Clarity. Confidence. Completion
Personalised coaching for PhD students who are tired of feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or alone on their research journey.
Meet your thesis coach
Completing a PhD is about much more than knowing how to research. You have to manage an enormous, complex project while learning how to think, write and work like a researcher—and it's easy to get stuck along the way.
I'm Lisa, a PhD researcher, academic educator and thesis coach with more than 14 years' research experience and 13 years' experience in university teaching and academic skills development.
I created Spark Thesis Coaching because I know that sometimes what you need isn't another generic productivity tip. You need someone who understands academic writing, can help you untangle your thinking, and can turn an overwhelming thesis into a series of manageable next steps.
I'm not a productivity influencer who happens to coach PhD students. I'm an experienced researcher and academic educator who understands how theses actually get written.
You don't have to do this alone.
A PhD can be exciting, meaningful and deeply rewarding. It can also be overwhelming, isolating and incredibly difficult to navigate.
Maybe you don't know where to start. You've been working on the same chapter for months, but it never seems to feel finished. Your supervisor has given you pages of feedback and somehow you're less sure about what to do than you were before.
Perhaps you have plenty of research, notes and ideas, but you're struggling to bring them together into a clear argument. You know you need to write, but every time you sit down at your computer, you feel stuck.
Or maybe you're working all the time and still wondering:
Am I actually making progress? Is my thesis good enough? How am I ever going to get this finished?
This is where Spark can help.
Thesis coaching gives you a space to step back from the overwhelm, make sense of where you are, and work out what needs to happen next.
Together, we can turn a thesis that feels enormous and unmanageable into clearer decisions, realistic next steps and steady progress towards completion.
You bring the research. I'll help you find a clearer path through it. ✦
What is thesis coaching?
Your supervisor guides the academic direction of your research. An editor can help polish your writing. But sometimes what you need is someone to sit beside the process and help you work out how to actually move forward.
That's where thesis coaching comes in.
Thesis coaching is personalised support for the thinking, writing and planning that happens between supervision meetings. It's a space to step back, talk through what's getting in the way, clarify your ideas and turn an overwhelming research project into manageable next steps.
You remain the researcher, the writer and the expert on your project. My role is to ask questions, offer guidance, help you develop strategies and give you the structure and support you need to keep moving.
✦ Clarify your thinking
Sometimes you know there's an argument somewhere—you just can't quite articulate it yet.
We can talk through your ideas, identify connections, work through conceptual problems and help you see more clearly what you're trying to say.
✦ Move your writing forward
Whether you're staring at a blank page or endlessly rewriting the same chapter, coaching can help you find a way forward.
We can work on getting started, structuring chapters, developing clearer academic writing and breaking large writing projects into achievable tasks.
✦ Make the thesis manageable
A PhD is not just a research project. It's also a very large project to manage.
Together, we can break major milestones into smaller steps, identify priorities, create realistic plans and work out what deserves your attention now—and what can wait.
✦ Build accountability and momentum
Knowing what you need to do and actually doing it aren't always the same thing.
Regular coaching gives you a place to check in, review your progress and decide what you'll work on next. Instead of constantly thinking about everything you should be doing, you'll leave with a clearer sense of what you're actually going to do.
✦ Navigate the PhD experience
Sometimes the thing getting in the way isn't your research.
Perfectionism, uncertainty, isolation, loss of confidence and fluctuating motivation can all make an already difficult project feel even harder.
Coaching gives you a supportive, non-judgemental space to talk through those challenges and develop ways of working that are realistic for you.
What happens in a coaching session?
Every PhD is different, so every session is different too.
You might arrive wanting to untangle an argument, make sense of supervisor feedback, plan your next chapter, work through a writing block or simply figure out what you need to do next.
We'll start with where you are, identify what would be most useful to work on, and finish by turning the conversation into clear, achievable next steps.
You don't need someone to do your PhD for you. You need the right support to help you keep doing it yourself. ✦
Choose your support pathway
What kind of support do you need?
✦ I want personalised support
1:1 coaching
✦ I mostly need structure & connection
Group coaching
Not sure which service is right for you?
Book a 15 minute discovery call
Contact Me
I’d love to hear from you! Please reach out if you’d like support with:
PhD and Thesis Coaching – guidance on writing, structuring, or completing your thesis.
Workshops & Programs – enrolment in my courses on academic writing, publishing, and wellbeing.
Speaking & Collaborations – invitations to run workshops, guest lectures, or partner on academic initiatives.
General Enquiries – questions about services, pricing, or how I can best support your research journey.
Simply fill out the form below or email me directly, and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
thesiscoachingau@gmail.com