Talking with Tamsen Garrie, Coach

Tamsen Garrie has been my coach and mentor for several years. I spoke to Tamsen about how she became a coach, how she supports people and the benefits of coaching.

Let’s start with five interesting facts about yourself:

1. I was raised by the daughter of a Buddhist teacher - so my upbringing was possibly a little unconventional.

2. I was a Judo Champion at 15

3. I am VERY affected by colour, more so than others. I love all shades of blue. If I am surrounded by or wearing it, I am happy. I never wear black and despise yellow.

4. At 29, I experienced what I used to refer to as an early mid-life crisis. It was actually a mental health crisis which followed three months of depression. I hated my job and relationship, left everything and moved to Australia where I lived for 4 four years.

5. Since 23 I have had a life-long dream of traveling through Tibet.

Can you explain about what you do?

My professional background is in oil, gas and investment banking, where I was an operational manager and worked in HR.

After my life changed at 29, I studied hypnotherapy and psychotherapy, which led to coaching.

My current role is Director of Culture for three businesses. Within that I support the management to create the organizational conditions for their workforce to thrive, contribute the best of themselves and ultimately deliver value at work and for their clients and customers. I take the organisations’ beliefs and values and help them communicate this to their staff and beyond.

Mental Health in the Workplace helps businesses in making changes which support their staff’s mental health and wellbeing. Inspired to Change, delivers Solution Focussed Hypnotherapy across the country via their 21 associates, supporting individuals to increase their mental health. And the Catalyst Care Group, where we met, is a brand of business providers who offer staffing and care solutions to vulnerable people.

Whilst experiencing hypnotherapy, I leant how the brain worked, how we don’t use our minds enough and how we can use them more effectively. This lead me study clinical hypnotherapy, psychotherapy and coaching and that’s how I ended up on this train.

What inspired you to become a coach?

There was no one thing or event. It was partly a natural progression from being a manager. My first managerial position was at 26 and part of the role was coaching people. Of course, no one told me how to do it and I did not realise I was doing it. Moving into HR also required coaching staff. It was then when I studied to be a therapist.

It was when I set up my business and got involved with a small business network that I learnt what business leaders needed. There was a common theme cropping up amongst business owners. They wanted to overcome the limiting beliefs which were preventing them or holding them back from building their businesses. That’s how I found myself business coaching.

Becoming a coach naturally flowed from there. I studied for a coaching qualification and have been coaching for 10 years.

What are the Benefits of being mentored / coached?

Wow, there are so many - it’s so far reaching

The purpose is to enable the other person to unlock their full potential or to put it another way, to help an individual maximise their own performance. Coaching enables people to find the best version of who they are and be that, or better.

Through the process, we become more aware of who we are when we are not being our best. We notice thoughts, traits, habits and beliefs that get in the way. Most of us walk around on auto pilot, often only learning about ourselves when things are reflected back at us. For instance, when things don’t work out the way we expect or want them to, or how people respond to us.

A Coach’s job is to help you see the bits you cannot see. We provide insight and knowledge.

The benefits are huge - I see relationships work, professional lives improve, enormous career growth, an improvement in mental health, and happiness.

Do you have a method for your coaching sessions?

There is no set method, as it depends on the relationship, how long we’ve worked together and what’s already been covered. However, I always begin with asking ‘what’s been good?’ as we can only answer that from our intellectual minds.

It’s about coaching that individual, so I do not go in with any strict methodology.

To begin with I find out how the individual wants to be coached, what they want to get out of coaching, and the goal they are working towards. It’s useful to begin with the end in mind and work back. I ask lots of questions and then more questions in order to gain insight. I sometimes point out things that they may not recognize and give reflections.

What therapeutic approach do you use?

My training is in psychotherapy, hypnotherapy and Solution Focused hypnotherapy - so it depends on what the client was presenting with. I would say that SFH is always part of the process. It’s the most modern approach, backed by neuroscience , is harmless and suits most people.

What beliefs underpin your coaching?

I believe everyone is doing the best they can with the resources they have available to them and that we all hold the tools and resources we need to thrive. Various circumstances, how we grow up, past trauma, etc can get in the way of our ability to access those resources. It’s all within you.

Also, I believe that in order to grow; we need to get uncomfortable. Yet, we have to be in some level of comfort to take the step into discomfort.

Being coached is a skill. Sometimes people need time to develop that skill and learn how to be coached.

Why is coaching important in leadership?

A good leader inspires other people, so they need to be on the development journey to lead the way. If a leader lacks awareness and does not take personal responsibility, or isn’t committed to growing or being better, then they won’t be an effective leader.

You can be a leader without coaching, but probably not a a particularly good one.

What difference have you seen in me?

There are so many changes. There is a general calmness about you, you are more centered, much more reflective and think things through differently. You maintain immense personal responsibility, with no blame of others. You are happier, and inspiring, not just because of what you’ve overcome, but who you have become in the process of what you’ve overcome. It’s a tough gig. To overcome as much as you have and to develop into who you are in the process is a big deal.

I see more success and confidence in your business - look at the Carers Collective and how it’s developed!