Meet Our Coaches
Q & A with Natalie Ryan
Natalie has over 14 years experience working on household brands in global consumer goods organisations across sales, customer marketing, marketing strategy and business planning.
Her strength is in taking clients away from the chaos of the every day so that they can establish/re-establish the heart of their business and build out from its core an effective purpose driven and commercially viable business plan.
Natalie’s coach profile highlights her personal lived experience, her workplace knowledge, and coaching credentials, but effective coaching is just as much about the person behind the expertise.
In this Q&A, Natalie offers insight into her coaching approach, what drives her, and the principles that guide her work.
It is a chance to get a more personal sense of who she is and how she supports her clients.
Tell us a little about your journey, how did you come to be a coach at Sycamore?
I initially met with Sycamore as a potential client and was so inspired by the work that they do to support neurodiverse business owners that I got in touch to offer my services.
What drew you to Sycamore and our neuroaffirming approach to business coaching?
I was going through my own process of awareness and diagnosis while also training as a coach and hypnotherapist when I came across Sycamore through a friend.
I had seen specialist coaching companies before and online business support companies, but this was the first time I had seen both offering full client support and mentorship.
What types of coaching conversations or support do you most enjoy diving into?
It varies significantly from client to client, depending on their individual needs and their current stage in the journey. What I most enjoy is transformation, whether it’s over a period of time or in one conversation. I like unravelling blocks and chaos so that the client can see clearly how to move forward with their plans.
What success that you typically have with clients, what do you help them achieve and/or breakthrough?
My biggest priority in every session I have with my clients is to really hear where they are at and what they need from that session.
I always have a rough agenda based on a previous session, but oftentimes other priorities or challenges have come up that need to be heard, addressed and overcome. I aim to work around a business planning framework so that clients are always considering how they turn their often values-based business into a commercially viable one.
Breakthroughs come in different forms; mostly, it’s about simplifying and leaving a clear action plan of goals for them to move forward with and aligning their business goals with their purpose, which is what gives them the passion and drive to move forward
Are you neurodivergent yourself, or do you have close personal experience with neurodivergence?
Yes, I have ADHD.
How has your neurodivergence, or your understanding of neurodivergence, shaped how you coach and support others?
I think you can’t beat having lived experience to really, truly understand what your client is going through and how they feel, from the experiences through childhood shaping who you are today, the self-limiting beliefs that this may have created, to trying to navigate life in a world that doesn’t fit your shoes.
What’s your go-to tool, app, or system that helps keep you (and your clients) organised, motivated, or feeling less overwhelmed?
I generally don’t recommend one tool/app, as with neurodiversity people are easily bored! Instead, I try to encourage people to create a business plan, something to go back to when overwhelm kicks in and you lose track of your business.
There are also a few planning and time management exercises I recommend to help simplify tasks.
One example is to choose between 1-3 tasks for one given day and set the intention to complete those. That’s it, nothing else. Often, task initiation/completion and demand avoidance can be a problem, especially with boring tasks. This creates a bit of time pressure to increase productivity and focus, and helps clients feel a sense of achievement.
When you’re not coaching, what do you love to do to relax or recharge?
I love meditation and mindfulness, I practise daily as often as I can and have been for 15 years. It is the one thing that helps me de-clutter my mind and gives me a sense of calm, reducing stress and anxiety. Mindfulness, I practise walking my dog in the woods or through breathwork, and I love sound baths.
Speaking of… what’s your current hyperfocus, obsession, or special interest outside of work?
I have just moved house, so I am obsessed with turning the new house into a home so I can relax! So as boring as it sounds I’m now obsessed with unpacking boxes and moving furniture but I am taking advantage of the obsession before it becomes boring and demand resistance kicks in!
What’s your best tip for building a business that works with your brain, not against it?
Self-acceptance and self-awareness. Accept that some days will be much more difficult to get things done, allow yourself the time for space and remember on those super productive hyper hyper-focused days you will deliver what may potentially take a neurotypical business owner a week!
If you had to describe what you're hoping working with Sycamore will feel like in just one word, what would it be?
Lightness!