Why I Teach Resilience

'Just coping' felt normal for me for years - until I realised it didn’t have to be.

If you’ve glanced at my LinkedIn posts now and then (thank you!), you’ve probably noticed my passion for sharing tips about mindfulness and resilience. But I haven’t yet shared the story of why this work matters so much to me. And truthfully? It’s not easy to write. As the wonderful Brené Brown says, vulnerability can feel deeply uncomfortable, but it’s also where real connection begins.

So here goes.

When I was in my early thirties, I had an exciting but high-pressure job and was the mother of two tiny kids. Like so many people in that position, I was utterly overwhelmed. On the outside, I was smiling, professional and working to a high level, but inside I was really struggling. I needed something to help me manage the stress that was quietly taking its toll.

Discovering mindfulness and compassion techniques at a local yoga centre was life-changing for me. Learning simple, research-backed practices helped me to regulate my emotions in the moment, develop the courage to take on big challenges, and recover more quickly from difficult days. 

I was so struck by the power of these techniques that I felt a real pull to share them with others. I eventually trained to become a mindfulness instructor and began volunteering for a charity, teaching stress-reduction tools to support people in challenging caregiving roles. 

But all this was done in my precious spare time, and was completely separate from my day job as a Marketing Director. 

Then during a very difficult time in my life I had a big breakthrough. I was taking some time off to care for a close family member and found myself thinking one day about how so many people, including the students we work with at Kaplan, also silently struggle with anxiety and feelings of overwhelm.

The gap was there. And the resilience tools I’d learnt could help to fill it.

I developed a pitch to build a new programme for Kaplan because of the clear need - an imperative, really - to help our students and business clients to manage stress, become more resilient and be more effective and fulfilled in their studies and their work. 

I realise how lucky I am to work for a business that embraced the concept with open arms and gave me the space to bring it to life.

Today, that seed of an idea has grown into something bigger;  a scalable, research-informed resilience training programme, drawing on the wisdom of leading voices in this field and of my own teachers, Alistair Appleton, Karen Atkinson, David Gandelman and Lou Redmond.

There’s still plenty to learn and refine, but it’s very meaningful that something which began as a personal lifeline during a tough chapter is now growing into a way of supporting others and helping them thrive.

If this resonates, I’d love to hear your story, your thoughts, or simply connect.