Sarah makes an effort to really know and understand her clients. Not just through intake forms or paper work, but really talking about my life, history, and core values. This human-centered approach helped me to better understand who I want to be with regard to both my career and personal life. I enjoy self-assessment and really loved taking and then reviewing the Birkman Assessment. This tool helped me (and Sarah) to pinpoint my needs and desires. That learning is something I will carry into future roles. Sarah’s interview prepping methods truly aided me in advancing through interviews and finally securing my current role. She was always available to review and discuss response methods (STAR) and anecdotes. I think Sarah’s ability to understand and predict potential questions really sets her apart from others in this space.

Funny enough, I found my way to Sarah by way of her TED Talk. Once I learned she had her own coaching business, I knew I wanted to speak with her. When we first met, I was lost on my career journey, stalled in my current job search, and skeptical about the whole coaching thing. From the first conversation though, I knew Sarah was not only capable, but likely the person best suited to get me back on track and into a job that was right for me.  The Birkman was very interesting to me, and one of the reasons I was excited to work with Sarah. As a Certified Birkman Coach, Sarah was able to help me better understand the test and what my results actually meant for me. My results gave me clear and concise words to describe myself, and shed light on needs and work behaviors I was never aware of. It was also very helpful when it came time for interviewing! Through the months I worked with Sarah, I put my trust in her and her process. At times I was skeptical and uncomfortable, but Sarah was always there to ease my worries. From the coach to the counselor to the cheerleader, Sarah was able to become whatever I needed in that moment. When I finally received an offer for my ideal role, the best part was telling Sarah and having her genuinely share in my joy. Without Sarah and her wealth of knowledge, I would not be where I am today and I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to work with her.

It’s with great excitement that I'm sending you this note! I received a job offer and although it wasn’t with the company we prepped for — I'm even happier with this opportunity. I couldn’t have done this without you! Thank you so much for your advice and guidance at such a critical time in my life! The opportunity is with BMO Harris in digital marketing. The salary is near six figures and there is room for growth!

She did an excellent job on my resume and cover letter and taught me where to look for and how to go about applying for available positions. More than that, she gave me a better perspective on how to approach my search and encouraged me throughout the process. She is a superb coach. I highly recommend her.

A journey like this begins by finding who you have become and where you truly want to be. It requires a guided pivot. For that an honest partner helping in the self-discovery journey is a must. Sarah was that kind of nurturing partner during the process. On occasions calling things the way they are while on others saying the exact words needed to be said to keep it together. Sarah was ready to help as soon as needed, sometimes in a matter of minutes when the help was truly needed. Timing when making career decisions is important and Sarah has an exquisite way to detect when the right time is. In these complicated times inherently qualified professionals are difficult to find. Sarah is without a doubt one of those. I learned and enjoyed exchanging ideas with her. What began as a professional relationship, it has become a close friendship as I still value her honest opinion.

I found Sarah to be wise, measured, and demonstrating deep knowledge regarding the needed skills to develop in a successful job search. I am seasoned in the work world, but had not been on the job market for 19 years. My situation clearly needed a different approach, and the homework was truly beneficial. I am so pleased, as it really was an experience of personal growth for me.

Her passion and depth of knowledge for her industry always shines through. Making the switch from a highly technical role to a completely different industry, I needed a lot of help honing my stories and ensuring they really captured my skill set. While I had the skills and background, I completely lacked confidence in my ability to tell my story convincingly and it showed. Over the weeks with Sarah’s help, I spent time working on my stories and practicing for a variety of interviews following Sarah’s framework. Sarah was able to offer guidance and examples on how to hone those stories, and I landed my dream gig at a highly competitive firm on the east coast. It all worked out better than I could have imagined and I can’t thank Sarah enough for helping me jumpstart the next stage of my career journey!

I was struggling with my job search. Sarah helped me with my job search and prepped me for interviews. After a long search and hard work, I was able to find a position that I have been extremely happy with for the past two years. Sarah has been a huge part of my success.

I really liked that Sarah was very accommodating and willing to work around my busy schedule. While the whole experience was very helpful for me, I found the greatest value in the interview prep that Sarah coached me through. The mock interview Q&A session was extremely helpful and eye-opening for me as well.

I went to Sarah because I needed help in making a career pivot and I had very little experience in the job market. From the beginning, the relationship felt like a partnership. Sarah took the time to listen to me and to understand my motives and potential. From there, we collaborated on a game plan, which combined Sarah’s tried and true methods with what I knew about my own preferences and strengths. As my search progressed, we would revisit our strategies and make changes where appropriate. In short, Sarah met me where I was, and guided me to where I needed to be with respect and an infectious optimism.

My mom told me about Sarah, as she has helped a few people in my family find jobs. I started applying to jobs a few weeks after graduating from college, and noticed I was getting a lot of automatic rejects. I began to worry about everything for my future career - where I wanted to end up, what exactly I wanted to do, how much I could be paid. This is where Sarah became invaluable. I had my own vision, and Sarah helped me chase it. From networking, to interviewing, and the after-interview anxiety, she was always there to support me.

I chatted with Sarah about my career goals and what I’d like in a future career, and she gave me so many tips for how to approach the job application process, as well as the empowerment to start my own company! I’m actually in the process of starting my own business, and I learned a lot from Sarah about focusing on what I value, what I’m passionate about, and what I want in an ideal future employer… which is myself!

I am a librarian who had been out of the job market for 19 years, raising children. I felt I was out of my field for too long to jump back in as a professional and decided I’d rather look in other occupational areas for work. My resume was outdated, and I felt my skills were too. While consulting with Sarah, I understood that my years of volunteering, and my management skills in raising a family had, in fact, kept me marketable. I just wasn’t aware how, but Sarah helped me figure that out. I’m now thoroughly enjoying a new job in a field I didn’t even know I’d enjoy and thrive in. Sarah gave me skills, information and guidance in my search, and I landed a job I truly like. Thank you!

Before working with Sarah, I knew I wasn’t flourishing. My work was mentally and physically draining. It kept me away from my family for long hours and offered little or no fulfillment. And no opportunities for advancement. But I was stuck. I couldn’t see how to transition my career, and it was so overwhelming. I was referred to Avarah Careers by a friend who had successfully navigated a career change. I was skeptical coaching would help, but I was desperately unhappy. In working with Sarah, expect homework. Hard homework. But in the process, Sarah helped me learn my strengths and align them with the things I love doing. She taught me to network effectively and coached me to nail the interviews. The process enabled me to find meaningful work that is engaging and energizing.  Words cannot express how grateful I am to have found Sarah. I was stuck in a job that drained me and Sarah helped me to move into work I love. 

Sarah has been a mentor when I was struggling with my job search. She gave me advice not only on a professional level but also on a personal level. She provided tools that helped me organize my job search. She prepared for interviews, how answered interview questions, calmed my nerves, and provided me with the confidence I needed. She is very personable, and she always knows what to say about things that are unclear to me. In the early months of my job search, I looked for someone who could help me. I am glad I found Sarah. I will recommend her to anyone who is struggling with job searching and career coaching. I will stay with Sarah and continue to be my career coach/mentor.

Sarah was wonderful to work with. She really took the time to get to know me and helped me focus on what was most important in my career search. I really appreciated her tailored approach to my particular needs during our sessions and she was extremely accommodating to my schedule and timeline. I felt very well supported and would highly recommend her!

I just graduated from the University of Maryland. I currently hold 2 dream positions that, several months ago, felt unattainable. Going into the process of working with Sarah, I had little idea of my professionally applicable strengths or interests. I had no vision for how to find a job that might match those, whatever they were. I was ill-equipped to attain any position, much less an interview for a position that may fit the bill. Talks with Sarah systemically forged me a path to finding those interests, finding the positions where I could flourish, and actually hearing back from hiring managers who wanted to offer me interviews. I was not the easiest of clients - I struggled majorly with feeling helpless in my efforts. In a tough job market, with uncertainty of any pipeline from my degree or university programs or internships, I felt a deep sense of gloom about my prospects. Sarah not only provided me with a framework that truly works, but she helped me refocus and get on track. With wind in my sails, and a simple, effective procedure, I was able to find jobs that interested me, and have real chances at attaining those positions. From there, Sarah's coaching and advice helped me nail interviews, ask important identifying questions, and know when the offer I received was the offer I wanted. I landed a part-time job with the Washington Commanders, and a full-time position working for the American Psychological Association Foundation. I could not be more pleased with where I am, and I could not be here without Sarah.

Sarah has many years of experience helping professionals to manifest rewarding career paths that are both lucrative and fulfilling. How does she do it? For me, she simply guided me to recalibrate my career direction by exploring my aptitudes and strengths, which reignited my excitement for what I do for a living by allowing me to bring more of my passions and personal interests into how I make money. The result: I make more money and have more job satisfaction than ever before. One hour with her changed the trajectory of not only my career, but my entire life!

Sarah has had a profound and robust impact on my career growth. Over the years, Sarah has coached me through resigning timely, weighing job offers, interview preparation (which led to landing THE job), pivotal career decisions, and even stress management. At each step, Sarah had the expertise and the delivery to answer the questions I had; and ask the questions I hadn't but needed to consider. Undeniably, I always left a session with Sarah with acute clarity and most importantly, the preparedness needed to achieve what I wanted to achieve.

Dear Sarah - I have to share a story with you. I've just accepted a job offer. Thanks to your guidance, I'm going into this new job confident that it's a great match for me. There's one particular piece you have to know. After receiving the offer, I had a follow-up conversation with the person I'll be supporting. As we were getting ready to wrap up the call, he said, "One more thing, sort of an odd thing, I want to share with you. Normally, I'm not a part of the recruiting process. I usually meet candidates as part of their final interview. For some reason, I decided to look into the candidates for this position a little earlier. I looked at your LinkedIn profile and saw that your description said 'I'm Alfred to your Batman.' I have several Batman items in my home office. When I saw your LinkedIn profile, I said, 'Can we bring this candidate in?'" Even though I had told you, "I'm a trusty sidekick. I want to be Alfred." I never would have thought to include that on my LinkedIn profile. At your encouragement, I did it, and now I've been offered a job. It obviously helped to set me apart from other applicants. You're a genius! Thank you so much for your guidance and insight. It's made a world difference in my career path! Fondly, Matthia

I am so excited to finally feel like I am going down a path where I will not only enjoy the destination, but the journey as well...and [I] feel like I really am on the right track...I credit a lot of my progress to our work together, because Sarah helped me give myself the emotional permission to put myself out there even when I was scared. All in all I am in a much better place, and I only see it getting better from here. I thank Sarah for providing me with the important tools and some courage to begin the journey of finding myself, because really all this sparked from our meetings. Sarah inspired me to act on what I knew in my heart I wanted the most out of life, and that has only started an avalanche of self-care and positive energy...

I’m glad I chose to work with Sarah Andrus of Avarah Careers. As an experienced pro in the job search and hiring fields, she provided information and resources that really helped me along my path toward a new job/career. Once I had identified positions I wanted to pursue, she steadily supported me with insights about improving my resume, cover letters, and interviews. With her help, I’ve landed a terrific new job!

When I began working with Sarah I was a recent graduate with no direction in my work life. Sarah provided me with an in depth Birkman Assessment analysis which was instrumental in exploring my professional interests and ultimately in choosing a career path. Sarah also supplied numerous job search resources which helped me tidy up my resume and write higher quality cover letters.

I came to Sarah not really understanding why I wasn’t happy in my career or with my employer. Was it me? Was it my job? Did I just not like working? We spent a lot of time on career assessment, her supporting me and providing advice on my current position and tactical job hunting/interviewing advice. I always trusted in Sarah, even though I wasn’t sure where it was going to take me. In the end, I made a career change, an industry change and an employer change! In the beginning of the process she had me fill out “my ideal job”, where I described the characteristics of the culture, flexibility, salary etc. I thought I was looking for a unicorn, but I’m getting ready to start my new job, and when I look back at what I wrote for “my ideal job”, this one checks off every single box! Thanks Sarah!

I had the pleasure and honor of working with Sarah as a Teaching Assistant to one of her Business courses at the University of Delaware. While I knew her before as an amazing mother to a good friend, I was fortunate enough to observe, interact, and learn from an incredible woman who pairs her warmth and compassion with her professional attitude and genuine care for those with whom she works. I am forever grateful for her role in preparing me to apply for a position as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guinea, West Africa. She was able to highlight the best in me on my application and interview, and I am currently almost a year into my service. I hope that anyone looking to forward or enhance their professional career has the honor of doing so with Sarah.

I heard Sarah on a podcast and was so grateful when she agreed to take the time to discuss my future entrepreneurial dream. She helped me identify actionable steps to help me make this dream real. I love her story and pathway from start up to where she is now and I learned a lot from hearing more about the details. Sarah also made some great recommendations for reading.  Even though this was our first meeting she made the conversation flow and I felt her commitment to genuinely want to assist me with my future business goals. I was inspired and have already begun to implement the actions we discussed. Sarah’s compassion and supportive approach on the Zoom call allowed us to build instant rapport and really focus on career/business goals. You can tell Sarah really cares about people.

I was referred to Sarah through a contact in my network. I was at a point where I was actively looking for a new job. I had spent a year of applying to jobs online on my own without making much progress and knew there had to be a more efficient way. After my initial consultation with Sarah and through my referral I knew that Sarah had a wealth of knowledge that would be valuable in my job search. The exercises and assessments that Sarah utilized throughout the program were very helpful in confirming what type of work environment / industry were best suited for my strengths. Sarah was very instrumental in taking the fear out of the most important job search technique…. Networking! Having regularly scheduled touch bases with Sarah pushed me to make progress each week throughout my job search. She also was very instrumental throughout the interview process by helping me prepare for interview questions and helping me formulate my accomplishments into a concise story. Finally once I received a job offer, Sarah helped me negotiate the terms of the offer which exceeded my initial expectations. Overall, working with Sarah was extremely beneficial in helping me navigate the ups and downs of my job search and ultimately landing a new job in just a couple months time.

I worked with Sarah as a communication coach. She helped me assess and understand my communication style via the Birkman Method. By using this tool and with Sarah providing her own thoughts, interpretations and analysis, it allowed me to gain a greater understanding of my own communication style and therefore, how to communicate and work with others much more effectively. Sarah has also helped me craft exactly what to say in certain situations which I have found very beneficial. I’d highly recommend Sarah as a communications coach to anyone looking to improve their professional communication skills.

Working with Sarah on defining the next step in my career has been very positive. The methodology she uses to identify personal strengths and potential sources of stress in work environments is extremely insightful and accurate. The tools we have used allowed me to hone in on what to look for and what to avoid in new opportunities. In addition, her guidance in the process of interviews and interview feedback was also very helpful. I highly recommend investing in yourself and engaging Sarah as your partner in a job search or career reset. Even with a good personal support system, it is so much more manageable to go through the often long and sometime difficult process with the extra support of a strong career coach, like Sarah.

At our first meeting, I was moved by Sarah’s warmth, powerful questions, and incredible insight. The very first exercise she gave me opened me up to a world of new possibilities, and I’ve been thinking about my skills and gifts differently ever since.  Sarah’s guidance has been invaluable in my career change.

Going through the process of being laid off can be very traumatic. It was for me. Luckily, after just a few weeks of being unemployed, a mutual friend told me I should meet Sarah. I had never used a career coach before, and wasn’t really sure what they did. Sarah’s warm personality and compassionate approach made it easy to trust her right away. Previously in her career she had worked for several large companies, met with much success, and yet knew first-hand what it feels like to get laid off. My first task was to take the Birkman Assessment. Sarah and I went over the results and I re-discovered several things about myself that I had lost over 15 years of working for the same company. Sarah helped me to take inventory of my skills and my passions which put me on a completely different career path. She gave me homework after every meeting, which added much needed structure to my week. After several sessions with Sarah I felt back on my feet again and full of confidence to start the next chapter of my career. I currently split my time between academic research and being the owner of a small chemical consulting business. I’m happier than I’ve been in at least a decade, and I owe a large debt to Sarah for helping me navigate through this time of disequilibrium.

Working with Sarah Andrus is like working with a swiss army knife of career coaching. She has many tools and resources to offer. Ultimately, she helped me figure out what it is that I really wanted from my career and then gave me tools, hints and tricks on how to go out and get it. Along with that process I also received her unwavering support. I really enjoyed her professionalism, her quick thinking and her ability to relate to me on many different levels. I would highly recommend working with her because she brings a level of focus to your career search that is top notch. I am glad I made the choice to work with her.”