This newsletter was first sent to subscribers on Friday 1st May 2026. It goes out the first Friday of each Month, so next one will be sent 5 June. If you'd like to subscribe and get it first, you can sign up here:

Hello there! Lovely to see you :)

My memory of April is filled with snapshots of enlivening conversation & movement outdoors. Of blue skies; windy grey days; of smiles and warm hellos, and a significant shift from an inward attention to an outward attention. You can see from the pics at the end that it's been a joy filled month for me. Lots of smiles!

The shift goes beyond my attention direction and I wanted to share it with you. If you choose to read about my Shifting States, I'd love to know what resonates and what questions it raises for you.

My experience of self-created transition periods is that they can feel wobbly. Having a map to navigate where you are in the transition is so helpful for me, so I'm also sharing a quick overview into the U Process change theory that is guiding light during this period.

At the end, I also pass on some events and updates for both coaches and leaders.

Shifting States

Speaking with a friend recently, she acknowledged that she was missing rhythm in her life. It totally resonated with me. I intentionally let go of the rhythm of work in my life in December as an experiment to notice where my energy flowed & to create the next phase of work in my life (or perhaps to even let it go completely!) I could see the river of my life heading off on a big meander without knowing how close it may come back towards itself.

Initially in January, I definitely felt cast adrift and a bit a panicky. By February, I started to enjoy the drift  and realised that this may be what life without work would be like; life was very easy and spacious. At the same time, I wondered where this version of my life would take me. Who would I be, if this was all it was?

In March, I spent time exploring alternative interests to work and re-learnt some key factors that matter to me, I value:

• Having something to stretch towards that necessitates learning, takes me out of my comfort zone, beyond what I already know and necessitates interactions with others

• A rhythm of consistent focus that does not compromise my health or life wishes

• Applying and sharing what I learn keeps me motivated

In April, something has shifted. It may be because it was Spring and I was having more beautifully deep and reflective conversations; or maybe it was because I had started to articulate the hard truth, that I’d fallen out of love with coaching, and that it was time to close the door on that chapter? Or as my friend, with her astrological insights suggested, it was a significant 8 planet alignment mid April that shook things up! Or maybe it was the circus skills session and hanging upside down that did it!

The shift is there in my body; after feeling the drift along the river, I now feel pulled towards something. It’s like there is a subtle change in my centre of gravity. It’s come up and moved forwards. My eyes and attention are more outward than inward.

The sensation of the pull is like when the sun shines, and you feel the desire to step outside and feel warmth on your skin. It’s when you see something you want to do, and you feel the panic of missing out. It’s when the idea comes along that makes you feel on the back foot and want it all now.

Does that feeling of being pulled towards something resonate with you too? 

For me, it’s a welcome return after months without that pull. It suggests that the period of no known rhythm, of no certainty or direction may be coming to an end.

At the same time, I can also experience a dark side to the pull. It offers a seductive illusion that if I tie it all down, life will feel 'balanced'! I speed up with desire to settle into the new rhythm, to start something and get going. The result is, I can start to live life too fast, feeling like I’m living at the front edge of my body. My mind becomes super busy wanting more and more to happen now. I can lose sight of the present moment, so take time-outs to check in on my centre of gravity.

'Enacting' follows on from 'Letting come' in the U-Process. When you can sense the future, it requires us to act in an instant. So here you go, trusted friends, this is the working draft....

I will be pivoting my supervision and coaching offer towards Movement and Nature to minimise the isolating influences of the Coach & CEO workspace created by high levels of stagnant sitting online working and the increasing digitisation of our relationships (more chats with AI than with people).

By moving our sessions into the landscape, we invite Nature to be our co-facilitator. The external landscape helps to bring clarity to the internal landscape. The rhythm of walking and movement regulates the nervous system and shifts mood; the scale of the horizon broadens perspective and strategy, and the literal ‘ebb and flow’ and movement of our natural surroundings helps to dissolve the feelings of isolation.

Move together within Nature.

Initially, this will be with individuals, walking and moving in my local area of Poole, Dorset, and the nearby areas. With the hope that both intact groups for supervision and perhaps even coaching cohorts will follow.

At this point, I have some guiding principles and many ideas. Plus, I notice a lot of jealousy towards those with lovely sounding offers that seem all sorted. But we all know that's an illusion don't we!! We are all 'works in progress'.

Message Me felicity@bendtheriver.org

How does that sound to you? Does it make sense? What questions does it raise? Would you be interested? All feedback and builds welcomed.

I’m fascinated that the gateway for firing back up my interest in coaching was the admission of falling out of love of with it, and being prepared to let it go.

The U-Process

The process of letting go to let come is a tried and tested formula for me. I’ve used it in my life at significant moments. The first two times, I was unaware of the theory. I just knew that I couldn’t see the future whilst in the clutches of the past and present. I knew I had to let go in order to create space for something else to appear.

Knowing the theory is now really supportive. Particularly during the times of transition that feel vague and drifting. I know these times have a role a play in the overall change.

Check out the below image for a summary.

You’ll see from the image, that it's a U shaped change curve. We start at the top of the left hand side of the U. This is the pain point; stuff is not right and you know you need change/ something needs to change.

It can be soooo tempting to see a possible solution and just jump to the top right hand side of the U. This is the grass is greener approach. That looks better than what I’ve got, so I’ll do that. You may strike lucky, but you may not. And if the solutions aren’t there to jump to/ or don’t look appealing, what then?

For the bigger moments in life, I believe we need something that is more transformative. And it takes an Open Mind, an Open Heart and an Open Will to overcome what are called the voices of judgement, cynicism and fear.

As you come down the curve, there is a process of suspending what is known, redirecting attention to what is needed; and letting go of ego formations (in my case the identify of being a coach!).

The bottom of the curve, is the eye of the needle moment. “Crossing that threshold, passing through the eye of the needle, can feel like dying and being reborn.” We have to offload the unessential baggage to see what is really there.

As we come up the right hand side of the U, attention is needed to see what is emerging. Seeing what is there waiting to be birthed, and prototyping quickly to learn through doing. Evolve and iterate. Start to live it.

It’s worth acknowledging that this is one theory on change, and it’s relevant for personal individual change as well as societal change. There are others!

Reflection Q's

Think back to times of change in your life, can you see your habitual pattern? When do you jump the U, when do you allow yourself to let go?

Source: Leading from the Emerging Future. From Ego-System to Eco-System Economies. Applying Theory U to Transforming Business, Society and Self. Otto Scharmer and Katrin Kaufer. 2013.

There are a number of Theory U exercises freely available on the Presenting website: https://www.presencing.org/tools#tools

The SEEDS exercise has been relevant for me in April - so true for this time of year!

Updates for You 

The UK ICF team have launched some new special interest groups, including ones on business development: AI, team coaching: Burnout Coaching; Neuroscience:  Nature, Climate and Outdoor Coaching. They are free for UK ICF members, just join the group, pop the dates in your diary and interesting conversations will follow. https://www.coachingfederation.org.uk/join-us/special-coaching-group

• On the 13 April, the ICF announced changes to supervision and mentor coaching. Both will become qualifications in the future and if you want to count your time invested in either as CCEUs for applications/re-credentials they must be with an ICF qualified supervisor/ mentor coach. The other key change is that going forward, Mentor Coaches will undertake the performance evaluation negating the need to send off sessions for evaluation to the ICF. This is all going to come into play in 2027. You can read the ICF press releases here, and my panicked LinkedIn post about supervision here! FYI, I will be leaving Mentor Coaching behind, and will focus on gaining the supervision qualification when more details become available.

• New book alert which continues one of the themes of March's Flow with Felicity - Starting Well together. It's The Psychology and Practice of Contracting by Anna

  Springett and introduces an 8P platform to contracting.

And for the female Leaders, two women in my local network are offering retreats:

• Padma's offer is a deep 3 day reset in a small group of 8 women in the New Forest. Talking to her recently, I was struck by her passion for helping women release themselves from the stickiness that leadership sometimes bring and helping them find their flow. Check it out here. There are two dates, June and October.

• Kelly is inviting you to curate what you need from the Wild & Wiser event in Wareham Forest in September. Two days, three tents, your choice. What has stayed with me from our conversation was that no matter the age or stage of our careers, the same themes pop up. This time is an opportunity to focus on oneself in a shared space with others doing the same.

Sending you joy from my local area of Poole!

Thank you for joining me.

All the best, Felicity x

Move Together with Nature

This newsletter was first sent to subscribers on Friday 1st May 2026. If you'd like to subscribe, you can sign up here: