About know limits

Mandy Gutsell is the founder of Know Limits Ltd and has been helping individuals and organisations since 1991.

Over the last three decades Know Limits has a reputation for delivering high quality coaching programs that produce long lasting sustainable changes. By working with Know Limits you get a personalised service with tailor made programs to suit your needs. Know Limits prides itself on working with whole systems in organisations to have a wide reaching and sustainable effect. 

At Know Limits we believe in encouraging NO limits and placing no limitations on the mind however we are firm believers in boundaries and KNOWing your own limits, hence our philosophy: Know your Limits, whilst having No Limits.

KNOW LIMITS Services

  • Coaching

    Coaching is unlocking your potential to maximise your own performance.

    Know Limits partners with their clients utilising a thought-provoking and creative process, that will inspire you to maximise your personal and professional potential.

    Know Limits acknowledge their clients are the experts on their personal and professional issues. Choosing Coaching with Know Limits means you can utilise a range of methods including the following: face to face, online, individual, couple, relationship, family, team, business, peer and group.

  • Therapy

    With Know Limits, Therapy involves constructive discussions and exercises that help you gain insight, develop coping strategies, and work towards solutions.

    Choosing Therapy with Know Limits means you can utilise a range of methods including the following:

    Dramatherapy, Individual Therapy, Couples Therapy, Relationship Therapy, Family Therapy, Group Dramatherapy, Grief and Loss Therapy.

  • Supervision

    Supervision with Know Limits establishes a formal process of support, reflection, and learning that is of benefit to newly qualified and experienced professionals by supporting their individual development.

    This may include Therapists, Coaches, Supervisors, Health and Social Care Professionals, those working in the emergency/frontline services and those in Private Practice.

    Know Limits helps professionals reflect on their practice, reduce the risk of burn out, develop interventions and promote standards.

  • Training & Consultancy

    Know Limits has an extensive range of quality training courses that can be delivered in person, online or hybrid. These cover: Confidence & Assertiveness Building/ Business Resilience/ Positive Business Relationships/ Conflict Management/ Business Mindset/ New Business Development Training, Anger, Stress, Anxiety Management/ Healthy Boundary Development/ Entrepreneur Mindset/ Leadership/ Enneagram, Bullying Support & Awareness /Bereavement & Loss Support/ Suicide Awareness & Prevention/ Menopause Awareness/ Supervision & Mentoring/ Mental Health First Aid.

    With our consultancy services we assess an organisations existing training resources and develop a tailor-made programme addressing gaps and goals to develop action plans.

No v KNOW:

Our name explained

There are ‘No limits with Know Limits.’ It presents a paradox as the statement contradicts itself. On the one hand the possibilities and potential in life for what you can achieve are limitless. There is an expansiveness in the more you Know and learn on some level, the more you can realise what you don’t Know. On the other hand there is a human limit to our capacity to be, do, learn and to balance our life. Finding a balance in the paradox can lead to a more well-rounded and fulfilling life.

There are ‘No Limits with Know Limits’ is also inviting you to explore what you think your limits are and to move beyond them each time. We often place limits on ourselves which can come in the form of negative self-talk. This may come from familial, cultural and societal pressures and messages to conform. But they may not continue to serve us well. Other times we may not put healthy limits in place which may lead to overwork, overindulgence and taking risks with our health. It reminds me of a ‘push and pull effect’. Like a force pulsating, contracting and constricting. Pushing ever further before coming back. So looking at what your limits are and pushing past and through them.

“I am only one, but I am one.

I cannot do everything, but I can do something.

And I will not let what I cannot do,

Interfere with what I can do.” Edward Everett Hale

About Mandy…

Mandy Gutsell is the founder of Know Limits Ltd and is based in the West Midlands.

She graduated from the prestigious Coaches Training Institute based in California and has undergone coaching Certification, achieving the designation of CPCC (Certified Professional CoActive Coach) and PCC (Professional Certified Coach). She was one of the first 5 people in the UK to gain the title 'Certified Parent Coach for Teens' graduating from Parent as Coach Academy with an Advanced Coaching Course.

Mandy is a member of the International Coach Federation (ICF), the most rigorous independent professional body for coaches worldwide. She is also a member of BADth (British Association for Dramatherapists).

Mandy believes very strongly in developing and updating skills in her relevant profession. She attends training regularly having her own coach and supervisors.

Mandy has committed to her passion of life long learning. She has developed an expertise in personal development programs, team building, pioneering new ideas in organisations and inspiring individuals.

Mandy is a qualified Mental Health Nurse, Dramatherapist, Teacher in Further Education and Coach. She has a BSc hons in Mental Health Studies specialising in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 

Mandy’s personal philosophy in coaching encompasses the following;
The thoughts we have in our minds influence what comes out in our actions and words, creating the lives we live.

She coaches people from a belief that everyone has the capacity to change no matter what their background is. Accepting clients for who they are with unconditional positive regard and belief that everyone deserves a chance.

A picture speaks a thousand words…

The Awakening is an image that represents an inner self-portrait of all that Mandy offers to her clients.

It was created by artist and coach, Louis Parsons, many years ago when Mandy first trained in coaching.

Louis partnered with Mandy asking great questions and using sensitive listening to capture her Soulscape.

The Awakening represents colour, passion, clarity, depth, cutting to the chase, energy, emotion, ‘fulfilled potential’, power, play & honesty.

The key questions Mandy asks herself and her clients to awaken their power are:

What is it time for you to wake up to?

What do you want?

If you knew you couldn’t fail what would you do?

Know Limits Enneagram Training
The Enneagram is a study of the 9 basic types of people. The Enneagram is a model of personality that describes 9 views of the world. 9 ways of making decisions. 9 patterns of thoughts, feelings, motivations and perceptions. Each has a unique way of perceiving the world. No one type is better than another: they are all equally valid.

It explains why we behave the way we do, and it points to specific directions for individual growth. It is an important tool for improving relationships with family, friends and work colleagues. Some people may also call it a type of profiling tool. The roots of the enneagram go back many centuries and has been synthesised from many different spiritual and religious traditions such as Christians, Muslims, Jews to name a few. One of the great strengths of the enneagram is that it steps aside from all doctrinal differences. It is NOT a religion but concerns itself with self-Knowledge. It is a guide to self-observation and self-inquiry NOT a prescription.


There are 4 main types of training you can access with Know Limits.

MANDY IS TRAINED IN ENNEAGRAM; WHAT IS IT?

more about mandy

  • • Mental Health First Aid Course Delivery, Fircroft College

    • Menopause Awareness Training Delivery, ESP

    • Programme creation for staff and pupils including dramatherapy and coaching, Sandwell CAMHS

    • Creation, delivery and evaluation of Psychotherapy inmate service, Hewell Prison, Redditch.

    • Dramatherapy for young people in patients with Eating Disorders, Huntercombe Hospital, Stafford

    • Staff supervision, Papyrus Suicide Prevention Charity

    • Dramatherapy within supported housing settings, Cambian Support; Cedars and Elms

    • Dramatherapy and coaching for clients recovering from addiction, Turning Point/Zephyr

    • Dramatherapy delivery for women with long term mental health needs, Raglan House Adult Mental Health

    • Dramatherapy delivery for women and staff training, Women’s Aid Refuge

    • Development, delivery and review of the following courses: Personal Development, Anger Management, Understanding Human Behaviour in Relationships, Assertiveness & Confidence Building, Introduction to Mentoring, Introduction to Mental Health Awareness, Coaching on Personal decision making, Bereavement and Loss, Issues of Abuse, Dealing with Bullying, Parenting Skills and Surviving the Teenage years, Dealing with Young people and gangs, Advocacy and Suicide prevention. Mental Health First Aid, Mentoring and Leadership programmes for ILM. Free Thinking Programmes (to support learners who have experienced Modern Slavery and being Trafficked), Fircroft College

    • CTS Consultancy including staff supervision, Therapy Service

    • Adolescent dramatherapy and coaching, Inpatient Unit/ High Secure Intensive, Priory Hospital, Woodbourne

    • Teambuilding, enneagram profiling and staff training, Crocketts Lane Primary School & Sacred Heart Primary School

    • Dramatherapy Supervision, Various

    • Staff and student training delivery, Stourbridge College

    • Staff and Head teacher coaching and enneagram leadership profiling, St Mary’s Catholic Primary School- Worcs and Oaks and Birmingham Academy schools.

    • Coaching and dramatherapy (pupils, staff and parents), Pensnett School- Dudley

    • Workshop delivery, Schools Outreach Team

    • Midlands co-coaching forum facilitation, Association for Coaching

  • • Registered Mental Health Nurse: Mandy’s original Qualification started as a Registered Mental Health Nurse.

    • BSc hons in Mental Health Studies, specialising in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

    • Qualified Dramatherapist: Mandy has extensive experience spanning 25 years working with both groups and individuals from primary school age, Secondary school, Further education, Mental health Hospitals and Prisons, Priory and CAMHS teams, Mental health projects in the Community and Loss and Bereavement. In addition she works with couples and parents looking to make significant changes and impact in their life. She also offers Supervision and Therapy to qualified Dramatherapists, supports trainees in Placement, and offers Therapy to students whilst they are in training.

    • PGCE: Mandy has her Post Graduate Certificate in Education, which gives her qualified teacher status to teach and train In Further Education, Adult classes and Training. Mandy has nearly 30 years experience in developing, delivering and evaluating courses including Personal and Social Development such as Anger Management, Developing resilience and Change, Coping with Bereavement, Grief and Loss, Assertiveness, Confidence Building to name a few. She has also developed courses for Teams and Organisations including Developing Positive Relationship with Teams, Creating Healthy Boundaries, Enneagram Profiling, Understanding Relationships, Mental Health and Innovation with ILM. In addition she successfully establishes a new curriculums for those from new communities with lived experience of modern slavery, trafficking and trauma.

    • MHFA England Instructor: Mandy is qualified to deliver MHFA England courses. MHFA England are the sole provider of licensed Mental Health First Aid Instructor Training in England and their programme is accredited by the Royal Society for Public Health.

    • Diploma in Creative Supervision: Mandy is a qualified Supervisor and the Diploma she gained is based in psychodynamic and integrative principles with a commitment to the creative process and the use of creative action methods in one to one, group and team supervision. The Diploma also focused on key areas that Mandy uses within her work including supervisory roles and relationships, contracting and ethics, practice issues including crisis supervision and supervision of supervision.

    • ORSC: Mandy is certified in ORSC (Organisation and Relationship Systems Coaching)- which allows her to train you how to prioritise relationships and become self-aware. Utilising ORSC within delivery has been proven to improve revenue, staff turnover, productivity and other company goals.

    • CPCC: Mandy has the designation of Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC). CO-ACTIVE TRAINING INSTITUTE(CTI) believe the best coaches have an advanced standard of education, which is why their professional coach training programmes significantly exceed the minimum education requirements set by the International Coaching Federation(ICF). A CTI-trained coach receives the highest quality of coach training available, and the Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) credential denotes that a coach has achieved an unmatched level of mastery.

    • PCC: Mandy has the designation of Professional Certified Coach credential. Coaches who have earned the Professional Certified Coach credential have achieved proficiency in their Knowledge of and ability to apply the ICF Core Competencies and the ICF Code of Ethics as a coaching professional. The PCC distinguishes coaches with the verified skills required for effective coaching practice and substantial experience partnering with clients. The PCC is designed for established coaches who provide coaching services as a primary focus of their professional practice. PCC coaches are required to demonstrate their continued professional development to maintain their PCC status.

  • • ICF: Mandy is a member of the International Coach Federation. ICF is more than a membership Organisation for educated professional coaches. It is a home for thousands of like-minded professional coaches around the world who are dedicated to transforming the world through coaching. ICF members represent the highest quality of professional coaching. With more than 50,000 active members around the world, ICF continues to lead the way in all things coaching. Their Code of Ethics sets them apart in the industry, creating appropriate guidelines, accountability and enforceable standards of conduct for all ICF members.

    • BADth: Mandy is a full member of the British Association for Dramatherapy which was established in 1977. ‘Dramatherapist’ is a title protected by law so Full Members of BADth must be registered as Dramatherapists with the Health Professions Council.

    • HCPC: Mandy is a full member of Health and Care Professions Council. No AS01391 https://www.hcpc-uk.org

    By law Dramatherapists must be registered with HCPC to work in the UK.

    • AC: Mandy has been an active member of the Association for Coaching for 20 years. The AC’S purpose is to inspire and champion coaching excellence, to advance the coaching profession and make a sustainable difference to individuals, organizations and society. Mandy facilitates the West Midlands Co-Coaching and follows the AC Coaching Competency Framework and adheres to the Global Code of Ethics for Coaches & Mentors. https://www.associationforcoaching.com

    • SET: Mandy is an active member of The Society for Education and Training. This is the professional membership body for the Further Education and Training Sector. https://set.et-foundation.co.uk

Let’s work together.

Get in touch and we’ll get back to you with how we can help you to know your limits.