns
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How it helps: Strengthens communication, reduces defensiveness, and reframes conflict as a path to deeper understanding.
Key frameworks: Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Dreams Within Conflict
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How it helps: Unwinds limiting beliefs and unhelpful stories so leaders can act from clarity rather than fear.
Key frameworks: The Work, The 4 Questions
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How it helps: Builds mental fitness by quieting internal saboteurs and strengthening the inner sage.
Key frameworks: Sage and Saboteurs
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How it helps: Builds presence, emotional regulation, calm, and clarity under pressure.
Key frameworks: Direct work with Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach, Silent Vipassana Retreats, Present-Moment Awareness