Meredith Fuller

About Meredith Fuller

For a specialist in counselling & careers, Meredith Fuller is well qualified. Not only in her formal qualifications-which include a BA psych, a Grad Dip in vocational counselling, a Masters in career behaviour, and membership of the College of Counselling Psychologists; Meredith’s concurrent careers have included author, playwright, columnist, talkback radio counsellor, TV panellist, psychological profiler and lecturer. Her main role is working as a psychologist in private practice, providing counselling and vocational psychotherapy. She has also consulted to organisations on career development for over 15 years.

Meredith is a recognised specialist in career change & vocational behaviour. She ran a university careers counselling service for 12 years and has been a sessional lecturer in postgraduate courses in psychology at several universities for over 10 years. Meredith has been a member of consultancy panels & service provider for University of Melbourne, Monash University, Swinburne University and RMIT University, since 1986.

Meredith is an author and contributor to various books, articles and papers. Her latest contributing chapter & mini book is ‘Doing Beloved Work: Finding truth in your career’ LOVE@WORK series for Australian Institute of Management, Wiley & Sons, 2006.

Meredith is also a media spokesperson for the Australian Psychological Society, providing print media quotes on psychological issues and interviews.

Meredith is an early morning guest psychologist for ABC radio.

Meredith has been a regular columnist in the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Herald-Sun (’Body Talk’), The Age Sunday Life, New Idea, House & Garden, B magazine (’problem page’), and a quiz designer for Cleo and Cosmopolitan. She is quoted in daily newspapers and popular magazines including Madison, Woman’s Day, Women’s Health, Good Taste and Good Health & Medicine. Meredith also provides regular career advice on ninemsn.com

Meredith is heard and seen on radio and television. Since 1980 she has spoken on psychological topics on radio, including regular spots on 3UZ and ABC Radio National. Meredith also has guest spots on Channels 7, 9 and 10, ABC and SBS, including the programs A Current Affair, Today Tonight, Body & Soul, and Live at Five. Behind the scenes, she has also been a psychological profiler and technical adviser to the print and electronic media, including the drama series Halifax fp.

Meredith’s plays Stalk, Stalking, Stalked, and Come As You Are/School Reunion have been staged at  Dancehouse & Gasworks.

As a professional child model for over 10 years, Meredith worked for Athol Shmith and John Cato, amongst others. She was awarded a scholarship to the National Theatre, and appeared in many theatrical and light opera productions over 14 years, at St Martins & theatre groups, including The Cavern, Salad Days, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf? and Twelfth Night. She also appeared in the iconic television drama Homicide.

A LifeMember of AusAPT, Meredith is a regular contributor to the Australian Psychological Type Review, with her Workspaces series of in-depth case studies of personality types in the workplace, together with other articles on psychological themes.

She hosts regular Salons for a diverse range of professionals (gatherings to participate in formal & informal discussions centred around specific topics) – increasing knowledge through conversations and readings.

A Brief Interview with Meredith

How did you become interested in counselling psychology?

“I have always been fascinated by people’s life purpose, personality difference, and the unconscious since I was a child. The moment I knew what I’d do when I grew up occurred at the National Theatre where I had won a scholarship.While I enjoyed theatre and performing, I had the sense that it wouldn’t completely satisfy me. When I was 9, we had an improvisation night, ’seeing a therapist’. As the youngest in the class, I was assigned the role that the older members thought was boring; that of the therapist. As I sat in the chair listening and responding to each client’s fantastical story, I had an epiphany -  I knew that my true vocation was to become a psychologist. I had a great interest in what would become of people. From age 11, I wrote down what I thought each school classmate would do when they grew up.”

Someone who had a profound influence on your work?

“My mentor, Dr Selby Markham. He taught me 4th year vocational counselling, and then became my Masters thesis supervisor. Unlike the linear theoretical careers practice of the time, he was intrigued by the puzzle of people’s vocational behaviour and saw it as a far more intuitive, complex life process than administering interest inventories & ability tools to identify careers.  Several colleagues and friends have informed my work; including Susie Rotch, Liz Norris, George Cally, and Pat Strong, my therapist, and various inspiring encounters throughout my professional development.”

What have you learned from your clients?

“That who we are – as evidenced by what we profess to be in our work – is critical to our well being. We must be true to ourselves – whatever that may mean for us. That being invisible – not to be seen and valued for who we really are – causes tremendous pain.”

Most difficult aspect of your counselling work?

“My focus and intensity is absolute. I hold my clients in mind, and as a result I’m cautious about the volume of people I’m prepared to see.”

How has the way that you work changed over the years?

“I hold the tension of not-knowing and life’s paradoxes more easily. I prefer to work with older people undertaking life’s transitions. I am interested in interpersonal and intrapsychic issues, and am particularly curious about quirky, talented or reserved people who are often lost or lonely around the edges of our society, regardless of how supposedly ’successful’ or ‘unsuccessful’ their careers are in the outer world.”

Most influential written work of all the reading you’ve done?

“I love Irvin Yalom, and the writer Janet Malcolm. I appreciate the existential and psychodynamic theorists. Possibly the first vocational theorist who interested me was Harren; he saw career decision making as only quasi-rational, and acknowledged the more intuitive elements. Like Selby, he identified the serendipitous factors – those chance/luck encounters that affect your life path.”

Know NOW about the practice of counselling psychology that you wish you’d known when you began?

“How important it is to have a concerned interpreter for you on your journey. Whether you feel lost, are having relationship or work difficulties, can’t locate your purpose, or are distressed as well as when you feel jubilant and enlivened with possibilities, or burdened by overchoice. That to make sense of one’s life and work actions may need retrospective translation. ”

How long have you been a counselling psychologist?

“Since I knew that I’d become a psychologist since childhood, I had a clear and rapid trajectory. Prior to gaining my degree I sought opportunities that would help to develop my counselling skills, such as voluntary welfare work, and while completing my post grad training I worked as an employment officer with Youth Job Centre, part of the Commonwealth Employment Service. I began working as a university careers counsellor when I was 23. While leading the Careers Counselling Student Services team, I began sessional lecturing in post grad psychology and had a part time private practice. 12 years later I became self employed, counselling and consulting to organisations.”

Describe yourself in 50 words or less?

Creative, intuitive, empathic, curious and ethical. My interactive style is engaging and vital yet quietly reflective while honouring the importance of personal boundary, trust, respect, and support.

Meredith Fuller psychologist, careers counsellor, vocational psychotherapist,
writer, psychological spokesperson for the media
meredith@meredithfuller.com.au