Psychologist · Author · Speaker
Dr. Timothy Yen
Best-selling author of Choose Better and founder of Pivot Counseling – helping people and teams move from stuck to intentional, one better decision at a time.
Licensed Psychologist · Creator of the Choose Better Framework · Bay Area
As seen in Entrepreneur · Harvard Business Review · Insider · Success · Authority Magazine · and 40+ podcasts
The Short Version
I help people make decisions they can stand behind.
I’m a licensed psychologist, the founder of Pivot Counseling, and the author of the best-selling book Choose Better: The Optimal Decision-Making Framework. For more than a decade I’ve sat with people in their hardest moments and watched the same thing again and again: most of us aren’t short on options. We’re short on clarity.
Before any of that, I served eight years in the U.S. Army as a mental health specialist. That’s where I first learned that the people around us shape the choices we’re brave enough to make — a lesson that still runs through everything I teach.
Overthinking isn’t intelligence. It’s fear. The good news is that better decisions are a skill — and skills can be learned.
Speaking and writing have been a thread through my whole career, and after years of setting that work aside, I’m bringing it back to the center. On stage, on podcasts, and in the boardroom, I help audiences understand their emotions, align with their values, and choose with courage.
One framework. Three branches.
Whether you're seeking care, growth, or change at scale, the Choose Better approach meets you where you are.
Pivot Counseling
Premium, private-pay therapy for the East Bay — evidence-based care that treats you like family. Individuals, couples, families, and teens.
Explore therapy →Pivot Coaching
The Choose Better framework applied to real life — for high achievers navigating career pivots, transitions, and big decisions outside the therapy room.
Explore coaching →Pivot Consulting
Decision-making, emotional intelligence, and authentic leadership for teams and organizations that make hard calls under pressure.
Explore consulting →From the stage and the studio
A clinician who speaks like a friend, not a textbook. Tim turns research on decision-making and emotional health into talks people actually use the next morning.
Mental health panel — on stigma, resilience, and showing up as your real self.
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Tim’s direct-to-camera “About” film. (Placeholder — swap for the YouTube or Vimeo embed.)
What Tim speaks about
Every talk is built on the Choose Better framework and tailored to your audience — keynotes, workshops, panels, and fireside chats.
Choose Better
The 5-step framework for decisions you won’t second-guess.
Overthinking Isn’t Intelligence
How fear disguises itself as analysis — and how to move anyway.
Authentic Leadership
Aligning your choices with your values when the stakes are high.
Burnout & The Cost Of Pretense
Why decision fatigue quietly drains teams — and what restores them.
Emotional Intelligence For Hard Calls
Reading emotion as information, not interference.
The Authenticity Movement
Living true to your core identity in a performance-driven world.
The book behind the framework
Choose Better takes the five-step method Tim has taught for years and puts it in your hands — a practical, story-driven guide to moving from emotional reactivity and second-guessing toward values-aligned action. It’s the foundation of every talk, every coaching engagement, and the Authenticity Movement.
Perfect for readers, book clubs, leadership teams, and event bulk orders.
What people say after hearing Tim
Dr. Timothy Yen gave an excellent workshop for the Boston Consulting Group on how to navigate the stress of transitioning back to work for our business services teams on the West Coast. He was engaging, interactive, and answered live questions at the end of his presentation. I would highly recommend him as a speaker on mental health.
"I believe this book provides the structure needed to make excellent decisions. Whether you are a CEO of a large company or a single mother of three, the Framework contained in this book will give any reader the needed empowerment to make authentic choices."
"Life is full of difficult decisions. And while that may be unavoidable, this wonderful book makes the daunting process of decision making a whole lot easier. Weaving together compelling stories and revealing scientific studies, Dr. Yen does an amazing job in bringing clarity to decision making. He provides readers with a clear roadmap for making good decisions in order to live their best life. Great book!"
Where Tim’s ideas show up
Recent podcast appearances
Making Better Decisions with Dr. Timothy Yen
Pivot Counseling: Your Holistic Solution for Wellness
Enneagram and Counseling with Dr. Timothy Yen
Following along on LinkedIn
Tim writes regularly on decision-making, leadership, and authentic living. A few recent posts:
“Just believe in yourself” sounds empowering. But for driven entrepreneurs, the deeper issue often isn’t confidence — it’s caring too much, alone. Have I confused faith with over-self-reliance?
Read on LinkedIn →LinkedIn · PostYou can have the career, the money, the family — and still feel lost. “Disorder” just means out of order. Counseling is pulling over, figuring out where you actually want to go, and rerouting.
Read on LinkedIn →LinkedIn · PostWe’ll invest in a new phone or supplements — but hesitate to invest in our mental health. Like a warning light on your dashboard, anxiety or stress isn’t a verdict. It’s information.
Read on LinkedIn →Stop Second-Guessing. Start Choosing Better.
A short, practical guide to the framework — yours free. The gentlest first step toward decisions that feel like you.
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Start a conversation
Speaking, media, consulting, or coaching — tell Tim what you have in mind. Inquiries route straight to him.