We are super-happy and proud to share Esmee Russell is joining our Kolimbri Kollective!
Esmee is an accredited coach at the Professional Certified Coach (PCC) level of the International Coaching Federation (ICF), and a member of the ICF.
Through her work in the charity sector prior to becoming a coach, Esmee helped purpose-driven non-profits to influence change at a structural level. This work taught her that empowered individuals and strong relationships are the driving force required for structural change to happen in our society. Even in the most socially aware and well-intentioned companies, without focus on the individual and relational level, change can’t happen.
We invited Esmee to introduce herself to you in a more personal way…
Esmee Russell, the Change Makers Coach
I help people understand and develop who they are, how they relate to others, and how that ripples into the world.
To do this, I draw upon Transactional Analysis and use this as a foundation for 1-2-1 coaching & team coaching. I also lead and facilitate conversations with public sector companies, B-corps, and charities to increase psychological safety at work and promote a beneficial corporate culture.
How I met Niki and Marco:
I first met Marco when he joined a session I was running for Know You More on the assumptions we hold around activists. The first thing I remember is Marco’s smile and the short conversation we had about running before I needed to focus on leading the session! Marco then invited me to meet Niki, and I was instantly struck by her creativity. I’m really enjoying the conversation we’re having around collaborating.
My favorite Curiously Connected Card, & what it says about me and my work
I actually love selecting a card at random and thinking about what meaning I can take from it on that particular day. But, if I have to choose one – I am drawn to Giraffe, partially because I think they are such beautiful animals. But also, because I connect with the references to compassion and heart.
Compassion is a core value of mine and I bring it into my work and my every day life. Compassion is about seeing suffering and taking action to relieve it. I work with clients to voice their frustrations, their pain, their hurt but also to find a way to grow and develop so that these feelings don’t take over and so that they can connect with others, and our world, in a positive impactful way.
What I’d like to bring to the Kollective, and how I might like to be nourished by it
It feels a little weird saying this (I’m a big introvert!), but I want to bring myself – and my whole self. I want to bring the activist who looks at the bigger picture and systems and thinks about what the world and life could be like. I want to bring the coach who has learned how to connect and sit with people to support them to understand their own thinking and feelings and work out how they want to be in the world. I want to bring the person who is obsessed with Transactional Analysis and how it can help us understand who we are and how that is innately connected to our relationships, our upbringing, our society and culture.
I expect the nourishment will come from spending time with others, people who I may not meet in my regular every day life. I know this will bring new perspectives and thinking, which will help to grow and develop my own.
What helps me thrive.
In a word community. I moved to Hastings three years ago, with the sense and hope that it had a vibrant community – and wow, has it exceeded all my expectations. I love being part of a thriving community which is full of artists and creatives, where we celebrate and support each other’s successes but also where we support and help out others in tough times. Hastings opening its arms to me and I absolutely love being part of such a friendly and supportive community.