Meet Emma
Fertility at Work Coach and Consultant for individuals struggling with fertility challenges and their impact at work, and organisations committed to managing fertility in their workplace.
Fertility is a normal part of life and it’s time to normalise it at work; to break the silence, acknowledge and accept it, understand and support it, and increase the potential for individuals and organisations to thrive.
In a nutshell
I help individuals manage the impact of fertility challenges on their career and working life, and I help organisations manage fertility in their workplace.
After years of struggle, I successfully managed the impact of fertility challenges on my own career and working life. In the process, I qualified as a Coach and established my business, Ready Steady Coach. I now combine my personal and professional experience to make it possible for others to receive the fertility at work support which, for me, had been lacking.
Prior to this, I worked as an Employment Lawyer for Eversheds Sutherland LLP, (a multinational law firm), followed by Marks and Spencer plc, (a British multinational retailer). I spent over 13 years with these organisations, providing advice on a range of career and workplace matters, including matters relevant to fertility at work.
Consequently, when it comes to fertility at work, I am in the unique position of having a deep understanding and appreciation of the needs, challenges, rights and obligations of both individuals and organisations, as well as the passion and skills to facilitate sustainable change.
My Story
After graduating from University and Law School, I qualified as a Solicitor and spent over 13 years practising employment law, initially in Eversheds Sutherland LLP, (a top ranked multinational law firm), then in Marks and Spencer plc, (a major British multinational retailer). I advised on a broad range of career and workplace matters, concerning employees at all levels of business, and supported significant business change programmes.
During the latter 6 years of my legal career, I was engaged in my own relentless fertility journey. This involved difficulties conceiving, recurrent miscarriage, extensive investigations and several treatment cycles, but no answers and no live births. It had me regularly scouring Google for silver bullets and trying anything and everything to secure the outcome I wanted – from military precision cycle tracking, to extensive dietary changes, to purging our household of any chemical based products, and more.
Managing these two significant areas of my life together – my fertility journey and my career – at a time when there was very little consideration or discussion about such challenges, was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever had to do.
I approached it with the same grit, determination, perfectionist tendencies and ‘push through’ mentality that had previously been a recipe for success in other areas of my life. But it didn’t work this time.
Ultimately, it led me to burnout.
This was an invitation for some deep self reflection. Using the power of coaching, I considered who I wanted to be and the life I wanted to lead, and I realised it was time for change.
I was relying on having a baby to be happy, and putting my life on hold for that day to come, when I could be being happy now.
It occurred to me that while I really wanted to be a mother, and would continue trying to make this happen, there were other ways in which I could create a happy, healthy and fulfilling life. By opening myself up to different ways of thinking and operating, different choices, attitudes and behaviours, I could really unlock my potential, live more meaningfully, have more fun and experience more ease and joy.
I had more control over my destiny than I had previously appreciated and I started to take back that control.
Bit by bit, this culminated in a significant career change. I had a good job, a good employer and a good salary. I knew what I was doing and I was doing it well. But it wasn’t true to me or the life I wanted.
By now, I had a real passion for personal development and a desire to help others overcome their limitations, realise their potential and find fulfilment. I therefore retrained as a Coach and set up Ready Steady Coach.
I started my practice initially as a Career Coach, supporting clients with various career and workplace matters, and I have continued with this work.
However, my personal and professional background lent itself to a focus on fertility at work, and this was where I felt most inspired to make a difference.
I wanted to bring together all of my qualifications and experience to ensure others could gain access to the support which, for me, had been lacking.
I therefore embraced this specialism and became the first Fertility at Work Coach and a pioneer for fertility awareness and assistance in the workplace.
Meanwhile, as a result of the changes I made, I’ve been able to continue on my path towards parenthood with more ease and grace than I ever experienced previously, feeling happier, healthier and more fulfilled than I ever imagined would be possible.
My struggle with fertility challenges and their impact at work was my catalyst for becoming a much better version of myself, living a much better life.
I’d love to help you, or those within your organisation, achieve similar transformation.
If you’d like to explore working together, please get in touch.
Behind the scenes
Originally from the North East, I’m a Geordie girl at heart, but I followed my now husband to the bright lights of London and we eventually settled in beautiful Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire.
When I am not developing myself or supporting you, I’m probably indulging in my other passions for travel, dance, theatre, walks in nature, good food and cosy nights in with a good book or movie.
Ten reasons to work with me
I know the pain of difficulties conceiving, repeated miscarriages, invasive fertility investigations, gruelling fertility treatments and devastating fertility treatment failures.
I know the pressures and demands of professional life and corporate environments and I know the discomfort of working in a role, and in a way, that doesn’t feel true to you.
I know the struggle of managing all of the above in harmony.
But I turned my desperate need for a baby into a healthy desire. I made my work work for me. I created a happier, healthier and more fulfilling life than I ever imagined possible.
And I don’t say any of this from behind rose tinted spectacles, because I did all of the above while I continued on my path towards parenthood. I became the person I wanted to be, (and more like the mother I wanted to become), living a life I wanted to lead, (and bring my baby into), while pursuing motherhood, (not by relying on motherhood).
I believe if I can make these changes, and I can achieve these results, then you can too. That’s what inspires me to do what I do.
When it comes to fertility at work matters, or any other career or workplace matters, what I haven’t experienced personally, I’ve probably encountered professionally. This follows years of providing employment law advice on matters such as attendance, ill-health, performance, flexible working, discrimination, reorganisations, redundancies, and executive hires and terminations, and more recently, from coaching clients to success.
I’ve worked effectively and comfortably with individuals in a variety of roles at all levels of business, from shop floor to board room, and I’ve worked with organisations across a variety of sectors and industries too.
I apply high standards of training, qualification, performance and ethics to my business.
I have the necessary skills, qualifications and passion to support personal transformation and organisational change and achieve the results reflected in my clients’ testimonials.