NAME: Carina Harvey
AGE: 42
INSTAGRAM HANDLE: @carinaharveyofficial
JOB TITLE: Founder of Carina HarveyPersonal Identity Coaching
MOVED TO THE UAE IN: January 2016
Carina Harvey is a Personal Identity Coach. Coming from a long corporate background, Carina has seen the benefits and success an individual can have from structured coaching. In 2018, when Carina realised she wanted to create a business of her own, she began exploring where her own passions lie and found that fashion, styling and personal identity were her answer.Â
Since then, Carina has obtained several Fashion and Styling certifications. In addition to her qualifications in Human Resource, People Development, several Coaching specialisms, Sustainable Strategy and Project Management.
Working as a stylist, Carina realised that many of her clients would come to her having gone through a major life change and their most common concern, was feeling at loss of identity. Having gone through and overcome her own struggles with identity, Carina realised this was where she could combine her unique skills and experience to help individuals to rebuild confidence and certainty in themselves and who they had grown to become, as well as educate them on their style. She now runs a coaching business helping women to rediscover and learn to love the people they have become.
Managing the business from scratch means covering every aspect of marketing, branding, networking, building an in-person and online presence, finance and operations, as well as continual development of coaching content and working with her clients.
5 AM: I like to wake early to gather my thoughts and mentally prepare myself for the day. It may sound odd, but the first thing I like to do is to review my diary and my emails! I’ll take a black coffee and just chill on the sofa whilst waking up and reviewing these schedules. It gives me a clear view of what lies ahead for that day and that week, so that I feel totally prepared from the outset of the day. I also have a wellness diary, so I use this to plan specific daily targets I might like to include around nutrition and mindfulness. I find it’s also really nice to carry this process out slowly and considered, without any time pressure.Â
6 AM: I’ll then choose a guided mediation which I find is better to carry out early thing in the morning when my mind is still relatively calm! This helps me to frame my mind positively for the day ahead. I often specifically choose meditations to help me prepare for the plans I have that day - so having already gone through the diary is great for this. For example, if I need to deliver a presentation, I may choose a meditation on confidence, self-love and worthiness to feel ensure I take these feelings into the presentation with me.Â
6:30 – 7 AM: It depends when the sun rises right now, but I like to get my exercise in early! I am a runner, though in recovery right now! So, I am mixing up sessions of running and walking or heading to the local gym for a weights session. If I walk, then I’ll take the dog and will utilise the time to listen to audiobooks or podcasts. These really vary in topic. Building a business means I need to upskill in certain areas such as marketing, so right now I’ve listening to Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller. I might also listen to coaching related books, for example the last one was Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz. Podcasts also vary, I quite like Ferne Cotton’s Happy Place as they tend to be such uplifting stories. There’s some really good local ones too including Let’s Talk DXB and The People of Dubai.
8:30 AM: Shower time! I am really trying to spend more time on skincare in the morning (and night) but I am learning a few massage techniques when applying creams, so I can really get the maximum benefit and keep my skin as healthy as I can! I’ll wear something comfy like leggings and a Tee, so I can throw a blazer on over the top if needed. This is a great look and something I like to educate my clients on i.e. finding a comfy look you can wear with ease to do the errands, drop off the kids, work from home; yet can still add a few items like a blazer and jewellery if you're headed out to a meeting or a lunch later that day, nailed it! I’ll save my make up for later in the day and not put it on just yet, as I think the longer you can keep your face naked and without it, the better! If you knock on my door, don’t say I didn’t warn you!
9 AM: My mornings often begin with content creation. If I need to think of content ideas, I’ll spend a time strategizing, though I also have a social diary to help me to plan ahead and manage this. This might involve taking photos, videos and of course, writing captions. The editing can often be the longest part! I am an over-thinker too, so will spend a long time pouring over and re-watching or reading to make sure the message I am sending is the right one for my audience.
11 AM: I’ll often incorporate email marketing and writing other pieces such as blogs in to my morning if it’s an ‘at the desk’ morning. I’m an intermittent faster too, so it’s around now that I’ll break for a protein shake and a decent breakfast.
1 PM: I tend to find that afternoons are often when my in-person activities or calls take place, whether that’s meeting or speaking with clients, attending events, or networking. Of course, if something is scheduled for the morning, then I’ll shift things the other way. As I am still building my presence, this is a really key activity for me, and I absolutely love it. It’s such an enjoyable part of what I do, meeting such a diverse range of people and seeing how much work I can do to help individuals feel better about themselves. I feel very grateful and it’s a very exciting time in my life. This is also a really nice way of breaking up the day and getting out of the house. A change of scenery is everything! I’ll take my books and my laptop so that in between meetings, I can benefit from working in a new environment, which I often find increases the level of productivity too!
5 PM: Back at home, I’ll finish the day with any additional coaching or style-related reading or updating coaching materials. I’ll also spend some time reviewing what I’ve achieved that day and what lies ahead the next.
6:30 PM: The hubby gets home (he’s usually in the office) and we’re both usually famished at this point. If we’re both in for the evening, we’ll have the daily debate most couples have about what we’ll eat for what seems like an eternity! And then most likely, we’ll order something we usually get! I can actually cook, yet I’m sorry to say that the ease and variety from ordering is just too tempting! If one of us is out (which may often be me if there’s a networking event on), then the other will fend for themselves!
10:00 PM: My husband and I will always end the day spending just five minutes discussing what we’re grateful for from that day. We started do this just over a year ago and it was surprisingly, a generally easy habit to build.