Harborough Hustle Podcast

Martin [00:00:00]:

Hello. I’m your podcast host, Martin Robson Harborough hustle, proudly sponsors, local charities. Check us out on MarketHarboroughBizNetwork.co.uk/podcast where you can find a transcript of today’s podcast, all the links that I mentioned posts that you can share on social media to spread the word, and everything you need to know if you’d like to help our local charities and find out more about our lovely sponsors. Today, I’d like to thank Roman Britons websites, your local web company, that besides being local, has national partners and international clients, Roman Britons design build and host your website and help you get found they specialise in making tech easy so you can focus on your business. Welcome to this episode of Harborough Hustle, where I am delighted to be chatting with Carmen from Inspired to Change. Hi, Carmen.

Carmen [00:00:56]:

Hello. Thank you very much for asking me.

Martin [00:01:00]:

genuinely delighted that that you’re here today. And, hoping that, you know, we’ll have a really lovely chat So let’s let’s dive straight in. the first question is about, you know, a little bit about yourself. What you do kind of the nutshell version because we will do a a deeper dive, and tell us, you know, a bit about, who you are, where do you live? And what do you like for fun outside of business?

Carmen [00:01:27]:

Okay. well, I’m Carmen Harrington. my business is inspired to change, and I’m a clinical hypnotherapist. I live in Market Harborough. Yay for Market Harborough. what do I do outside work? one of the main things I do a lot of is reading. I really like reading. I do I do that for fun a lot. I do walking challenges. Oh,

Martin [00:01:56]:

What what sort of challenge would be

Carmen [00:01:58]:

for example? They’re they’re more online ones rather than actually getting out getting out. I go in countryside to do them, but they’re mostly, discounting your steps and then adding them into a into a, app later on in the day.

Martin [00:02:11]:

Fantastic. Yeah. That’s a good way to keep it, isn’t it?

Carmen [00:02:14]:

Well, I’m walking most of Japan at the moment. Oh, right. Yeah. They’ve they’ve got little on online that’s where you can actually see where you are on the on the pro, you know, the progress.

Martin [00:02:24]:

Well, there’s it’s it’s a long way from the top to the bottom of Japan, isn’t it? I know. Which app is it, by the way?

Carmen [00:02:33]:

it’s conquer challenges. They’re called, and they give you a really nice medal at the end, so it’s all worth it. The the previous one I walked from, Florence, to Rome. That that was quite a nice one because it was on sort of more, rural pathways. This is through seems to be a lot through town, so it’s not quite as picturesque.

Martin [00:02:50]:

Yeah. Interesting. Interesting. I’ve just got some friends this, that the August bank holiday weekend, we’ve done a hundred miles walking challenge. just raising the money for for Laura, all in and around, Harborough and, you know, using the Grand Union canal and various other places. Yeah.

Carmen [00:03:07]:

There’s lots of good walk in places around here.

Martin [00:03:10]:

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We’re lucky like that. Okay. So so tell me, I mean, how did you get started with your business, Carmen?

Carmen [00:03:19]:

I originally found, I was a member of 1 of the market Harborough WIs. And I went one time and there was this hypnotherapist talking, and it wasn’t even anything I knew anything about. Not on my radar at all. I didn’t know anything about it. And what he said made the most amazing sense. I’ve never heard anything like it before. And so I went and trained with him. in the end, and he asked me to join his company, which was inspired to change. They’ve got quite a few associates all around around Britain. So, yeah, so let’s start to start off at the w y.

Martin [00:03:50]:

Well, there we go. Yeah. Okay. It’s been great to be inspired to do something. And what you’re inspired to do is inspired to change. I like that. Yeah.

Carmen [00:04:00]:

That was a good point.

Martin [00:04:03]:

is there something you think that people don’t think about enough when they’re starting to deal with with the sort of work that you do?

Carmen [00:04:12]:

One of the main thing is a lot of people get a bit scared about when they hear hypnotherapy because they don’t understand about trans, and there’s a lot of myths that go on a lot about that side of things. Mhmm. But also, one of the main things that people don’t think about is actually you can change. If you don’t like the way you’re thinking or, you know, the way you’re feeling, you know, it’s it’s like people to get up in the morning and think, well, that’s what I’m gonna have a re rubbish day because I’m feeling awful. It’s understanding that you can change and you can see things from a completely different perspective but it’s it’s understanding that you you can make that difference if you already want to.

Martin [00:04:44]:

Yeah. And and you said that you know, some people are perhaps a bit scared. So, have you got any advice for dealing with that?

Carmen [00:04:54]:

When, the hypnosis bit, you’re always in control. And a lot of people think that, you know, you’re going to be clucking like chickens and all that sort of rubbish, but but that but that’s that’s off TV or stage show stuff. All it is really is just a guided relaxation. And you go into trance many times every day anyway. a lot I think people don’t realize that, you know, when you’re driving, for example, you might know about a and b, but what happens in between? You sort of think, oh, do I go through a red light? because you’ve gone off into the into that little daydreaming world, and that’s a bit really is. There’s nothing clever or well, I suppose it’s clever, but it’s because it does change. It does calm you down, make you feel better, but Yeah. There’s a lot of those sorts of myths. You’re you’re always in control. You can get up and move around. It’s it’s not some weird voodoo magic thing.

Martin [00:05:37]:

Right. That’s that’s a good, analogy about the the car, actually. I think we can all relate to the fact that, you know, you get somewhere and, you think, how did I do that? You know, you you quite clearly are interacting with your whole environment, but perhaps in a slightly different level than, you know, if you’re going somewhere you’ve never been to before.

Carmen [00:05:54]:

That’s exactly what it is. Yeah.

Martin [00:05:57]:

Yeah. So is there something you wish you’d known earlier, you know, in your in your business journey that you’ve learned since? maybe a kind of a note to a younger carman.

Carmen [00:06:09]:

There was, one of the big things. I can’t remember who told me this. I wish I’d remember who it was. but one of the biggest things is do it your way. We we all go into business because we want to do it our way. We want to have that really lovely work life balance, which is tricky. but the whole point of doing your business is to do it your way the way you want to do it. You know, working in corporates, you don’t get the opportunity to do it your way ever, do you? So it’s No. and the other thing is you can actually use the no word. So just just just learning that and making sure that I, for example, I see clients only on Mondays Tuesdays Thursdays Thursdays. and sticking to that, you know, w working out what what works for me.

Martin [00:06:54]:

That’s brilliant. Yeah. I had a plan to to do that with, with Fridays. And, I’ve gotta have a word with my boss. I’m self employed for those people who don’t know. But, yeah, things are not working out the way I planned. So whose fault is that?

Carmen [00:07:11]:

You need to go and see a hypnotherapist to sort yourself out.

Martin [00:07:14]:

There we go. There we go. Wow. it’s something to put on my list for me. so tell me, did you have a did you have a mentor at any part of your a journey. You know, someone officially took you under their wing or or someone you looked up to and thought, yeah. that’s that means a lot to me.

Carmen [00:07:32]:

Yeah. I did. The the bloke who, as I saw talking in at the WI, Gary Johannes his name is he he’s definitely my mentor because he’s he’s the head of inspired changes, you know, the the director. And he, obviously asked me to be a member of Inspire to change because he only asks the best people, of course. Of course. What what I really like about him is that he’s one of those people that when he’s talking, you actually want to listen to what he’s got to say because it’s he sees things from a slightly different perspective that you haven’t thought of sometimes. And what’s really good at this being part of that company, he pushes you ever so ever so slightly with, you know, with a big thud on your back, but it’s but he’s enabled me to go and, now become a hypotherapy lecturer and a supervisor and really encouraging.

Martin [00:08:20]:

Oh, fantastic. Yeah. That that does make a big difference if you get someone who’s encouraging you, you know, particularly perhaps in your earlier days.

Carmen [00:08:29]:

Or e even now because, I’ve only been doing it for 7 years, but there’s an an awful lot of stuff that you could push yourself to do. And it’s just having having people that know what actually would suit you really well to try try and do that, for example, featuring

Martin [00:08:44]:

Yeah. That’s a really good point. So, I mean, is there anyone, like, nowadays that that that you admire?

Carmen [00:08:54]:

maybe not so much with hypnotherapy. I I really admire, people who can play music really well. because because I’m also a piano teacher. And one of the things that, oh, we we went to this festival at the weekend, and there was this bloke there a duo, a violin and guitar, but the bloke of plays, a violin was just amazing. And it turns out, or looked him up when he got back home. He was a, for the 18 to 25 composer of the year or some something or other like that,

Martin [00:09:28]:

18

Carmen [00:09:28]:

to 25, ages 18 to 25. and he’s done all this amazing stuff. The it was one of those moments that you sort of sit there and you think, I can’t believe I’m here seeing you. because it was so so clever what he was doing. So I really admire people who can play their instruments really well because it’s it’s more than just a skill.

Martin [00:09:50]:

Yeah. Yeah. No. I can really relate to that. I’m a I’m a really big live music fan. Yeah. Funny enough. You’re talking about, string instruments. I I remember a long time ago seeing, thin lizzy because I was always into, heavy metal, heavy rock, and and they had a support band on and and 3 guys came out that nobody had ever heard of, and and they had the classic, you know, lead guitar. And and this other guy came on with with an electric violin. I’ve never heard of such a thing in in those days. I’m like, okay. And then he started to play it. And and the whole audience was like, Wow. You know, because violins don’t feature an awful lot in in heavy metal music, but, you know, again, he he just he did things with this instrument that you hadn’t seen or heard before, and it really does make you. And I remember them more than I remember the main act.

Carmen [00:10:41]:

Yep. funny, isn’t it?

Martin [00:10:43]:

because it

Carmen [00:10:43]:

things like that have been around for a long time. Even in the, you know, the late sixties with John Kale in the velvet underground playing, the electric viola.

Martin [00:10:51]:

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it it they weren’t quite on my my radar, but since, you know, it it kind of set you off, also off down a little path that you go. I’m gonna find out some more of that. So, yeah.

Carmen [00:11:03]:

Yeah. It’s a it’s a really good thing when you discover something new.

Martin [00:11:07]:

Yeah. Yeah. I I mean, on that point, I mean, is is there something that that you still want to learn?

Carmen [00:11:15]:

Maybe. I read a lot of brain books, you know, in books about, you know, how the brain works because it’s sort of really relevant to a lot of stuff that we do. So I want to learn more about that maybe sort of more of the neurobiology of of what’s actually going on. they need to be more knowledgeable to help my clients and students as well, and then I’m teaching, I suppose. The more you the more I know, the more you want to impart to everybody else. Yeah.

Martin [00:11:39]:

And and that’s, yeah, it’s obviously I should think quite an evolving, area of of work as well.

Carmen [00:11:47]:

It does. It’s one of those those parts of the of your body that they just don’t have a clue often what what’s going on there. Yeah. It’s def definitely evolving all the time.

Martin [00:11:59]:

Brilliant. Alright. Let’s do a quick confession time then. What what would you say is one of the biggest mistakes you’ve made in business What did you learn from it?

Carmen [00:12:08]:

One of the biggest mistakes I think is trying to please everybody, isn’t it? Trying to fit people in, you know, your schedule even though they they don’t necessarily fit in. it’s not sticking to boundaries, I suppose. There’s another way of saying it. because at least at least to overwhelm you know, when you’ve got too many people and, you know, trying to fit them all into into the same few days. but again, it’s something I said earlier. I think one of the biggest things to learn from it is being able to use that a no word. And if if a client doesn’t fit and they they can they can wait. know, they’re they’re quite happy to wait. It’s, you know, if you go and see a doctor, you’re happy to wait for a few weeks on you or whatever it is. And it’s, Also, not all clients can be a good fit. So sometimes it’s okay to to say, I think you’d be better off with a different different hypnotherapist. Being being able to say those sorts of no words.

Martin [00:12:59]:

Yeah. No. I I think you’re right. I think it is is powerful and, as I say, you know, it’s a lesson I’m well aware of, but still have to apply a little, more stringently myself, perhaps.

Carmen [00:13:11]:

It’s hard to do because because you want to you want to help people, don’t you? you want to be there for them, particularly if, you know, they’re clients that are coming back or, you know, loyal clients.

Martin [00:13:20]:

Yeah. Exactly. mean, flipping that a little bit, what what would you say is your proudest business moment?

Carmen [00:13:26]:

Oh, proudest moment. Would There’s probably a couple of things. One of the proudest moment is actually being able to see significant changes in clients and see them get better in as little as even 6 weeks. know, when they come in, some people come in extremely anxious. And after 6 weeks, they can leave feeling like they can cope with life. I mean, that’s I see that time and time again. It’s always good. It’s one of the best feelings. But another thing was actually realizing that, uncomfortable lecturing. And that that came as a bit bit of a surprise when I realized I wasn’t, getting myself wound up. having to go in, you know, because I do it quite a few weekends a month and being comfortable doing it because I always used to suffer a bit from confidence and you know, insecurities and imposter syndrome, that sort of thing. But actually, I can do it, and it’s fine. Who knew? That that that was a really proud moment knowing that I was confident enough to be able to do

Martin [00:14:20]:

Yeah. Again, I mean, I can understand that, you know, I used to teach before I was doing this and, you know, you would see people who who that whole like standing up in front of, a group of people was perhaps the scariest thing in the world. It really is. Yeah. What did you teach? I teached?? This is great. You will like this, I teached English! Who said we weren’t editing these things? Yeah. No. I used to teach English as a foreign language.

Carmen [00:14:57]:

so, you

Martin [00:14:58]:

know, students who where English wasn’t their first language, I would help them to to improve on that level. Oh good. Yeah. And before that, I used to teach computer, software, things like word and Excel to complete beginners and and again, get them competent technically, but also past that fear stage of of using tools. Yeah. You know, that’s half of it really in in both of those areas.

Carmen [00:15:24]:

So Yeah. I could imagine that’s true actually because you get scared to push certain buttons in case it’s all gonna go wrong.

Martin [00:15:31]:

Yes. Exactly. and, you know, sometimes it does. Sometimes it does for the most experienced office, but but generally the world keeps spinning. So, you know, when I had one of my previous guests on, she said, can I ask a question for the next guest? My Okay. Why not? So this is a question from, Natalie of Welland Legal Valley. and she wants to know, what is your USP

Carmen [00:16:01]:

I would say my USP is I offer a free initial consultation. where people can come and tell me tell me what their issue is. And then as part of that, I give them a a bit of a talk about what’s actually going on in their brain to help them to be able to understand why they’re suffering the way that they are. And basically what hypnotherapy does and how it can actually help them, help them to calm down, help them to see from a different part of the brain to help them make better decisions, make proper assessments of situations as well. So getting them to understand that they do have the option to change and to get better can be quite life changing. I’ve had a few people who’ve just come for that specifically and then don’t need any more sessions because they realize that they they can help themselves, which is fantastic. So I would say the free initial consultation and imparting all that knowledge

Martin [00:16:50]:

Brilliant. Yeah. Like I said, it’s a helping industry. So, you know, if you can help people to the point where they can help themselves, then, it’s it’s worked out. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah.

Carmen [00:17:03]:

Yeah. It’s definitely a good thing. So

Martin [00:17:07]:

if you weren’t working as a as a hypnotherapist garment, what’s something else that you another career you might like to have attempted or may still?

Carmen [00:17:16]:

Oh, I would like to be maybe either a music teacher or a musician of some some sort I originally went to university on a a scholarship to do to do the piano and study music and I never finished it. So, obviously, I wouldn’t be Ryan now, though, probably. I did, but, yeah, definitely. I’d like to, be a really good performer, I think. It’s not something I don’t think. Yeah.

Martin [00:17:44]:

Yeah. That would be amazing. and and kind of linked to that if you got something still on your bucket list?

Carmen [00:17:53]:

Travelmore. So so it’s it’s a lot more of the world. live music. I want to see see more of that. We see we see what like you, as you were saying before, we go and to see quite a few concerts, both classical and, you know, and rock and whatever else. So there’s folk a lot of that too. and, yeah, I just absolutely love it. Really love it. So I’d like to go and see far more of that.

Martin [00:18:17]:

Fantastic. Yeah. I can relate to that for sure. Can you tell us or maybe even show us possibly about a hidden talent you have that perhaps people outside your immediate circle and not aware of? I don’t think I can probably show you

Carmen [00:18:36]:

at the moment inside, but I can do a standing back flip. Wow. Duck, I can’t really. I’m dreamy jerking. Still. Wow. Well, I’d like to. That’d be quite cool. That’d be a good place to check. Probably not that much. I I because I’m really young and cool. Mhmm. I do a lot a lot of crochet stuff So and I can crochet really, really fast. So I don’t know if that’s something to do with, playing the piano and being able to move my fingers fast. I don’t know. I can I can do it without looking as well. Wow. So I don’t know if that’s that’s a talent.

Martin [00:19:14]:

It it could be. I mean, there are post fire all around the world now that seem to get decorated, you know, with with people who are talented crocheters, if that’s the correct word. So, yeah, and that’s it. Have you ever done a postbox by the way?

Carmen [00:19:28]:

I haven’t know, but I was involved. Do you remember a few years ago by the by the church, there was a crochet Christmas tree. Don’t know if you ever ever saw that, in in the middle of town 2 2 years ago. with 2 other people actually funnily enough that I met at the WI. We organized that and so put put that up beside beside the church was there for quite a few weeks at Christmas time. It was 20 feet high.

Martin [00:19:49]:

And we

Carmen [00:19:50]:

had, there were several thousand squares involved in it that we all had, you know, sewed together. We got taught people how to crochet at the indoor market in town just just because it was part of that loneliness post COVID trying to get people out and about and doing something, getting finding a community. Yeah. That was a

Martin [00:20:10]:

really good thing to do. Great. Yeah. Well, hopefully you’ll you’ll maybe do something like that again. And, We’ll we’ll get to know it this time.

Carmen [00:20:18]:

It took a lot of time and effort, so we’ll we’ll see.

Martin [00:20:21]:

Higher lifting twenty foot high. Yeah. So, It’s been brilliant. Been really interesting. How can we find you online social media website? That sort of thing.

Carmen [00:20:33]:

I’m on Facebook, inspired to change market Harborough. my website is www. inspired to change dotbizbiz@theend.

Martin [00:20:43]:

Right.

Carmen [00:20:44]:

I’m also on Instagram. Inspired to change Michael Harborough, I think. Cool. Yep. LinkedIn.

Martin [00:20:51]:

Fantastic. The

Carmen [00:20:52]:

ad that you have to be on, don’t you?

Martin [00:20:54]:

Yeah. You do. You do. and we’ll obviously have all of those links, in the show notes afterwards. Okay. Thank you. Brilliant. So to round off, is there anything that do you wanna share with us before we let you go?

Carmen [00:21:11]:

Can’t think of anything. Just thank you very much for having me.

Martin [00:21:14]:

I’m delighted you came on. It’s been a real pleasure. It’s lovely. So, Carmen, it it was great to meet you. And, hey, dear listener. Please show some love for Carmen by checking out all of the show notes and the links on the website and socials on MarketHarboroughBizNetwork.co.uk/podcast, even better. join in. Leave a comment, a question, a suggestion. We really appreciate learning how we can make this show, the best for you. If you’d like to be a guest on the show or take advantage of our earlier doctor sponsorship deals, we’d love to hear from you. Pop along to the website for more details. This episode of Harborough Hustle has been sponsored by Roman Britons Websites you can find out more about them on romanbritons.com. Thank you very much for listening, and we’ll see you in the next show. Thank you. Bye bye.