About
Jessica Chivers is the Thinking Woman’s Coach. She was Look magazine’s first ‘Life Consultant’ columnist and is regularly on theradio and in print dishing out zesty comment to inspire women in magazines such as SHE, Prima Baby and Top Santé. She has a first class psychology background and has been inspiring professional women to make smooth, successful changes as a coach, writer and speaker for seven years.
Jessica regularly coaches teams and individuals in companies such as Barclays, the BBC, M&S and Veolia, and specialises in helping organisations retain and manage the transition of maternity and paternity leavers back into the workplace. She leads a team of coaches in delivering innovative ‘comeback’ programmes and is passionate about mothers being able to combine meaningful work with family life – if they want to. Over the years she has helped a great many women kick-start their climb up the career ladder, shift into self-employment, and make a smooth return to work after children.
Jessica is also a Mind Gym and Parent Gym coach, who has been
featured on BBC News.
Meet Jessica in a short two minute video (takes you to YouTube)
The Story Behind the Coach
I could tell you my amusing story about the psychology of melons and breasts but suffice to say I’ve got a good grounding in psychology from one of the UK’s top rated departments. I could tell you about wanting to represent wrongly imprisoned women on death row in America but let’s just say I didn’t have to cross the pond to make a difference to women’s lives. One of my guiding philosophies as a positive coach is that the nature and quality of the journey is more significant than the destination.
I’ve been employed in marketing and learning and development roles, most recently for one the UK’s largest financial institutions. And since starting my coaching practice in 2004, I’ve continued to work as a coach for a broad range of big brands in the UK. My professional development has always been important and as you might expect, I have qualifications in both marketing and coaching and a mentor coach of my own. My coaching experience comes from a practical coaching course recognised by the Open College Network and from thousands of hours coaching private clients like you and individuals in the workplace. In 2007 some of my clients and I participated in research by the London School of Economics to understand the effectiveness of coaching.
My coaching work is underpinned by positive psychology and research by psychologists interested in how people change. I am a member of the British Psychological Society.
The Motivation Behind the Coach
I’m a pretty sorted individual, with a knack for making lemonade when others might see only lemons.
I’m the rational optimist who sees glasses half full and about to be topped up. And it’s this, along with my zest, warmth and creativity that make me a stimulating coach. I take immense pride in doing a job I love and making a difference to people’s view of themselves and their capabilities. Making people feel good and equipping them with a mindset to achieve personal and professional aspirations is something I do almost by osmosis. It never feels like work and that’s why I coach.
For HR women and corporate souls amongst you my Myers-Briggs personality type, “ENFJ” is a good description of me:
“Warm and enthusiastic. Highly attuned to the emotions, needs and motivations of others. Finds potential in everyone, acting as a catalyst for individual and group growth. May provide inspiring leadership and like to facilitate others.”
The Life Behind The Coach
I am wife to a talented man and mother to two children with minds of their own. I’m a keen runner and community-minded helper. My favourite gadget is the Dyson vacuum cleaner and although I like fluffy animals I don’t have any as pets. The most played track on my ipod is Take Me to the Clouds Above by LMC vs. U2 (perfect running tempo) although for downtime The English Patient soundtrack is a favourite. I love seafood and tinned custard, although not at the same time and certainly not tinned custard at my fantasy dinner party where amongst others Claire Fox, Giles Coren, Jimmy Carr and David Attenborough would be guests. I live in Hertfordshire and love to be beside the rugged Cornish coast when I’m not here. One day I hope to see the summit of Everest with my own eyes, live by the sea and do a Phd.
