Martin Firstbrook
BA (Hons), PgDP, MBACP (Accred)
 

If you are a senior professional, business owner, or executive, you will know that the challenges you face at work rarely stay neatly within work. Pressure, performance, relationships with colleagues or co-founders, questions about direction and identity - these have a way of reaching into every part of life.  This service is for individuals and business partners who want a regular, confidential space to make sense of those challenges with someone who understands the environment they operate in from the inside.

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A different kind of support

What I offer is not standard executive coaching. It integrates psychotherapy and coaching in a way that is tailored to you, covering any area of your professional or personal life, at whatever depth feels most useful. Sessions are typically more frequent than coaching, the work is open-ended, and there is no predetermined agenda or competency framework to work toward.

The focus is on genuine understanding - of yourself, your patterns, your relationships, and your situation, and on developing the kind of clarity and groundedness that makes a real difference, both professionally and personally.

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If you are looking for executive coaching focused specifically on your leadership development or professional performance, please visit citypsychepartners.com.

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My background

Before training as a psychotherapist, I spent 20 years working in the City as an HR Director and Director of Leadership Development within global financial services organisations. Alongside leading large multi-site functions and holding several board positions, much of my time was spent guiding, assessing, and coaching leaders and investment professionals across the world.

I continue to work with global organisations as an executive coach, alongside my psychotherapy practice. This means I bring both genuine first-hand knowledge of the environments my clients operate in, and the clinical depth to work with what lies beneath the surface.

 

What people bring

Most clients are navigating the normal pressures of a demanding professional life — and want space to think clearly and chart a course. Many are also working with specific challenges, including: Business partner conflict, leadership development, imposter syndrome, stress and anxiety, anger, major career or life stage transitions, questions of meaning, purpose and direction, and the particular pressures of founding or scaling a business.

Some simply want a regular space to understand themselves better and to think without interruption.

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Recent clients have included:

Chairman, Global Mining Organisation · CEO, FinTech · Co-Founders, Tech Start-Up · CEO, HealthTech Start-Up · Managing Partner, Global Wealth Management · Hedge Fund Manager · Director, M&A · Global Head of Financial Crime · CTO, Global Wealth Management · CTO, Global Medical Research Technology · Head of Asian Fixed Income · Global Head of Credit Research · Executive Director, Global Transportation · Head of UK Leveraged Finance · Managing Director, Head of Distribution · Head of Oil and Gas EMEA · Head of Pan-Euro Equities · Multi-Asset Fund Manager · Director, Fixed Income · Managing Director, London Stock Exchange Group · Director, Private Banking.

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How I work

I am professional but down to earth. There will be times of serious reflection, and times of lightness and humour. I am an actively engaged therapist and coach, not a blank screen. There will be moments where listening carefully is what matters most, and moments where I offer observations, challenge your thinking, or share ideas that help make sense of what is happening and why.  I also draw on relevant ideas from psychology, neuroscience, and related fields where these help illuminate what you are experiencing. The goal is always clarity and understanding that feels genuinely useful, not theory for its own sake.

Getting started

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If you'd like to find out more before committing to anything, you're welcome to get in touch with any questions via WhatsApp or email.  If you decide to move forward, I offer an initial consultation so that I can understand your situation better and we can get a sense of whether working together feels like the right fit.

 

Feel free to contact me at martin@psycheinthecity.com or on +44 (0)7932 045742.

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