One to one with Alex
Ten years ago I was on the start line of an Olympic final. People assume you feel certain on a day like that.
You don't - every athlete on that line feels doubt and I was no different.
What got me through wasn't a thought about winning.
It was much smaller than that.
Focus on the first stroke. Get that right and the next one takes care of itself.
Most of the people I talk to now have never been in a boat.
They're running businesses, or teams, or families, and they've arrived at the same place from a different direction.
Plenty of drive.
Much less clarity about where it's pointing.
These aren't sessions in any formal sense.
They're conversations - an hour, online, as often as is useful.
You might recognise one of these
You're still in it and by most measures it's going well.
You've started to wonder quietly what it's costing, and whether you're even allowed to ask.
Or it's ending.
The role, the career, the season, the thing your children needed you for. It hasn't quite gone yet, which somehow makes it harder.
Or it ended a while ago and you got on with things.
The drive is still there, running at the same speed, with nothing much to aim at.
Or you're building the next thing, and finding that what fuelled the last one doesn't work any more.
I've been in three of those four myself. The middle two are where most of the work happens.
What an hour looks like
We start with whatever's actually going on.
Most people find they haven't said much of it out loud before and that on its own is worth the time.
Then we work out where you are - because the answer is different depending on whether the thing is still going, ending or long gone.
And we finish with one thing to focus on before we next speak. Not a plan. One thing, small enough that you'll actually do it.
Afterwards I'll send you a few lines - what came up and the one thing, written down.
How often
Each hour is £350.
Monthly - one hour a month. A steady thinking partner.
Fortnightly - one hour every two weeks. Most people settle here.
Weekly - one hour a week. For a period of real upheaval. I ask for three months.
The first hour is the same as any other.
We talk, and afterwards you decide whether you'd like to carry on. Nothing to commit to beyond the hour itself.
Who it doesn't suit
If you're after training programmes or technique work, this isn't it - Mind Body Row is probably what you want, or rowing coaching if you're racing.
And if what you're carrying is heavier than a conversation can hold, I'll say so honestly and help you find someone better placed. I'm not a therapist and I won't pretend otherwise.
Get in touch
Tell me what's prompted you to get in touch.
I read and reply to these myself.