Parenting Point’s foundations were born from Jayne Ruff (Founder) and her personal experience as a Coaching & Occupational Psychologist advising clients across industry sectors, and as a working parent. Here’s that story:

Jayne Ruff – Founder of Parenting Point – Coaching & Occupational Psychologist – Mum

I’ve worked for several years as a Psychologist helping people to develop and grow during key points of change at work. Becoming a mum made me realise that one of the biggest changes we experience in our working lives is the transition to become a working parent. This point in time influences how we think and behave at work and in life going forward. It’s my personal experience of the real highs and lows of working parenthood, along with my continued passion for applying psychology to help people flourish, that led me to launch Parenting Point.

When I returned to work after having a baby, I experienced the emotional tug of war between my ‘old’ working self and new parent identity. I have always loved my work, but when the weeks went by and I edged closer towards my planned return date, I struggled to see how I could operate with the clarity and focus I’d once had. I felt anxious when I thought about the end of the unequivocal time with my little boy, and guilty about the impact this change might have on him and on my own work.

This way of thinking wasn’t helping me to be the parent or the professional I wanted to be. I had to stop seeing the ‘old’ and ‘new’ me as two separate people. What I grew to recognise was that, rather than viewing my roles as a parent and professional as two competing forces, I needed to see them in co-existence. Yes, my context had changed, and my priorities had shifted. The way I would work and parent going forward would be different. But ultimately, both would continue to be an important part of my evolving identity and growth as a person. I then had to re-focus my time and energy towards the areas in work and family life that matter most to me. This is something that I still work on regularly to support my meaningful work-life balance.

I am an HCPC & BPS Registered Coaching Psychologist & Occupational Psychologist, a Member of the Association for Coaching and a Certified Practitioner in several personality and emotional intelligence psychometric assessments.

I am also an active Company Director of Changing Point – an organisational development & change consultancy designing and delivering behavioural change initiatives across industry sectors and organisational levels (www.changing-point.com).