THE SHORT BIONathan Allen Pirtle, also known as Nathan Pirtle, is an entrepreneur, marketing strategist, speaker, and author. He founded Work With the Coach, building a career around helping artists and public figures communicate with their audiences. His work has included Steve Harvey, Wyclef Jean, Paula Abdul, and Eve.
Today, his work spans new ventures, creative storytelling, and the lessons he shares in Built on Purpose: A Declaration to Myself. Across those pursuits, the question stays personal: how do you build something meaningful without losing yourself in the process?
THE LONGER STORYBefore the book.
Behind the work.
There was no straight line.
01 / ROOTSDecatur. Family. A different future.
Nathan’s story begins in Decatur, Illinois. His early life brought instability, difficult choices, and lessons that would later become central to how he understood responsibility and change. His father’s influence—and the grief of losing him—remained a powerful part of the life he was trying to build.
Moving to Los Angeles meant stepping into uncertainty. He arrived with ambition, an interest in music, and the belief that a different future would require different decisions.
02 / THE FIRST BUILDHis own first case study.
Before the clients and speaking engagements, there were early shifts at Coffee Bean, late shifts at a call center, and the work happening between them. Nathan studied social media, experimented with music marketing, and recorded motivational videos while walking to and from work.
He learned by building his own audience. The question became practical: if he could create a response around his own story, could he help someone else communicate theirs? That question became Work With the Coach—a company rooted in marketing, brand building, and the instinct to help people see what was possible.
03 / CULTURE & COMMUNICATIONAttention was only the beginning.
His work took him into the worlds of music, entertainment, and public personalities. Working with artists and figures including Wyclef Jean and Steve Harvey deepened his understanding of the relationship between culture, communication, and trust.
For Nathan, an audience was more than a number beneath a post. He encouraged a shift from broadcasting at people to listening and responding to them. The same skills—understanding a person’s story, translating a vision, and creating a genuine connection—became part of how he approached business.
04 / FINDING HIS VOICEThe story became something to share.
Speaking brought another dimension to the work. Nathan moved from sharing reflections through his phone to speaking in front of audiences, including an Edward Jones event in Fairfield, Iowa. The experiences he once struggled to discuss became the material through which he could connect with others.
That event also helped open the door to the book. A conversation with Connie Boyer led to time with Dr. Boyer, whose questions gave Nathan room to examine his life more closely. The story grew beyond achievement into questions of identity, grief, discipline, faith, and peace.
05 / A DIFFERENT MEASUREBuilding a life he could live inside.
As his opportunities grew, Nathan began to reconsider what success required—and what it could not provide. Prayer, meditation, movement, rest, and honest relationships became central to his understanding of a sustainable life.
Built on Purpose emerged from that reckoning. It brings together the experiences behind his work and the standards he continues to practice. The point is not a perfect transformation. It is the responsibility of continuing to grow.
