About Me

Are you looking for some help to make a change in your life or career, navigate a significant transition, build your confidence, develop yourself or your business, or simply work out what you want to do next?

People work with me for all sorts of reasons. You might have a specific problem you want to work through, an important decision to make, a goal you’ve been struggling to achieve, or an opportunity you’re not quite sure how to approach.

You may be changing jobs or careers, starting or growing a business, developing as a leader, adjusting to a major change in your personal life, or trying to understand yourself differently following a late ADHD, autism or other neurodivergence diagnosis.

Or perhaps nothing is particularly wrong. You simply want something to be better: your confidence, your work, your relationships, your direction, the way you manage your life, or how you feel about what comes next.

That’s where my 8Wise® Coaching can help.

I’m Kim Rutherford. I’m a qualified life coach and qualified psychotherapist, an author, business owner, leadership development specialist and creator of the 8Wise® Method.

I have over 20 years’ professional experience helping people develop, navigate change and deal with the challenges that arise in life and work, alongside an extensive background in leadership, organisational development, learning and workforce development.

I’ve worked with people at very different stages of their lives and careers, including business owners, leaders and senior professionals. I also run two businesses myself, so I understand first-hand that decisions about your work, career or business don’t happen in isolation — they have to fit alongside the rest of your life.

My psychotherapy training brings an additional depth to my coaching. I’m interested in understanding why something may be happening, recognising psychological and behavioural patterns that may be getting in your way, and helping you use that understanding to decide what you want to do next.

I’m practical, straightforward and curious. I’m not going to tell you how you should live your life or offer generic motivational advice. I’ll listen, ask questions, challenge you when that’s useful and help you look at things from different perspectives.

I’m also the creator of the 8Wise® Method, a psychology-led life management approach I developed to help people better understand themselves, navigate the challenges they experience across different areas of their lives, and make practical changes that improve the way they live and work.

You don’t need to understand 8Wise® before working with me. If you’d like to start exploring things for yourself, you can also access my free 8Wise® Assessment and initial support tools through my website.

I’m based in Devon in the UK and work online via Zoom, supporting coaching clients internationally where time zones permit, with WhatsApp and email support where appropriate.

Your complimentary session gives us an opportunity to have a proper conversation about you, what you’d like to change, develop or work through, what’s getting in the way and what you’d like to happen next.

If you think I might be the right coach for you, send me a message and tell me a little about what you’d like some help with.

Specialism

My coaching tends to fall into six main areas, although real life rarely fits neatly into one box.

Life Coaching & Life Management

Maybe you want to get more organised, stop procrastinating, improve your work-life balance, make a difficult decision, change some habits or get clearer about what you actually want.

You might know exactly what you’d like to change but be struggling to make it happen. Or you may want to step back, look at your life as a whole and decide what you’d like to do differently.

Life Transitions & Change

You might be navigating a career change, redundancy, relocation, relationship or family changes, bereavement or loss, midlife, changes in your health or circumstances, or another significant turning point.

Sometimes the question isn’t simply how to deal with the change. It’s: “What does my life look like now, and what do I want to happen next?”

Career & Work Coaching

You might be considering changing career, unhappy in your current role, returning to work, dealing with a difficult workplace situation or questioning your professional direction.

Maybe you’re trying to decide whether to stay, leave, progress, step back or do something completely different. Or perhaps you’re doing well professionally but asking yourself, “What’s next?”

I can help you think through your options, challenge assumptions and get clearer about what’s right for you.

ADHD & Neurodivergence

Perhaps you’ve received an ADHD, autism or other neurodivergence diagnosis later in life, or you’ve started wondering whether you might be neurodivergent.

You may be looking back at previous experiences differently, reconsidering how you’ve understood yourself or wondering what this means for your work, relationships, choices and future.

I’m not offering diagnosis or specialist clinical treatment. What I can offer is somewhere to make sense of what this new understanding means for you, explore your experiences and think about how you want to move forward.

Confidence & Personal Development

Maybe you want to feel more confident, challenge self-doubt, understand yourself better or finally take action on something you’ve wanted to do for a long time.

Perhaps you’ve lost confidence following a difficult experience or change. Or maybe you’re someone who values personal development and wants dedicated time and space to think about who you are, what you want and where you’re going next.

You don’t have to have a problem to benefit from coaching. Sometimes wanting to grow is reason enough.

Leadership & Business Coaching

I work particularly well with business owners, leaders and senior professionals.

You might be developing as a leader, facing a difficult decision, dealing with people challenges, managing competing priorities, growing or changing your business, questioning your professional direction or working out how your ambitions fit alongside the rest of your life.

I’ve spent many years working in leadership and organisational development and now run businesses myself, so I understand this world from both sides.

Sometimes you don’t need another strategy, course or piece of advice.

You need somewhere to think.

Keywords

Life Coaching, Life Coach, Life Management, Personal Development, Personal Growth, Life Change, Life Transitions, Major Life Changes, Career Coaching, Career Change, Career Development, Career Decisions, Work Coaching, Work-Life Balance, Returning to Work, Redundancy, Relocation, Midlife, Confidence, Self-Confidence, Self-Belief, Feeling Stuck, Motivation, Procrastination, Decision Making, Clarity, Direction, Goal Setting, Habits, Relationships, Boundaries, ADHD, Adult ADHD, Late ADHD Diagnosis, Autism, Late Autism Diagnosis, AuDHD, Neurodivergence, Late Neurodivergence Diagnosis, Leadership Coaching, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching, Business Coaching, Business Owners, Entrepreneurs, Senior Professionals, Professional Development, People Management, Difficult Decisions, Competing Priorities, Organisational Development, Change, 8Wise, 8Wise Method, Psychology-Led Coaching, Life Management Coaching, Online Coaching, UK Coach