I’m available for 1:1 coaching (including mentoring and peer support), public speaking, training, consultancy and MC-ing.
How we work together - overview
We start with a 20-minute complimentary call. This gives:
Coaching
I aim to leave you stronger and to leave you with more skills and choices to be able to guide yourself responsibly through life.
I aim to bring in my values, ethics and other aspects of my lived expertise into our coaching work.
What coaching is not
I state expressly I am not a qualified mental health professional and that I do not claim to be such. For some qualified queer-friendly mental health professionals see tgv.org.au or (in Australia) contact Qlife on 1800184527. If at any point while in contact with me I believe our work is moving into this area I will raise it immediately and refer you to appropriate services. I will err on the side of caution in this area.
Coaching offers: (online for now)
Speaking engagements
I am a speaker who engages you with my unique story, told in my own authentic, thoughtful and gently thought-provoking way with passion, heart… and humour including puns. But here’s the thing: it’s way more than just a story…it has practical takeaways and looks at the many implications for individual growth and leadership.
I talk about gender, sexual and romantic orientation, aspects of neuroprocessing and numerous other aspects of my life – I throw any or all ingredients into the pan as needed. I think very few people (including myself) can be aware of all the strong elements of unconscious bias regarding gender that exist in our world and so sadly damage most of us. I can offer one big example (including, sadly from my own lived expertise) that sexual harassment can go beyond the obvious and be broader than gender, can involve many forms of privilege/misuse of power and can happen amongst elements of LGTBIQA+ communities. Sometimes, as the saying goes, “the oppressed can become the oppressor.”
By expanding beyond the more obvious perspectives we move toward a greater understanding of the concept of kyriarchy - multiple structures of oppression and how they intersect and the harm caused.
I start with basic stereotypical ideas about gender e.g. stereotypes including ideas such as “women can’t be assertive” and “men can’t talk about their feelings”. Oh, and I also destroy the idea that there are only 2 genders; there could be at least 7.8 billion. I talk about how rigid gender roles harm people of all genders (certainly in different ways and different degrees). I call this the “binary bind.”
● I offer a keynote talk/training to start the journey to reconstruct ideas about gender in better ways so it is more beneficial for more people). This can include:
● Gender vs. body
● Gender vs. sexual and romantic orientation
I presented my first trans and gender diverse (TGD) education session in the early 2000s and have broadened my experience and reputation as an educator in LGBTIQA+ and many related issues over this time. I am flexible in my methods used e.g. more formal presentation, group exercises, informal Q&A, panel discussion, personal stories, serious vis-a-vis humour because to me, the aim is to communicate information about the subject matter by the most effective means for the audience on hand. I could call my offering to you training, education, speaking or anything – I want to translate the needed information in the way that works for those listening. I have been known to say I will stand on my head if that achieves the outcome – but maybe that’s not a good idea to do that just after meals.
I can tailor a session towards your needs as required, whether that be corporate, government, not-for-profit, small business or in any setting. I have delivered successful training to sectors as diverse as youth, the aged care sector, university classes, health professionals, police, politicians, HR departments and TAFE classes. From 2009 to 2018, I was a part of Victoria Police’s program for new recruits, Community Encounters which has been described as a cross between being a living library book and speed dating – how diverse can methods of communication be? I speak as part of panel discussions and give speeches.Let me trans-late and re-late in the way that works best for you! Get your team cooking on inclusion.
I can work with you and your organisation to cover your specific needs for individuals, teams and/or the organisational. This could involve areas such as leadership, growth, unconscious bias regarding gender and more. Call me to fire up cooking for your pan.