Cooper Thompson

        Counseling

   About me

   What is
   counseling

   My approach

   Qualifications

   Specialties

   Comments
   from clients

   Fees

   Living in
   Germany

   Impressum

I was born in 1950 and grew up in the United States. In 2003 I moved to Germany when I married a German woman. I consider myself an immigrant. I made the decision to stay here. I also decided to learn and use German as much as possible.

My experiences as an immigrant and German speaker have been painful. The first two years were difficult for me. I was scared to speak German, I didn’t think that I belonged here, and there were things about Germany that I didn’t like. I often blamed my feelings on my wife, even though it wasn’t her fault. But after 5 years of living here, I feel pretty confident and, on most days, satisfied. And I speak German.

My career in the U.S. focused on promoting diversity and challenging oppression. For 30 years I worked with many different types of organizations: schools, businesses, religious groups, and community agencies. In addition to leading workshops and writing, I provided counseling, coaching, and mediation to individuals, couples, and teams who were experiencing conflicts related to differences.

Since moving to Nürnberg, I have continued to offer coaching for professionals through DIVERSITY WORKS, a German consulting group. I’m currently writing a book about my experiences learning German.  And I provide counseling to individuals and couples.