You take your story everywhere. Here's Mine.
I'm a leadership coach for senior leaders who want to start leading from who they are. I work at the intersection of emotional honesty and strategic credibility because I know that effective direction, cohesive alignment and long-term commitment are only possible when leaders know how to work with trust.
I believe that fear of emotion is a real leadership problem. Every time a senior leader avoids a difficult conversation, shrinks from risk or stays in their head during a moment that requires their whole self, the organisation loses something measurable — in decisions, in talent and in trust. My work is to help leaders recover the intelligence they lose when they stay afraid of feeling.
Your feelings are your strategy.
I know what it means to keep showing up when everything has changed.
In 2024 my husband, Mark, was diagnosed with late-stage cancer. He was a healthy 46-year-old man, a pioneer, a wonderful father and my best friend. He died nine months after diagnosis. We'd been together for 20 years, raised three children and built a life full of adventure. He taught me how to be bold, generous and spontaneous. He left me peacefully, while I held his hand.
I've chosen to share my story here because it sharpens everything I've always believed about leadership.
My Leadership Story
Through solo parenting my three children and developing other brilliant leaders, I'm helping more people learn to lead from the inside. I've noticed that the difficult truth is often the most under-used advantage for leaders who are managing uncertainty. My experience has taught me that when inner trust shows on the outside, it can create something indestructibly precious in our relationships.
I believe in our relationships, with ourselves and with others because they are how we live. Beyond any role or job title, I think a whole-person, intelligent human form of leadership is the only kind worth building.
Time is finite, that's not an abstract claim for me. It's a hard fact that my husband only got to make half of the impact he wanted. And I see that his legacy is lasting. If you're about half way through your professional career there's still enough time for you to personally make a difference. That's why I'm here.
I don't want any brilliant talent wasted. Not yours, nor mine. The work I do matters to me now more than ever.
Senior Editor, Global Newsroom, UAE
"Rachel has a way of cutting through the bulls%$# that will echo in your mind, and hopefully in your actions, long after a session has ended. She does this by hardcore challenging your assumptions about yourself, asking terrifyingly perceptive questions and by shaking up the script. No two sessions are the same. But you will always arrive at a more honest place with yourself and always feel challenged to grow. That is the biggest gift of any relationship."
About My Work
I've spent more than a decade working with senior leaders at moments of real consequence - at career crossroads, during organisational change and through the kind of decisions which keep people awake at night. I've worked across political movements, global organisations, lean start-ups and self-started enterprises.
Before coaching I spent 15 years as a senior leader in the consumer goods industry, building brands and leading teams inside Fortune 500 companies. I know the world my clients operate in because I've worked there. I know what it costs to stay in your head when your whole self is needed.
That's why I do this work, and why it matters to me that it's practically relevant, rooted in both science and the reality of life.
Successful Partnerships
I've worked with over 300 senior leaders across a wide variety of roles and sectors. With more than 1,500 hours of coaching experience, I can tailor my approach to support each unique individual and organisation.
I work as an associate coach and facilitator in established leadership consultancies. I'm currently proud to be affiliated with Sounding Board Inc (a BTS company), The Hobbs Consultancy and Token Man Consulting. In partnership with them I deliver coaching and leadership development programmes for well-known global employers. Details of these engagements are held in confidence.
Previous collaborations I've led independently include coaching, facilitation and consultative leadership development work with AllBright London, LeanIn, the Women's Equality Party UK, Electric Woman, innocent drinks and other values-driven organisations. These coaching programmes, facilitation and leadership development initiatives have always held forward-thinking, emotionally intelligent, inclusive and effective leadership at their core.
Accreditations From International Coaching Federation (ICF)