“It’s called being alive. It’s what kind of life do you want? Do you want a slightly muted shut down life, or do you want a full spectrum life?” Jess Goyder
Jess Goyder and I explore grief as part of everyday human life, not just something linked to death or bereavement. We talk about loss, change, identity, leadership, and what it means to be fully alive. We talk about how grief is often misunderstood, sidelined or treated as disruption. Jess speaks about the cumulative nature of loss, the ways grief can show up as over-functioning, shutdown, numbness and the importance of having containers, spaces, people and places where what is real can be felt and named. We also talk about how grief shows up in the workplace. Jess shares why grief belongs in conversations about leadership - grief work is leadership work - and how unresolved grief is visible in the fabric of an organisation.
Jess Goyder knows grief – and how to build a life you can love alongside loss. A licensed Grief Recovery Specialist® with a Postgrad (Cert) in Psychodynamic Studies from Oxford, she trained with leading grief psychotherapist Francis Weller. Jess helps people from all walks of life – especially leaders and high performers – navigate bereavement, major transitions, illness, and other significant losses. Her work goes far beyond traditional counselling, guiding clients from coping to clarity, emotional resolution, and renewed engagement with life. With over a decade’s experience coaching executives at Adobe, Nestlé, Ogilvy, and Deutsche Bank, Jess also delivers powerful talks and workshops on recognising and addressing the personal and organisational effects of unresolved grief.
Connect with Jess:
Through her website: https://griefisnatural.com
On LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jess-goyder
Resources Mentioned:
The Grief Recovery Method: https://www.griefrecoverymethod.com/
Leader as Healer by Nicholas Janni
David Whyte
