Stephanie Ressort has over 20 years experience working in advertising and marketing. In that time she has designed and delivered many workshops for brands looking to address a wide array of challenges.She is also a psychology geek, with a particular interest in positive psychology. Seeing so many people she cares about struggling with anxiety because of Covid-19 related work uncertainty, she decided that she needed to use her problem-solving skills to create a workshop designed to help people manage their relationship with work uncertainty.

Who would benefit?

This full day workshop has been created to help all those experiencing work based anxiety. It is tough out there. Certain industries have been hit particularly badly, leaving many unemployed, or employed but fearful for their future.

The 'Leaning in to Uncertainty' workshop has been designed with the following people in mind:

• those who have been made redundant and don't know what to do next
• freelancers who are struggling find projects and thinking of shifting direction
• anyone who is unhappy in their job or fearful of their prospects
• students and unemployed looking to get into the work force
• those who work in industries that are particularly struggling to survive because of the pandemic (theatre, comedy, travel, hospitality etc..) and who are looking to make a career change
• also those who work in the above industries but who want to drive positive change in order to help them survive

The key for all attendees is to come with an open heart and mind, and be prepared to really dig deep in to what it is they need and want from the work they do.

What to expect from the day

You will be taken through a series of exercises designed to help you build your confidence, manage your well-being, envision success and create an action plan. This includes techniques you can take and use in your day-to-day life. You should finish the day better able to fight your inner critics and ready to take a more resilient approach to planning your future work-life.

Ahead of the day there will be a small amount of pre-work for you to do so that you can fully participate in the day.

Feedback from past participants

"I'd recommend the workshop to everyone - we all need to learn to cope in our 'new normal'"

"a thoroughly enjoyable day and lots and lots for me to action off the back of it"

"Thank you for providing the focus I needed at this point in my career"

"it was a great and gentle way to be guided to growth without it feeling dry and like hard work"

What qualifies Stephanie Ressort to talk about living with uncertainty?

Stephanie has lots of experience living with uncertainty. Most people do across their lives, the problem is we so rarely open up about it beyond our closest friends. So I'm going shift from the safety of third to person to tell you my story.

Hi, I'm Stephanie Ressort. I've been actively working on my mental health for the past 12 years. In 2008 I was diagnosed with severe depression and anxiety while living and working in Australia. My work visa depended on my fighting through it, and getting back on my feet as quickly as possible. Looking back that may not have been the best decision health-wise, but regrets are pointless. I did therapy, learned about self-care techniques and just about got myself functioning again. If I'm totally honest it was a bit of a patch job.

In 2011 I returned to the UK. Day-to-day I was still struggling. It would be fair to say that my inner critics were thriving, and even when I produced great work, all I could see was an ever growing list of small failures. This is not a healthy mindset to be in.

In 2016 I decided to go freelance. 3 months before the UK voted to leave the EU. Genius timing for a woman who works in an industry that is very sensitive to economic uncertainty. Money worries became a regular concern. For my inner critics this was yet another example of what a failure I was. I was tired all the time and depressed. My GP did what all GPs tend to do, and put me on anti-depressants.

In 2018 I was diagnosed with endometrial cancer (that tiredness I was feeling had nothing to do with depression, in fact I wasn't depressed at all this time round). Turns out my cancer diagnosis was the best thing that could have happened to me. The decade of learning self-care techniques kicked in, as did my appetite to learn even more. I was lucky that surgery was a viable option for me, and I am currently cancer free (although I am still in the active monitoring stage, so I'm checked every 3 months in case it pops up somewhere else in my body, cancer can be sneaky like that). I'm also off the anti-depressants as the minute the cancer was out of my body, I felt better.

So I get back on my feet and Covid-19 hits! Oh joy. Uncertainty has been amplified 100 times for everyone. Except, much to my surprise, I feel fine. I find myself watching the people I care about struggle with a work based anxiety I am very familiar with, but I am no longer in the grip of. My mindset had shifted and with it my reactions. Or should I say actions, because I'd stopped reacting to what was happening to me, and I'd started to take the time to really think about me, my life and my aspirations. I used lockdown to dig deep and challenge unhelpful beliefs I'd clung on to for far too long and the results have been delightfully unexpected. My plans for the future feel both expansive and realistic.

Giving yourself a day to check-in and really work out what you want next, is an amazing gift to give yourself. Now is a great time to learn that uncertainty isn't the enemy. My life is as uncertain as it has ever been, but I'm genuinely happy. It is all a question of perspective and action.