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Mental Fitness Training is like physical fitness training. Perhaps you want to get physically fit: so you can feel good, or go swimming with your kids, or go on that awesome hiking trip with your friends. When you are physically fit, these options open up to you. You can do those things with ease. In short, when you are physically fit you can move through physical activities with ease, and the range of physical activities open to you is wide. Ultimately, if you train habitually, you’ll probably live a longer and happier life. It does not take much to make a big difference.

Mentally fitness is the same, but relates to the quality of your inner lived experience; your thoughts, feelings and emotions. When you are mentally fit, you can move through life’s challenges with an inner ease: You can be present and patient with your kids after a manic stressful day at work. You can tackle all those tasks you have been feeling bad about, because you have avoided them for days, months or even years, without feeling overwhelmed. You would feel grounded when opening up about things you are not happy with in your relationship. You would say “no” and go and get some rest, instead of staying up late helping your colleague at work on a project that isn’t even yours.

Sound mental fitness infuses your work, relationships and wellbeing with a quiet joy on a bed-rock of confidence. It is another key component of living a longer and happier life. Ultimately, with enough practice, you learn to deeply appreciate the present moment for what it is, whatever is happening: whether life is testing you, or you are going out there to improve your life and those of your loved ones.

PQ means the Positive Intelligence® Quotient[1]. The PQ is a measure of how often your mind is working in your favour as a friend, rather than against you as an enemy. There are two assessments that anyone can take for free:
- Are you thriving, or just surviving? Take the PQ assessment here[2].
- Which negative mental patterns are damaging your wellbeing? Take the PQ Saboteur Assessment here[3].

I guide clients through understanding the results of these two assessments, and help them uncover where in their life their negative patterns show up, and how they relate to their strengths. I also coach clients through an 8-week PQ-program, which is administered by an app. PQ has become the core framework that I use in my coaching, and I recommend all my clients to do the assessments and the PQ-program before we commence coaching. It may sound like a lot, but I firmly believe that if you do the job properly, you only need to do it once. Half-measures will cost you at best time and money, and at worst, your wellbeing and quality of life.

I was working on building a coaching package based on my experiences of overcoming a challenging childhood, rather difficult family-of-origin situations, and soul-destroying grief.** Happy to share more on a call. By happy chance, I discovered PQ. As soon as I started week 1 of the PQ program I immediately knew it was the real-deal. I can see how many of the lessons I had battled to learn through a lifetime of self-help, therapy and painful healing, was in it. If the program had existed 20 years ago, I could have easily saved myself all manner of pain, heartbreak and suffering. It’s scientifically-backed and has been shown, through hundreds of thousands of people’s participation, that it really does make a difference. They put people in MRI scanners - it changes your brain for the better. As a former scientist myself, this level of evidence is required if they are to make bold claims of its efficacy. Simply put, I would not want to associate with it, and offer it to you, if I didn’t think it was rock-solid.

There exists a stigma around men asking for help and support. It’s just hard for us to express ourselves sometimes. The effects are real and impact the lives of everyone else. In the most extreme cases, lack of help and support leads to devastating consequences. In Switzerland[1], the UK[2] and the US[3], the numbers show the same horrifying picture: roughly three-quarters of all suicides are male. Some of these men may have just needed a safe non-judgemental space in which to express themselves. Above all else, that is what I offer.

I’m glad you asked! It’s on the 19 November[1].

I have a Master’s degree in Theoretical Physics and PhD in ParticleTheory, both from the University of Durham, UK. I completed the Certificate In Quantitative Finance (CQF). I am Master Certified Professional Coach by the Certified Life Coach Institute. I am a member of, and working towards becoming accredited by, the International Coaching Federation. I am a PQ Coach. I’ve worked in the Financial Services industry (London and Zurich) since 2008, and I still do part-time.

My coaching adheres to the highest coaching standards as defined by the International Coaching Federation, the gold-standard in coaching. I meet monthly with my amazing coaching supervisor who supports me in my professional development, and ensures that I maintain the best coaching practices and highest ethical standards.

Take the Saboteur test and see what may be holding you back. The only person standing in your way to a better life is yourself. And there is no greater prize in this life than expressing and realising your true self. If you do not (yet) feel that that is worth it, then for now just remember that I’m here for you when the time is right.

I can understand your skepticism. I was a sceptic too. Some part of this personal transformation stuff seems too fluffy. Too ephemeral. Maybe that is why you are reading the last of the FAQs. To answer the question: I know because I did it. I know my approach works because I did it and lived it and changed as a result. And that is why I became a coach; I changed my life because of it. I have inside me now a level of inner peace, that in my wildest dreams I wouldn’t have known was possible. I see now, that I simply never knew how good simply being could feel, and never knew that this feeling is directly accessible at any time. You will also only know, once you do it. Experience is, in the end, the only true knowing anyway.