At a time when many people are enjoying multiple careers, Stradbally native Martina Mulhall is providing a new service to help them get on the right track.
Martina, who has 35 years experience as a primary school teacher as well as decades of volunteering with National Community Games has established Gold Star Careers to assist people of all ages abilities and backgrounds to find their career niche.
The Laois woman recently completed a masters degree in guidance counselling at DCU.
She will graduate with First Class Honours later this month and has also been included on the 2024 Dean’s Honours List, acknowledging the high academic achievement ranking in the top 5% of graduates.
And not only that, Martina has also come on board as the Careers Correspondent here at LaoisToday.
Prior to this she took up a photography course at UCD and also qualified as a mediator at Griffith College Dublin. She is also a Peace Commissioner.
Martina began her journey in education in Stradbally and was actually in the first ever sixth class in Scoil Aonghusa – now known as St Colman’s.
After that, she went on to the Presentation Convent in Portlaoise, now Scoil Chriost Ri, where she sat her Leaving Cert.
Martina then went on to Our Lady of Mercy College, Carysfort in Dublin where she graduated as a primary school teacher.
“I actually returned to Stradbally for my first full year of teaching – right back to Scoil Aonghusa where I had started” said Martina.
“I did a year there as a sub for Sr Gemma who was on study leave. Immediately after that I got the job at Timahoe NS, where I happily remained until I retired.”
Retired from teaching five years this month, Martina says that she will always miss it.
“I’ll always miss teaching – the children, the colleagues, the community” she reflected.
“Timahoe NS was a fabulous place to work. I loved it as much on the last day as I did on the first day.”
She said that the original plan was to ‘sail off into the serene sunset of retirement’.
“I remember Fr Sean Kelly, renowned Stradbally Parish Priest, in a speech he gave at my retirement, said, ‘I’m really looking forward to seeing what she has up her sleeve’.
“And I was laughing, because genuinely, at that time, I had nothing up my sleeve.
“For the first few months I made great use of having so much free time, but then Covid came.
“And with that I suppose, I had enough enforced sitting around, to last a lifetime. So I sought out other opportunities”.
Building on her mediation qualification she took on the masters in career guidance at DCU. It was a natural fit for Martina who had been guiding young people in one way or another throughout her own career.
“And now I’m an example of life-long learning and careers across the lifespan” she quipped.
“I’m very appreciative of the effort it takes to bring about change and of the resilience it takes to stay going when met with obstacles and challenges.
“I’m very aware too of the value of providing affirmation and validation, of the importance of taking time to say, ‘hey you’re doing a good job, sure we can tweak here and there, but you’re doing good’.
“That’s where the company name Gold Star Careers came from. Gold stars are often seen as representing top-notch achievement, but for me gold stars are for effort too, for trying your best, for working your hardest, for taking the small steps that will get you there.
“Everyone can get that gold star. And this is why ‘Guidance For All’ is the tag line – all ages, all abilities, all backgrounds. Guidance genuinely is for everyone. Nobody should be locked out of its potential benefits.
“This is why I’m excited to be the careers correspondent for LaoisToday because part of my motivation with that is I’m hoping to take the mystery out of career guidance.
“I want to get conversations started around the dinner table. We all know how hard it can be to get information out of teenagers at times.
“I’m hoping that the articles I write might, for example, alert a parent/guardian to an upcoming deadline in danger of being missed.
“Articles will also throw light on previously unknown career opportunities, will share useful resources and generally point readers in the right direction.
“Schools in the county have a fabulous reputation, even on a national level, for what they do in terms of career guidance.
“But sometimes students are not ready to hear the advice that’s given when it’s given. The LaoisToday articles can act as reminders/refreshers in cases like that” she said.
And what topics can people expect to read about on LaoisToday from Martina?
“Initially the LaoisToday articles will primarily focus on issues relating to post-primary school students, such as subject choice, open days, CAO, different career sectors, studying abroad, access supports such as DARE and HEAR, and funding supports such as SUSI, scholarships and bursaries.
“Topics will also include PLC courses, apprenticeships and the new tertiary courses.
“The articles will also highlight opportunities such as free-fee nursing and allied Health courses in Northern Ireland.
“Gold Star Careers, which is based in Portlaoise, works with individuals and small groups either in-person or online, offering one-off sessions or a series of sessions depending on the needs of the client.
“In a nutshell I work with anyone needing support to make informed career decisions, whether that be choosing school subjects, exploring college courses and apprenticeships, making a career change or seeking a promotion.
“Those times of transition can be tough, and a small amount of support can make a huge difference.
“My approach tends to be real, practical and down to earth, while strongly underpinned by career and counselling theorists of course, breaking the process down into small achievable chunks, step by step.
“Getting to know the client, and the client becoming more aware of their strengths, interests, aptitudes and values is always a great place to start.
“Then exploring together what’s out there to match that. Concluding with setting targets and developing strategies to reach those goals. Simple straightforward, client at the centre.
“The answer will always come from the client. Always. It might be buried deeply of course but it’s always there. And I will admit I’m good at unearthing it,” she laughed.
“It’s so joyful and hopeful, seeing those jigsaw pieces coming together, for a client.
“In fact its all about hope really. My favourite career theorist is Dr Spencer Niles who developed Hope-Action theory that holds hope as the centre point of career development.
“Participating in a workshop of his organized by DCU was without doubt a highlight of the Masters’ course.”
Gold Star Careers is a great new service for the town of Portlaoise and Laois as whole.
To find out more about the career guidance services offered by Martina see www.goldstarcareers.ie, or email hello@goldstarcareers.ie, or follow her on Instagram @goldstarcareers
SEE ALSO – Check out all our top stories from our 2024 Remembered series here
