Back in 2017 we became involved with Teach First, an initiative to support newly qualified teachers with their leadership skills. Seeing the benefit that an hour or so of our time had a huge impact, both on the teachers we were coaching as well as ourselves.
We then went on to complete our NLP Master Practitioner Qualification and realised just how much of a difference we could make, especially with our new skills. Whether you are looking to train for a marathon, set up your own business or just achieve a personal goal or two the key is to have the right mind-set and support, right from the start.
Many things in everyday life mean we do not concentrate on our own wellbeing, physically and mentally. A lot of us will learn the hard way, resulting in illness or the ability to not be able to cope day to day, as well as with the big issues.
We have found working for a large corporation difficult over the last few years for various reasons, circumstances beyond our control led to us being in ‘survival mode’ – sickness and long term absence of team members, a fast paced environment and a demanding customer - plus the more recent COVID-19 effect have resulted in us both realising that we are more resilient and resourceful than most. The other realisation came with accepting we both needed the support of each other, sometimes having someone to talk to, especially someone who completely gets the situation and the feelings and emotions connected to that situation, is a necessity we cannot overlook. Continuing our day jobs, managing and maintaining motivation for our teams as well as covering other roles and tasks due to absence all took its toll. Having worked through stressful and demanding times, over a prolonged period, we have managed to remain well, motivated and supportive of our peers and direct reports. Strengths we are now fully utilising in our own business.
We had become increasingly frustrated at how little we could influence, improve and change processes within the wider corporate world, and we also realised that our core values had become increasingly distanced from those of that world. A realisation that resulted in us deciding to start Emerge, with our core values at the heart of it – allowing us to be flexible, adaptive and better able to support others. Essentially all we are looking to be is the best version of ourselves we possibly can, whilst balancing work, home and our own personal growth.
Our own personal values are the foundation and key to our business and we pride ourselves on living by them.
By sharing our insights and experiences with you from the last few years it will enable us to support you personally and professionally, as well as future proofing your ability to cope and remain resilient - no matter what life may throw at you. Our one to one coaching sessions, online workshops (individual and group) as well as face to face team sessions will ensure that you will be given the tools to maximise your potential. Whilst we have travelled a bumpy road, our purpose is to ensure your journey is more straight forward, with less need to call on the 'emerge'ency services!
Sarah’s journey to starting her own wellbeing business started in 2016 when as part of her then day job she volunteered, alongside Emerge’s co-founder Carmen, to coach newly qualified teachers in leadership skills with the charity Teach First. Seeing first-hand the positive difference those sessions made to those teachers enabled Sarah to realise that there was a way to make a difference and add value to others alongside earning a living. Something that was very different to the corporate leadership role she held at the time which at times demanded a lot of effort for very little gain.
The one part of her role she enjoyed and felt was effective was working with members of her team, on their own growth and progression. As part of her personal development, she was given the opportunity to become a Master Practitioner of NLP, an invaluable tool that was utilised with her own team – allowing her to support them with their own respective careers.
Working in a demanding role, as a key worker, throughout Covid highlighted just how important support, strength and resilience are; and also that not everyone has these qualities readily available to them when they need them. Sarah and Carmen were each other’s support, as well as being there for other members of the workforce to talk to when they were struggling. The Resilience Workshops were created at this time, to ensure Sarah and Carmen could help others to establish boundaries, be better equipped to cope with life’s uncertainties as well as to be more open to being flexible and adapting to changing situations.
It had been a dream of Sarah’s for a while to be able to work for herself, have a better quality of life and make a difference to others. Redundancy from her corporate role has allowed her to be able to do just that. Her own personal values of balance, growth and purpose are very much aligned with her business values and she has first-hand experience of just how important it is to focus on your own wellbeing, physically and mentally, to ensure you can live the life you want to and cope when you need to. Sarah lives with her husband, and her black Labrador Retriever Kolby, and looks after her own wellbeing by taking long walks, daily yoga and traveling whenever she can.
Sarah and Carmen continue to grow their business, supporting both individuals and groups to achieve their goals. One of her favourite quotes is ‘Build a life you do not need to take a holiday from’ and she intends to do just that, as well as support you to do the same. She looks forward to hearing from you and working with you as you progress on your own journey.
Carmen is passionate about supporting people to achieve their own ambitions and aspirations, so they can Emerge and Be Who They Are.
It all started in 2016, whereby along with co-founder Sarah, Carmen volunteered to support teachers in their first leadership roles with Teach First as a coach. Carmen quickly identified her genuine love of seeing her encouragement and assistance resulting in teachers becoming confident and trustworthy leaders within their roles.
Understanding how powerful and beneficial coaching can be led to Carmen exploring this further by becoming an NLP master practitioner in 2018. Using NLP to recognise what we think and why, along with how we interpretate what we see, hear and feel, also meant that Carmen continued with her own personal development and journey.
Working with their co workers and direct reports enabled Carmen and Sarah to realise, that encouraging people to have the confidence and achieve their own aspirations, is what they wanted to do themselves on a more permanent basis - and so they founded their company Emerge.
Prior to co-founding Emerge, Carmen learnt a lot about her own strength and resilience working in the corporate world. She experienced a number of challenging situations over a long period of time, which was then compounded as a key worker working throughout Covid. It was during this period when more understanding was gained on the importance of looking after your wellbeing and having a strong belief in yourself, which are all tools and tips that she shares with her clients and via the company’s workshops.
With the last few years teaching Carmen and Sarah about the importance of resilience, they have developed their own unique programme, for school’s and businesses, focusing on the importance of resilience in everyday life.
Also important in Carmen’s life are her partner and two children, whilst keeping her busy she also likes to stay active and has achieved one of her bucket list items by successfully completing the London marathon.
Whether it’s accomplishing those lifetime aspirations, needing some advice or maybe guidance to improve resilience, Carmen looks forward to you contacting her and Sarah at Emerge.
