Meet
Jake Fishbein

Guiding people home through
Coaching, Community, and Conversation

The Story of Tiresias Leadership

Our work was born out of almost three decades of a love for The Odyssey, a decade of learning from the top minds in the coaching world, and over 2000 hours coaching leaders at some of America’s most successful companies.

The first iteration of this business began in 2018, when I shut down Experience Vinyl—the music startup I’d been building for two years.

My career, up until that point, had been in small white-glove businesses in New York City. I’d coordinated A-list galas and run national media campaigns before building Experience Vinyl from the ground up—sourcing the right materials, partnering with rock star musicians like Carlos Santana and Grace Slick, and onboarding over 400 subscribers in the first two months.

Even with my early experiences, I had no real idea what I wanted to do with my life. 

At least, I wasn’t honest about it. With myself, or anyone else.

A Journey of Realization

2015

The Beginning

In 2015 a friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend suggested I do a series of workshops and work with a coach. I hired executive coach Nick Papadopoulos and he quickly became my mentor. We started writing what would later become The Men’s Group: A Novel of Messy Friendships in February 2016.

2018

The Turning Point

I shut down Experience Vinyl, the music startup I’d been building for two years. Even with my early successes there and in Public Relations, I wasn’t confident in the value I provided or honest with myself about what I truly wanted to do. I felt stuck, uncertain, and listless. I kept asking, “What do I want to do with my life?”

Nova Scotia

The Realization

I went to Halifax, NS in April 2018 to work on my novel. While driving on a seaside road on my way back from a failed visit to the lighthouse at Cape d’Or, I realized that my purpose was to guide people home. Even then, I wasn’t willing to go all in. It took several more months and asking myself a new question to change everything.

The Question that Changed Everything

“What am I actually doing?”

The answer? I was coaching and writing. At that moment, I decided to stop pretending that I didn’t know what to do with my life and go all in.

Our Impact Since Going All In

150+ Leaders Coached

Working with these clients
I’ve noticed that the
predominant barriers to
success and growth are:

1) Avoiding necessary conversations and conflict

2) Lack of time for
deep work or purposeful reflection

3) Focusing on transactional results vs. relational
investments

Since 2018, I’ve had the privilege of coaching over 2000 hours with leaders, ranging from mid-level management to the C-Suite; building a flourishing community for men who want more; and writing a novel to share all the lessons I’ve learned.

Facilitator
Trainings

We’ve designed and led
facilitator trainings for faculty
at institutions including
University of Delaware, Kenyon College, and Shorecrest Preparatory School.

Our program focuses on four
core pillars:

1) Mindfulness
2) Safety & Structure
3) Unlocking Collective Wisdom
4) Authentic Self-Expression

We founded The Arena Men’s Group in 2020 to inspire men to dare greatly, love fiercely, and live fully.

This community has grown to multiple groups across the United States and has impacted more than 175 men since its founding.

Groups meet twice a month, include implementation exercises, and connection opportunities for members.

After a decade of writing, we published The Men’s Group: A Novel of Messy Friendships in June 2026.

This novel follows
Darcy Mattews, a failed New
York screenwriter, who joins a
friend’s men’s group after his girlfriend breaks up with him.

The Men’s Group debuted as an Amazon Bestseller in Friendship Fiction and has a 5-Star rating on Amazon.

National Men’s Community

Amazon
Bestseller

Standing on the shoulders of giants

I’ve had the privilege of training with some of the top minds in the coaching industry and learning from their experience and expertise.

  • RON CARUCCI

  • MARSHALL GOLDSMITH

  • DAVID GOLDSMITH

  • DAVID PETERSON

  • FRANK WAGNER

  • DAVID WHYTE

  • AND MORE

Certifications

More About Jake

Jacob Fishbein is a novelist, executive coach, men’s group facilitator, die-hard Red Sox fan, and Greek-history nerd. He runs Tiresias Leadership and The Arena Men’s Group, where he helps executives, nonprofit leaders, and men wrestling with modern masculinity become better communicators and build relationships that actually nourish them. And yes, he coaches women, too.

His official foray into coaching began in 2015, though the roots of his work run much deeper—back to his bar mitzvah, the Odyssey sequel he wrote in high school, and the college food blog he used as an excuse to explore life. In 2016, he joined Nick Papadopoulos’s Dudes of Disruption Men’s Group as “research” for The Men’s Group: A Novel of Messy Friendships. That research turned into a calling. In 2020, Jacob and Nick co-founded The Arena, where they’ve since helped hundreds of men change their lives. Along the way, Jacob earned his ICF-PCC, trained with coaching legends David Peterson and David Goldsmith, and joined Marshall Goldsmith’s Forefront community.

When he’s not coaching or writing, Jacob can be found reading everything from Brandon Sanderson to Nikos Kazantzakis, drinking excellent coffee, watching too much British television or Star Wars Rebels, or discussing whether Odysseus was a genius, a traumatized wanderer, or both. He grew up under the enchanting skies of Santa Fe, New Mexico; studied history and ran track at Kenyon College; and now lives in New York City with his fiancée, Perri, who is much more stylish than he is and somehow finds room for their ever-expanding book collection in their apartment.

Our Foundation Principles

Twelve principles that guide the work, shape the conversations, and create lasting impact.

  • Learning is a cycle made up of action, reflection, and sharing.

  • Noticing is the first step towards development and growth.

  • Meet people where they are. They cannot and will not always be where you want them to be.

  • Work on the hard stuff. Stretch. Be uncomfortable. Grow. And do it all with purpose.

  • Focus on WHO you want to BE - not WHAT you want to ACCOMPLISH. Accomplishments are born out of identity.

  • The lens you look at the world through determines the results you create and the legacy you leave.

  • Life is not a gently running stream. Life is a turbulent storm upon a mighty sea. And even turbulent storms are beautiful.

  • Pay attention to your thoughts and language. They reveal more about what's beneath the surface than almost anything else.

  • Know your capacity. Your performance is impacted by how much you’ve eaten, how much you’ve slept, and much more.

  • To create maximum impact, you must develop the whole; it is tempting to focus solely on external development, but internal development is what ultimately leads to radically different results.

  • Own your choices: both the successes and the mistakes. You will not be perfect, and that's okay. The only true mistake is not taking responsibility for your decisions and their impact.

  • Trust yourself. If something crosses your mind: do something about it. If you think of someone: reach out. If you think of sharing something with someone: share. If you realize you love someone: tell them.

“Life is not a gently running stream.

Life is a turbulent storm upon a mighty sea.

And even turbulent storms are beautiful.”

- Principle Seven

Let’s talk.

Are you curious about 1:1 coaching, The Arena Men’s Group, or the Third Nature Facilitator Training Program?

We’d love to connect.

START THE CONVERSATION →