A personal reflection from my journey towards becoming a therapeutic counsellor.
A personal reflection from my journey towards becoming a therapeutic counsellor.
A personal reflection from my journey towards becoming a therapeutic counsellor.
The Journey
Learning
Purpose
Growth
Books
New Beginnings
Journal
Journal
The First Stone
The First Stone
The First Stone
📅 Published 8 July 2026
📅 Published 8 July 2026
🕒 5 minute read
Every journey has to begin somewhere. In this first journal entry, I introduce True Cairn, explain why I've chosen to document my counselling journey from day one, and share the books and experiences currently shaping my thinking.
Every journey has to begin somewhere. In this first journal entry, I introduce True Cairn, explain why I’ve chosen to document my counselling journey from day one, and share the books and experiences currently shaping my thinking.
Every journey has to begin somewhere. In this first journal entry, I introduce True Cairn, explain why I’ve chosen to document my counselling journey from day one, and share the books and experiences currently shaping my thinking.
Read Journal Entry
Welcome to the very first journal entry for True Cairn.
When I first started thinking about creating this website, I wasn't sure what it would become. Would it simply be a place to introduce a future counselling practice, or could it be something more?
The more I thought about it, the more I realised I didn't want to wait until I was qualified before beginning the conversation.
At the time of writing, I'm at the very beginning of my counselling journey, working towards my CPCAB Level 2 qualification with the long-term aim of becoming a qualified therapeutic counsellor and opening a private practice.
It would have been easy to wait until I had the certificates on the wall before building a website.
Instead, I decided to start at the beginning.
Because every journey starts somewhere.
Welcome to the very first journal entry for True Cairn.
When I first started thinking about creating this website, I wasn’t sure what it would become. Would it simply be a place to introduce a future counselling practice, or could it be something more?
The more I thought about it, the more I realised I didn’t want to wait until I was qualified before beginning the conversation.
At the time of writing, I’m at the very beginning of my counselling journey, working towards my CPCAB Level 2 qualification with the long-term aim of becoming a qualified therapeutic counsellor and opening a private practice.
It would have been easy to wait until I had the certificates on the wall before building a website.
Instead, I decided to start at the beginning.
Because every journey starts somewhere.
So, here we are...
So, here we are…
This website isn't here because I've reached the destination.
It's here because I want to document the journey.
Over the coming years, I'll be sharing what I'm learning throughout my counselling training, the books that influence my thinking, reflections on everyday life and the experiences that continue to shape me.
Some posts will be about counselling.
Some will be about leadership.
Some might simply be about a conversation that stayed with me.
I don't expect to have all the answers.
In fact, counselling has already begun teaching me that having the answers isn't the point.
Listening is.
Learning is.
Growing is.
If this journal can encourage someone to pause, reflect or simply realise they aren't alone in what they're experiencing, then sharing the journey will have been worthwhile.
This website isn’t here because I’ve reached the destination.
It’s here because I want to document the journey.
Over the coming years, I’ll be sharing what I’m learning throughout my counselling training, the books that influence my thinking, reflections on everyday life and the experiences that continue to shape me.
Some posts will be about counselling.
Some will be about leadership.
Some might simply be about a conversation that stayed with me.
I don’t expect to have all the answers.
In fact, counselling has already begun teaching me that having the answers isn’t the point.
Listening is.
Learning is.
Growing is.
If this journal can encourage someone to pause, reflect or simply realise they aren’t alone in what they’re experiencing, then sharing the journey will have been worthwhile.
Why Start Now?
Why Start Now?
A cairn is a simple stack of stones.
For generations they have marked paths across mountains, guided travellers through uncertain ground and acted as quiet reminders that others have walked the same route before us.
They don't remove the challenge.
They don't walk the journey for you.
They simply reassure you that you're still heading in the right direction.
That idea resonated with me immediately.
Life rarely follows the route we imagined when we were younger.
There are twists, setbacks, unexpected opportunities and moments where we lose our sense of direction altogether.
Sometimes we don't need someone to tell us where to go.
Sometimes we simply need someone willing to walk beside us while we find our own way.
That is what I hope True Cairn will become.
A cairn is a simple stack of stones.
For generations they have marked paths across mountains, guided travellers through uncertain ground and acted as quiet reminders that others have walked the same route before us.
They don’t remove the challenge.
They don’t walk the journey for you.
They simply reassure you that you’re still heading in the right direction.
That idea resonated with me immediately.
Life rarely follows the route we imagined when we were younger.
There are twists, setbacks, unexpected opportunities and moments where we lose our sense of direction altogether.
Sometimes we don’t need someone to tell us where to go.
Sometimes we simply need someone willing to walk beside us while we find our own way.
That is what I hope True Cairn will become.
Why a Cairn?
Why a Cairn?
People often ask what made me decide to change careers.
The honest answer is that there wasn't one single moment.
Looking back, there were lots of small moments that slowly built on one another, rather like the stones in a cairn.
For more than twenty years my career has taken me around the world, working in operations, business development, commercial sales and leadership.
It's been a career I'm incredibly grateful for.
But over time I noticed something.
The conversations I remembered most weren't about contracts or projects.
They were about people.
About stress.
Purpose.
Relationships.
Confidence.
Family life.
The things people carried long after the working day had finished.
Years ago I completed Mental Health First Aid and Suicide Awareness training. At the time, I saw them as valuable skills that would help me support those around me. Looking back now, I realise they were some of the first stones being placed on a path I hadn't yet recognised.
Then one conversation changed the way I looked at my own life.
I was talking to my eldest daughter about choosing her school subjects.
Like most parents, I explained that the subjects she chose should help prepare her for whatever career she wanted to pursue in the future.
She listened for a moment before asking me a question I wasn't expecting.
"What did you want to do when you were my age?"
I answered honestly.
Then she asked another question.
"Are you doing that now?"
The answer was no.
It wasn't dramatic.
There wasn't a sudden decision to leave my career behind.
But her question stayed with me.
It made me realise that I was encouraging my children to follow a career they genuinely cared about, while I had quietly drifted away from the one I'd once imagined for myself.
That conversation gave me permission to ask myself a difficult question.
If not now...
When?
Looking back, I can see that every experience, every conversation and every small decision had quietly been leading me here.
True Cairn is simply the point where those stones finally came together.
People often ask what made me decide to change careers.
The honest answer is that there wasn’t one single moment.
Looking back, there were lots of small moments that slowly built on one another, rather like the stones in a cairn.
For more than twenty years my career has taken me around the world, working in operations, business development, commercial sales and leadership.
It’s been a career I’m incredibly grateful for.
But over time I noticed something.
The conversations I remembered most weren’t about contracts or projects.
They were about people.
About stress.
Purpose.
Relationships.
Confidence.
Family life.
The things people carried long after the working day had finished.
Years ago I completed Mental Health First Aid and Suicide Awareness training. At the time, I saw them as valuable skills that would help me support those around me. Looking back now, I realise they were some of the first stones being placed on a path I hadn’t yet recognised.
Then one conversation changed the way I looked at my own life.
I was talking to my eldest daughter about choosing her school subjects.
Like most parents, I explained that the subjects she chose should help prepare her for whatever career she wanted to pursue in the future.
She listened for a moment before asking me a question I wasn’t expecting.
“What did you want to do when you were my age?”
I answered honestly.
Then she asked another question.
“Are you doing that now?”
The answer was no.
It wasn’t dramatic.
There wasn’t a sudden decision to leave my career behind.
But her question stayed with me.
It made me realise that I was encouraging my children to follow a career they genuinely cared about, while I had quietly drifted away from the one I’d once imagined for myself.
That conversation gave me permission to ask myself a difficult question.
If not now…
When?
Looking back, I can see that every experience, every conversation and every small decision had quietly been leading me here.
True Cairn is simply the point where those stones finally came together.
The Moment Everything Changed
The Moment Everything Changed
One of the things I appreciate most about counselling is the value of authenticity.
We all spend enough time trying to appear like we've got everything figured out.
The truth is, I don't.
I'm learning.
Growing.
Making mistakes.
Reflecting.
Just like everyone else.
That's exactly what I want this journal to capture.
Not a polished version of the journey.
The real one.
The lessons that stay with me.
The books that challenge my thinking.
The conversations that make me see life differently.
The moments that remind me why I started.
If you're reading this at the beginning, thank you.
It genuinely means a lot.
One of the things I appreciate most about counselling is the value of authenticity.
We all spend enough time trying to appear like we’ve got everything figured out.
The truth is, I don’t.
I’m learning.
Growing.
Making mistakes.
Reflecting.
Just like everyone else.
That’s exactly what I want this journal to capture.
Not a polished version of the journey.
The real one.
The lessons that stay with me.
The books that challenge my thinking.
The conversations that make me see life differently.
The moments that remind me why I started.
If you’re reading this at the beginning, thank you.
It genuinely means a lot.
Why Share the Journey?
Why Share the Journey?
This is only the first stone.
Over the coming months and years I'll be sharing reflections from my counselling training, thoughts on mental health, leadership, personal growth and the everyday moments that quietly shape who we become.
I don't know exactly where this journey will lead.
But I know it's the right path for me.
If you'd like to follow along, I'd love to have you here.
This is only the first stone.
Over the coming months and years I’ll be sharing reflections from my counselling training, thoughts on mental health, leadership, personal growth and the everyday moments that quietly shape who we become.
I don’t know exactly where this journey will lead.
But I know it’s the right path for me.
If you’d like to follow along, I’d love to have you here.
Looking Ahead
Looking Ahead
Training
CPCAB Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills
Current Focus
Developing the foundations of counselling skills, learning to listen with greater intention and continuing to grow in self-awareness.
Currently Reading
Counselling Skills and Studies
First Steps in Counselling
No Regret – Martina Cole
Current Thought
"The conversations that matter most often begin with someone feeling truly heard."
Training
CPCAB Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills
Current Focus
Developing the foundations of counselling skills, learning to listen with greater intention and continuing to grow in self-awareness.
Currently Reading
Counselling Skills and Studies
First Steps in Counselling
No Regret – Martina Cole
Current Thought
“The conversations that matter most often begin with someone feeling truly heard.”
Where I Am Today
Where I Am Today
Every journey begins with a single step.
For True Cairn, this is the first stone.
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