Claire Platt
Coaching & Consultancy

This is such an exciting week. I'm involved in TWO International Women's Day events taking place this week. On Friday, I'm attending the Plymouth International Women's Day event organised Westcounty Women's Awards and hosted by the fantastic Alexis Bowater. I'm running a stall to promote the Devon Women's Leadership Network, so if you're attending, be sure to come over and say hello! Book here:👇️ https://events.humanitix.com/international-women-s-day-plymouth-2026-rights-j

Do you ever yearn for quality connection with interesting people? I do. That's why I started the Devon Women's Leadership Network. We meet for brunch in gorgeous locations, and treat ourselves to time with other interesting women, and chew over leadership themes. At the last meeting, our discussions were wide ranging: 💜 We considered our leadership journeys, and how sometimes we had encountered unexpected career pivots. 💜 We discussed the importance of belonging and matte

Are you noticing your energy returning? I don't know about you, but I started the year feeling exhausted and depleted. The last thing I wanted to do was to set new business goals and strategy. I needed to rest. To hibernate. I don't know if it's a coincidence, but with the Chinese New Year starting, I am definitely feeling my energy returning. I'm feeling excited about the year ahead, and loving seeing the signs of spring around the corner. 2026 is the year of the horse in

One thing many women leaders don’t talk about openly is how isolating leadership can be. Not because you lack people around you, but because of where you sit. You might be: - the only woman at the table, - the most senior leader in the room, - the only one holding responsibility for a complex priority, - or leading your own business, with no peers to think alongside. From the outside, you look confident and capable. From the inside, it can feel lonely. You’re expected to ha

Are you avoiding having a difficult conversation right now? Because you’re worried about hurting someone’s feelings? Or anxious the relationship might sour? A big part of my work is supporting leaders with difficult conversations. Sometimes that means: • Planning the conversation so the language lands well. • Reframing it so it stays professional, not emotional. • Positioning it tactically, so it becomes a with conversation, not a to conversation. Most of the time, that prepa

Let's be really honest... Sometimes it's lonely being a leader. But how often do you hear leaders admit that they're lonely? Not often, I guess. According to the Campaign to End Loneliness: 45% of adults in England feel occasionally, sometimes or often lonely. This equates to over twenty-five million people. Researchers argue loneliness will become what obesity currently is: a major public-health problem, reaching epidemic proportions by 2030 unless action is taken (Linehan

The idea of a fresh start is seductive, isn’t it? New year. New goals. New energy. Except… sometimes the energy just isn’t there. A friend from the Devon Women’s Leadership Network recently recommended 'Wintering' by Katherine May. In it, she writes about the wisdom of the natural world, how it retreats, rests and recalibrates before growth returns. Nothing blooms on command. Nothing rushes. Change happens quietly, beneath the surface. And yet, as leaders, we are so often exp