Identify
Name what is really happening
Create space to look beneath the surface, recognise what is creating pressure and put honest language around what feels difficult or uncertain.
The person behind the work
I know what it is to look capable on the outside while life is asking difficult questions underneath.
The chapters behind the person
I have been a Butlins Redcoat, climbed the corporate ladder, worked the long hours and pushed through breaks because I thought that was what commitment looked like.
I have also lived through divorce, burnout and the uncertainty of having to rebuild when the life I knew no longer quite fitted.
Then, in October 2022, everything stopped. A rare pituitary apoplexy led to emergency brain surgery. Recovery brought cognitive change, difficult questions about identity and a very different understanding of resilience.
Those experiences stripped away some of the certainty. They taught me that strength is not pretending everything is fine, and that rebuilding does not mean returning to exactly who you were before.
Today, I do not offer a polished life or pretend to have every answer. I bring the perspective of someone who has had to stop, reassess and begin again—and who understands how much courage it can take to admit: something needs to change.
You do not have to wait until everything falls apart before giving yourself permission to pause, reflect and choose a different way forward.
Identify
Create space to look beneath the surface, recognise what is creating pressure and put honest language around what feels difficult or uncertain.
Rediscover
Separate who you are from the role, pressure or chapter you have been living through, and begin to hear your own voice more clearly.
Reclaim
Turn reflection into a manageable next step that respects where you are now, what you have learned and the life you want to shape next.
Private support is focused on wellbeing, resilience, reflection and practical change. It is not emergency, medical, psychiatric or crisis care.
Being a dad, reflection and growth
I am the proud father of two daughters, Jourdan and Tia. Watching them grow from children into young women—and seeing what each of them has achieved—has been one of the greatest privileges of my life.
Being a dad has taught me that love is not about directing every decision or always having the answer. It is about being present, listening properly and trusting the people you love to find their own way.
Our family has also lived through the difficult experience of divorce. Looking back, I could remain focused on blame, regret and the things I might have handled differently. I choose instead to recognise what that chapter taught me, release what I cannot change and continue moving forward.
There is no textbook for life or parenting. We make decisions with what we understand at the time—and, if we are willing to remain humble, we learn, repair and grow.
My daughters do not need a polished version of me. They need their dad—present, honest and someone they know they can call upon.
Mike Lawrence
Listen
I have learned to listen actively—not simply to prepare my response or reach immediately for a solution. Being fully heard can help someone understand what they need for themselves. That ability to listen has become one of my greatest strengths.
Trust
Supporting someone does not mean controlling their choices. I have learned to trust my instincts and intuition while respecting another person’s right to make decisions, discover their own voice and follow their own path.
Be humble
I can look back at divorce and other difficult chapters through blame and regret, or I can ask what they taught me. Humility means acknowledging mistakes, learning what I can, letting go of what I cannot change and continuing to move forward.
Education, curiosity and human potential
Not simply to collect qualifications—but to understand people, the mind and what helps us change.
Someone once said to me, “The day you stop learning is the day you die.” I have never forgotten it.
My starting point was college, university and postgraduate study in management. But even then, my curiosity stretched beyond formal education. I developed a keen interest in English language, communication and the human mind: how words influence us, how beliefs are formed and why two people can experience the same event so differently.
That curiosity has followed me throughout my life. Every course, mentor and teacher led to more reading, research and questions. One book would point towards another; one idea would open the door to a completely different way of understanding people.
I have had personal coaches and mentors, attended programmes in person and online, and continued studying subjects ranging from management and coaching to psychology, NLP, hypnotherapy, bodywork, spirituality and complementary wellbeing.
Learning was never a separate chapter of my life. It became part of how I lived, how I understood myself and how I made sense of other people.
I calculated those figures during a mentoring programme around six years ago. It was quite a return on my learning— although it is a pity I cannot see all of it in my bank account!
The journey was not perfectly planned. Each stage opened another door and gradually expanded how I understood the relationship between thought, language, behaviour, the body and the deeper self.
The formal foundation
College and university established my academic starting point, followed by postgraduate management studies. They strengthened my knowledge of organisations, leadership and people—but also made me curious about what sits beneath human behaviour.
I became particularly interested in the English language and the mind: how we communicate, the meaning we attach to words and the stories we repeatedly tell ourselves.
An unexpected doorway
During one of my earlier roles in London with Transport for London, I was offered the opportunity to attend numerous courses in self-development, management and coaching. Those experiences helped lay the foundation for my later move into life coaching.
In my early years, I also became involved in what were then often called pyramid-selling schemes and are now more commonly described as multi-level marketing. The business model was not the lasting lesson—but it unexpectedly introduced me to personal development.
Coaching and psychology
Coaching led me deeper into performance, personal responsibility and the psychology of change. I studied the work of Sir John Whitmore and Timothy Gallwey, alongside Carol Dweck’s thinking about mindset and our capacity to grow.
Curly Martin’s The Life Coaching Handbook and Fiona Harrold’s Be Your Own Life Coach became part of that grounding. I later met Fiona at a coaching bootcamp.
Language and the mind
My interest in language and the mind naturally drew me towards Neuro-Linguistic Programming. Joseph O’Connor’s Introducing NLP and Richard Bandler and John Grinder’s Frogs into Princes expanded my thinking about language, perception and learned patterns.
I also attended regular NLP classes near St James’s Park. I wanted to experience the ideas, test them and understand how they might help people view themselves differently.
Mind and body
My training moved beyond conventional coaching. I studied hypnotherapy with the late Alan Kershaw and Tui Na in Cheltenham with Maria Mercati, who brought the modality to the UK.
Paul and Wendy Jefferies in Bournemouth became important early mentors. Through them and others, I learned about Japanese bodywork, yoga, tai chi and qigong. I also trained as a Reiki Master.
The deeper self
I also completed a short course exploring how to connect with myself at a spiritual level. That learning gave me another dimension through which to understand human experience—not as a substitute for evidence or practical action, but as a way of listening more deeply.
Some of my most significant personal breakthroughs have come when I have created enough stillness to move beyond the surface noise.
Learning at another level
Over the years, I have continued learning from internationally recognised teachers including Mac Attram, Blair Singer and T. Harv Eker. Their work challenged my thinking about business, communication, leadership, personal responsibility and belief.
I first encountered Tony Robbins through Awaken the Giant Within. I went on to read many of his books and attend his programmes both in person and online. The lasting question was always: what will I actually do differently with what I have learned?
What it all taught me
This breadth of learning underpins how I understand people today. Many approaches begin and end with the physical symptom. My instinct is to look more widely—at the mind, the language we use, the beliefs we carry, our emotional experiences and what the body may be communicating.
Sometimes progress begins with the body. Sometimes it begins with a thought, a memory, a conversation or a long-held belief. Sometimes it begins by becoming still enough to reconnect with the deeper part of ourselves that knows something needs to change.
I do not believe one modality contains every answer. The value is in understanding the whole person and drawing thoughtfully from the knowledge, wisdom and experience gathered across a lifetime.
I am still learning, still reading and still asking questions. After all, being a sponge for learning only works if you remain willing to absorb something new.
Self-care, connection and living fully
There is no single version of self-care.
People often ask me what I do to relax, switch off and look after my own wellbeing.
Sport and recreation have always been part of my life. From Cubs and Scouts to abseiling, canoeing and scuba diving, I have long enjoyed being active, exploring new experiences and occasionally stepping outside my comfort zone.
That has continued throughout my adult life. I have invested in my wellbeing through spa experiences and retreats in the UK and overseas, including Sri Lanka and Thailand. Sometimes I restore through stillness and treatments; at other times through exercise, swimming, travel, sport or adventure.
Music has always been part of my life too. I was brought up on Northern Soul and developed an eclectic love of R&B, reggae and many other styles. I enjoy West End theatre, comedy, Audible books, watching a wide range of sport, dancing, laughing and spending time with family and friends.
There is no single version of self-care. Sometimes it is slowing down; sometimes it is doing something that makes me feel completely alive.
Moments that refill my cup
Use the arrows, swipe or scroll to explore the photographs.
For me, self-care means living each day as though it could be your last—making time for people and showing up for those who matter, but more importantly, practising self-love and remembering to look after myself too.
From me to you
My work is shaped by management and leadership, coaching and complementary wellbeing—but also by fatherhood, burnout, divorce, brain surgery, recovery and rebuilding.
I bring all of that into a private, confidential conversation focused on you: where you are now, what may be keeping you stuck and what moving forward could look like.
I will actively listen to what is happening in your life, help you identify what may be beneath the surface and explore the root cause of what is keeping you stuck. If I believe I can genuinely help, I will guide you towards the pathway that best reflects where you are, what you need and what you want to change.
Not sure where to start? Choose what you’re looking for and I’ll point you towards the most useful next step.
If you’re feeling stretched, depleted, or close to running on empty, start with resources that help you pause, steady yourself, and understand what support might be useful next.
Explore burnout supportIf you’re looking to train staff, refresh existing Mental Health First Aiders, or build confidence around workplace mental health, this is the best place to begin.
View MHFA trainingIf you want a healthier, more resilient workplace, start with support that helps leaders and teams understand pressure, wellbeing, prevention, and practical next steps.
Explore workplace wellbeingIf you’re planning an event, away day, conference, or leadership session, Mike can bring a practical and human perspective on mental health, resilience, and workplace wellbeing.
Explore speaker enquiriesIf you’re looking for something useful right now, start with Mike’s free resources, videos, blogs, and practical wellbeing content.
Browse free resourcesIf you already know what you need, or you’d prefer to speak to someone directly, send Mike a message and the right next step can be agreed from there.
Contact MikeThis tool guides you around Mike’s resources and services. It does not provide clinical advice. If you feel unsafe or need urgent help, call 999, contact Samaritans on 116 123, or text SHOUT to 85258.