Sile Walsh, Psychological Coach, Supervisor & Organisational Consultant at Walsh Coaching & Consultancy
Sile Walsh is a psychological coach, supervisor and organisational consultant. She coaches professionals to be more successful and content in the areas of life, work and relationships.
Sile specialises in utilising authenticity to create strategic and sustainable personal and professional success, based in Dublin, working in person, online and internationally.
She has written two books in the Authentic Journey Series, the first about self-care and the second about co-dependency as well as hosts the Tilted Coaching podcast.
Sile is a registered member of the Association of Coaching Supervisors, the Association of Coaching, a coaching and organisational member of Psychological Society of Ireland and a psychometric tester with the British Psychological Society.
“Grit, resilience and the ability to accept failure repeatedly. The ability to be let down without allowing the letdown or the failure to define me. Success is about being myself and in being myself still being able to do what it is I care about effectively.”
Sile Walsh
Sile has been working in the area of coaching psychology for over nine years, is a graduate of UCC with an HDip in Coaching Psychology and an MSc in Personal and Management Coaching as well as professional qualifications in Supervision, Leadership, Participatory Management and a keen interest in Dialogical Organisational Development.
Sile has written for The Good Men Project, Ravishly & other well-known publications. She also has been interviewed as an expert for several podcasts, radio shows, print publications and on Irish TV.
She is passionate about mental health and addiction recovery, for individuals and families affected by both. Sile has guest lectured on two separate courses in UCC, one for the MSc Personal and Management Coaching and the other for the MA in Organisational Psychology.
Sile is currently writing her 3rd book, for people professionals in relation to utilising coaching and relationships more effectively within organisations. Sile's work is aligned with creating sustainable, strategic and authentic changes utilising a holistic, person-centred and compassion-focused perspectives.
Tell us about your current role and what you like about your career or areas of focus.
My current role is working for myself in Walsh coaching and consulting, and I've been doing this since 2011.
I have in this time had the privilege of working with coaching psychology and organisational development to support individuals, teams and organisations to progress in a way that's authentic and fitting for them and their purpose.
My work has always been about supporting and empowering people. Utilising the difference that each one of us can make, but also the difference that each one of us brings into an environment. So my current role has facilitated me doing this with individuals private organisations and not for profits.
What inspires you, motivates you, helps you to make each day count?
For me, people are at the centre of everything that I do, relationships are a primary value of mine, and how we live and work together is something very important to me.
Knowing that when I go to work that I can have a positive impact on the people I work with.
Knowing that I could influence the way that people relate and that I can have an impact for more of a positive society is a big motivator for me.
While this would be the main focus for me, the ability to create, develop and collaborate are also the key motivators in my life and work.
Outside of your professional work area, what hobbies or interests do you have or what other areas of your life are of real importance to you?
This is a funny one because, for a long time, my work was a combination of my hobbies and my interests as my work brings learning and development, passion and purpose, connections values into my life.
It brings so much to life; however, over the last number of years, I've been able to spend more time focusing on the things that I really like, that aren't related work.
If eating out in restaurants was a hobby, so I would definitely say that was my favourite hobby. However, I don't think it is defined as a hobby.
Joking aside I just recently took up roller skating; I love to cook; I love to plan and organise parties, or celebrations for people.
I like to paint and write, and they're essential pieces to me. I don't always do as much of them as I'd like to.
When it comes to your life chosen career, is there a phrase, quote or saying that you really like?
I began my business originally on the phrase "Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning to dance in the rain." Much of my work has involved this, for myself personally and also with others that I work with.
Learning to live with life as it is and to make the best of what's available at this moment as well as not allowing negatives to be the only thing that we see and so this quote actually was the start of my business.
What are you most proud of in your life?
This is always a really interesting question because what I'm proud of and what others are impressed by could be very different.
I could begin by talking about my qualifications or the books I've written or the types of clients I've had or when articles have gone viral. However, there are really things that people are usually looking to hear about from me when they ask me what I'm proud of.
I'm most proud of the relationships I have with the people that are important to me, and what I'm most proud of is that I live a life that's very much aligned with who I am and what I value. I'm proud that I've achieved success on my terms.
I'm proud that I have been able to progress past barriers both social and educational that have held many others back, and that I hope in doing so, I allow room and possibility for others. I'm proud of that.
And actually, finally, the thing that probably resonates the most with me in terms of what I'm proud of is my relationship with myself, given the many obstacles I have faced.
My relationship with myself is the most valuable achievement I have and it was largely influenced and supported by those people that supported me, and so it's something they should be proud of also.
What do you wish you had known when you started out?
I wish I knew how complicated it was to start a business.
I wish I knew that there would be far more personal development involved than I had ever foreseen.
And I wish I knew that it all takes time and that you don't need to get it all right straight away for it to be valuable.
Who do you most admire in business, academic or creative circles?
There is an ongoing joke with me, and some of my friends and colleagues that I'm a bit of a professional stalker as in I stalk professionals as opposed to famous people like others do or musicians or actors.
I admire the doctor Terry Lynch. He is a GP and psychotherapist based in the Midwest of Ireland, and he does a lot of work around recovery and mental health recovery in particular.
I admire doctor Tony Humphreys who is a psychologist and lecturer in University College Cork, and he does a great deal of writing about the relationship with self and others. His work has influenced me to date greatly.
I admired the work of the Tavistock Institute and Roffey Park Institute, both based in the UK but both their approaches have influenced and informed my practice greatly.
I admired the work of Gervis Bush who is one of the founders of the dialogical organisational development approach and again his influence my work, as well as Jarvis Bush, was kind enough to be one of the experts interviewed on my Master's research thesis.
Sebastian Green is another professional in the field that I admire. I met him when he was lecturing, and his approach and his humanity have had a great influence on my practice and my professionalism to date.
Elizabeth Gilbert Reutter of 'Eat Pray Love' and Big Magic Elizabeth humanity her openness to life and her ability to share her journey is something without bleeding out is something I much appreciate. And I also admire Elizabeth Gilbert for her writing is something I resonate with.
As of late, I've been working with some of the training of the Gottem Institute around science-based relationship development, and I have to say that I deeply appreciate in value their approaches.
What companies, brands, or institutions do you like or do you think are getting it right?
I think it's funny because brands and organisations are very good at showing what they're doing well, but it doesn't necessarily always transfer to what they are actually doing well.
I would be slow to name an organisation or a brand what I would be happy to do his name individuals who are walking their talk.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
The best advice I've ever received came less in the form of advice and more in the form of support. It would be more in how the person approaches me and holds me rather than in one thing that they've said.
Maggie Archer of Futmas in Atlanta USA is a great mentor around business and understanding the complications of being a woman in business especially in a male-dominated industry and in supporting me; in seeing my value and working with more confidence.
What drives or motivates you each day in a work environment?
Mainly what motivates me is collaboration and working with other people knowing that we're creating something that will go on and influence or trickle into other aspects of their personal and professional lives. And that in doing so we get to shape the future in some way.
What are your thoughts on the future of social media?
I think social media meets an essential need for many people.
Although, I don't think it's an original need so. Obviously, I need to be social and connected has always been there, but to varying degrees.
I think social media has the role of meeting additional needs that we haven't had met before or given us alternative options.
I don't see it as positive or negative. I see it as an additional.
What is your favourite social media platform, and why?
At the moment, I'm in love with Tik Tok because I'm genuinely entertained by it. And influenced, and in terms of business, I think LinkedIn is very effective.
Do you have a mentor, or have you ever been a mentor to anyone?
At present, I don't have a mentor. However, I have had mentors over the years and will be locating a mentor hopefully over the next coming months.
I have mentored and take on a number of interns, and I have developed internship programmes specifically for interns coming from HR or psychology backgrounds.
How do you network? What is your prefered way to network?
Generally, for me, networking is about connection and shared values.
I see networking more about relationship building as opposed to transactional relationship building, where we only build a relationship if we have something to gain and lose.
I see networking as an opportunity to share.
What advice would you have for someone looking to get into the same area of work?
Before jumping into the area and presuming you understand what's involved, I would actually engage in some of your own coaching, supervision or facilitated services.
See what it's like to be on the receiving end of them; I'd also check your motivators. And if your idealism of the role versus the reality matches up.
What do you feel is the most common reason for people failing or giving up?
I think it's dependent on what our history is with success and failure and whether we have a growth mindset or a set mindset. I also believe that it depends on the impact of the failure on somebodies' life and the meaning that they make of that impact.
Depending on someone's background and their experience of institutions and systems, they may find a great deal of power in failure, or if they have been disempowered through failing in the past.
They may find it difficult to continue, and all of this can be worked through and processed, which is the purpose of coaching. However, I believe that the differences are far more complicated than simply somebody choosing to give up.
How do you define success, and what lessons have you learned so far that you could share with our audience?
For me, success is about being myself and in being myself still being able to do what it is I care about effectively.
It's about me outgrowing the systems that I'm born in or positively influencing the world or others.
And it's about having a quality of life that allows me to live well and to contribute positively to society.
What skills do you feel have helped you to become successful?
Grit, resilience and the ability to accept failure repeatedly. If I was to count the current number of job rejections sitting in my emails.
It's in the hundreds and the ability to be let down without allowing the letdown or the failure to define me.
What are called your books and if anyone is interested in your books, how do they can find it?
On my website www.silewalsh.com/books.
Is there anything new that you are working on or involved in that you would like to share?
I've opened my second online group supervision for coaches in private practice or working within organisations because the first one is full and there's more information on my website. Also, the doors to my deep in your coaching practise course has opened and will begin in September.
With the current changes in people's working lives, I have specifically designed a 'Wellness programme' for remote workers and organisations to roll out that allow remote workers to access supports when needed and this is available for anybody to contact me and discuss it with me.