Who we are

Holly & Daniel O'Brien

Most coaching for men is one man talking to another man about men. We think something useful happens when a man doing this work hears from both sides of the relationship at once.

Holly comes from the clinical world — attachment, nervous-system regulation, trauma-informed practice. Daniel comes from corporate rooms where communication either works or costs you. We're married. We've had the hard conversations we teach.

Holly and Daniel O'Brien, founders of Hearth & Anvil, standing together in a workshop
Holly & Daniel O'Brien · Founders

Holly O'Brien

Trauma-informed coach · Attachment & nervous system

Holly works where the body keeps score — attachment patterns, regulation, and the old survival strategies that made sense once and don't anymore. She's steady with the hard stuff and won't let you talk your way around it.

Daniel O'Brien

Coach · Applied communication & leadership

Daniel brings corporate-trained communication skill out of the conference room and into the kitchen. Practical reps: what to say, when to pause, how to come back after you got it wrong.

What we believe

Masculinity isn't the problem

Armor is. Men aren't broken for being men — most were handed a very small set of moves and told to make a whole life out of them. We give you more moves.

Change has to be safe for everyone

A practice that only makes a man feel powerful isn't doing the work. We build this to be safe for the people on the other side of your change, too.

Feelings are information

Not weakness, not indulgence. Data about what matters to you, and the fastest route to being understood by someone else.

Repair beats perfection

You will get it wrong. What decides the relationship is what you do in the hour after.

Come see if it fits