Karen Carpenter
EMCC Senior Practitioner
Despite the name, there is only one Karen Carpenter! Described by others as wise, brave and empathic, and with a professional career that includes many years working independently as a consultant, trainer, and coach as well as many years leading and managing complex operations, I am equally comfortable working with executives and their teams as with small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs just starting out on their journey.
Those who know me, know that my life passion has been my horses. I am a true country girl at heart. But, I also have a fascination for history. These days, my interest is fairly broad, not confined to any particular era – but, it started with an embroidery kit of Anne Boleyn that I was given as a young child. I have never actually liked embroidery so I only ever managed a few untidy stitches before giving up. Nevertheless, I was intrigued by the image of the ill-fated queen and, over the years, became increasingly interested in the Tudor period. Then, as my nursing career progressed through the ranks, I found myself increasingly noticing the lessons of history and relating them to some of the tough situations I encountered myself – situations where it really did seem that any day your head might roll! I didn’t realise at the time, but these small insights provided the first seeds of the idea that was, much later, to become Karen Carpenter Events.
They were not the only seeds. Over the years I have gathered inspiration from many familiar, and sometimes less likely, sources. The coach training that I completed in 2012 included a day’s insight into coaching with horses and it is certainly true that many of my ideas have emerged whilst spending quality time with my equine friends. In fact, my first solo event ‘No More Horsing Around: From vision to reality, tips to keep you on track from a retired racehorse’ was inspired by my companion of over 30 years, Sunrise Sadiq aka Barney, and his journey from gangly yearling to fleet footed winner over 12 furlongs. I also read – a lot – across a broad range of coaching, business, and leadership topics. As a coach, I often recommend books that I think will resonate with individual clients - and I regularly use analogies to help speed up the process of understanding and to depersonalize difficult situations. It is, after all, much easier to think freely about somebody else’s challenges than our own.
So, the events you will find here are an eclectic mix of topics that interest and intrigue me. What connects them is the
golden thread
of lessons learned in life, leadership, and business. My hope is that you too will find value in following the connections, wherever they may lead you.
What People Are Saying
Karen has recently delivered a leadership workshop to my customer team. It was an innovative and interactive session that all members thoroughly enjoyed and took a lot from. They have all asked for part 2. The programme didn’t follow usual leadership fashion and it really made people stop and think. Thought provoking, engaging and a really valuable session.
Lisa Powell
Operations Director - Midlands & South West, Ramsay Health Care UK
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