Trio embark on new horizons with Carpe Diem Coaching™  

“I was consumed with guilt for leaving my child, which was compounded by self-doubt as to whether I was really performing in the role I’d been recruited for.”

Lian’s experience will be familiar to working mums and those returning to the workplace after a spell of absence, but it’s one that is shared by others in very different circumstances too.

Her OTD colleagues, Toni Addinall and Qian Zhao spoke of similar feelings having respectively embarked upon ‘new horizons’ of their own.

Toni has transitioned into a management position, while Qian chose to further her career by joining OTD in a brand new role.

All three faced differing but familiar challenges and emotions - caught somewhere in the fog between excitement and trepidation. 

Qian says: “So many things were coming at me at the same time, everything was new! In that situation you can tend to cherry pick the things that you enjoy the most, rather than the tasks that are most important. My main goal was to manage procrastination.”

The trio took part in the company’s recently revamped Carpe Diem Coaching™ programme, a personal development tool based on daily microbursts of 7-minute coaching calls with a handpicked OTD coach.

Each call is purposely designed to challenge, motivate and inspire participants to meet their goals - perfect for new horizons such as:

• Supporting progression towards a new opportunity
• Returning to work
• Assuming a new managerial role

Underpinned by technology, Carpe Diem Coaching™ is also accessible on the move, which makes it even easier to integrate into the working day. The impact on Lian, Qian and Toni was marked. 

“I knew my coach was going to ask me about my goals,” says Qian, “which meant I was being held accountable. Rather than finding ‘solutions’ as such, I really focused on changing my mindset and approach.”

Lian agrees that the presence of an experienced OTD coach was crucial. 

She said: “My coach was brilliant at rationalising my feelings and transformed my way of thinking through the questions she asked and the way she asked them. It boosted my confidence and performance, and helped me to prioritise more effectively.”

While some may initially be sceptical about how much ground can be covered during short, sharp calls, Toni says that her experience was incredibly motivating.

“I've coached and trained a lot of people in how to plan effectively, so I know all of the theory but it all went out of the window in my case - I was so overwhelmed! 

“Carpe Diem Coaching™ has genuinely been a huge support. It gave me the space and time to find a way to be more effective. Sometimes it really does take someone else to make you do it.”

Find out more about Carpe Diem Coaching™ by clicking here.