About Will Steel
Executive coach and ex-RAF pilot helping leaders align identity, integrity, and impact
90,000+ People reached through transformational programmes26 countries Global programme deliveryRAF Former Royal Air Force pilot & Leadership Trophy recipient20+ years Leading transformational programmes worldwide
Will Steel didn’t set out to be a coach. He set out to be a Royal Air Force pilot and nearly derailed that goal by trying to be who he thought he was “supposed” to be rather than his authentic self. When he finally showed up as himself, he graduated with a leadership trophy and went on to fly with the RAF and later commercial airlines. Then came a harder pivot: walking away from a top airline post to pursue work that truly lit him up—guiding people through deep, durable change.
Over the next two decades, Will led transformational programs around the world and discovered that identity, not strategy, is the true ceiling on performance, impact, and culture. His coaching is ontological, not motivational or advisory. It focuses on who you’re being rather than what you’re doing, driven by rigorous listening and the kind of questioning that reveals what’s actually running the show. He works exclusively with leaders who are genuinely willing to do the inner work—those motivated not just by performance but by legacy, integrity, and impact.
That philosophy shapes his book Free to Lead, which distils his method into two arcs: first, dismantle the limiting beliefs and personas that aren’t you; second, create leadership as an authentic expression of who you actually are.
