301: Coaching Men Through an Emotional Lens with Jess Spiers

In episode 4 of our Coaching Men series, host Rob Lawrence sits down with Jess Spiers, a coach who specialises in supporting men in their 40s and 50s who appear successful but feel trapped, unfulfilled, or burned out. Jess shares how a 20-year career in digital content ultimately led her to coaching and why she made men's mental health her focus. It's a candid conversation about a quiet struggle that many men are navigating alone.   Jess discusses the emotional barriers that so often stop men from seeking support, and how coaching creates a safe, non-judgmental space for clients to explore their values, challenge limiting beliefs, and begin to understand their emotions without judgement. As a trained Emotions Coaching Practitioner, Jess makes a compelling case that working with your emotions isn't soft or fluffy — it's one of the most practical tools available for gaining clarity and moving forward.   Jess shares some of the tools she uses, with real life examples that demonstrate their success. The episode closes with an important reframe feeling stuck doesn't always require a dramatic life overhaul. Often, the most meaningful change comes from small, intentional shifts that bring your work and life back into alignment with what truly matters to you. Jess also shares details about her new podcast, Successful on Paper, and leaves listeners with a simple but powerful reminder to be kinder to yourself when seeking help.   You will learn:   ·       What emotions prevent men from asking for help ·       The power of emotional awareness for transformation and change ·       Change doesn't have to mean starting over. Small, intentional adjustments that realign your life with your core values can be far more transformative than a dramatic leap into the unknown.   'Men find it quite difficult to reach out and ask for help, so I thought, "You know what? If they're going to do that, that support needs to exist, and I want to be a part of that.'   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-men-emotions-values-mental-health

This is no ordinary episode! This week we hit a remarkable milestone: 300 consecutive weekly episodes without missing a single Monday and to celebrate, the podcast team, Maxine Bell, Smaranda Dochia and Rob Lawrence look back on six extraordinary years of the Association for Coaching podcast. Together they reflect on a journey that has brought together 295 guests, 26 guest hosts, and 33 coaching topics, such as health and wellbeing; marketing; mental health; technology and innovation; creativity; leadership; neurodiversity in the workplace; climate coaching; love; coaching outdoors and getting started as a coach. What began as a show dedicated to the coaching profession has grown into something far greater: a thriving global community where connections, collaborations, and even five international conferences have been sparked by the conversations hosted here.   As one listener put it: "I honestly think the podcasts from the Association for Coaching are some of the best quality and content I have ever come across. The range of topics you offer is huge and so relevant to my coaching practice." That spirit of breadth, quality, relevance and genuine usefulness is exactly what this episode celebrates. We have always believed that coaches deserve a space to feel less alone in their practice, a place that champions professionalism, ethics, reflection and growth but also recognises the everyday lives and practice of coaches across the world.   And now, to honour everything the podcast has become, comes an exciting new chapter. From this episode, the show officially rebrands as Coaching Voices: The Association for Coaching Podcast. This new name better reflects its inclusive, diverse, and global reach, and the many coaches it has helped find their own authentic voice within the profession. With new hosts, new topics, and the ever evolving coaching landscape ahead, including AI, systemic change, and much more, the team is as committed as ever to meaningful conversations. New episodes drop every Monday on Spotify, Apple, and YouTube. We look forward to the next 300!   You will learn:   ·       How six years of consistent, weekly conversations have shaped and strengthened the global coaching community. ·       Why platforming diverse voices — across backgrounds, topics, and experiences — lies at the heart of everything the podcast stands for. ·       What's next for Coaching Voices, and how you can be part of the next 300 episodes, as a guest or host.   "What I find particularly meaningful about this podcast is that it's never been just one voice or one perspective; it's always been a platform for many voices across the coaching profession."   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-special-episodes-300-coaching-voices  

In episode 3 of our Coaching Men podcast series, host Rob Lawrence speaks with Jamie Robins, a coach specialising in supporting men through some of life's most challenging transitions. Jamie shares his personal journey into men's coaching and how the COVID-19 pandemic inspired him to create Safe Harbour - an online sharing space designed to give men a place to open up without fear of judgment. He unpacks why so many men struggle to ask for help in the first place, exploring the deep-rooted social conditioning that teaches men to suppress emotion and "just get on with it."   Jamie dives into the specific fears men face around vulnerability: from the fear of appearing weak, feeling unsafe to open up, lacking permission, to anxiety that decades of bottled-up emotion might come flooding out all at once. He explains how structured men's sharing circles, like Safe Harbour and Andy's Man Club, work to dismantle these fears through simple but powerful ground rules: no advice-giving, strict confidentiality, and ensuring every man gets a chance to speak. Jamie also teaches men to listen on all three levels: head, heart and presence – a way of holding space for others that is transformative.   Jamie shares how he is reaching men through social media and from requests there, he started his Thrive nature walks, monthly group experiences where men gather outdoors, with periods of talking, walking in silence, and answering reflective questions. His description of the effects of these walks is moving and hopeful. Throughout, Jamie makes clear that the men he works with typically in their 30s to 60s aren't lacking strength; they're lacking safe spaces to be and discover who they are beyond their roles. His work is a timely reminder that community, connection, and permission to be human are just as vital for men as for anyone. ou will learn:  ·       Men are far more willing to open up when they feel safe and know there's no risk of being judged, advised, or 'fixed.' ·       Many men have inherited generational patterns of emotional suppression, and unlearning them requires community, permission and modelled behaviour from other men. ·       Nature and ritual have a role to play. Structured outdoor experiences, like Jamie's Thrive walks, offer men a non-threatening entry point into emotional reflection and genuine connection with others.     "On the outside, everything looks fantastic. On the inside, totally lonely and alone, isolating themselves emotionally"'   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-men-midlife-community-groups

Have you ever felt the weight of being the "strong one" — the person everyone else leans on, while you quietly wonder who you can lean on?   In episode 2 of our Coaching Men podcast series, host Rob Lawrence sits down with Vicky Kelly, a coach who has spent over 15 years specialising in working with men. Vicky shares how, after launching her coaching business in 2009, she found herself naturally drawn to male clients and discovered a profound gap in the support available to them. Her insights into why men often delay seeking help, and what happens when they finally do, are both eye-opening and deeply human.   Vicky works primarily with high-performing professionals and CEOs, who from the outside, appear to have it all together. But beneath the success, many are running on empty, held back by invisible pressures: societal expectations around strength and vulnerability, stress responses that hijack their best thinking, and long-held stories about who they are and what they deserve. Vicky explains her approach of building genuine psychological safety, regulating the nervous system, and gently but powerfully challenging the narratives that keep her clients stuck.   The conversation also ventures beyond the boardroom. What happens when you've climbed the ladder and find yourself asking, "Is this it?" Vicky shares how she helps clients reconnect with forgotten passions and rediscover who they are outside of their professional identity. She also introduces her upcoming group programme, The Capacity Project, designed to help high performers sustain their success without burning out.   You will learn:   ·       The Safe Space Paradox - Men are often slower to seek coaching but once they commit, they go all in. ·       How your nervous system is running the show. Vicky's work with high performers isn't just about strategy; it's about helping men to learn to regulate themselves, so they can actually access the best of their thinking. ·       Questioning the Stories We Tell Ourselves Vicki offers a deceptively simple but powerful question to start dismantling them: "What am I believing here that might not be 100% true?"      "So, it's multiple different demands and a lack of resources: how do I carry myself through all of this without dropping the plates that are spinning or without just sort of spontaneously combusting?"   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-men-safe-space-high-performing-leaders

What does it take for a high-achieving man to stop, admit he's struggling, and ask for help? In this first episode of our Coaching Men podcast series, host Rob Lawrence speaks with Will Johnson, a facilitator and coach who guides men to live and lead with greater authenticity and peace within and about themselves. Will draws on his own experience of burnout in a senior finance role, where he suddenly ran out of energy, but through asking for help, he attended a retreat with the Centre for Courage and Renewal, which awakened a part of himself he had lost and became the start of a transformational journey that called him to a new adventure.   Will went on to train as a facilitator with the Centre for Courage & Renewal, and he now runs Circle of Trust® retreats where men are invited to slow down, listen inward, and share their stories without pressure to perform or fix. Working mythopoetically, he uses poetry, mythology, and imagery to help men bypass intellectual defences and reach something deeper. These spaces work, Will explains, because they remove the masculine reflex to solve and compete, creating room for genuine presence and self-awareness instead.   At the heart of Will's philosophy is a distinction between the ego story — the CV, the achievements, the ladder climbed — and the soul story, which lives in struggle, failure, and the moments that have truly shape us, and connect us each to our own unique 'thread.' He believes men carry more wisdom than they give themselves credit for, but that it often takes community to help them trust their own inner voice and become comfortable with difficult emotions. He explains why he no longer uses the term toxic masculinity, instead embracing the term 'shifting the masculine mind.' His message is both challenging and compassionate: acknowledging our limits, embracing vulnerability, and going public with our authentic selves is not weakness:  it is where real growth begins.   You will learn:   ·       Burnout is a beginning, not just an ending. Giving yourself permission to ask for help is the first, but best step 1.      Embracing difficult feelings, including failures, and tuning into their inner voice is where men can find their soul story and live more authentically. 2.      Community matters.  The isolation many men experience is one of the biggest barriers to their development so joining safe, structured group spaces is where the real work happens, and where men learn to trust themselves again.         'Now write your soul story. That's the story I want to hear. Tell me about your struggle. Tell me about when you messed up. Tell me when you've disappointed somebody.'   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-men-myth-poetry-group-work

In this episode of our Day in the Life podcast series, we meet Françoise Olivier, a life coach who specialises in supporting adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs). Françoise brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work, having grown up with a father who was alcohol dependent, she understands firsthand the deep and often invisible marks that a parent's addiction can leave. With warmth and honesty, she shares her personal journey alongside practical insights, creating a conversation that is moving and informative.   Françoise explores the lasting traits many ACOAs carry into adulthood — hypervigilance, low self-worth, shame, and a disconnection from their own needs — and how these patterns, once understood, can become the foundation for profound transformation. She speaks candidly about the ongoing, daily nature of healing: learning to ask what she actually wants, unpicking long-held beliefs, and choosing to own her story with pride rather than embarrassment. She also highlights the vital distinction between coaching and therapy, and the importance of trauma awareness in holding a truly supportive space for clients. Crucially, Françoise celebrates the superpowers that so many ACOAs develop: the resilience, empathy, and strength that emerge from navigating such complex childhoods.   Françoise also reminds us, community is everything. Discovering organisations like NACOA (the National Association for Children of Alcoholics) was a turning point for her where she recognised that she was not alone and had nothing to be ashamed of. It's a message she now carries into her coaching practice every day, helping clients move from pain to purpose, and from silence to self-compassion. An inspiring conversation from a coach walking her talk with courage and care.   You will learn: ·       Healing starts with owning your story. For many ACOAs, shame and secrecy are heavy burdens carried for years. Françoise's own turning point came when she chose to step into her story with pride. ·       Some of the traits developed in survival can become our superpowers. ·       The unique power of working with a coach who shares a similar background where the story doesn't always need to be told from the beginning, because the coach simply gets it.   'I want to make sure that when I am working with other ACOAs that, not only are we acknowledging what's happened in the past, but celebrating all the brilliant, wonderful things, and the superpowers that we've developed as well.'   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel_day-in-the-life-of-coaches-adult-children-of-alcoholics-trauma-aware

In this final episode of the Coaching for Health and Wellbeing podcast series, hosts Christian van Nieuwerburgh and Ana Paula Nacif look back across the conversations they've had to draw out the themes that have shaped the series. From the relationship between coaching for wellbeing and coaching for health, to the ethical responsibilities coaches carry into every session, they reflect on what it truly means to practise with intention and integrity. Central to their discussion is the idea that specialist knowledge matters - not as a replacement for core coaching skills, but as a complement to them. Ana and Christian also reiterate how professional humility is just as important as expertise. As Anna puts it, "There are questions we need to ask and there are limitations to what we can do."   The conversation turns to coaches themselves, with both hosts emphasising that wellbeing cannot be something coaches champion only for their clients. Self-care, reflective practice, and staying curious about emerging research are not optional extras — they are professional responsibilities. Christian and Ana also explore the broader power of community, celebrating the role organisations like the Association for Coaching play in creating spaces where coaches can share knowledge, support one another, and keep growing, as well as the responsibilities of supervisors in checking in with their clients general wellbeing.   The episode closes on a forward-looking and hopeful note, grounded in the belief that intentionality in how we care for ourselves can be simple, practical, and genuinely transformative. Ana and Christian leave listeners with a call to action: stay curious, look after yourself, hold space for genuine human connection, and keep asking the questions that matter. Wellbeing, they remind us, should be for everyone — not just those who can afford it. You will learn: ·       Wellbeing is a part of coaching practice – for clients and coaches. Bringing intentionality, ethical consideration and specialist knowledge to your practice is an act of care for both. ·       Ongoing learning and reflective practice are non-negotiable and staying humble and curious to that is what creates truly impactful coaching ·       Community matters and leaning into communities of practice, sharing knowledge and supporting fellow coaches are ways to sustain both your wellbeing and the quality of the work.   "Specialist knowledge and professional humility for me is really important; there are questions we need to ask and there are limitations to what we can do."   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-for-health-and-wellbeing-selfcare-community-practice

In episode 6 of our Coaching for Health and Wellbeing podcast series, hosts Ana Paula Nacif and Christian van Nieuwerburgh are joined by GP and positive psychology coach, Dr Amrita Sen Mukherjee, who supports healthcare professionals and coaches to prioritise their own wellbeing. Drawing on her personal journey through grief and health struggles, Amrita offers a candid and deeply human perspective on why those who dedicate their lives to caring for others so often neglect themselves. The conversation explores the cultural norms within helping professions, including coaches, that have historically placed the needs of others above the practitioner's own, and why this is both unsustainable and ethically problematic.   A central thread throughout the episode is the power of reflective practice and self-compassion. Amrita discusses how metacognitive awareness — the ability to observe and examine your own thinking and emotional responses — can uncover blind spots and unconscious patterns that affect both personal wellbeing and professional effectiveness. She challenges the stigma that many healthcare professionals feel around seeking help, reminding us that professional identity should never become a barrier to accessing support.   The hosts also explore the role of emotional literacy, meaningful connection, and the importance of understanding that wellbeing naturally fluctuates over time. The episode rounds out with a rich discussion on the ethical dimensions of coaching, including the ongoing debate around regulation of the profession. Amrita emphasises that transparency, ongoing reflection, and creating intentional space to reconnect with your personal identity are not luxuries, but necessities for anyone in a caring role.      You will learn: ·       You cannot pour from an empty cup. Sustainable, empathetic care for others is only possible when practitioners actively tend to their own wellbeing. ·       Reflective practice and self-compassion are essential core skills. ·       Why professional identity can be a barrier to getting help.   "I just felt that there was something in my medical practice that didn't allow me to really and truly connect with people and understand them in a way that I can now."   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-for-health-and-wellbeing-self-compassion-reflective-practice

In episode 5 of our Coaching for Health and Wellbeing series, co-hosts Christian van Nieuwerburgh and Ana Paula Nacif, are joined by Lizana Oberholzer, a coaching psychologist with specialist expertise in education, to explore how coaching psychology can become a powerful part of an individual's wellbeing toolkit. Together, they unpack the distinctions between coaching for health and coaching for wellbeing, and how a psychologically informed coaching approach can help people navigate life's challenges - from managing chronic health conditions to coping with the pressures of a demanding professional role. Lizana brings a rich perspective on how coaching creates a structured, reflective space for individuals to find their own solutions and reconnect with what truly matters to them.   A significant focus of the conversation is the transformative role coaching and coaching psychology plays within educational settings. Lizana challenges the common misconception that coaching is a remedial tool reserved for those who are struggling, making the case instead that it should be a proactive, developmental resource that allows educators to move beyond performance to allow creativity into their practice. The discussion highlights how coaching support educators in managing workload and emotional labour, building resilience, and preventing burnout, while also fostering the kind of self-awareness and autonomy that allows people to truly flourish in their roles.   Lizana shares strategies for coaches to engage in wellbeing initiatives within education and explores the wider ripple effects of embedding a coaching culture within schools and organisations. When coaching principles are integrated into school communities, the benefits extend far beyond the individual: improving communication, strengthening relationships, and nurturing environments where everyone can thrive. Lizana shares her own personal wellbeing practices and offers practical guidance for coaches looking to make an impact in health and education contexts, reminding us that coaching, at its heart, is about enabling others to drive their own journey and is of itself a wellbeing tool. You will learn: ·       How coaching psychology can become part of everyone's wellbeing toolkit, and offer a non-directive, client-centred approach that empowers individuals to find their own solutions and build lasting resilience ·       The profound difference coaching can make to educational settings, acting as a developmental intervention for educators, teachers and students to manage stress and develop self-awareness ·       The transformational ripple effects for everyone when coaching is embedded into educational establishments   "Coaching and coaching psychology need to play a profound role in education, business, and health, because they can influence, impact, and enable people across a wide spectrum."   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-for-health-and-wellbeing-coaching-psychology-education

In episode 4 of our Coaching for Health and Wellbeing series, hosts Ana Paula Nacif and Christian van Nieuwerburgh are joined by Professor Aaron Jarden and Dr. Robert Biswas-Diener for a rich, provocative conversation on what it truly means to practice ethically as a health and wellbeing coach. Rather than treating ethics as a set of rules to follow, the guests invite coaches to think of ethics as a set of principles that infuse every part of their practice — a way of being rooted in the character of the coach and a genuine commitment to doing right by clients. They challenge coaches to move beyond compliance and toward a deeper question: what kind of practitioner do you want to be?   A recurring theme is the tension between respecting client autonomy and the coach's responsibility to promote wellbeing. The panel explores the ethical considerations of sharing information, challenging unhelpful patterns, and holding a duty of care whilst staying in a coaching role. Importantly, the discussion pushes coaches to take their positive duty seriously, including having the courage to reflect on their inaction as well as take action. The conversation also touches on justice and fairness in how coaching services are structured and accessed, the critical role of transparent contracting that explicitly includes wellbeing as part of the discussion, and why a coach's own self-care may be a professional and ethical imperative.   The episode closes with a call for ongoing reflective practice and intellectual humility. Ethical perfection, the guests remind us, is a myth: most situations coaches face are grey areas.  Ethics in health and wellbeing coaching is about showing up every day with integrity, humility, and a commitment to both your clients' and your own wellbeing. By moving beyond checklists and embracing a reflective, virtue-based approach, coaches can navigate the complex realities of practice with confidence and care.   You will learn:   ·       Ethics is a principled way of being, not a checklist: ethical coaching is about cultivating the character and values you bring to every client interaction.   ·       Autonomy and beneficence must be held in balance. Honouring a client's right to choose while actively doing good is one of the most nuanced challenges in health and wellbeing coaching.   ·       Coach self-care is an ethical responsibility. Your own physical and mental wellbeing it directly shapes your ability to show up with integrity for your clients.       "A better approach would be thinking about the virtues I want to instil in my practice and the way of being I want to approach things with."   Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.   For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit:  https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-for-health-and-wellbeing-ethics-contracting