The Bullyologist - Breaking the Silence on Bullying - E-book - ePub

The Bullyologist - Breaking the Silence on BullyingThrough adversity comes great power.. Working in corporate Human Resources at an oil and gas project in Australia, Jessica Hickman was a champion for positive change, winning awards and recognition for her outstanding work in identifying gaps in mental health support in the Resources industry and helping create safer work environments. But behind the scenes, Jessica endured prolonged workplace bullying that included physical and emotional intimidation, misogyny, threats, harassment and verbal abuse, which over time led to extreme anxiety and stress-related hospitalisation.
 Although her job was to implement best practice for employee support and to encourage healthy, respectful and productive company culture, Jessica herself became the victim of a relentless workplace targeting that caused her to live in fear at her own desk. She filed over 30 reports to upper management about her manager's behaviour with mixed results. Working through her own suffering, she was torn between a desire to help others and serious thoughts about abandoning an industry in the midst of a rise in suicides.
Bound by a visa restriction and the concern that if she left, someone she cared about would have no mental health support, she stayed out of fear - putting her own happiness on hold to help those who needed her most. Turning fear into fuel, Jessica now uses her valuable experience to be an advocate for positive and lasting change. Thriving in the aftermath of her 'post-traumatic growth', she now helps others understand the complex nature of modern bullying, educating today's leaders about the damaging effects toxic workforce cultures can have on personal and business success.
Jessica Hickman was born in Wales and moved to Australia in 2013. Through a three-year personal ordeal with workplace bullying, she empowered herself to become a dynamic activist and advocate in the field of bullying, mental health and positive relationships. She is the founder of Bullyology, a professional anti-bullying methodology dedicated to tackling the global scourge of bullying while striving to promote healthy relationships in workplaces, at schools and online.