I’m Yan, a qualified integrative counsellor and executive coach.
 

My own journey has taken me through different cultures, careers and significant transitions. I was born and raised in China and have lived and worked in the UK for many years. Building a career between two cultures has shaped how I understand change, identity, belonging and the expectations we can place on ourselves.
 

Before becoming a counsellor and coach, I spent more than 20 years in senior business development and leadership roles across professional services, investment banking and the UK–China business and investment landscape. I worked closely with senior leaders, businesses, government organisations and professional advisers, developing strategic opportunities and navigating complex projects across cultures and professional environments.
 

It was a rewarding career, but over time I became increasingly interested in something deeper: what sits beneath our professional lives, how our experiences shape us, why we sometimes find ourselves repeating patterns, and what makes meaningful change possible.
 

That curiosity eventually led me in a different direction towards counselling and coaching.
 

Today, I bring these two disciplines together in my work with adults who may be navigating a crossroads in their life, career, or both.
 

As a counsellor, I offer space to slow down, explore what may be beneath the surface, and make sense of experiences that can be difficult to understand or carry alone.
 

As a coach, I work with people who want to gain clarity, make decisions, navigate change and move towards something they want for themselves.
 

Sometimes the two overlap. Career decisions can be deeply connected to confidence, identity, relationships or experiences from the past. Equally, understanding ourselves more deeply can create the clarity we need to make different choices.
 

My training in both counselling and coaching allows me to work with the whole person, while remaining attentive to what you need from the work.