WE BRING OUR CORE VALUES
-authenticity and wisdom-
TO EVERYTHING WE DO
McDonald Graham provides leadership development and coaching services. We are a partnership drawing on two decades of professional practice with a wide range of organizations. We are skilled at helping people let down their guard, have honest conversations about their lives, and spark new ways of approaching work and life that lead to greater effectiveness and more fulfillment.
Whether it’s through 1:1 coaching or our leadership workshops for groups — Transforming Success® and Dare to Lead™ — we facilitate the difficult inner work that builds better leaders.
WE BRING OUR CORE VALUES
-authenticity and wisdom-
TO EVERYTHING WE DO
McDonald Graham provides leadership development and coaching services. We are a partnership drawing on two decades of professional practice with a wide range of organizations. We are skilled at helping people let down their guard, have honest conversations about their lives, and spark new ways of approaching work and life that lead to greater effectiveness and more fulfillment.
Whether it’s through 1:1 coaching or our leadership workshops for groups — Transforming Success® and Dare to Lead™ — we help professionals flourish at work and in life.
The McDonald Graham coaching team is an invaluable resource. Julie and Lisa are both outstanding coaches and leadership development facilitators. They encourage and challenge us to grow into better leaders than we currently are.
-Cynthia J. Brown, MD, MSPH, AGSF, Professor of Medicine and Director, Division of Gerontology, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care, University of Alabama at Birmingham

JULIE MCDONALD, PH.D.
I’ve been a practicing clinical psychologist for over 25 years. At McDonald Graham, I bring my experience providing psychological services into the business world. In November 2019, I retired from my private psychology practice at Bair, Peacock, McDonald, McMullan, & Bell, P.C. to focus solely on McDonald Graham.
I have a Bachelor of Arts degree from Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky and a Master’s degree and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. I completed my clinical internship at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington.
I’m a member of the American Psychological Association, the Alabama Psychological Association, the National Register of Health Service Psychologists, and the Society for Consulting Psychology. I served as an adjunct professor of psychology for the clinical psychology Ph.D. program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
I’m married to a psychologist and both of our children are majoring in psychology. Go figure. (And if you are imagining our dinner conversations as quite unusual, you are correct.) I am hopelessly optimistic, and earnest. And a little bit nerdy. My VIA Character Strengths include loyalty, teamwork, critical thinking, prudence, and curiosity.
I’m an active member of Saint Thomas Episcopal Church, where I have served on the Calling Committee and Vestry. I enjoy travel, playing pickleball, and taking hip-hop/Zumba dance fitness classes. Chocolate, coffee, books, movies, and meaningful conversations are necessities in my life.
Click Here for My “Fun” Bio
It provides more insight into who I really am!

Meet Julie
She is a no-nonsense Southern Mom of two who likes to table-scape, create miniature fairy gardens, and who trained her kids to make HER bed every day from the age of 5 until they went to college. She can be spotted around Birmingham speed walking faster than most people can jog or singing and dancing in the aisles at the grocery store to some sweet 80’s grooves (practicing her moves for her next career as a backup dancer for J.Lo., of course).
Quirks include: drinking coffee in the shower to wake up in the morning before she works out, cutting all the itchy tags out of her clothes, and having lip balm within reach at all times.
She loves to travel and be on the water or near the water when vacationing. Favorite destinations include the Gulf Coast, Charleston, Seattle, St. Lucia, and Ireland. She is constantly working on how to travel lighter and her ultimate goal is to pack only a carry-on bag, no matter how long the trip (this is a long term work in progress because…umm…how do you know what you will want to wear on a Thursday when you are packing on a Sunday?).
Julie looks at life as a continuous learning opportunity and sees every interaction, every experience, every moment as a chance to learn something new or make something better. Her clients describe her as wise, warm, empathetic, insightful, and action-oriented.
LISA GOLDSTEIN GRAHAM, PH.D.
I’ve practiced in the field of organizational psychology for over 23 years. Before establishing McDonald Graham, I worked as a consultant with Blankenship & Seay Consulting Group for 17 years.

I earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Emory University, a Master’s degree in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from the University of Tennessee, and a Ph.D. in Leadership & Change from Antioch University.
I am a member of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology and the American Psychological Association. I have served as an adjunct professor of psychology at Samford University.
I am originally from Amarillo, Texas but now live in Birmingham, Alabama with my husband and two children. (I’m destined to live as a vegetarian surrounded by the world’s best BBQ.) I throw myself whole-heartedly into my interests and commitments. I’ve been known to lighten the mood with humor. My VIA Signature Strengths include a love of learning, curiosity and interest in the world, honesty, authenticity, and genuineness.
When not working or enjoying time with friends and family, I am active in community non-profit organizations. I am also a voracious reader of fiction. My favorite combination in life is a seat in the corner of my porch couch, a cool breeze, an icy beverage, and a great book. (My husband and kids are welcome in this scene, but only if they don’t ask questions and don’t need anything from me. ????)
Click Here for My “Fun” Bio
It provides more insight into who I really am!

Meet Lisa
Lisa is a Jewish vegetarian married to a carnivore of Southern Baptist heritage. (She passionately believes that diversity is the spice of life.) Ten years ago, she and her husband ran a social group for couples who were “childless by choice.” These days, she spends most of her free time with their two daughters. (She’s really glad they changed their minds about having kids . . . most of the time. )
She’s fascinated by each person’s story and can count on her husband to plead, “please don’t start conversations with random people today” as they enter any situation that involves standing in line, sitting at tightly packed restaurant tables, waiting for a movie to start, standing in an elevator, etc. She is a continuous learning junkie with books overflowing from every shelf in the house and yet- to-read sections of the NYT scattered throughout. She has started countless Coursera courses (and has even finished a few). Her email box overflows with interesting newsletters, and she is almost always participating in a personal and/ or professional growth program. (Some of her favorites have been: Tiago Forte’s Build a Second Brain program, Farnam Street Learning Community, Holstee, Style Yourself Chic, the Million Dollar Badass Mastermind with Rachel Rodgers, and the Nearness. She highly recommends all.)
If Lisa wasn’t an organizational psychologist (a job she loves), she would be a professional makeup artist. Or maybe a children’s librarian. The common thread connecting these three career paths is the desire to help others manifest the very best versions of themselves, recognizing and capitalizing on what makes them unique.
She is a huge fan of parenthetical asides. (Obviously.)

SUSAN ANDREWS, ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGER
I come to McDonald Graham, LLC as an independent administrative assistant with more than 25 years of experience in customer service, operations, and compliance within the financial services industry. I feel privileged to have the opportunity to assist Lisa and Julie with day-to-day operations and am invigorated and inspired to be immersed within a field where the focus is growth, change, risks, empowerment, and responsibility.