From Stress to Success

Q&A – Mark L Taylor (MLT) ‘s Experience in Being Mentored Through the Pathfinders Project By Dr Catherine Baudino (CAB), Founder of Living Segue™.

How did you two meet?

CAB – Two years ago in September, I joined some friends for dinner at Pizza Express in the King’s Road. One of the other guests was Martin Hewitt of Walking With The Wounded Fame. When Martin (no doubt making polite chat) asked him what I did, I explained I was a coach and a mentor. One of my areas of expertise is Living Segue™ – a service that provides a smooth career transition for our clients.

Martin immediately asked me whether I would be interested in mentoring a wounded soldier. That was at 2100 on a Wednesday evening. Next morning, at 0900, I received an email from me enquiring whether I was serious!

By the end of the day, he had put in direct touch with Pathfinders and I was ultimately one of 6 people chosen to meet 6 mentees in Colchester Barracks. And, as they say, the rest is history…

What was happening in your life when your discharge from the British Army was imminent?

MLT – I was in the process of a divorce, suffering from PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) and bewildered about re-entry to civilian life after 25 years of service for my country.

How did you feel?

MLT – The challenges of daily life can be overwhelming when you first leave the military. While on active duty, the military gives you a place to live, food, clothing, a job, friends and sense of identity. What the military doesn’t give you is freedom and choices.

Once you leave the military the story is reversed – you have lots of freedom and choices but very little else. If you are like most service members, you joined the military relatively young so you may not have ever lived on your own “in the real world.”

I was terribly confsed and knew I could not do this on own. I did know I needed direction, but to where and who would help me read or even find that map?

I was encouraged to join a workshop with a select group of coaches/mentors over 2 days in Colchester Barracks with whom we (mentees) would be paired over a period of twelve months.

What drew you to Catherine, your present coach/mentor?

MLT – Pretty much immediately, while the coaches were introducing themselves, I was taken by Catherine’s no nonsense, ut friendly and focused determined attitude. She is one feisty formidable sophisticated lady and she made it clear that her particular “pairing” must be collaborative, communicative and with choices at ALL times.

I walked over to the moderator and told him Catherine Baudino and I MUST work together. And that was it!

How did this process of coaching/mentoring manifest and progress?

MLT – When we had our first one-to-one session, Catherine from the very start emphatically defined the need for a “Call to Action” with the step-by-step plan. At our next meeting in London I pitched up with a pad I still work with today with a significant keyhole image on its cover. I wanted to ensure Catherine and myself that however daunting this still was for me, I was committed and determined to make this work together.

We would meet at least once a month. At the end of each session, Catherine would ask me to send her an email to cover the ‘action points’ we agreed on (I now know that this is part of the Reality Therapy which Catherine practices). Over time, my goals changed but our sessions kept me focused on fiding a way ito ‘civvy life’ – a solution that worked for me.

It’s been a challenging year of major transition and Catherine and I still share a very strong bond and contact. In fact, although I no longer am technically under Catherine’s mentoring (the assignment was for one calendar year), we have kept in touch.

I am now in a new and loving relationship.

I have started my own business, Hero Handyman Ltd which is steadily growing and with repeat clients and referrals. Catherine has put me in touch with my first clients as well as her own marketing expert.

I will not forget my beginnings and will donate part of my profit for the benefit of Army veterans. I am also actie ith and remain closely associated with Help for Heroes and Ex Forces.

It is amazing to think what has happened in only the space of one year and all that because Catherine went out for a pizza one evening….

[Earlier versions of this post have appeared in The Forces Businessnet – to whom we owe the title and Pathfinders]

Thank you for reading!