Jamie Ford

Jamie Ford has established an awesome reputation as an international thought leader in resilience and mental toughness. He is an expert in taking Dr. Martin Seligman’s research into “optimistic attitudes” and making it “learnable”. In some circles he is known as Mr. Mental Toughness.

Those who attend his course speak volumes for the way in which their resilience is unpacked then repacked for lasting positive change. A GP who attended spoke about changes at the neural pathway level. That is exactly what Jamie aims to achieve i.e. the pruning of old accidentally formed neural pathways that inhibit potential and the nurturing of new neural pathways that promote potential.

The solid research-science base to the learning makes it attractive to a broad range of enterprises. Jamie has worked with the Crusaders and Canterbury Rugby Union, The Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet of the Australian Government, Fletcher Building, AMCOR, The Regional Rights Resources Team of the Pacific Community, and the Far North District Council.

Jamie is confident that a large body of science supports the contention that a resilient and optimistic mindset is vital to the wellbeing and optimal achievement of all. The evidence from over 1,000 studies shows it applies in all domains of life, especially work.

Expertise and research interests:

• Resilient and Optimistic Mindsets
• Mental Toughness
• Attributional and Explanatory Style
• How emotions are generated by our thoughts which are an outcome of cultural learning
• As a member of the International and NZ Positive Psychology Associations, Jamie has a great interest in how psychology can contribute to our resilience and quality of life.

Qualifications and achievements:

• Graduate of The Salvation Army School for Officers - Wellington
• Certificate in Community Studies - University of Auckland
• Certificate in Alcohol and Drug Counselling – ALAC
• First consultant in the Southern Hemisphere to train in EQ and Stress Mastery with Essi Systems – San Francisco