Philip Carr-Gomm
Advisory Circle Member
Philip Carr-Gomm’s central interest is in how psychology can work hand in hand with spiritual perspectives and disciplines to make the world a better place, and help us lead fuller, richer lives. He is the author of over a dozen books and has been leading the Order of Bards Ovates & Druids for over 30 years. Seeing human flourishing as inseparable from the fate of the natural world, he has developed an experiential nature-based training programme for the Order which has reached over 20,000 students and is available in six languages. With a BSc in Psychology and a training in Psychosynthesis psychotherapy, Philip is now focussed on creating an online school, the Art of Living Well. His latest book, ‘Empower Your Life with Sophrology’, offers training in a system of mind-body development created by the neuropsychiatrist Alfonso Caycedo, inspired by both neuroscience and the ancient wisdom traditions.
Philip writes: “In my early twenties I started a travel company that sold air travel and organised spiritual tours. From a husband and wife team working from home we grew to a ten-person multi-million pound company in central London. While running the company and helping to raise two boys, I managed to take a degree in psychology, have psychoanalysis, and train as a psychotherapist. After fourteen years, we sold the company to a multi-national, and then my life fell apart - divorce and near-bankruptcy followed during the financial crisis of 1989.
But I found my first love again, and she encouraged me to follow my dream, despite our difficult circumstances. I was asked to lead a spiritual group, the Order of Bards Ovates & Druids, and over the following thirty years, the Order grew from a few dozen to over twenty thousand members, with teams of mentors and groups worldwide, who organize conferences, gatherings, and camps. During this time I helped to raise our two girls, and trained in Montessori education and child therapy. We opened a Montessori school in 1993.
In 2020 I am handing on the leadership of the Order, and I’m looking forward to teaching Sophrology and creating online learning experiences that draw on both the latest psychological research and on the wisdom of the world’s spiritual traditions.
