Explore every episode of the podcast Comeback Coach
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 134. COMEBACK - Dr Fionnuala Barton AKA Menopause Medic - from burnout in the NHS to job love as private hormone specialist | 07 Oct 2026 | 00:40:30 | |
Hello Bright Minds, today I’m with the woman who helped me improve my mood, sleep better and feel more like myself again last year. Dr Fionnuala Barton got me on the HRT I needed and as is often the way when I spend time with a bright, open women I got her talking about her career and discovered the work she does today came about after burnout and space to think on maternity leave from her role in the NHS. If you’re seeing signs of burnout in yourself you’ll find this an uplifting, encouraging listen - and if you’ve been wondering whether your hormones might be out of whack you’ll like the expert advice she gives in the second half. ----------------------------------------------- COMPETITION DETAILS Be in with a chance to win an hour of coaching in person in London with me (or remotely) in January 2027 – or have me run our ‘VISIBLE’ masterclass for your organisation in February or March 2027 by leaving a review of COMEBACK COACH on Apple Podcasts, LinkedIn or Instagram (grid post) by Thursday 31st December 2026. Simply rate and review COMEBACK COACH and send a screenshot of your review to jc@talentkeepers.co.uk and let me know whether you would prefer 1:1 coaching with me or the VISIBLE masterclass for your organisation. For a second chance to win subscribe to my fortnightly newsletter, Pivotal, bringing coaching and psychology for career progression to your inbox every other Wednesday at 7am. TERMS & CONDITIONS Promoter: Jessica Chivers, The Talent Keeper Specialists (TTKS), jc@talentkeepers.co.uk Promotion period: Entries open when Season 11 of Comeback Coach launches in August 2026 and close at 23:59 on the day the final episode of the season is released in December 2026 ("the Promotion Period"). Entries received outside this window will not be counted. How to enter
Each entrant may submit one entry per method above for a maximum of one entry this way per person during the Promotion Period. Bonus entry Entrants who also subscribe to the Pivotal newsletter at pivotal.subscribepage.io during the Promotion Period will receive a second entry into the prize draw. Existing subscribers as of the start of the Promotion Period are not eligible for the bonus entry under this route. Eligibility
The prize The winner will choose one of the following:
There is no cash alternative. The prize is non-transferable. TTKS reserves the right to substitute the prize for one of equivalent value if circumstances beyond its control make it necessary. Winner selection and notification
Data and privacy
Other
Questions about the competition? Email jc@talentkeepers.co.uk.
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| 133. COMEBACK – Maria Hvorostovsky – Headhunter – returning to work after heart surgery age 42 – energy management - designing your job - leadership longevity | 23 Sep 2026 | 00:40:55 | |
Hello bright minds, my guest today is Maria Hvorostovsky, an executive headhunter who suddenly had to drop everything to have major heart surgery age 42. She’s a mother of two young children who knows herself more now than she did before the surgery and is very, very clear that how she spends her time is tethered to how energising or draining a particular activity is for her. The time away from work has changed what she wants from her career and she’s being very proactive about making things happen. ----------------------------------------------- COMPETITION DETAILS Be in with a chance to win an hour of coaching in person in London with me (or remotely) in January 2027 – or have me run our ‘VISIBLE’ masterclass for your organisation in February or March 2027 by leaving a review of COMEBACK COACH on Apple Podcasts, LinkedIn or Instagram (grid post) by Thursday 31st December 2026. Simply rate and review COMEBACK COACH and send a screenshot of your review to jc@talentkeepers.co.uk and let me know whether you would prefer 1:1 coaching with me or the VISIBLE masterclass for your organisation. For a second chance to win subscribe to my fortnightly newsletter, Pivotal, bringing coaching and psychology for career progression to your inbox every other Wednesday at 7am. TERMS & CONDITIONS Promoter: Jessica Chivers, The Talent Keeper Specialists (TTKS), jc@talentkeepers.co.uk Promotion period: Entries open when Season 11 of Comeback Coach launches in August 2026 and close at 23:59 on the day the final episode of the season is released in December 2026 ("the Promotion Period"). Entries received outside this window will not be counted. How to enter
Each entrant may submit one entry per method above for a maximum of one entry this way per person during the Promotion Period. Bonus entry Entrants who also subscribe to the Pivotal newsletter at pivotal.subscribepage.io during the Promotion Period will receive a second entry into the prize draw. Existing subscribers as of the start of the Promotion Period are not eligible for the bonus entry under this route. Eligibility
The prize The winner will choose one of the following:
There is no cash alternative. The prize is non-transferable. TTKS reserves the right to substitute the prize for one of equivalent value if circumstances beyond its control make it necessary. Winner selection and notification
Data and privacy
Other
Questions about the competition? Email jc@talentkeepers.co.uk.
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| 132. COMEBACK - Lou Khan - Ecommerce Media Director - ambition after maternity leave - "why not me, today?" got me promoted | 09 Sep 2026 | 00:39:13 | |
Hello Bright Minds, today I’m with a super fan of the podcast, Lou Khan, Ecommerce Media Director at Nectar360. Coming back from maternity leave stoked her ambition and we talk about the role of coaching, a highly supportive line manager, being more audacious at work and how a true partnership at home has fueled her rise. LINKS to things I mentioned in the episode:
----------------------------------------------- COMPETITION DETAILS Be in with a chance to win an hour of coaching in person in London with me (or remotely) in January 2027 – or have me run our ‘VISIBLE’ masterclass for your organisation in February or March 2027 by leaving a review of COMEBACK COACH on Apple Podcasts, LinkedIn or Instagram (grid post) by Thursday 31st December 2026. Simply rate and review COMEBACK COACH and send a screenshot of your review to jc@talentkeepers.co.uk and let me know whether you would prefer 1:1 coaching with me or the VISIBLE masterclass for your organisation. For a second chance to win subscribe to my fortnightly newsletter, Pivotal, bringing coaching and psychology for career progression to your inbox every other Wednesday at 7am. TERMS & CONDITIONS Promoter: Jessica Chivers, The Talent Keeper Specialists (TTKS), jc@talentkeepers.co.uk Promotion period: Entries open when Season 11 of Comeback Coach launches in August 2026 and close at 23:59 on the day the final episode of the season is released in December 2026 ("the Promotion Period"). Entries received outside this window will not be counted. How to enter
Each entrant may submit one entry per method above for a maximum of one entry this way per person during the Promotion Period. Bonus entry Entrants who also subscribe to the Pivotal newsletter at pivotal.subscribepage.io during the Promotion Period will receive a second entry into the prize draw. Existing subscribers as of the start of the Promotion Period are not eligible for the bonus entry under this route. Eligibility
The prize The winner will choose one of the following:
There is no cash alternative. The prize is non-transferable. TTKS reserves the right to substitute the prize for one of equivalent value if circumstances beyond its control make it necessary. Winner selection and notification
Data and privacy
Other
Questions about the competition? Email jc@talentkeepers.co.uk.
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| 131. JESSICA - VISIBILITY - 4 reasons you’re overlooked at work + 9 ways to be more visible, fuel your career and reduce your peer envy. | 26 Aug 2026 | 00:35:10 | |
Hello Bright Minds, this episode will give you nine tactics for raising your visibility at work that have helped coachees get access to growth opportunities and promotions. LINKS to things I mentioned in the episode:
----------------------------------------------- COMPETITION DETAILS Be in with a chance to win an hour of coaching in person in London with me (or remotely) in January 2027 – or have me run our ‘VISIBLE’ masterclass for your organisation in February or March 2027 by leaving a review of COMEBACK COACH on Apple Podcasts, LinkedIn or Instagram (grid post) by Thursday 31st December 2026. Simply rate and review COMEBACK COACH and send a screenshot of your review to jc@talentkeepers.co.uk and let me know whether you would prefer 1:1 coaching with me or the VISIBLE masterclass for your organisation. For a second chance to win subscribe to my fortnightly newsletter, Pivotal, bringing coaching and psychology for career progression to your inbox every other Wednesday at 7am. TERMS & CONDITIONS Promoter: Jessica Chivers, The Talent Keeper Specialists (TTKS), jc@talentkeepers.co.uk Promotion period: Entries open when Season 11 of Comeback Coach launches in August 2026 and close at 23:59 on the day the final episode of the season is released in December 2026 ("the Promotion Period"). Entries received outside this window will not be counted. How to enter
Each entrant may submit one entry per method above for a maximum of one entry this way per person during the Promotion Period. Bonus entry Entrants who also subscribe to the Pivotal newsletter at pivotal.subscribepage.io during the Promotion Period will receive a second entry into the prize draw. Existing subscribers as of the start of the Promotion Period are not eligible for the bonus entry under this route. Eligibility
The prize The winner will choose one of the following:
There is no cash alternative. The prize is non-transferable. TTKS reserves the right to substitute the prize for one of equivalent value if circumstances beyond its control make it necessary. Winner selection and notification
Data and privacy
Other
Questions about the competition? Email jc@talentkeepers.co.uk.
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| 130. EXPERT - Katy Fridman - How to land a flexible/PT senior role + when in the process should you ask about flex/less than 5 days a week? | 24 Jun 2026 | 00:37:02 | |
**Quick link to register interest in the Raising & Rising leadership retreat for mothers in senior roles – CPO’s and HR professionals please leave your details if interested for your people.** Hello Bright Minds this episode is an unexpected and delightful turn of events off the back of seeing my mate Katy Fridman for coffee a couple of weeks ago. We’d been talking about the state of the employment market for senior professionals who want to work less than full time. Katy is the Founder of Flexible Working People, a career platform helping professionals build part-time and flexible careers. She’s grown a community of more than 100,000 professionals and talks to hiring managers and internal recruiters every day of the week. Katy was about to pilot a four-day sprint for senior professionals who want to land flexible roles and we put a post on LinkedIn and asked if people wanted us to do an episode. The answer was a resounding YES and as well as many public comments I had people DM to tell me about their experiences.
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| 129. COACH - Anna - back from maternity leave and on a bold mission to work with Melinda Gates and scale female philanthropy | 10 Jun 2026 | 00:46:13 | |
Hello Bright Minds, you’re about to eavesdrop on a coaching conversation with a woman who wants to do big things in the world of philanthropy. She has a bold ambition to work with Melinda Gates and create a movement that leads to many, many more big female philanthropists around the globe. Female financial empowerment is her driving force and I gave her my ear to help her think about how she moves from where she is now to where she wants to be. She works as a senior fundraiser in the UK and USA and is a mother of two girls age 4 and 19 months. If you are a mother in a senior role who is looking to go further in your career you might like to be part of the second Raising & Rising one day career leadership retreat in London on Monday 12th October. It’s a space for ambitious women to think deeply about their next career step and formulate plans to achieve it alongside being the parent you want to be. It’s designed and hosted by me and my colleague parenting coach and author Anita Cleare. We’re both seasoned coaching professionals working with senior women in corporate roles for over 20 years and the first cohort was made up of women who’s employers had sponsored their places.
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| 128. COMEBACK - Donna Nichol - Leaders CAN take long holidays - trusting your team and building their self-trust before you go | 27 May 2026 | 00:32:04 | |
My guest today is Donna Nichol, from Chloe James Lifestyle who started her career in fashion buying and gave into her urge to open an independent store of her own 16 years in the place I call home: St Albans. Earlier this year Donna took a month out of her business to go travelling with her husband and when I saw her photos on Instagram and just how happy the break had made her I thought I need to get her on the podcast to show other business leaders whether in corporate life or running small businesses that they can do this too. I wholeheartedly believe – and research bears it out – that top performers know how to rest and sometimes an extended period of rest or change of scene such as a sabbatical or extra long holiday is exactly what we need to stay fresh and energised about leading in business. RESOURCES & REFERENCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
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| 127. JESSICA - The psychology of coming second – what to do when you don’t get the job – how to leverage the visibility you’ve gained in the recruitment process. | 13 May 2026 | 00:20:09 | |
Hello Bright Minds, this episode is for anyone who's just come second in a recruitment process for a job really wanted. LINKS REFERENCES IN EPISODE
I’m Jessica Chivers, a chartered coaching psychologist, author of “Mothers Work!” and executive coach who is on a mission to get more women into top jobs. I’m so pleased you’re here and listening to this JESSICA episode of COMEBACK COACH. These episodes are where I get into the psychology of something I think could be of value to the Bright Minds I coach in service of fuelling their careers. If you’re looking for help returning to work after a break then please dig into to the massive library of COMEBACK episodes where you’ll find oodles of practical inspiration in the stories of my guests. You can also DM me your Qs on Instagram using the handle @comebackcommuk and if you are a Head of L&D, Head of Talent or Chief People Officer seeking coaching for returning employees take a look at our website www.talentkeepers.co.uk for how the Comeback Community employee experience programme drives engagement and supports line managers to have the right conversations with their team member who’s taking leave. Also on the website you’ll find our approach to executive coaching for leaders at five pivotal moments including promotion and when preparing for Partnership.
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| 126. COMEBACK - Helen Rickards - Allianz/Lloyds of London - springing forward from redundancy after 25 years - using LinkedIn effectively - networking - perimenopause | 29 Apr 2026 | 00:46:38 | |
Hello Bright Minds, my guest today is Helen Rickards, who last year was made redundant from the German insurer Allianz after 25 years. It was traumatic. She’s now back in role at Lloyd’s of London and she’s loving it. You are about to eavesdrop on a wonderfully uplifting tale of how Helen got back to work. We talk about networking, the nuts and bolts of making LinkedIn work, what it’s like to be suddenly without structure and purpose, how the perimenopause affects self-worth and the moment she knew she wanted to work for her new CEO.
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| 125. JESSICA - Psychology of identity + missing work mojo after maternity leave - who am I now? Will my career drive come back? Mental TLC for new working mums + dads | 15 Apr 2026 | 00:31:41 | |
Hello Bright Minds, this episode is for anyone who is currently grappling with a drop in motivation at work or a loss of drive to push forward in your career after a break from work – a break that has shifted your identity in some way. I want to let you know that it’s normal. And that your drive is still there. It’s just staying quiet for a while – and that accepting it will take time for that mojo to resurface is the kindest thing you can do for yourself. I’m Jessica Chivers, a chartered coaching psychologist, author of “Mothers Work!” and executive coach who is on a mission to get more mothers into top jobs. I’m so pleased you’re here and listening to this JESSICA episode of COMEBACK COACH. These solo episodes are where I get into the psychology of something I think could be of value to the Bright Minds I coach and they’re in service of fuelling their careers. If listening sparks a question or you’d like to say hello and tell me how the episode has moved you, you can DM me on Instagram using the handle @comebackcommuk or e-mail jc@talentkeepers.co.uk. Resources flagged in the episode:
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| 124. EXPERT – Psychologist Suzy Reading – tending to self - why mums fantasise about a hospital stay – toxic resilience - not expecting others to intuit our needs | 01 Apr 2026 | 00:46:26 | |
Hello Bright Minds, my chat with Suzy was deeply engaging for me as a fellow psychologist – and therapeutic at times - and I think it’s a great big, warm, virtual hug for anyone who is wrung out from taking care of children, partners, direct reports and all the other people who you give to in your life. We talk about themes connected to Suzy’s latest book, How to be selfish, which is about vocalising your needs and your wishes and tending to yourself. You can get more of Suzy on Instagram @suzyreading. I hope you take some learning from it.
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| 123. JESSICA - Audacity at work - How to make audacious asks to accelerate your career and change corporate systems that weren't built for women | 18 Mar 2026 | 00:28:05 | |
Hello Bright Minds, this is an episode written from the heart on my 47th birthday about audacity being a behavioural muscle we can develop in service of fuelling our careers and getting more women into top jobs. I'm Jessica Chivers, a chartered coaching psychologist, executive coach and author of "Mothers Work!" ** TELL ME ABOUT YOUR AUDACIOUS ACTS & ASKS AT WORK - link to Google form or copy and paste: https://forms.gle/aUjrEiTAxbQtHzzm6 **
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| 122. COMEBACK – Rakhi Sachdeva – Microsoft – missing work on maternity leave – stretch in your career before you feel ready – “hype me” folder – self advocacy | 04 Mar 2026 | 00:40:44 | |
My guest today is Microsoft’s AI Workforce Lead for Government who recently returned to the business after her second maternity leave. Rakhi Sachdeva moved from India to the UK in 2015 and she’s risen in one of the world largest technology companies without a traditional tech background. Rahki is a wonderful example of the power of not waiting until you feel fully ready before you put yourself forward for opportunities at work - and on that note, if you are a mother in a senior role who is feeling stuck or torn about whether or when to push for the next significant step up I would love you to be part of the second Raising & Rising cohort in London in October. It’s a very special one day leadership career retreat for 12 women with me and parenting expert and author Anita Cleare and you can find out more at www.talentkeepers.co.uk/rising.
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| 121. EXPERT – Helen Beedham - Freedom at work – stay interviews - retaining your best people – why do we make brilliant individual contributors people managers? | 18 Feb 2026 | 00:47:12 | |
Hello Bright Minds and welcome to the first episode of season 10 of COMEBACK COACH with the author of the brand new book, People Glue: Hold onto your best people by setting them free. If you have ever craved more freedom at work, if you are a business leader worried about losing your best people or if you are a Chief People Officer tasked with generating a new talent attraction and retention strategy, this is for you. As a coaching psychologist who works with employers to help them keep and fuel their most talented people at pivotal career moments I found Helen’s book fascinating. And as a person who’s highest value is freedom, I lapped this up.
Links to things we talked about Retaining talent diagnostic for HR Helen’s people manager development list Helen’s Freedom Index Sigal Barsade and companionate love at work
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| 120. BONUS – coaching success stories – Meena Santhosh, Selina Tyler & Karina Langan (coaching commissioner) from three asset management firms on comeback coaching for maternity leave | 28 Dec 2025 | 00:24:38 | |
Hello Bright Minds, this is the third of three bonus episodes of season nine where I’m lifting the lid on what the people I and my colleagues coach, actually get from coaching. I’m Jessica Chivers, a chartered coaching psychologist and executive coach of 20 years. I’m the founder of a boutique coaching business called The Talent Keeper Specialists, and this year we turned 13 and completely refreshed our website. We added a new page called Success Stories where you can watch short films of real coachees honestly reflecting on their experiences of executive coaching. You’re about to hear from three women in the world of asset management; Meena Santhosh, Selina Tyler and Karina Langan. I first worked with Meena when she was at BlackRock and we’ve had three coaching engagements – one after each of her three maternity leaves and she’s now at Robeco. And then you’ll hear from Selina Tyler who’s had fantastic career progression since we first worked together when she was at Federated Hermes. She’s now the Head of UK at Jupiter Asset Management. Both Meena and Selina had their coaching paid for by their employers and you can watch more success stories and read about the five professionals we coach at www.talentkeepers.co.uk. The third person you’ll hear from is Karina Lanagan, who is the Head of HR at TT International, another asset management client of The Talent Keeper Specialists. Karina talks about the power of comeback coaching from an employer perspective and the positive ripple on line managers. I hope it’s a useful listen and as ever, if you have questions or comments you can e-mail me jc@talentkeepers.co.uk or DM on Instagram using the handle @comebackcommuk.
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| 119. BONUS – coaching success stories – Laura Scougall (coachee) & Kirsty Duncan (coach commissioner) at ITV on the positive ripple effect of coaching | 28 Dec 2025 | 00:24:49 | |
Hello Bright Minds, this is the second of three bonus episodes of season nine where I’m lifting the lid on what people really get from coaching. If you’ve listened to any COACH episode of the podcast you’ve heard coaching in action. Now’s the time to hear the impact and the positive ripple effects of coaching. Please enjoy the reflections of Laura Scougall, the Head of ITV Academy who was also my guest on episode 94 where we talked about redundancy risk on maternity leave, being open at work about the demands at home, having an autistic son and how to get back to sleep. After Laura you’ll hear from Kirsty Duncan, ITV’s Head of Learning, Development and Wellbeing with whom I’ve had the pleasure of working for 8 years.
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| 118. BONUS – coaching success stories - IP lawyer Jessica Duncombe on the efficiency, effectiveness and breadth of coaching | 28 Dec 2025 | 00:20:22 | |
Hello Bright Minds, on a whim at the end of the final episode of season nine with Jeremy Bradbury from ITV (episode 117) I wondered aloud about doing a few bonus episodes about what people really get from coaching. This was inspired by the conversations I’ve had recently with a series of past coachees for a 'Success Story’ page on our new website. Listener Suzy heard that and voicenoted me on Instagram saying “yes please”. So here we are. Sincere thanks once again to Little Dish for sponsoring the whole of season nine. Now please enjoy my chat with Jessica Duncombe, an intellectual property lawyer from Kilburn & Strode and there are more executive coaching success stories at www.talentkeepers.co.uk.
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| 117. COMEBACK – Jeremy Bradbury – ITV – Coaching through ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome – how coaching shifted my mindset and helped me make sustainable return to work | 10 Dec 2025 | 00:31:41 | |
Hello Bright Minds, my guest today loves his job and is incredibly appreciative of the support he received from his employer, ITV, when illness came out of nowhere. This year Jeremy Bradbury had two months away from work with ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and took around four months to phase back to full time. ITV has been a client of The Talent Keeper Specialists for eight years and I had the pleasure of working with Jeremy in a coaching capacity as he transitioned back to work. For new listeners, my colleagues and I work with professionals at pivotal career moments, including returning to work after a break. Our Comeback Community™ employee experience programme is designed to keep employees feeling confident, connected and cared for before, during and after leave - and we work with line managers as well as the people taking leave. It’s about maintaining employee engagement, shrinking the time it takes to feel comfortable and fuelling ongoing sustainable performance and progression. Have a look at our newly revamped website to find out more: www.talentkeepers.co.uk. This episode and the whole of season nine is generously sponsored by Little Dish. The home of happy, healthy mealtimes for kids.
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| 116. JESSICA - Stop wasting mothers' potential in UK businesses - why it's taken me 14 years to co-create Raising & Rising for mothers in senior roles | 26 Nov 2025 | 00:25:42 | |
Hello Bright Minds, I am worried about what's happening to mothers in UK Plc. In February I am hosting the first Raising & Rising retreat with my colleague Anita Cleare. It’s a small, intimate gathering of 8-12 mothers (of children 0-18) in senior roles to give them space, tools and encouragement to explore what they want next in their careers. These women are the ‘talent pipeline’ to become Partners, Managing Partner, Heads of Department and Board members – some sooner, some later. They are the women their organisations want to keep and rise. Our expectation is that employers will sponsor your place and that you will not self-fund. I This episode is the story of why it's taken me 14 years to create Raising & Rising and the statistics about the difficulties mother face in raising their careers compared to fathers and childfree men. Here's the link to watch the replay of the HR webinar I mention in the episode, "What's Stopping Women Stepping Up" plus more stats about the load mothers are carrying at work compared to fathers and childfree men. Best wishes, Jessica
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| 115. COMEBACK – Steph Ogden – CEO HDI Global – Stop! Step away from the business on maternity leave (it won’t fall apart without you). | 12 Nov 2025 | 00:39:38 | |
Hello Bright Minds, Stephanie Ogden, loves her job. She is the UK CEO of the global insurance company HDI Global and she was an absolute treat to chat to because she was so open and honest. We get into the nitty gritty of how to step away from your business when you are holding the top job or another really senior role. But this is not just an episode for senior leaders – if you work in a big organisation, a male dominated environment or you are ambitious for more in your career this listen will be worth your time. This episode is sponsored by Little Dish, a company who's values chime with mine and I am delighted to have their partnership. **Raising & Rising** A leadership career retreat for mothers in senior roles is happening on Monday 9th February 2026. Details here.
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| 114. JESSICA - How knowing your values and being interested in the values of others helps you lead better and enjoy sustainable career success. | 29 Oct 2025 | 00:32:56 | |
Hello Bright Mind, I start this episode by sharing a piece of academic astonishing research that demonstrates, unequivocally, the powerful and positive link between values and career success. Values frequently come into the work I do with leaders who are having a challenging time at work or in combining work and home. I do a lot of work with professional women with children who place importance on achieving at work and value being present and emotionally available for their children which can sometimes be very, very hard. I hope you enjoy my musings on the psychology of values and strengths and how they relate to career and wider life success. Best wishes, Jessica RESOURCES & REFERENCES
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| 113. EXPERT – Anna Marthur – You are not a failure because you failed to get the promotion – the cost of pleasing people – asking for feedback | 15 Oct 2025 | 00:48:17 | |
Hello Bright Minds, QUICK LINKS to things in this episode: HR webinar on female talent not stepping up. Raising & Rising leadership retreat early bird registration. Women & Men receive different developmental feedback. Anna Marthur’s new book, The Uncomfortable Truth. Little Dish x The Felix Project My guest today is the wonderfully warm and open psychotherapist, speaker and author, Anna Marthur. You might know Anna from her podcast, The Therapy Edit or her books or you might not know her at all – in which case you are in for a treat. She’s written many books that I think will speak to you, dear Bright Mind including “Know Your Worth: How to build your self-esteem, grow in confidence and worry less about what people think” and her latest, “The Uncomfortable Truth: Change your life by taming 10 of your mind’s greatest fears.” I wanted to get Anna on to talk about:
Anna and I have both recently collaborated with Little Dish, the wholesome children’s food company. Little Dish are the season nine sponsor of COMEBACK COACH and I am super proud to have their support because we both want to make life easier for working parents. I do that as an executive coach, providing a powerful and confidential thinking and problem-solving space and Little Dish does it by creating easier evenings with their delicious, nutritious and quick-to-cook meals. One thing Little Dish is doing at the moment that has brought an even bigger smile to my face is their ‘Buy One Give One’ campaign with The Felix Project to end school holiday hunger.
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| 112. COACH - Louise - Pressure to impress senior leaders after maternity - showing commitment to get promoted (and being the only mother on the team) | 01 Oct 2025 | 00:40:02 | |
**Quick link to register interest in the Raising & Rising leadership retreat for mothers in senior roles in February 2026 – CPO’s and HR professionals please register and we'll be in touch about places for your senior female talent.** Hello Bright Minds, today you are going to eavesdrop on a coaching conversation with a senior woman who is 2 months back from a 10 month maternity leave who wants to show her leadership team she is committed and wants to progress. She’s the only mother in her part of the business and she feels she’s competing with younger colleagues who can work long hours and have little or no immovable demands on them outside of work. Our conversation starts by Louise – not her real name - outlining two challenges and we quickly move into stakeholder mapping and working out the perceptions she needs to create in two or three key people’s mind. We end with some thinking about energy management and creating ‘rules’ for when she’ll stay late and which after work drinks are worth going to. My absolute heartfelt thanks to Little Dish, the award-winning children’s food company, for sponsoring this episode of COMEBACK COACH. Find out more at www.littledish.co.uk.
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| 111. COMEBACK – Astrid Limal – The Hustle Factory - What I’d do differently if I lost my job tomorrow + using redundancy as a career catalyst and get a coach | 17 Sep 2025 | 00:29:09 | |
Hello Bright Minds, today’s guest has had a squiggly career, graduating as a graphic designer and making it up to creative art director before moving into an MD role and then into entrepreneurship. She’s the co-founder of The Hustle Factory where she and her co-founder are disrupting the outplacement world. Outplacement is when an employer supports an employee to bounce back more quickly after redundancy, something Astrid experienced two years ago when she was made redundant from her role as Head of Brand at a food company. She has two children age 7 and 2 and has very recently relocated from London to Ireland. Thank you Little Dish for sponsoring this season of COMEBACK COACH. Little Dish make delicious food kids love using wholesome, nutritious ingredients and I’m sure is just the thing Astrid has been wanting to reach for during the chaos of unpacking boxes over the summer. Little Dish champion children’s nutrition and they want to make mealtimes easier for parents. My children, Monty & Artemis, had Little Dish meals when they were toddlers and they’ve recently expanded the range to include meals for bigger kids. Have a look at www.littledish.co.uk.
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| 110. JESSICA - How I coach lawyers, accountants and ambitious professionals to get better at networking for commercial and career success | 03 Sep 2025 | 00:35:33 | |
Hello Bright Minds, **Here's the link to register your interest and get early bird access to the exclusive gathering for 12 senior talented professional working mothers who are future Directors, MDs or Partners to help them feel equipped to take the next career step. I'm running this with Anita Cleare in 2026.** E-mail me: jc@talentkeepers.co.uk to discuss an executive coaching engagement for you or an employee/group of employees. ------------ Today's episode: Networking and business development are often on the minds of coachees who are exploring whether/how to get on the Partner track. It's a key area I've been working with a few coachees lately, and whether you're a Partner, an MD, Principal or CEO, if you shy away from networking events or repeatedly come away from the flat, frustrated or feeling it was a waste of time, this episode is for you. I take us through seven key things my coachees are doing when they go to professional gatherings that lead them to see themselves as effective networkers and able to generate new business and career opportunities. They are:
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| 109. EXPERT - Nicola Jane Hobbs - Relaxed Woman - Reclaim rest to rise in our careers - new theory of stress (GUTS) | 20 Aug 2025 | 00:28:53 | |
Hello Bright Minds, I’m trying something new for this season of the podcast and that’s to bring you a couple of expert voices on topics that are coming up in coaching conversations with the people I, and my colleagues, are coaching. Today I am bringing you a conversation with chartered psychologist Nicola Jane Hobbs who is the author of a new book, The Relaxed Woman: Reclaim Rest and Live an Empowered, Joy-Filled Life. The "GUTS" in the title is a new theory of stress, which I hadn't come across before: Generalised Unsafety Theory of Stress. Nicola talked me through this which I found fascinating. Nicola Jane Hobbs is a chartered psychologist specialising in the psychology of rest. She holds a master’s degree in sport and exercise psychology and has over a decade of experience supporting women’s health and well- being through yoga, meditation and therapeutic practice. She is the founder of The Relaxed Woman, a community devoted to supporting women to recover from stress and burnout through coaching and workshops. Nicola lives in Brighton, UK with her partner, Justin and their son, Huxley. This episode is sponsored by Little Dish, the wholesome children’s food brand which is on a mission to make the healthiest, tastiest food for kids. I am so happy to have their partnership because they want to make the lives of parents easier, which is something that completely aligns with me and my work with ambitious and often overloaded professionals.
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| 108. COMEBACK – Norah Prida-Bay – Jupiter Asset Management – lessons from 118 interviews to get back to work after 8 year career break | 06 Aug 2025 | 00:42:45 | |
Hello Bright Minds, you are in for a treat with this first episode of the new season. I am so pleased you’re here and you are about to hear a magnificent tale of grit, perseverance, honesty and so much warmth from my guest Nora Prida-Bay from Jupiter Asset Management. She had an 8-year career break and it took her 118 interviews to land a job back in banking. You are going to get the inside track on the way she approached job-hunting and how she kept going in the face of all those rejections. I think Nora is one in a million and you can connect on Instagram @secondbecoming as well as LinkedIn. If you want to hear more from people coming back from a career break listen to episodes 25 and 32. And if you’re interested in hearing more from women in finance, I recommend episodes with four of my past coachees:
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| 107. COMEBACK - Lucy Watkins – Salesforce – returning 6 months early for dream job + how to be a peak performing leader + career acceleration after maternity | 11 Jun 2025 | 00:53:07 | |
Hello Bright Minds, I have a completely wonderful powerhouse for you today who returned from maternity leave eight months ago. Her dream job came up whilst she was away so she decided to return six months early and on day two of her comeback there was a wholescale restructure of the entire business which changed everything. She’s just returned from a company celebration trip to Miami in recognition of her being one of the business’ peak performers and I think you’re going to love her. She had a brutal birthing experience which left her in awful shape mentally and physically so to see and hear her glowing now is an absolute joy. You’re about to listen to Lucy Watkins, Head of Productivity, Programs & Enablement at Salesforce. REFERENCES FROM OUR CONVERSATION
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| 106. COACH - Emilia - Global healthcare leader - interim promotion when your boss leaves - team psychological safety - fitting in with new peers | 28 May 2025 | 00:46:19 | |
Hello Bright Minds, my guest coachee today is Emilia, which isn’t her real name. She’s been an avid listener of the podcast and got in touch about having a coaching session to support her in making a lateral move in a large multinational healthcare company. Not long after we arranged to speak she e-mailed to say her line manager was going to be leaving and could we talk about how she navigates shifting from peer to boss in her current team on an interim boss. There was so much ground we could have covered and the 45 minutes whizzed by. Emilia has got several significant professional transitions running in parallel which could be overwhelming if she expects too much of herself at once. She’s dealing with the fallout from an authoritarian boss; she’s navigating moving from being a peer to being the boss, all the time knowing it might be temporary; she’s also needing to be considered about how she enters her new peer group and lastly she’s attempting to limit the impact the new role will have on her family. It’s a lot of effort, a lot of thinking and all on top of delivering the things she previously delivered – with a smaller team. If I were the HR Business Partner of Emilia’s part of the business I would be talking to her about sponsoring executive coaching to support her over the next 6-9 months. As ever I hope you get something useful from eavesdropping on this one time coaching conversation. It’s recorded in one take so what you hear is exactly how the conversation played out. I referenced an article I wrote titled Promoted into a new peer group? 5 actions to settle quickly.
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| 105. COMEBACK – Danielle Wallington – Flockhere founder – building a biz after flex request refused on maternity leave – guilt + grit – community is everything. | 14 May 2025 | 00:45:00 | |
Hello Bright Minds, today I’m talking to Danielle Wallington who lives in St Albans, the place I’ve called home for 23 years. Danielle was an events manager who had her flexible working request turned down after maternity leave with her first son. From that setback came her first business “Milk & Fizz” where she used to her events management skills to bring mothers together for a different type of gathering to what was on offer at the time. She’s now the founder of Flock Here – a social networking app that connects women who work from home to places to work from and people to work with. She’s been through some massive setbacks in the business which is why I wanted to bring you this conversation. Self-employment isn’t an easy choice and it’s not for everyone and this is a chat you’re going to get a lot from if you work for yourself and have small children or if you’re wondering about self-employment as an option; if you’re a woman working in events or if you’re needing to hear a tale of grit to boost your own motivation. If you’re a long time listener you’ll know that COMEBACK COACH is part of a broader package of support: the Comeback Community employee experience. It’s a blend of online resources, coaching, live expert Q&As, career development tools and line manager support that we deliver in many large and small organisations that who want to support their returning colleagues and get them feeling comfortable back in their roles as smoothly and swiftly as possible. Find out more and help us start a conversation with your HR team at www.comebackcommunity.co.uk/introduce. REFERENCES Kings Global Institute for Women’s Leadership events How I built this podcast with Guy Raz
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| 104. COMEBACK – Samantha Downes – The Express - it's OK to be ambitious - ditching freelance for employment - is your career in bloom? | 30 Apr 2025 | 00:50:52 | |
Hello Bright Minds, my guest today is 53 year old journalist Samantha Downes, who last year took up the post of senior news reporter at The Express after many years working freelance. She joined The Express in November after specialising in pensions and investment journalism as an investigative reporter for both trade and national publications including the Financial Times, City AM, and Pensions Expert. She’s a mother of two teenage girls and writes about midlife, parenting and money issues for her own substack. She’s written two books and has another underway and is also a financial commentator on TV and radio. We met a couple of months ago at the House of Lords at a breakfast hosted by another podcast guest, Baroness Helena Morrissey – episode 102 – to launch a report about the gender ISA gap. I think you’ll love Samantha’s honesty about returning to employment and her raw self-reflections about ambition. I really could have listened to her for much longer than we had time for and at the end of the episode I share my thoughts on why and how mothers careers come in and out of bloom – and it’s not to do with the age of their children. References The power of small wins – HBR article by Teresa Amabile & Steven Kramer. Visualisation podcast episode with Maya Raichoora. ADHD & Hormones - episode 207 of The ADHD Women's Wellbeing podcast with Kate Moryousef. Danna Greenberg paper - Identity and the Transition to Motherhood: Navigating Existing, Temporary, and Anticipatory Identities.
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| 103. COMEBACK - Serge Cowan - DDRE (Netflix’s Buying London) - losing a child with cerebral palsy - divorce - starting over in business - living with anxiety | 16 Apr 2025 | 00:36:44 | |
Hello Bright Minds, I wonder whether you’ve seen the Netflix hit Buying London with Daniel Daggers and his team of agents at his property firm DDRE? It’s a lot of fun and very glamorous and my guest today is one of the team who you won’t have seen on screen. I met Serge Cowan on a flight to Nice last September when he was going out to look at a property in Monaco and we got into a deep conversation about his life, including his four children. Serge is a global real estate advisor at DDRE who has sold properties in 27 locations and deals with DDREs international sales. Serge’s 16 year old daughter Emily makes an occasional entertaining double act with him on Instagram and there’s a link in the show notes. In 2002 Serge set up a property business which he told me he felt like he was married to. His wife worked with him too and alongside their professional life they spent five years trying to have a child. In 2007 along came baby Maddie who was born with cerebral palsy who very sadly passed away in 2017. Maddie’s early years also coincided with the recession of 2009-2012 which hammered the business Serge had built. By 2018, a year after Maddie’s death he realised the marriage wasn’t right and their divorced was finalised in 2024. You’re going to hear us talk about:
I hope you enjoy and extract something useful from my chat with Serge.
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| 102. COMEBACK - Helena Morrissey - ex CEO - 9 maternity leaves - pay rise negotiations - 30% club founder - finances after a break | 02 Apr 2025 | 00:38:37 | |
Hello Bright Minds, today I’m talking to Baroness Helena Morrissey, ex CEO of Newton Asset Management, founder of the 30% Club and founding ambassador of AJ Bell’s Money Matters campaign to help women feel good about investing. She’s also the mother of nine children and author of A Good Time to Be a Girl.
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| 101. COMEBACK - Francesca Woodhouse - Edelman – proactive career management – working FT with 4 kids – having true partnership at home | 19 Mar 2025 | 00:45:16 | |
Hello Bright Minds, today I’m talking to Francesca Woodhouse who is the MD of UK Workplace Advisory at Edelman and mother of four children. She works full time and is married to Lewis who also works full time as a Head of Communications. You’re going to hear Francesca talk about:
Before we glide into the conversation with Francesca, three thank yous to listeners who’ve left a review of COMEBACK COACH on Apple Podcasts since the last episode: Simone wrote: “Wonderful podcast on the realities of corporate career life. Always get great inspiration and some actionable tips to try out.” Lizi left this review: “I really enjoy listening to the podcast and hearing how other women manage the career and family juggle but mainly I just love hearing Jesica’s take on the world. It’s impossible not to feel uplifted, energised and inspired listening to her.” And thank you to Geeko1003 who says: Jessica expertly navigates the emotional and performance issues for everyone at work. The tools, tips, and insights help to create an inclusive workplace.
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| 100. LIVE SPECIAL - Raising your career through the Primary School years - candid chat with Amanda Newman, Liz Twiney, Emmie Faust & Rachel Maguire | 05 Mar 2025 | 01:00:29 | |
Hello Bright Minds, in this episode we go beyond the comeback and discuss the habits, resources, ways of working and ways of thinking that help support career development when you have young children. We recorded this episode in front of a live audience at Arcadis, London - one of our treasured clients. My guests are all professional women who have 13 children between them and they've all previously been on the podcast. They were tremendously candid for which I am truly grateful.
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| 99. JUST JESSICA - Psychology of crying at work – how to limit damage to your career + what managers should do when a team member cries | 19 Feb 2025 | 00:28:23 | |
Hello Brights Minds, I’ve been thinking a lot about displays of emotions at work because of the increasing number of women I’ve been coaching over the last 12 months who’ve described being taken by surprise by their tears and worrying about the implications. It tuns out there’s some pretty complex psychology at play when it comes to how crying at work can potentially affect our reputation. I’m Jessica Chivers, a psychologist and executive coach. For the last 20 years I’ve been coaching leaders, senior professionals and high potential individual contributors during career transitions and challenging times. The work always involves an element of increasing their understanding of themselves and I’ll often bring in evidenced-based insights from the world of psychology and related disciplines to help with that ('psychoeducation'). In this episode I cover:
REFERENCES
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| 98. COACH – Amber – career change + not burning bridges when you have multiple (potential) job offers | 05 Feb 2025 | 00:40:22 | |
Hello Bright Minds, my guest coachee today is Amber (not her real name), a past coachee of mine who I worked with years and years ago and is now on the brink of making a second career change. She wanted to have a space to think about how to navigate relationships with different organisations that she’s in parallel recruitment processes with. Over the years I’ve had the pleasure of working with coachees years down the line after their first coaching engagement and it’s so wonderful to see how they’ve changed and to reconnect.
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| 97. COMEBACK – Caroline Smith – The Entertainer – Relentless resilience job hunting after redundancy – being a wildcard candidate - senior marketing women struggling to land jobs | 22 Jan 2025 | 00:39:47 | |
Hello Bright Minds, I am really happy to be back with a very vibrant episode to kick off season eight where Marketing Director Caroline Smith from the toy shop, The Entertainer talk about:
>>>> If you're listening before 19th February 2025 you're in time to get a ticket for the LIVE recording of episode 100: "BEYOND THE COMEBACK: Raising your career through the Primary School Years" in London on 26/2/25.
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| 96. COMEBACK - Beth Wooller - Strategy Manager at Sainsburys - sabbatical - burnout - a break from hitting the next career goal - writing a book + interior design | 03 Dec 2024 | 00:36:48 | |
Hello Bright Minds, keen eyes might notice that this episode is out a day earlier than usual. I’ve chosen to release this episode of Tuesday 3rd December to tie-in with International Day of Person’s with a Disability. And it feels fitting to have saved this episode to the last in the current season on COMEBACK COACH because we’re talking about the power of a sabbatical to refresh, re-energise and have a bit of a rest, which I hope you’ll get later in the month. My guest today is Beth Wooller, a Strategic Sourcing Manager at Sainsbury’s Head Office where she’s also the founder and Chair of Enable, the first ever Sainsbury’s Disability Network. Beth started her career as a Management Consultant at Deloitte, having graduated from Cambridge University and has a lifetime of experience living and working with a hearing loss. She is dedicated to helping people with disabilities and differences excel and focuses on raising awareness, increasing confidence and simplifying workplace processes to better support people with disabilities. Beth has recently been listed as one of the most influential disabled people in the UK in the Shaw Trust Disability Power 100. 11 years into her career and feeling burned out, Beth took a sabbatical from her corporate role to reset, continue her disability work, and gain her professional qualification in Interior Design with the National Design Academy.
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| 95. Rebecca Andrews - Pilot - missing your job - returning to flying after maternity leave - yes YOU CAN still do it! | 20 Nov 2024 | 00:38:07 | |
Hello Bright Minds,
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| 94. COMEBACK – Laura Scougall – ITV – redundancy risk on maternity leave – being open at work about demands at home (autistic son) – how to get back to sleep | 06 Nov 2024 | 00:48:36 | |
Hello Bright Minds, my conversation today is with Laura Scougall, Head of ITV Academy. Knowing Laura is a chatty, confident person we decided to make it a freeform conversation without any pre-agreed questions so it’s a bit of a random episode that covers a lot of ground. We talked about:
Laura’s wobbly moments and tips for coming back to work after maternity leave which includes leaning into the chaos. I hope you get plenty from it and if you do, please would you leave a short review and a rating wherever you listen. Thank you so much.
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| 93. COMEBACK - Sarah Banks - Arcadis - Adjusting to big changes at work after maternity leave – benefits of being main earner - what is a company shadow board? | 23 Oct 2024 | 00:28:43 | |
Hello Bright Minds, my guest today is Sarah Banks from Arcadis, the global design and engineering company.
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| 92. COMEBACK - Tara Ferguson - breast cancer - working through treatment - medically-induced menopause - how to stop women leaving in their 40s + 50s? | 09 Oct 2024 | 00:47:36 | |
Hello Bright Minds. My guest today is someone who wanted a platform to talk about her experience of continuing to work on and off during breast cancer treatment with the single goal of helping others find their way through this really difficult time. We talk about:
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| 91. COMEBACK – Dan Hewitt – Ocado – navigating the pull between career and family – having coaching – am I having impact at work? | 25 Sep 2024 | 00:29:47 | |
Hello Bright Minds, I hope you’re on good form and thank you for choosing to listen to this episode of Comeback Coach. Dan Hewitt is the Head of Talent Management and Development at Ocado, the UK online-only supermarket HQ-ed in Hertfordshire just down the road from me. When Dan came back from a few months of paternity leave he thought he was going to stay in a comfortable place professionally, not striving for the next job. This was so he could focus on family, but that was not to be and Dan moved into a bigger, stretch role.
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| 90. JUST JESSICA - Boundaries - psychological job control - why bosses need to talk about downtime (but not tell us not to work weekends and evenings) | 11 Sep 2024 | 00:19:49 | |
Hello Bright Minds, this episode is inspired by the previous where my guest, Ramona Aning from Ketchum, talked about how her CEO is open about family time and downtime.
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| 89. COMEBACK – Ramona Aning – Ketchum – setting boundaries at work after maternity leave – being yourself – sussing out a company’s culture before you join | 28 Aug 2024 | 00:38:16 | |
Hello Bright Minds, I am really happy to be back with a very vibrant episode to kick off season seven. We ended season six with an episode on the psychology of focus and attention and how to adapt your day when you wake up absolutely shattered. And you loved it and you told me so and I’m so thankful that you did because my brain runs on little drip-drip doses of positive feedback.
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| 88. JUST JESSICA - Finding focus when you’re stretched and shattered – psychology of attention – deep work - coachees' top tips for traction | 26 Jun 2024 | 00:32:06 | |
Hello Bright Minds, I hope you’re on good form and by the end of this episode got a better sense of how you can help yourself find focus, sustain your attention and experience traction. I'm Jessica Chivers, a coaching psychologist, author and developer of the Comeback Community employee experience, of which this podcast is a part. The idea for this episode has been stirring in mind for some time because focus is a frequent source of conversation with coachees who are returning to work from maternity leave with less time on their hands than they had pre-baby. If you’re not a new parent or a parent at all I think you’ll get plenty from listening to the psychology and my personal hacks that I’m going to share with you. REFERENCES
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| 87. JUST JESSICA - Why pouring your thoughts onto the page helps you process setbacks and tough times - neuropsychology of therapeutic writing | 12 Jun 2024 | 00:19:38 | |
Hello Bright Minds, I'm inspired to bring you this episode as I've been invited to be part of a 'Human Library' at CIPD's Festival of Work where my title is "How to not burnout as a parent of a neurodiverse or challenge child." Journaling or 'free-writing' as a I call it has been one of my consistently useful coping tools, especially over the last two years, and I'll be talking about that. Huberman Lab podcast 20/11/23 A Science-Supported Journaling Protocol to Improve Mental & Physical Health: https://www.hubermanlab.com/episode/a-science-supported-journaling-protocol-to-improve-mental-physical-health Professor James Pennebaker research: https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/psychology/faculty/pennebak Emotional and physical health benefits of expressive writing (summary of research findings) by Baikie & Wilhelm (2018) published in Advances of Psychiatric Treatment: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/advances-in-psychiatric-treatment/article/emotional-and-physical-health-benefits-of-expressive-writing/ED2976A61F5DE56B46F07A1CE9EA9F9F Therapist Uncensored podcast episode 225 with James Pennebaker: https://therapistuncensored.com/episodes/neuroscience-proven-writing-protocol-james-pennebaker-225/ Opening Up by Writing It Down: How Expressive Writing Improves Health and Eases Emotional Pain: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GK5817W/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1
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| 86. COMEBACK - Emma Young - Firefighter – speaking up when things aren’t right at work – trying to change maternity policy - 'boreout' + psychology of uncertainty | 29 May 2024 | 00:35:18 | |
Hello Bright Minds, at the end of 2023 I read about a landmark legal victory for a former Avon Fire and Rescue Service employee, Sasha Acheson, who won her sex discrimination case against the organisation. Reading that piece got me curious about the experiences of female firefighters after they’ve notified their employer that they’re pregnant; what it’s like to have to shift from active frontline duty to something else and what it’s like to return to an environment where you may not have a single colleague near you who understands what you’ve been through. My guest today is NOT that former employee but a Emma Young, a female firefighter who has a lot to say about what it’s like to be a pregnant woman in the fire service. Emma has a 15 month old daughter and she’s currently pregnant with her second, a pregnancy that she found out about just as she was returning from maternity leave. You’re going to hear about:
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| 85. COACH - Sabeha - designing your ideal work week - how to be more present at home - experiencing more joy | 15 May 2024 | 00:44:05 | |
Hello Bright Minds, my guest coachee today is Sabeha, a first time mother based in London who has returned to work for a Californian tech company. It's a conversation about the tension that exists within us when we want to give more to work and also be present at home - and the specific challenge of working for a US organisation who comes online as your working day is drawing to a close.
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