The Foundations of Grounded Confidence: Deepening Your Self-Awareness with Julia Carden

About the Guest - Dr Julia Carden PhD MSc PCC FCIPD

Julia was born and raised in Cornwall and “made in the Royal Navy”, and now lives in Hampshire. She has been and continues to be on a lifelong journey in developing her own self-awareness. She works as a relational coach and coach supervisor practitioner, with an academic underpinning.  Her work focuses on working with the whole person (both individuals and teams) to expand and deepen self-awareness, so that individuals can connect deeply with others and develop the capacity to sit with uncertainty. 

Julia has a deep interest in self-awareness and how it helps individuals develop and grow, by enabling firstly self-connection and then connection with others. This approach is underpinned by her PhD research into Self-Awareness. Alongside her coaching and supervision practice, she is a visiting tutor at Henley Business School, teaching on the Professional Certificate in Executive Coaching, MSc in Executive Coaching for Behavioural Change and heads up the Professional Certificate in Coaching Supervision.

Julia’s book “You Are Not As Self-Aware As You Think You Are” was published in October 2025.

About the Episode

In this episode, host Melissa is joined by Julia Carden to delve into the foundational and deeply human theme of self-awareness.

Together, Melissa and Julia explore how doing the inner work allows us to leave our ego at the door, drop the exhausting need to "perform," and build true, grounded confidence. They discuss practical ways to cultivate self-awareness, ranging from formal coaching supervision and therapy to taking mindful dog walks in nature. Importantly, they emphasise that self-awareness isn't a final destination or a neat box, but rather a messy, tangled "ball of wool" that requires continuous unravelling.

Key topics explored in this episode include:

• Dropping the Performance: How true self-awareness frees coaches from the need to "perform" or "fix," allowing them to comfortably hold space for a client's uncertainty.
• The Components of Self: Breaking down self-awareness into intrapersonal elements (beliefs, values, motivations, and somatic responses) and interpersonal elements (how others perceive our behaviours).
• Moral Courage in Coaching: Learning to trust that somatic "sharp edge" feeling and having the bravery to ask the difficult questions that no one else will dare to ask.
• The Power of Meaning-Making: Why life experiences—whether trekking up a mountain in Morocco, painting, or doing yoga—only build real awareness when paired with intentional reflection.
• The Ripple Effect of Compassion: How accepting our own "messy" shadow sides and unhelpful inherited beliefs fosters self-compassion, which then creates a ripple effect of love and compassion for our clients and communities.

Whether you are just beginning your reflective practice or are deeply engaged in navigating the tangled threads of your own inner work, this episode is a beautiful reminder that self-awareness is an ongoing, courageous journey.

Connect  with Julia:

Carden Consulting: https://carden-consulting.co.uk/
On LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliacarden/
More about the book "You Are Not As Self-Aware As You Think You Are": https://youarenotasselfawareasyouthink.com/

Go Deeper with The Courageous Coach Program

If these conversations are resonating, you might be ready to go deeper. The Courageous Coach program is designed for qualified coaches in the early years of building their independent practice. If you want to coach with more courage, clarity, and humanity and grow a business that truly reflects who you are, this is for you.

You can find all the details here: https://www.melissahague.com/courageous-coaches

Connect with Melissa

Come and find Melissa on LinkedIn. Whether you have questions about the program, want to share what resonated from this episode, or just fancy a chat, she'd love to connect.

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Thanks again for listening. Until next time, stay curious, stay human and keep choosing courage.