Frequently Asked Questions

I don't think I've lost my confidence. I just seem to question myself more than I used to. Can coaching help with that?

Yes, and in my experience this is far more common than many women realise.
 
Many of the women I work with don't describe themselves as lacking confidence. They have successful careers, lead teams and are highly respected by colleagues. What they notice instead is that they analyse decisions more than they used to, seek reassurance before acting or spend far longer considering different options than feels necessary.
 
I don't believe confidence is always the place to start. More often, the work is about rebuilding trust in your own judgement after years of navigating complex environments, competing priorities and unspoken expectations.
 
When you begin trusting yourself again, confidence often follows naturally.

I'm balancing a demanding leadership role alongside the responsibilities that often come with midlife. Is coaching right for me?

For many experienced women, midlife is a time when professional responsibility and personal responsibility naturally converge. It is often the stage of life when you are leading significant teams or organisations whilst also supporting ageing parents, celebrating your children's growing independence, adapting to the changes that menopause can bring and beginning to reflect on what you want the next stage of your own life and career to look like.
 
These experiences are rarely separate from one another. The decisions you make at work influence your life beyond the workplace, just as the experiences you have outside work inevitably shape how you lead, think and make decisions.
 
Coaching provides the opportunity to consider these different aspects of your life together, recognising that effective leadership is not simply about what happens in the office. It is about having the time and space to reflect on what matters most to you, explore the choices available to you and make decisions that feel aligned with your values, your experience and your aspirations for the future.
 
Many of my clients tell me that having a dedicated hour where they can step away from competing demands and think without interruption becomes one of the most valuable investments they make in both their professional leadership and their personal wellbeing.

I've worked in not-for-profit organisations for years. Will you understand the environment I'm working in?

Absolutely.
 
Before becoming an Executive Coach, I spent twenty-five years working within not-for-profit organisations, including twenty years in senior leadership roles.
 
I understand the unique complexity of member-led organisations because I have lived it. I know what it is like to balance the expectations of trustees, boards, elected members, volunteers and senior colleagues whilst remaining focused on the organisation's purpose. I understand the competing priorities, the governance, the politics and the constant need to influence without always having direct authority.
 
That means you won't need to spend our coaching sessions explaining the environment. We can focus on what matters most to you.

Why do you specialise in women working in not-for-profit organisations?

My decision to specialise in coaching experienced women working within not-for-profit organisations is shaped by my own career and by the conversations I have had throughout that journey.
 
Before establishing my coaching practice, I spent twenty-five years working within not-for-profit organisations, including twenty years in senior leadership roles. During that time, I had the privilege of working alongside talented women who cared deeply about the organisations they served and the difference those organisations made to people's lives. They brought experience, wisdom and unwavering commitment to their roles, often balancing complex stakeholder relationships, governance responsibilities and the expectations that naturally accompany leadership within purpose-driven organisations.
 
Those experiences gave me a deep appreciation of the distinctive nature of leadership within member-led and not-for-profit organisations. While every organisation is different, there are shared characteristics that shape the way decisions are made, relationships are built and leadership is experienced. Understanding that context means our coaching conversations can begin with the issues that matter most to you, rather than spending valuable time explaining the environment in which you work.
 
I continue to specialise in this sector because I believe experienced women make an extraordinary contribution to not-for-profit organisations and the communities they serve. Coaching provides the opportunity to step away from the pace of everyday leadership, reflect on the decisions ahead and strengthen the trust you place in your own judgement, so that you can continue leading with clarity, confidence and quiet authority.

​How is executive coaching different from leadership training?

Leadership training and executive coaching each have an important role to play in leadership development, but they serve different purposes and often complement one another.
 
Leadership training is designed to introduce new knowledge, develop specific skills and provide practical frameworks that can be applied across a group of people. It can be an invaluable way of building capability and expanding your understanding of different aspects of leadership.
 
Executive coaching begins from a different place. Rather than introducing a curriculum, it provides dedicated time to think about your own leadership, your own experiences and the decisions that matter most to you. Every conversation is shaped by your priorities, recognising that no two leadership journeys are ever quite the same.
 
Throughout our coaching partnership, we explore the situations you are navigating, the decisions you are considering and the opportunities you want to create, always with the aim of helping you strengthen trust in your own judgement. My role is not to tell you how to lead or provide ready-made solutions. Instead, I ask thoughtful questions, offer constructive challenge and create the space for you to reflect, consider different perspectives and arrive at decisions that feel right for you.
 
Many of the women I work with have already invested significantly in their professional development. They have attended leadership programmes, completed qualifications and built successful careers. Coaching gives them something different. It provides the opportunity to step away from the pace of everyday leadership, think without interruption and draw upon the experience, wisdom and professional judgement they have developed throughout their careers.

What happens during a coaching session?

Every coaching conversation begins with whatever feels most important to you that day.
 
Sometimes that may be preparing for a difficult conversation, making an important decision or working through a challenging workplace situation. At other times, it may involve exploring patterns of thinking that are causing you to question yourself more than you would like.
 
I will ask thoughtful questions, offer observations and create a confidential space where you can think clearly without judgement or interruption. My role is not to tell you what to do but to help you see situations from a different perspective, trust your own judgement and leave each session with greater clarity than when you arrived.
 
Many clients tell me that having dedicated time to think without needing to have all the answers immediately is one of the most valuable parts of coaching.

Do I need to know exactly what I want before I begin?

Not at all. In fact, many of the women I work with begin coaching because they recognise the value of having dedicated time to think, reflect and explore the questions that are becoming increasingly important to them. Some come with a specific leadership decision they would like to discuss, whilst others simply know that they would benefit from stepping away from the pace of everyday life to consider their options more thoughtfully.
 
Coaching is not about arriving with a fully formed plan. It is a collaborative process that creates the space for ideas to develop, perspectives to broaden and priorities to become clearer over time. As our conversations progress, many clients find that the questions they thought they wanted to answer naturally evolve into a deeper understanding of what matters most to them and how they want to move forward.
 
Our Discovery Call is simply the beginning of that conversation. It provides an opportunity for us to explore what has brought you to coaching, discuss what you would like to gain from the experience and consider whether working together feels like the right next step. There is no expectation that you will have all the answers before we begin. That is often one of the most valuable outcomes of coaching itself.

Is coaching confidential?

Yes, completely.
 
Confidentiality is fundamental to creating a coaching relationship built on trust.
Everything we discuss during our coaching sessions remains confidential, except in the very rare circumstances where I have a legal or professional duty of care to disclose information, for example if there is a significant risk of harm.
 
Many of the women I work with tell me they value having a space where they can think out loud, explore ideas honestly and discuss challenges without worrying about how they might be perceived. Coaching provides that space, allowing you to reflect openly and make decisions with greater confidence and clarity.

How long do clients usually work with you?

That depends entirely on your goals.
 
Some clients come with a specific challenge and find that three coaching sessions provide the clarity they need. Others choose to work together over several months because they want to strengthen their leadership, build lasting self-trust and create sustainable changes in the way they work and make decisions.
 
There is no expectation that you commit to a lengthy programme before you are ready. We will discuss your objectives during our initial conversation and agree an approach that feels right for you.
 
My aim is always to provide the support you need, rather than encouraging you to stay in coaching for longer than is genuinely helpful.

Do you coach online?

Yes. All coaching sessions are delivered online using secure video conferencing, allowing you to join from a location where you feel comfortable and able to think without interruption. Many of my clients appreciate the flexibility this offers, enabling coaching to fit around the demands of leadership, travel and the wider responsibilities that often accompany this stage of life.
 
Over the years, I have found that the quality of the coaching conversation is shaped far more by the relationship we build than by whether we are sitting in the same room. Online coaching creates a confidential and focused environment where we can explore your thinking in exactly the same thoughtful and reflective way, whilst giving you the convenience of accessing coaching wherever you are.
 
Whether you are based elsewhere in the UK or internationally, online coaching allows us to work together consistently and without the need for travel, making it easier to create regular opportunities to step away from the pace of everyday leadership and invest time in your own thinking, professional development and wellbeing.

Should you prefer an in-person coaching conversation, this can sometimes be arranged by prior agreement, depending on location and availability.

Do organisations commission you to coach their senior leaders?

Yes. Alongside working directly with individual clients, I also work with organisations that choose to invest in executive coaching as part of their commitment to developing and supporting experienced women leaders.
 

Organisations often recognise that coaching provides senior leaders with something that can be difficult to find within the demands of everyday working life: dedicated time to think, reflect and consider important decisions with the support of an independent and experienced coach. Whether someone is stepping into a new leadership role, leading organisational change, developing their leadership or simply valuing the opportunity to explore complex decisions in confidence, coaching provides a trusted space in which to do so.
 

My own background includes twenty-five years working within not-for-profit organisations, including twenty years in senior leadership roles. Having worked alongside Boards, Trustees, Executive Teams and senior colleagues, I understand the distinctive nature of leadership within purpose-driven organisations and the responsibilities that come with leading in those environments.
 

When coaching is commissioned by an organisation, I work collaboratively with both the individual and the commissioning organisation to agree the overall objectives for the coaching partnership. Once coaching begins, the conversations themselves remain confidential, creating the trust that is essential for thoughtful reflection, honest discussion and meaningful professional development.
 

If your organisation is considering executive coaching for one or more senior leaders, I would be delighted to discuss your objectives and explore how we might work together.

Still have a question?

If you haven't found the answer you're looking for, I'd be delighted to answer it.
 
A Discovery Call is simply an opportunity for us to talk about where you are now, what you're hoping to achieve and whether coaching feels like the right fit for you.
 
Book a Discovery Call