Brain-Friendly Leaders Build Better Businesses
In today’s uncertain, tumble-dryer world, you’re only as strong as the cognitive and emotional resilience of the people around you. Many leaders already suspect their teams are operating below their true potential—struggling with burnout, decision fatigue, a lack of creativity, trust, and the headspace to think critically.
Because the skills and techniques leaders once relied on have all but evaporated, today’s leaders must navigate a constantly shifting commercial and economic landscape—protecting market positions while adapting to complex change.
That’s why across multiple industries, leaders work with me as their experienced wing person: someone they can talk to, learn from, and explore alternative, successful approaches with—for themselves and their people.
As one of the few MSc qualified Applied Organisational Neuroscientists with over 22 years of running my own successful consultancy, I’ve also continued to flex and grow, I even share a chapter in 'Brains Inspiring Businesses' achieving one of my ambitions to write a book.
Before founding my leadership consultancy over twenty-two years ago, I cut my teeth in the creative agency world. That commercial creativity still shapes my work. My leadership development and executive coaching practice has supported clients across sectors—from recent clients such as Legal & General and Chubb, to Porsche, Sage, and RSM.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed developing new skills to keep pace with change.
As the founder of BrainShaw®, we focus on unlocking human intelligence to collaborate effectively with artificial intelligence and the challenges of volatile markets. We do this by sharing powerful insights into how the brain operates—so individuals and teams can optimise performance, resilience, and innovation.
What We Offer:
🔹 Neuroscience-based leadership programmes that boost decision-making, emotional intelligence, and creativity.
🔹 Bespoke team interventions to build collaboration, cognitive agility, and productivity.
🔹 Brain-science coaching for leaders and professionals to develop and acquire new talents.
🔹 SHERPAR®: a unique brain-based assessment for mental wellbeing and resilience.
🔹 Career REwire®: a neuroscience-informed career change programme.
🔹 A quest speaker on other experts podcasts
🔹 And as co-host of the Brainy Podcast, I explore creativity, innovation, and critical thinking with inspiring leaders, sharing insights on how to avoid stagnation and failure, in today’s world of adapt or disappear.
🧠 Why Neuroscience Matters
Your companies greatest asset is human energy and cognitive capacity. You’ve heard it before—but it’s often overlooked in the relentless pace of modern work. Applying evidence-based insights from neuroscience, neuroleadership, and behavioural psychology, leaders can future-proof their teams and build workplaces where people bring their whole brains to work, and where leadership is rewarded through sustainable business success.
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We believe in creating transformational learning cultures that are neuro-inclusive.
Why?
Because working with our brains not against them creates a healthy, human social cohesion across your company that can confidently challenge the status quo, disrupt your industry norms and develop agile, innovative business models that weave generative AI into operations reflecting a forward facing world of work.
Our consultancy is informed by evidenced neuro & behavioural science, C-suite agendas, leadership and global trends to form our programmes, coaching, talks and thinking in a digestible style.
Plus through our Brainy Podcast:Talking Creativity, Innovation and Critrical Thinking we learn and absorb a wealth of first-hand knowledge and experience from our guests to share with you whether you are an individual, people leader or part of the C-suite .
Our aim is to give you the tools and insights to confidently innovate, encourage critical thinking and take a first mover advantage.
2025 Topics
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So you want to enjoy your success and achievements and explore what you can do more of? Working with the deep knowledge of a Neuroscience MSc experienced coach and a Fellow of the Assoication for Coaching, is a different experience enabling greater more effective change.
Neuroscience within coaching has many applications. Not least understanding and applying the neuroscience knowledge within the coaching relationship enables personal and professional transformation, as it mirrors the memory and shaping patterns of our brains and neuronal pathways.
Areas our clients feel the value include emotional regulation and intelligence, relationships, diversity of people and teams, problem solving and decision making, aim identification, leadership abilities, skills audit and business acumen.
Typically GrowWell® coaching begins over 6 sessions and then coachees decide on a continued series of sessions. Clients at senior C-level or within influential roles view the coaching relationship as continuous learning, strategy defining and positive reflection time.
GrowWell® coachees benefit from specifically designed tools that work our brains design and included the unique SHERPAR(c) model which is a based on the psycholgical, physical and social elements and needs of our brains.
As an accredited executive coach I have worked with hundreds of clients across different ages, cultures, diversity needs, industries and roles and I love it!
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As social creatures developing a psychosocial culture goes beyond individuall psychological safety to social relations and working with the needs of our social brain.
Experiencing belonging, being heard and seen transforms peoples experience with work enabling deeper trust, a learning culture and collaboration to improve productivity.
Our BrainShaw® programme will guide you and your teams showing you how to take a brain approach using a lens that evokes a culture of making everyday a good day.
The programme draws on the works of some of the most brilliant brains today including Paul Brown, Robin Dunbar, Dearn Burnett, Gina Rippon, Lisa Feldman Barrett, Kelly McGonigal Amy Cuddy, Frederic Laloux, Barbara Wheatley and Dan Seigel to name a few! rPlus the first brain based wellbeing evaluation ‘SHERPAR’, ‘Swivel and Pival’ company flex programme and ‘Bullying at Work’ Parlimentary white paper on trauma at work.
Organisations and leaders who innovate and operate in dynamic and flexibile cultures will reap the rewards of having the flexibiity within their relationships to embrace the ambiguity of change.
We’ve found that their core values echo ours of valuing human-kind. neurodiversity, the social capital this brings and systemic processes lived.
In 2024 companies and individuals will need flexibility, ingenuity and the ability to ideate if they are not to be discounted and over-passed. -
Leadership today has changed significantly. The leaders of today operate in a collborative environment where influence, fellowship, curiosity and ambition are differentiating traits, with financial growth and ambitions remaining paramount.
In many ways successful leaders understand they need to lead themselves through emotional intelligence, self-awareness and emotional regulation. The skill of asking the right questions, visioning and being comfortable with change and transition are also compulsory attributes.
Understanding the social brain and diversity of the minds around you to develop trust, respect, voice and personal agency are differentiators for engagment, attraction and retention so that individuals can work witin a psycholgically safe framework.
Working with the brain, and not against it, uses the brains neuroplasticity to help shape and give insights into how to effectively lead your team in a new and more human-centric way.
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Change in our life is inevitable and healthy. Whether leaving for a sabatical, promoting successors, parenthood, career change or a new direction, leveraging your life & professional experience is your fastest growth tool and mindset compass.
Learning how to work with your brains neuroplasticity, reflection and emotional intelligence networks will help you shape your beliefs and expectations in a shifting landscape for a future you control.
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Who wouldn’t want to know what’s going on in theirs and others heads!
Our signature series of neuroscience focused modules present and then explain how to harness the brain. Each topic won’t catapult you back to school! They’re jargon fee and immediately actionable.
The 8 modules in the series begins with anIntroduction to your brain how it does what it does, how to increase your brain health, and personal and professional potential.
2. The Neuroscience of growth mindsets
3. The Neuroscience of resilience and a healthy brain.
4. The Neuroscience of confidence and gravitas.
5. The Neuroscience of social relationships for rapport and influence.
6. The Neuroscience of bullying and brain damage.
7. The Neuroscience of Emotional Intelligence and Regulation.
8. The Neuroscience of Creating Change.
2025 ‘Say Hello to Your Brain’ Talks
Imposter Bias
Master how to create trust with yourself and others, and grow synergistic relationships by building rapport, making others feel seen, understood and their’s and your brain safe.
Resilient Mental Wellbeing
Based on Soraya’s research and shared with 100’s of professionals we approach stress resilience from a neuroscience perspective. One client estimated that the ROI on increased performance across the team was 4,357%
Future Leadership Skills
Leaders work with fewer resources and flatter structures. What is your style in developing followship? How do you create connectivity across a hybrid, generational workforce? How do you develop your resilience and mental well-being in the face of continued flux?
Brain Health & Mental Wellbeing
Whilst still a mystery we are understanding on a daily basis how and what our brains need to thrive and stay healthy. Learn the foundations with your teams of practical brain-based knowledge to benefit professionally and personally to achieve your purpose.
Neuro Hacks & Myths
Disinformation is everywhere including how our brains work. Discover 10 neuromyths and the hacks to use that will maximise your collective intelligence getting the most out of teams and increase company health and success.
Confidence & Gravitas
Are you limiting your potential and future success by lack of self-belief and focus on inadequacies? Learn authentic self-confidence and gravitas techniques that will change the limits you’ve set yourself transforming your power and control in being the authentic you.
What our clients say
“The GrowWell neuro coaching has been a revelation! Learning about myself from a humancentric view point feels very natural and has meant that whilst I am personally developing my potential, my business ambitions are being met more effectively and sustainably”.
Nick P. Founder. Selective Asia, UK
“As our Guest Speaker Soraya provided invaluable insight into neuroscience for leadership.
Understanding how neurodiverse we are made so much sense with how as a leader my role is to be the conductor across the orchestra of talent to create collective unity & challenge”.
Molly S. Leadership Academy
“As a leader I hadn’t appreciated how my mood or behviours would be picked up unconsiously by my teams impacting their trust, ability to ideate and focus 100%”.
Helen H. CEO. Events Company
“The ‘Say Hello to Your Brain®’ workshop was transformational. We now know how our brains work especially the energy traps and biases.
We’ve learnt practical hacks to dial up our potential and the neuromyths that you can wrongly judge others by!”.
Future Influencers Group. Team Leader
“As a leader how much is your brain worth to you?”
Neuroscience for Business Event Talk
“Our extended heartfelt gratitude for your valuable contribution as our keynote speaker. Your insights, expertise, and captivating talk truly enriched the event and I know will have left a lasting impact on our audience. The depth of knowledge you shared was both enlightening and inspiring.
The positive feedback is a testament to the impact of your words and your engaging style really helped the success of our event’