When I was woken at 3am to deliver a baby in trouble soon after I’d arrived in war-devastated South Sudan, I wasn’t sure what to do. Of course, I had to go. But I had never done this and all eyes were on the new and only doctor - me. I searched for a WHO field manual and unearthed a pair of forceps. The baby was stillborn. The mother lived.
For decades this was how I approached life - see the challenge, figure it out, solve it, take the hits. Do it again. It looked impressive from the outside. But inside, something was starting to fray. The loneliness, crushing pressure, and mind-melting ethical complexity were slowly draining the well.
Hi, I'm Amina - I'm a recovering overachiever.
In 2016, at the height of my career and having skipped my second doctorate graduation, I took a leap into the unknown. I was curious about what lay beyond elite institutions and global health corridors of power. I had asked hard questions in UN rooms, published on health inequalities and disaster risk reduction, and simplified complex science to protect lives.
Then I left and started again from scratch. I created a coaching practice through relationships, vulnerable writing, and going as deep as I could in the search for freedom.
It turned out I wasn’t the only one looking.
My book The Success Trap won the UK Business Book Award in Personal Development in 2021. In 2024, I received a leadership in coaching and education award at the House of Lords, which all struck me as pleasantly ironic.
This past decade, I’ve worked with some of the most ambitious, purpose-driven and quietly kind leaders, from multiple cultures and industries, to shift beyond competence and into coherence. I've also stood in the storm with the CEO when the business was collapsing and the marriage no longer worked.
Whether it’s a room of 600+ leaders going through reorganisation or a 1:1 exploratory conversation on a big career decision, coherence is always available. It emerges when we drop the mask and meet what’s underneath with tenderness and wisdom.
Other things:
Meditation is my medicine.
I once kissed Stephen Hawking.
I played volleyball for Cambridge University.
I bought my first coaching book at 17 - on dating.
My roots trace back to the mountains and plains of Algeria.
I play guitar, covers mostly, and occasionally my own songs - for my plants.
My most difficult relationship to date has been with a majestic Ficus Ginseng bonsai.
