Meet Andrea Goodridge, Leadership Coach and Facilitator

About Andrea Goodridge from Ad Florem. Putting Self-Leadership at the heart of Leadership

Putting yourself at the heart of leadership

With two decades’ experience of supporting leaders, I’m more than aware of the core skills required for Great Leadership. I’m a true believer that Great Leadership starts with you.

That’s why I support leaders to focus on leading themselves first. Then you’ll be in a much better place to lead others with confidence.

You see, leadership isn’t what most people think it is.

You may have previously attended leadership development programmes or read books and articles on leadership. And you’ll have found the majority are focused on what I call the ‘external stuff’. Things that are going on around you, e.g., meetings, targets, challenges, change, strategies, performance etc.

The way I support leaders is to focus on what I call the ‘internal stuff’. Things that are going on inside in, e.g., your innermost thoughts, beliefs, feelings, desires.

Andrea looks at Leadership in a totally different way. 

However, this involves doing things different, and it involves showing up differently. It takes courage, commitment, honesty, intention, and confidence.

If you’re an Executive Director, Clinical Lead, Headteacher, Head of Department (or leader with another job title) and you’re nodding your head in agreement with this approach, you’re in the right place!

Just like my clients across the NHS, private health, Local Government, transport, consultancy, sports, education, engineering, and marketing. They describe me as a unique blend of warmth and challenge, otherwise known as challenging but in a nice way!

Leadership can be a lonely and overwhelming journey, but it doesn’t have to be

I know it’s no walk in the park.

The pressure is on to attend back-to-back meetings, respond to ever-changing targets, deal with team issues, make strategic decisions, and manage constant change. And that’s before you start to support your team, engage with your peers, and develop yourself. It’s no wonder taking time out to focus on yourself doesn’t come natural for a lot of leaders.

You don’t mean to put yourself last, but when there’s always something or someone else that demands your attention, it’s hard to find time for yourself.

From the outside it looks like you’ve got it under control …but on the inside you feel like you’re just going through the motions, without really feeling fulfilled or connecting to your work and relationships.

All your hard work and effort doesn’t translate into personal fulfilment, impact, and influence. Instead, you feel like you’ve got no energy and you’ve started to lose confidence in your abilities to lead.

While you tell yourself you’re ‘doing OK’, deep down you know you’re capable of so much more.
 You are.

Let me help.

Let Andrea help you thrive as a leader with renewed motivation, self-belief, intentional focus, and personal fulfilment

Based on two decades’ experience of supporting leaders, I’ve found the most common priorities my clients desire are in the following five areas:

5 Principles of Great Leadership by Andrea Goodridge of Ad Florem
  1. Live in alignment with your purpose and values, focus on what you’re good at, and follow your dreams. Being in control of yourself and your career by Leading from Within
  2. Speak up for what you believe in, make decisions based on your values, share what you truly think and feel, and challenge the status quo. Challenging your thoughts and beliefs by Leading with Alignment
  3. Manage your time and energy, focus on things that have the greatest impact, and say no to others overloading you. Doing the ‘right’ stuff by Leading with Intention
  4. Give clarity and set expectations, deal with underperformance, hold your team to account, and coach your team. Showing up with others by Leading with Connection
  5. Have clear boundaries, verbalise your needs and ask for help, and take time out to reflect, recharge and refocus. Giving your loved ones the best version of yourself by Leading with Balance

It’s why I created the 5 Principles of Great Leadership. The principles are sequenced, so we always start with you. It’s about putting yourself at the heart of leadership, and helping you focus on leading yourself first, so you’re in a much better place to lead others with confidence.

Andrea Goodridge Qualified Coach and Facilitator

Over the last two decades, I’ve supported leaders across the NHS, private health, Local Government, transport, consultancy, sports, education, engineering, and marketing.

These have included leaders with job titles like Executive Directors, Clinical Leads, Headteachers, Consultants, Heads of Department, and Managing Directors.

I hold a Level 7 Certificate in Coaching and Mentoring and a Level 7 qualification in Action Learning Facilitation. And have been recognised for my work through many publications and awards.

So as my Dad would say “I know my stuff!”

Leadership Coaching and Facilitation Support

All my leadership support, whether it’s 1:1 coaching, group coaching, masterclasses, or workshops, are about reflecting, learning, and taking purposeful action to make changes.

My support isn’t for you if you want to soak up the information and do nothing. It’s about taking time out, away from the pressures of work and life to focus on you.

I’m a true believer that Great Leadership starts with you. That’s why I support leaders to focus on leading themselves first. Then you’ll be in a much better place to lead others with confidence.

“Putting you at the heart of Leadership”

Get Andrea's insight with Nudges for Leadership Success

My Nudges for Leadership Success are designed to help you lead yourself and others with confidence. But they’ll only work if you challenge yourself to make a change.

Every Monday, you’ll get my insights in the way of prompts, tips, and inspiration, aka my nudges! They will include a variety of reflective questions, ideas, and quotes.

And all I ask, is when you receive them – do something with them! Because if you want a different result, you have to show up differently, as well as do something different. 

Get your “Nudges for Leadership Success”

Andrea Goodridge of Ad Florem. Leadership Coach and Facilitator. Supporting leaders to focus on leading themselves first


Want to work with Andrea?

Remember Great Leadership starts with you.

Take your first step today.

"Andrea asks great questions to get quickly to the heart of the issues."

When I started working with Andrea, I tried to keep everyone happy. I felt overloaded as I was taking on too much. This was leaving me, and my team overwhelmed, and work was seeping into my home life.

Andrea is very warm and easy to talk to.  She asks great questions to get quickly to the heart of issues, and focused on my own behaviours and the steps I could take immediately to improve things.

Through the coaching experience, I’ve realised I can be more organised than I ever thought, once I create my own boundaries. Thanks Andrea, the coaching has been thought-provoking, positive but challenging, very practical and effective, and tailored to my individual needs.   

Andrea Goodridge's Leadership Coaching Client
Nicola Kane
Head of Strategic Planning and Research
Transport for Greater Manchester

"Your skill in peeling back the layers, really helped me look at my inner core."

When I started working with Andrea, I was unclear of my values and needed to revisit my vision and strengths. Andrea kept things simple and gave me the frameworks to facilitate my thinking.

What stood out for me in the coaching was the simplicity of getting to my core values. I had all the answers but needed to spend the time to look at them in detail without any other distractions.

Now I’m being my authentic-self more of the time, building relationships with colleagues and making decisions based on my values. Thank you, Andrea. Your skill in peeling back the layers, helped me look at my inner core and built up a greater understanding of myself.
Andrea Goodridge's Leadership Coaching Client
Phil Bird
Head of Operations - Domiciliary
Specsavers
Leadership organisations Ad Florem and Andrea Goodridge has worked with coaching courses and retreats