We believe in you.
Chris Kyle and Ray Arata founded Ascendant on a simple idea: that developing and supporting powerful and engaged men is an Inside Out job.
Ascendant is a personal and professional development company offering experiential workshops, coaching, and community to active men in all stages of life who are ready for real change so they can thrive in their lives.
Drawing from years of experience in professional and personal development, Ray and Chris have designed a unique set of learning modalities to spark potent, positive changes in their clients' lives.
 Christopher Kyle, Managing Partner
"I've always been drawn to helping individuals grow. It is so fulfilling to watch people reaching their potential. At Ascendant, I have the daily opportunity to be a part of the success of our clients. It's very rewarding."
Chris is co-founder of The Ascendant Company. He has spent the last 22 years as an executive, entrepreneur, consultant, business coach and motivational speaker. Chris worked for a number of years in large corporations including a Fortune 500 company, ran his own adventure travel company for six years and has coached hundreds of individuals to greater success in their lives.
Chris is an expert facilitator of large and small groups and has been leading personal growth workshops since 1998 for the ManKind Project®, an international non-profit organization committed to supporting men on their paths of growth, leadership, and self-fulfillment. He is currently Chairman of the Board for the Nor Cal Center of the ManKind Project® and is a certified Co-leader.
Chris is a competitive runner, avid hiker, cyclist, scuba diver, golfer, and intrepid traveler with over 40 countries under his belt. He is also passionate about his volunteer work with teens through his involvement with Challenge Day. Chris earned a Bachelors degree in Political Science from Stanford University.
 Ray Arata, Managing Partner
"I'm committed to helping others play a bigger game in their lives and I've been rewarded constantly by the big and little breakthroughs that my clients have that help them grow and consciously create the life they want - in all areas."
Ray Arata is co-founder of The Ascendant Company. As an integrative coach and facilitator, Ray provides personal and executive coaching for ambitious and creative career-minded individuals utilizing a "whole life" approach. His passion for helping people elevate themselves to playing a bigger game in life has been the foundation of his work for the past ten years.
His current clients include executives, entrepreneurs, professionals, business owners, and community leaders. He utilizes an integrative coaching style, drawing from several coaching modalities, successfully assisting his clients in navigating both the internal and external challenges that often get in the way of them living the life they aspire to live.
Prior to founding Ascendant, Ray spent 15 years as an entrepreneur and advisor in the financial services industry. Ray built a successful Retirement Planning Business from scratch, eventually serving over 80 corporations in the Greater Silicon Valley area.
During this time, Ray also became a Certified Life Planner, which gave him the skills to assist his clients in visioning for themselves a 'heart's core-based' approach to living their ideal life. He eventually trained advisors to do the same, leading intense 5-day workshops around the world, which focused on creating a client-centric practice.
Ray's other passions include competitive masters road cycling, yoga, family-style culinary events and skiing -- both cross-country and downhill. He received his Bachelors of Arts from UCLA and his JD from San Francisco Law School.
Ray splits his time between San Francisco and Grass Valley with his wife and three children.
 Dennis Mead-Shikaly, Executive Coach
Dennis is an executive coach and expert facilitator with his own unique style - a blending of personal growth and professional development work where each client takes an in-depth 360-degree look at their lives and their impact on others.
For over 35 years, Dennis has been helping his clients discover that the pathway to their true authentic power comes from within. He believes that the ability to lead any organization, or even family, to sustainable growth in our global setting requires the leader to be growing. With his clients, Dennis has them examine their personal assets and liabilities. Together they work to create more conscious strategies in leadership and relational issues. He encourages them to encounter challenges as opportunities for growth and development, for as one changes, one creates change in the environment. Dennis provides support, reflection, and multi-leveled capacity to get to the heart of the matter, so that his clients may take right action, which is clear, effective, and compassionate.
Dennis holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Master of Arts in Social Psychology. He lives in Boulder, Colorado, with his wife and two sons.
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I am blown away by our experiences, the strength and wisdom displayed, along with our ability to put them into words. I came home from my ALJ to financial stressors, several things to catch up on, and a 50/50 discontent wife. But I met those challenges as a calmer, stronger 