David Linaker
Private Mentoring
For people who need a serious, unhurried place to think, speak, and tell the truth about their lives.
Where the real conversation
can finally happen
Something has shifted. Or broken. Or quietly stopped working.
You may not be able to name it precisely.
You are functioning, perhaps even well, by most measures.
But there is something you have been carrying for a long time, something that has not found the right container. Therapy has helped, or helped to a point.
Religion may have once offered a framework, but it no longer fits,
or perhaps it never quite did.
The people closest to you love you, but this particular thing is not something you can easily put into words with them.
You are not in crisis. But you are not fully alive to your own life either.
That is often where this work begins.
Who I Work With? - For Those Standing at a Crossroads
My clients are thoughtful people in midlife who have been through something significant: a bereavement, a rupture, a loss of faith, a marriage that ended, a version of themselves they can no longer sustain.
Many have been the strong ones, the capable ones, the ones others lean on. Until something shifted and the old self no longer held.
Most arrive having already done some work on themselves. They are not beginners.
What they need is not more techniques or frameworks, but a serious, sustained conversation with someone who will listen without flinching and speak without flattering.
What This Is
This is private mentoring for thoughtful adults who have outgrown the usual forms of support. It is not therapy, coaching, spiritual direction, or consultancy. It is sustained, confidential conversation with someone who will take your inner life seriously and speak to it honestly.
The work is unhurried, rigorous, and entirely focused on you.
How the Work Works
Containment before insight
We slow things down so honesty becomes possible.
Listening that clarifies
I reflect back what’s true, not what’s convenient.
Language that names things
We put words to what’s been circling for years.
Gentle, firm challenge
Truth without shame; clarity without cruelty.
Continuity
The work deepens as we hold the threads over time.
The Structure
One-to-one, confidential sessions are usually monthly or fortnightly
A six-month minimum is required; not as a commercial condition,
but because serious conversations take time to find their depth.
I work with a small number of people at any one time.
Not every enquiry is accepted. This matters to me, and I think it will matter to you too.
What Clients Say
“David was fundamental in helping me unpick the overwhelming grief and shame surrounding a traumatic same sex parent bond. His support, empathy and kindness were critical factors in me being able to understand and process the damage, and to move forward in life with compassion and strength. He has helped me carve an open, loving path for the future that acknowledges yet closes the door on the trauma, leaving it in the past where it belongs. I feel very lucky to have found David and cannot recommend him highly enough." - Penny
“Working with David is the safe place I need to actually stop and look at issues. Here, I feel safe enough to say what I think. Often, that is a garbled mess. David's ability to really listen, to ask the right questions and unscramble the mess is sometimes uncanny. He is able to put into words what has been running around in my head, sometimes for years. His patience is amazing, his humour funny and well placed, and I just love that I can put my mental luggage down for an hour and look at what is really worth keeping. I love the trust, the gentleness of his approach, and the right-between-the-eyes moments when he calls BS what it is and then helps me regroup and get on with it. He is such a wealth of knowledge and experience with a very kind heart and the genuine desire to make my world and the world in general a better place. Thank you, David, for keeping me sane, allowing my tears and the laughter and for kicking my butt when I need it - always in a kind way. Looking forward to more discoveries.” - Carina
FAQs
What is private mentoring? Private mentoring is sustained, one-to-one conversation with someone who will take your inner life seriously and speak to it honestly. It is not therapy, coaching, spiritual direction, or consultancy. There are no techniques, frameworks, or programmes to follow. The work is unhurried and entirely focused on you - on what you are carrying, what you have not yet been able to say, and what might become possible if you could say it.
Who is private mentoring for? It is for thoughtful adults in midlife who have been through something significant such as a bereavement, a loss of faith, a marriage that ended, a version of themselves they can no longer sustain. Many of my clients have been the capable ones, the ones others lean on, until something shifted and the old self no longer held. Most have already done some work on themselves. They are not beginners. What they need is not more techniques but a serious, sustained conversation with someone who will listen without flinching and speak without flattering.
How is this different from therapy? Therapy and mentoring can overlap, but they are not the same thing. Therapy typically works within a clinical framework, focuses on psychological diagnosis and treatment, and is regulated accordingly. This work is not clinical. It does not diagnose, treat, or follow a therapeutic model. It is serious conversation - rigorous, confidential, and honest - with someone who brings thirty years of experience working with grief, loss, and the inner life. Many clients come having already had therapy, and find this fills a different need.
How is this different from coaching? Coaching generally focuses on goals, performance, and forward momentum. It tends to be structured, time-limited, and output-oriented. This work is none of those things. It does not begin with goals. It begins with what is true; whatever you are carrying, whatever has not yet found words. Some clarity and direction may emerge over time, but that is a consequence of honest conversation, not a product to be delivered.
What kinds of things do people bring to this work? People come carrying many different things: grief that has not resolved, a relationship that has broken down, a loss of faith or meaning, a sense that the life they are living is not quite their own, estrangement from a parent or child, the quiet exhaustion of always being the strong one, a question they have not been able to put down. There is no fixed list. If something has been unresolved for a long time and has not found the right container, that is usually enough.
How does the work actually happen? Sessions are one-to-one and entirely confidential. They take place monthly or fortnightly, usually by video call, though in-person sessions near Salisbury can be arranged. Each session lasts around an hour. There is no set agenda and we follow what is live for you. Over time the work deepens as we hold the threads together.
How long does it take? A minimum commitment of six months is required. This is not a commercial condition — it is a reflection of how the work actually functions. Serious conversations take time to find their depth. The first sessions are often about slowing down enough for honesty to become possible. What emerges later is rarely what either of us expected at the start.
Do you work with people outside the UK? Yes. Sessions take place by video call, which means geography is not a barrier. I work with people across the UK and internationally, including clients in Germany and in the United States, where I have connections through the Centre for Non-Religious Spirituality.
Is this confidential? Completely. Everything discussed in sessions remains entirely private. I work with a small number of people at any one time, which means the work receives the attention and discretion it deserves.
Not everyone who enquires is accepted - what does that mean? I work with a deliberately small number of people, and I am honest at the enquiry stage if I do not think I am the right person for what someone needs. This matters because the work requires genuine fit; not every problem is mine to help with, and pretending otherwise would not serve anyone. If I cannot help, I will say so, and where I can I will point towards someone who can.
What are your fees? Fees are discussed at the enquiry stage. Sessions are priced to reflect the preparation, attention, and continuity the work requires. A six-month commitment is the minimum. Everything is confirmed in writing before we begin.
How do I find out if this is right for me? The first step is a short conversation with no obligation or sales process. We simply talk, and we both decide whether this feels like the right fit. You can request that conversation directly from this page. If it is not the right moment, or not the right match, that is a perfectly fine outcome.