With 20 years of experience in PR and media agencies, I’ve worked in my fair share of fast-moving, creative and highly-pressured environments. I’ve met plenty of people who achieve great financial and professional success, yet still remain unfulfilled and unhappy. I’ve also seen how some people thrive under pressure and recover from setbacks unscathed, while other just as competent and capable people slip down a slope of severe stress and anxiety.

However, it wasn’t until I started a new PR venture about 10 years ago that I started to really consider why people were affected so differently.

This new job meant working with many inspirational and forward-thinking headteachers, SENCos and educational psychologists, who consistently told me the same thing. Happy students – with good self-esteem, a strong perceived learning capability and a feeling of connectedness to their school – are much more likely to achieve (above) their academic potential. They also show more perseverance when faced with difficult tasks and are less likely to be discouraged by ‘failure’.

This focus on wellbeing first and foremost really resonated with me. As a mum of three, above all else I want my children to be happy and emotionally resilient. It also got me thinking about how we so often assume success will lead to happiness, when really happiness leads to success.

Idle curiosity soon gave way to diligently devouring every book I could find on the subject. Eventually this fascination led me to the growing field of Positive Psychology, and the many evidence-based and well-researched interventions that can bring about powerful and positive change for individuals and companies.

As a Positive Psychology Coach, it’s my job to help my clients use the science of optimal human flourishing to bring more productivity, meaning and sustainable happiness into their lives.