Jenn Harkness
Coaching for Compassionate Humans and Organizations Who CareSpreading (bio) Glitter Across the Universe
Hi, I’m Jenn! I love supporting folks in creating a world with compassion, joy and belonging. Change can be fun, let’s find out how together.
My Values & Beliefs
Creativity
I’m an artist at heart. This means I approach everything from outside the box with curiosity. I look for the wisdom and strengths first and always keep them focused alongside the struggle. I collaborate with people to find their own unique path forward. I reject the notion that there is one answer, I believe everyone has their own answers, and exploring them are how we create fulfilling lives and communities.
Knowledge is Power
I’m a science nerd. I love neurobiology, research, and am constantly experimenting with those I work with to engage this rapidly changing world with sanity and health, keeping wellbeing center of all we do. I am a systems thinker who strives to view the world through an anti-racist and intersectional feminist lens, decolonizing and deconstructing the many toxicities that come with institutional structures and cultures built on oppression and exploitation. I deeply believe in diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging and center that in my work.
Compassionate Action
I’m present and aware. I’ve been a practicing Vajrayana Buddhist for over 20 years. My education was infused with mindfulness as I studied and graduated from Naropa University in Boulder, CO. I bring heartfelt compassion into everything I do. This means I try to understand the causes and conditions that lead us to our behaviors, to gain insight to the core needs there, and address them with awareness, choice, and health. This also means while I am deeply caring, exploring healthy boundaries are a core part of the work.
Boats
Boats=JOY.
Create more joy in life, always.
My Personal Approach to Life
I live and play on the Salish Sea, which has been home to the Coast Salish people since time immemorial.
I’m a salty sassy sailor who is funny, kind and informative. I’m a lover of all shine and sparkle and identify as a queer, neurodivergent, nerd, artist, writer, advocate, mentor, and above all gloriously joyful and compassionately flawed human being.
I’m voraciously curious, and a student of life who loves to share the journey with others to find our mutual and individual wisdom to create a more equitable world of belonging and care.
I’m solidly middle age now, and find this stage of life to be beautifully complex and rich. I have built a unique life on a remote island where I don’t feel I need to escape or vacation away from. While it is imperfect, it is sustainable and joyful on the day to day. Being happy and fulfilled is possible through reflective intentional choices and building healthy community personally and professionally.
The greatest joy and privilege for me this life has been supporting many folks now in creating their own best life. I am currently inspired by organizations dedicated to walking the talk of wellbeing to create a more equitable and joyous world.
You should know I swear, a lot, skillfully, with extreme proficiency for impact. I believe in authenticity and agency at work. We will laugh together while we work on hard shit.
My Work Story
I am not afraid of the hard conversations, I excel in the messy work of human feelings and needs.
I have worked in mental health in a variety of capacities for over 20 years. This has included running group programs and influencing policy and proceedure in non-profits and public education. I have had a thriving private practice in Seattle, WA as a mental health counselor working with kids, teens, and adults since 2011. I started corporate coaching in 2020 after working therapeutically with many leaders and staff as a counselor with the hope to create systemic change for greater wellbeing at work.
As a clinician, my specialities have been anxiety and trauma, including vicarious trauma and burn out. I am transparent that I know these diagnostics inside and out through complex childhood PTSD and living with chronic generalized anxiety, OCD and ADHD, and working with intensity and crisis work for much of my career. This gives me an advantage to understanding the day to day impact of toxic systemic practices and the expertise to support change.
To further cultivate resilience, I like to have fun and bring joy to the hard work. As a consultant and coach I have facilitated workshops, groups, and trainings about psychological safety, interpersonal dynamics, emotional intelligence, healthy stress response, burn out recovery and prevention, and wellbeing.
I promise there will be shenanigans designed for fun while we learn together and navigate the challenges. My superpower is creating a safe place to talk about the hard stuff and collaborate on finding a new and healthy way forward.
My People
I will always align with whoever has the least social status and privilege in the room to amplify their voice.
Most of my clients over the years have been neurodivergent, many have been queer and BIPOC. I have had the great privilege of creating long term relationships of support with them through many experiences and developmental stages. All have been badass people journeying toward health and thriving. I have been witness to horrible trauma and hurt, great resilience and grit, though to amazing growth and transformation with my clients. This journey with them has inspired me beyond any words I could share, and has strengthened my resolve in the path toward justice again and again.
I deeply walk the path of an intersectional feminist with awareness that in any given situation I can be the oppressor and/or the oppressed. I keep an eye out for power dynamics and how to navigate them with as much heart and integrity as possible. I believe in rupture and repair in relationships and cultures. We are at a critical stage in the world where we must have compassionate action through the hard conversations, healthy strong boundaries, and clear equitable policies and structure to move forward.
Featured Resources by Jenn
Publications
- I was interviewed and featured in the amazing book by Tracey Lovejoy and Shannon Lucas Move Fast, Break Shit, Burn Out
- I have published many local, national and international articles for social advocacy on the topics of feminism, mental health and sailing, along with silliness, and personal transparency. This is all posted over at my personal and community blog Skipper Jenn
- Specializing in trauma and anxiety, I have a long reputation in the Seattle community through speaking, presenting, and writing from my now closed to new clients private practice Courageous Heart Healing
- My undergraduate thesis in 2007 focused on Complex PTSD, in 2010 my graduate thesis studied Vicarious Trauma and Burn Out for helping professionals.
Podcasts & Presentations
- Self-Care for Helping Professionals on Everything is Workable With Kaitlyn Hatch
- Healthy Business Culture on PIVOT talks with Pauline Callabero
- Four part series on Mental Health and Wellbeing from the pandemic on Buckland’s podcast.
- Throughout the years I have done countless presentations on burn out, trauma, and mental health through a developmental lens for universities, organizations, non-profits, professional conferences, and corporations.