Authentic-Self Coaching with Jess

What if the biggest leadership lesson isn’t about how to lead others… but how to lead yourself?

🎙️ I’m talking leadership, identity, culture, growth and what happens when our biggest challenges become the catalyst for something bigger.

My conversation on the Medway Learning Matters Podcast with host Richard Pemberton FCMI CMgr and the man behind the scenes Gary Knowles is now live.

🫶This one is personal.

🌱It’s professional.

And there are a few things I say that I really hope make you stop, think… and perhaps challenge the way you see leadership.

🎧 Have a listen and let me know what resonates.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/7u2rFT2QtU4ngrImM10tE7?si=H-3zp1c4SKiuxpDWvWzbZg&utm_source=copy-link

And remember, Your authentic self is ALWAYS good enough. ❤️

Medway NHS Foundation Trust

Jess Harman, From Challenge to Growth: Leadership, Resilience and Cultural Transformation. Medway Learning Matters · Episode

I won 🙌

Last night I was recognised as a winner in the Medway NHS Foundation Trust STAR Awards ⭐️

I was the winner of the Equality and Inclusion Award Category following a nomination for the small part I played in supporting someone who was struggling to find themselves during a period of extreme mental ill health.

I say the ‘small’ part Intentionally because they did the hard work, I just held space for them to do so. And honestly seeing them transform their whole life into one they can look in the mirror and be proud off, not despite their challenges, but because of them, fills me with pride and happiness, and was all the recognition I needed.

The words in their nomination will fill my cup time and time again when those grey days roll in. Why….. because they celebrate me for just being me and doing what I love, helping others grow to achieve their full potential.

THANK YOU, for taking the time in your journey to make tonight one I will always remember.

Congratulations to my fabulous colleagues who won and were finalists in their respective categories, we are all winners in the overall vision to put our patients first and celebrate our colleagues who demonstrate our values and deserve to be recognised for all their hard work. And to those who shared their joy and celebrated with me 🫶

Oh and I didn’t just win once either…… I only went and won in the raffle too 😂

Thank you Medway Hospital, UNISON, my amazing colleagues and you, you know who you are.

After an incredibly rewarding period in my fixed-term maternity cover role, I find myself at another crossroads and beginning to explore what might be next.

With over 25 years of experience across healthcare, leadership, learning and organisational development, alongside my qualifications and experience in Executive Coaching and Emotions Coaching, I’m looking for opportunities where I can continue doing the work I care most deeply about: helping people, leaders and organisations grow, thrive and lead authentically.

I’m particularly interested in roles that focus on:
✨ Executive and Senior Leadership Coaching
✨ Leadership and Organisational Development
✨ Culture Change and Psychological Safety
✨ People Development and Wellbeing
✨ Coaching, Mentoring and Transformational Learning

Ideally, I’m seeking a part-time opportunity (3 days per week), although I would absolutely consider full-time for the right role and organisation.

If you know of any opportunities, upcoming vacancies, or simply think my experience may be a good fit for your organisation or network, I would be incredibly grateful if you could share this post or reach out directly.

As always, thank you to my amazing network for your support. You never know where one conversation or connection might lead. 🫶

I am incredibly proud, grateful and humbled to share that I've been shortlisted as a finalist for the Medway Star Awards in the Equality & Inclusion Category ⭐️

To learn that the nomination came from someone who felt seen, supported and safe during one of the most difficult periods of their life was honestly, deeply emotional to read.

What I've learnt along the way, is that leadership is never just about performance, targets or operational delivery. It's about people. It's about creating environments where others feel psychologically safe enough to be human, especially when life feels heavy.

The words shared within the nomination reflected something I care about deeply, taking the time to understand the person behind the role, the behaviour, the absence or the struggle.

Not asking...
"what's wrong with you?"

but instead...
"what's happened for you, and what do you need to feel safe, supported and able to thrive?"

This recognition means so much because it aligns completely with who I am, both within my NHS leadership role and through my business, Authentic Self Coaching.

I truly believe that people are not broken because they've experienced challenge, adversity or trauma. They are human. And with the right support, awareness and psychologically safe spaces, growth is possible.

This is the foundation of Post Traumatic Growth and the ethos behind everything I do, helping people reconnect with themselves, rebuild confidence, and realise that their authentic self is always more than good enough.

To be recognised for leading with compassion, emotional intelligence and humanity in a system often under immense pressure is incredibly special.

Thank you to the person who nominated me, to those who continue to believe in human-centred leadership, and to Medway NHS Foundation Trust for creating space to celebrate the people and values behind the work.

Whatever the outcome, this nomination is a reminder that kindness, inclusion and authentic leadership matter more than ever. 🫶

📢 I’m back.

Did you notice I’d gone?

For the first time in a long time, I completely stepped away.

❌ No work.
❌ No social media.
❌ No calls.
❌ No “just quickly checking in.”

I was away with my husband and three children, and I made a promise.

But it wasn’t just a promise to them. It was a promise to myself.

Not because I had the luxury of switching off, because I knew I needed to.

🌱 One of the biggest lessons from my own Post Traumatic Growth journey has been this:

It’s not enough to know what you need. You have to be willing to honour it.

And that meant listening.

🧠 Listening to my mind.
🧘‍♀️ Listening to my body.
❣️Listening to the quiet signs before they became loud ones.

Because the truth is:

You cannot encourage other women to prioritise themselves while continually abandoning yourself.

So I practised what I preach.

I slowed down.

I read four books, including powerful words from Brené Brown and Donna Ashworth.

I spent time alone on the beach.

I let myself breathe.

And I spent real quality time with the people I love most, the same people who can sometimes feel like strangers in the same home when life gets too full.

And it reminded me of something:

Rest is not something we earn. It is something we need.

Especially when you are the woman everyone else depends on.

Because sometimes growth doesn’t happen in the pushing….. it often happens in the pause.

And that pause?

That is part of the work too.

And it is exactly why the women joining my founding cohort at the beginning of May will not just be learning how to lead others better…

They will be learning how to finally listen to themselves first.

Because transformational leadership always starts within.

If this speaks to something in you,
send me a message or comment READY and I’ll share the details 🫶

📢 I need you!

If you are a women in a leadership position, who cares about those around you…. And yourself

If you are done being resilient, bouncing back but never moving forward, never growing into the next version of your authentic self.

If you’ve ever felt defined by what you do, instead of who you are… then I have something you need.

I am looking for an intentionally small group of women to be part of something transformational.

A pilot of my group coaching program, grounded in my proven PTG.R.O.W.T.H framework.

A New Evolution of Leadership is needed and here’s what it looks like…

Leadership rooted in masculinity alone, control, demand, compliance… is outdated.

Not because masculinity is wrong…

But because leadership without compassion is unsustainable.

That’s not to say the future leadership required is “soft”

It means, the future is human leadership.

A powerful blend of masculine and feminine traits:

💫courage and compassion
💫accountability and empathy
💫decisiveness and emotional intelligence
💫standards and psychological safety

And the evidence is everywhere:

When people feel safe, they speak up.
When they speak up, risk reduces.
When risk reduces, care improves.
When care improves, performance rises.

Leadership rooted in Post Traumatic Growth, positive psychology and holistic wellbeing is not nice to have it’s essential.

This is not ideology.

This is common sense.

And it’s the leadership revolution we all need if we want to survive what’s coming next.

If this sounds like something you want to be apart of and would like more details, comment: PTG and I will message you directly.

Reflections on today’s CivicaNet
Conference to celebrate International Women Day.

🤗The connections were great

💡The conversations were insightful

🫶The speakers were inspiring

Laura Eshelby did a fantastic job moderating the majority of the day, with Molly Ellis wrapping things up with her raw thought provoking words.

The women in the room from far and wide (and right next to me Amanda Russell) all brought their unique experience and perspectives from several different backgrounds, to contribute to one shared vision, breaking Broken Systems.

Putting the spotlight on intentional, compassionate and courageous leadership that advocates not only for those we serve, but for ourselves too…..because we’re worth it.

Thank you CIVICANET , ladies, and special guest for a wonderful day. I look forward to following up with the joint ventures in the future.

If you’re a woman leading change inside a complex organisation, this will resonate.

Let me ask you something…

Have you ever tried to change something at work, knowing it was broken…
only to be met with:

“that’s just how it is”
“we’ve always done it this way”
“it’s too risky”
“now isn’t the right time”

That’s the reality of challenging systems that were built to stay intact.

And that’s why this International Women’s Day panel conversation at Civicanet leadership event, matters.

Because leading change isn’t just about pushing harder.

It’s about knowing how to:
💫 influence
💫 protect psychological safety
💫 balance risk and responsibility
💫 and still keep your team well while the pressure rises

I’ll be sharing my thoughts, lived experience, and what I’ve learned about transformation and Post Traumatic Growth that doesn’t cost you your soul.

Question for you:
What’s one broken system you’ve been expected to tolerate?

Some systems weren’t built to work.
They were built to stay intact.

And that’s exactly what myself, Julie Tague and other inspiring women will be talking about on the panel this International Women’s Day at CivicaNet in the House of Lords.

Because let’s be honest…

Women in leadership aren’t just managing teams. We’re managing outdated structures, broken processes, unsafe cultures, and policies that feel like they were designed to exhaust people into silence.

But here’s the truth:

Challenging systems requires courage.
And sustaining change requires emotional intelligence. This conversation isn’t about “being strong enough.”

It’s about learning how to lead transformation in a way that is:

💫 accountable
💫 human-centred
💫 psychologically safe
💫 and still delivers results

Because changing the system shouldn’t cost you your wellbeing.

And it definitely shouldn’t cost your team theirs either.

Friday the 13th… unlucky?
Not in my world.

Today has been labelled “bad luck” for centuries, but the truth is… it wasn’t always seen that way.

Long before patriarchal narratives turned it into something to fear, Friday the 13th was honoured as a powerful day connected to the Divine Feminine.

A day symbolising:
💫 intuition
💫 creation
💫 feminine wisdom
💫 fertility and rebirth
💫 cycles of life, death, and becoming again

Even the name Friday is believed to link back to Freya, the goddess associated with love, strength and abundance.

And the number 13?
It represents the 13 lunar cycles in a year… a reminder that life isn’t linear.

It’s cyclical.

💔We shed.
💔We break.
🌳We rebuild.
🧠We return stronger.

And honestly… this is exactly what I teach through Post Traumatic Growth.

Because so many women I work with have been conditioned to believe that when they struggle, when they fall apart, when life cracks them open…

…it means they’re failing.

But the feminine way isn’t about perfection.
It’s about transformation.

It’s about honouring the seasons within you.

⛈️ The storm.
⏸️ The pause.
❤️‍🩹 The healing.
🌱 The growth.
🥂 The return.

So maybe today isn’t a day to fear.

Maybe it’s a day to remember:

❌You are not unlucky.
✅You are powerful.
❌And your cracks are not your weakness…
✅… they are your becoming.

Happy Friday the 13th, beautiful humans.
May you honour your intuition and trust your next chapter. 🫶