Testimonials
Thank you to my clients for sharing their experience of my coaching!
After all the financial and personal investments I have made in becoming a doctor, working with Karen was an investment in myself, which I will forever be grateful for. I felt lost; I didn’t know where to start, but knew I needed change. Karen’s approach was supportive, open and encouraging. She helped me get to know myself on a deeper level and determine what I wanted out of my career. She helped me formulate a plan to make actual changes. Since I have worked with Karen, I have connected with other doctors who have similar interests and goals, which has been so important. I now have a timeline for my career goals, have enrolled in a course to further these goals, and feel confident in the next phase of my career. In addition to my career planning, through working with Karen, I have reconnected with my hobbies and interests, which I had pushed to the side. I wholeheartedly recommend working with Karen.
It has been quite a while now that I’ve been questioning my career and thinking there may be something more out there for me than clinical medicine. As I think we all do, I struggled hard with the concept of “looking around” when I worked so hard and sacrificed so much to get to this point. This is where Dr. Barnard stepped in for me. A friend of mine directed me to consider coaching and I was lucky enough to land on Karen’s website. I immediately felt hopeful for the first time in a long time and booked my career clarity call without hesitation. Within the first few minutes I knew this was going to be a good match for me and felt relaxed and trusting. The path we take to clinical medicine is very scripted and well walked but this was totally different territory for me. With Dr. Barnard we were able to walk together step by step to really think through what my next adventure would be. She took the time to get to know me as a clinician and a person and gently guided me to explore many avenues broadly and then areas of interest more closely. And when it came time for the interview, the resume, the logistics of career searching? I’ve never felt more prepared!
I am now in the process of moving into education of undergraduate medical students and I am so excited about my career for the first time in a long time. If you’re thinking about this at all I fully recommend saying YES. I wouldn’t be where I am today without Dr. Barnard and I’m so grateful.
I am writing to express my sincere gratitude for the invaluable guidance and support I have received from Karen Barnard during my career transition.
When I found Karen, I felt stuck in a career in clinical medicine that left me feeling exhausted and depleted. I didn’t know how to make my next move, and after a long day in the clinic, I didn’t have the bandwidth or energy to research how to make a change.
One of the remarkable aspects of my coaching experience was her ability to address the uncertainties surrounding my next career move and discover my inner voice. While I may not have a clear picture of the exact role that lies ahead, the personalized support and encouragement I received from Karen have empowered me to embrace the uncertainty that comes with a career transition. I now truly see this period of change as a wonderful opportunity for growth and self-discovery rather than a source of anxiety. With Karen’s guidance, I have defined a professional future that is more harmonious with my values and aspirations. I am 100% happier than I have been in years.
I highly recommend Karen Barnard to anyone navigating a career transition. Her expertise, empathy, and commitment to my success have significantly impacted my journey toward a more fulfilling and balanced professional life. I am grateful for her partnership, which has set me on a positive trajectory for the next chapter of my career.
Before I began my coaching journey, I felt lost on a career path that I had worked so hard to create. I was feeling restless and unhappy in my clinical role but also stuck because I couldn’t see a way forward. After spending many hours learning about potential clinical and non-clinical roles, I came across career coaching. Coaching was not a tool I was familiar with and the cost seemed prohibitive but my partner encouraged me to give it a try. When I met Karen, I came to coaching with an inflexible thought process about what I “could” and “should” do as a physician. The initial time investment in exploring my values and personality profile opened my eyes to personal truths that I had never considered when making career choices. This helped me identify the aspects of my job that supported or violated my deeply held values which has given me clarity about what I want for my career moving forward.
Karen’s caring and supportive coaching style provided a safe space for me to be honest with myself even when it was difficult. Although coaching is not therapy, the self-exploration aspect was an opportunity for personal growth which has positively impacted my entire life.
My career trajectory continues to evolve and I’m excited about the future. Thanks to Karen, I can now confidently use the skills I’ve developed during coaching to design a career path that honors my core values. Words cannot express my gratitude for Karen’s role in my journey and I encourage anyone questioning their career to give coaching a try. You won’t regret it!
I am honestly so grateful that I had the privilege of connecting with Karen. Working with her has been so impactful and significant. I can’t wait to continue working with her as I embark on my journey to explore coaching as a new professional direction. Karen’s kindness, compassion, and positivity have helped me immensely to discover my passion and my authenticity.
I have nothing but glowing things to say about working with Karen. I came to professional coaching through the AMWA ELEVATE leadership program. Though I had been familiar with the concept of coaching, I had not found the time, motivation, or resources to invest in it. This changed as I approached a moment of transition in both my personal and professional life. Karen helped me navigate the stormy seas of change in a more intentional and self-assured manner. Karen’s warmth and down-to-earth nature made it easy for me to share my challenges. Rather than imposing her own perspective on my situation, she thoughtfully guided me to strategies and decisions that are in line with my values and mission. Karen’s coaching helped me to build the confidence to take on a position I would previously have felt was beyond my abilities. She is a treasure!
I was fortunate that I had some savings set aside, which allowed me to invest in exploring the possibility of leaving my job. Money may have been a limiting factor; however, I regard it as an investment in my future.
My work with Karen was one of self-exploration. She has devised a personalized, comprehensive assessment to help you investigate alternate career paths that would suit you, thereby adding structure to this self-exploration. It started with questionnaires which allowed her more insight into my situation. She used an enneagram to characterize personality type, and I produced a list of values that I felt were most important to me within a career and how my career could better serve me. She also encouraged connecting with people who have gone before me or are in jobs that interested me. Karen also made herself available to me for interview practice, sometimes even on short notice.
Karen is a good listener and is very empathetic. She always took the time to pause and acknowledge my difficulties and accomplishments. There were times of self-doubt in making decisions where I needed her positive affirmations to trust my gut. She is that nonjudgemental friend, and I felt comfortable running ideas by her. She coached me to embrace the imposter syndrome, as with any new endeavor; it is normal to have some insecurities. The goal is to use the insecurities as motivation to gather more information on what you are trying to do. She instilled confidence and comfort with the idea that though it is a challenging process, the benefits certainly outweigh the prospect of returning to a suboptimal career situation.
I highly recommend Karen if you feel unfulfilled and unhappy in your chosen career. She is not going to tell you what to do; instead, she is going to provide you with the tools to implement positive change.
I knew I was ready for a change in my career. I wanted clarity in understanding what my options were. Karen immediately made me feel comfortable and safe to start this uncharted path. She helped me define what I wanted and from there she helped me to integrate my past experiences and current job with potential non-clinical career positions. She is resourceful and empowered me to do the necessary work I needed to do in order to achieve this exciting next phase in my career. She gave practical guidance every step of the way, from identifying what I want, job searching, and resume and job interview preparation. These important and essential tasks made all the difference in my approach to getting my first non-clinical career position as medical director.
I’m really lucky to have found Karen. I was looking for my niche in academic emergency medicine after transitioning from the military and during the pandemic. I figured, I was an athlete growing up… why not try a career coach, too?
She was instrumental in helping me to get to where I am today: much happier and with a lot of hope, a plan, and a bunch of tangible leads for the future. Under her coaching, I also negotiated a schedule that worked better for me, took a course, and started consulting on top of clinical medicine (those were right for me). I’m really excited about my future career path.
Karen is an amazing, talented coach who is able to help others see their power within themselves, and harness it in the manner that works for them as an individual. She has helped me view situations from perspectives that I had not considered, find my own solutions to my identified challenges, and sort out conflicting thoughts and feelings that were, in essence, not serving me well. Her background in healthcare and powerful listening skills add to her unique capabilities as a coach. I highly recommend working with her if you are committed to moving forward and ridding yourself of false beliefs!
Karen’s coaching provides me with a renewing space and time to look closely at the life I choose to live. During our sessions, she invites me to arrive in the present moment— which helps put the chaos of the day aside and be present. She listens and observes with skill and caring in the tradition of the best healers and coaches. Her quiet reflections and gentle guiding help me make the choices that lead to behaviors that create the life I want to lead.
