Thursday 20 May 2010

The end of an era

Four days on and I want to pay tribute to someone who has been a significant part of my life for the last year. I wanted to include a photo of her but unfortunately the one photo I have of the pair of us was lost when my laptop crashed in December. In a way that is fitting because she is a very private person. If you are curious you can find a copy of the photo on Minerva's Mind. Karen is the one on the left of the photo.

Karen and I set up Minerva's Mind at the end of last summer. We had a vision and part of it was that we wanted to work with Mums who had two or more children and were wondering what was next for them: go back to work, embrace being a stay at home Mum or forge a new path. We threw our energy into the idea and what emerged was a six week course, lots of publicity, a venue, shed loads of marketing from flyers to all sorts of online routes. Unfortunately there were insufficient takers for it so it never ran. Undaunted we then created Minerva's Mind at Home which generated some interest but again did not really take off.

Increasingly as the months rolled on, cracks began to appear. Let me explain. Karen has a very successful business as an HR professional. She learnt how to use wordpress earlier this year, initially as another way of promoting Minerva's Mind, and in the spirit of play set up her HR blog which has been hugely successful, attracting lots of interest and comment. This helped her to see which way she wanted to take her business and it was different from what I had in mind. Things drifted for a while but then she had the courage to say this is not working and it is time for me to move on. I have huge respect for that because although I too could see it and was getting frustrated about stuff, I did not make the call.

Here's what I learnt from Karen. She is a consummate professional in all that she does. She has very high standards, is very composed and self-contained too. She also holds strong convictions and values - no one gets between Karen and her family for example. From these and other things I observed during our working relationship, I can see how she got to the position of HR Director in an NHS Trust. In addition she gave me the space to grieve the loss of our business partnership for which I am truly grateful because it has allowed me to come out the other side and start working on my ideas. Finally and perhaps most importantly, going through the whole creative process with Karen including the running of events together, showed me that I am a good facilitator.

All that remains is for me to say thank you to Karen for all that you have given me. I hope you will retain your link with the Minerva's Mind fan page and I wish you all the best with your endeavours going forward. I will always think back on our time together with fond memories.

7 comments:

  1. I am sad to see the two of you parting ways, but I can only hope it is the best thing for both of you. They say that people come into your life 'for a reason or a season'. The reason for you Kate, was to learn new things about yourself, and now that season has come to an end. I wish you both well and hope to stay in touch with both of you x

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  2. Thanks for those kind and wise words Sam. I am sure you will keep in touch with us both. Twitter is great for enabling that. In fact I look forward to meeting you next month all being well.

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  3. So what now Kate? How are going planning to take Minervas Mind forward? What about you? Really looking forward to seeing the growth and development from here.

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  4. Anne Eccleston21 May 2010 at 10:25

    Kate you have so beautifully described Karen. For those of us who have worked with Karen know what a huge impact she has had on our careers. We are all better people, personally and professionally for her input....and the laughter! Minervas Mind will grow and grow!

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  5. Thanks for your comments Karen. Some very good questions too. One thing I am doing is something I should have done right from the start and I have got someone with years of experience of writing them to help and critique me and that is a business plan. Still feel in transition as well as only got the news on Monday so watch this space. Anne thanks for your endorsement which means a lot because you have known Karen a lot longer than I have. I have been missing the laughter of late and need some more of that in my life.

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  6. This is a very touching and respectful farewell to your business partnership Kate. I do admire your candour and bravery in writing it. I had a very similar experience only last year. Your blog article brought tears to my eyes as I recalled how a lovely friend and I agreed to go seperate ways on our venture. I wish you endless success - with such high integrity for relationships I'm sure you will attract not just admiration but varied business opps.

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  7. Majella I just saw your comment and I thank you because it was so moving. It is tough going through these things and hearing your story albeit briefly makes me feel more of a bond towards you. When I spoke to you a month or two back I would never have known that you had experienced that you seemed so strong and sure of your direction. Living proof that other opportunities open up and we grow from these experiences. Thank you for sharing my friend.

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