How can I help?

Being a professional coach gives me a strong sense of identity and achievement. Our understanding of what it means to be an expert in a trade has evolved, and so has the idea of professions. The International Coaching Federation’s core competencies and code of ethics serve as an essential framework for how to conduct a coaching session.

I think a professional coach demonstrates four key qualities:
1.  A shared purpose – connected to a greater good,
2.  A body of knowledge – widely recognised and accepted,
3.  Demonstrated skills – through consistent actions and behaviours,
4.  Meeting stakeholder expectations – addressing the needs of a wider society.

If you are curious about how coaching could support your growth, contact me via email to arrange a confidential discovery meeting.

It's a journey

The best leaders I know are much like the best scientists: they balance two qualities in equal measure, humility to admit what they don’t know, and curiosity to keep seeking new knowledge. That combination is what turns leadership into a journey rather than a destination. Leadership isn’t about certainty, I thnk it’s about courage, openness, and a willingness to evolve.

Coach Burrell

When I coach, I don’t justify or explain the process to make it acceptable, I do it to help build a culture where people have patience with themselves and with others as they work through the challenges they face. Coaching is always confidential. I never speak about my clients, though they may choose to speak about Coach Burrell.

Throughout my career I have seen far too many people promoted into roles they were not fully prepared for. This often leads to two outcomes: they either take away empowerment and lead with command and control, or they struggle with imposter syndrome, feeling unworthy of the position. The best time to prepare someone for their next role is before they step into it. Contact me via email if you would like to have a informal discovery conversation.

Cognitive complexity

I am a non-conformist not because I reject authority but because I refuse to blindly accept it. I have sat in rooms where two authority figures disagreed, and those moments shaped me: they taught me cognitive complexity and gave me the courage to challenge the status quo. When there’s no single “right answer” coming from above, critical thinking and responsibility become essential. And the one principle I hold onto: don’t let your ideas become your identity.

Don't overshare information

The key to remaining transparent and authentic lies in balancing honesty with professionalism. Being authentic means having clear values, believing in them, and acting in alignment with what you think is right. It doesn’t require sharing every emotion with everyone at all times. Transparency involves openness, and it must be exercised with discretion. I think you need to be honest, but never to the point where honesty crosses into unprofessionalism.

The golden rules

The 5 Golden Rules of Powerful Communication

  1. Take Responsibility: Focus on your own actions and stay accountable.

  2. Be Specific: Clarity and precision strengthen your message.

  3. Ask the Golden Question: “How can I make this right?”

  4. Avoid the Victim or Blame Game: No excuses, no finger-pointing.

  5. Acknowledge the Other Person: Respect who you are speaking with and their story.

Small actions

Our mission in life should be to make a positive difference, not to prove that we are smart, and not to prove that we are right. Ego takes over when we become more focused on showing how smart or right we are, instead of focusing on creating real, positive change.

It’s important to market yourself and build credibility. And I think credibility must be earned in two ways:
1. You have to do great work.
2. You have to be seen doing great work.
These are two very different things, and both matter.

The 3 C’s of trust

How do I move out of a reactive state?
Coaching is a partnership designed to inspire creativity, openness, and curiosity. When I’m coaching, I focus on creating the conditions where people can step out of reactivity and into a more reflective, resourceful state. One of the key elements is trust—an emotion that signals, “Am I safe?” Without trust, it’s difficult for anyone to move from defence into openness. I think when trust is present, we can shift from reacting to creating.

I work with the 3 C’s of trust:
Competence - Does this person know what they’re talking about?
Coherence - Do they show up today the same way they did yesterday?
Care - Are they on my side? Do they genuinely see me as a human being, and does that matter to them?

Deeper understanding

The most difficult thing I have ever done was to believe that I could do it. When you don’t know what’s impacting you as when something is holding you down without your awareness it’s hard to break free. Living in a dominant culture designed to destroy your sense of self and your belief in yourself means you have had to learn how to connect with the power within you to handle where you are. The key is to be in a perpetual process of discovering the truth of who you are, while constantly fighting to escape the inner conversation that keeps you small.

““Always do what you are afraid to do.””
— Ralph Waldo Emerson

Change your perspective

Have you ever felt stuck in a rut, unable to reach your goals despite your best intentions?
It happens to the best of us. The good news is that change is always within reach, but it rarely comes from one big breakthrough moment. Instead, it’s built day by day, through the small, consistent actions that shape who we become.

Your habits are the secret ingredient, they are the bridge between your intentions and your results. When your daily routines align with your vision, progress becomes inevitable. And when they don’t, even the most inspiring goals can feel out of reach.

I think the shift starts with awareness, seeing which habits serve you and which hold you back, and then committing to steady, intentional change. Over time, those changes compound, creating momentum that makes achieving your goals not only possible, but sustainable.

““Success is a product of daily habits, not once in a lifetime transformations.””
— James Clear
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Change is always within reach

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Katleen Vanacker ©

If your team observed you for a week, would they believe you are serious about your goals and theirs? Would they see discipline, focus, and consistency? Or would they see distraction, delay, and lost momentum?

As a leader, you don’t have to tell people what matters to you. Your daily actions already set the tone for the culture, pace, and performance of the team. Lead in a way that makes commitment visible and watch it inspire the same in others.

Coaching works differently

In traditional problem-solving, especially among engineers and managers the process often looks like this: you identify the problem, determine the solution, and then tell people what needs to be done. Coaching works differently. We don’t start by diagnosing the problem for you and prescribing a solution. Instead, we help you clarify what the real challenge is, explore your own options, and identify the solution that fits your context and strengths. Then, we support you as you put that solution into action. This approach ensures that the solution is not only effective but also owned and driven by you, thus making it far more likely to succeed.

The referral business

Why would a colleague recommend your coaching business to an HR leader?
I think they will only do so if it enhances their own credibility and expands their influence in shaping people and culture outcomes. HR professionals are often seen as trusted advisors within an organisation. When they introduce a coach to a leader or team, it’s not just a referral, it’s a reflection of their ability to identify meaningful, high-impact development solutions.

To earn that level of trust, you need to build a coaching practice that delivers real transformation. One that helps leaders grow, creates space for honest reflection, and aligns with business outcomes. HR leaders are far more likely to recommend a coach who addresses the challenges they care about most: inclusive leadership, resilience, emotional intelligence, and sustainable performance. When your coaching creates value at this level, HR leaders won’t just refer you, they will advocate for you because your success reinforces theirs.

““The more you practice your work, the better it will be. Practice opens channels of possibility in the brain.””
— Rick Rubin
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It's complicated

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Transforming entrenched cultural systems takes time and sustained commitment as they do not shift easily or quickly. True value often arises from scarcity; when something becomes widespread, its strategic significance tends to diminish. Leaders must ask: where are the real constraints, and how can we create value within them?

I think one should strive to be the kind of leader whose presence elevates the work, someone whose absence would be deeply felt. Bring emotional intelligence, critical insight, and seasoned judgment to every interaction. This is not about shortcuts; it’s about pursuing meaningful, lasting impact. If you are seeking an accountability or progression partner for your leadership journey, feel free to reach out via email.

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More speed less haste

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Most of what people are rushing to do isn’t actually urgent. And in today’s fast-moving environment, urgency can feel like the default setting. As a leader, your power lies not in keeping up with everything, but in your ability to slow down and think clearly when everything around you is speeding up. This is where emotional intelligence (EQ) becomes critical.

““You should meditate every day and if you don’t have time, you should meditate more.” ”
— Seth Godin

The tyranny of urgency

I think the difference between reacting and responding isn’t just about self-control, it’s about self-awareness. The first step is noticing what’s really going on, internally and externally. The second step is pausing long enough to process, and the third is choosing to move forward with intention. Unlike IQ, which is about logic and information processing, EQ is about navigating uncertainty, tension, and human complexity. And while artificial intelligence (AI) is getting faster, cheaper, and smarter, what makes you effective as a leader isn’t how much data you can consume—but how well you connect, adapt, and lead with emotional maturity. That’s the human edge, and it’s more important now than ever.