Martina talks about
remote working in Inishowen
08.08.22
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BUNCRANA native, Martina
Doherty, is a woman of many trades... marketeer,
entrepreneur, digital nomad and cyclist, to name but a
few. Along with husband Nigel, she returned home for an
extended working holiday in 2022. Martina talks here
about her career and experience of life back in
Inishowen. |
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Martina Doherty |
Having spent 15 years in
the industry in a variety of roles, Martina set up her
very own marketing and PR agency, MD Consulting while
living in London, working with multiple companies in the
FinTech sector. The motivation to set up her own
business was driven by her in-house experience of
external marketing agencies she dealt with while working
in the banking sector. “I saw these agencies lacked
sufficient knowledge of the complexities of trading and
technologies or services they were trying to promote -.
When I realised that my expertise as a technology
product marketer was pretty unique, I set up MD
Consulting to meet this gap”. Since the company’s
inception, her team has grown to a network of eight
consultants, working with a range of clients from global
investment banks to tech startups.
But it’s not just all work for Martina. In 2018, she and
husband Nigel, embarked on an epic challenge, cycling
from London to New Zealand! 35,500 km, 28 countries, 7
punctures and a few ailments later, the couple completed
their journey in 2020. “The idea was hatched one night
after a few drinks and it slowly took hold and became a
reality when we made the definitive decision to do it”.
When asked if it was a life goal to travel the world,
Martina states “I was never a sporty person so it was
definitely not a life goal for me or Nigel, but I am so
glad we did it. A tour of Ireland is next on the cards!” |
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Martina and her husband
Nigel on their epic journey. |
The spontaneous tour
around the world and two years of lockdowns left the
couple desperate to be nearer to the great outdoors and
less crowded environment. In early summer of this year,
the pair decided to move to Buncrana. As Martina put it,
“Buncrana seemed like the obvious solution!”
“We wanted to have an extended stay in Donegal but we
both had work commitments, so I googled Remote Working
in Buncrana and the ii was top of my search”. After
calling the hub manager, Kevin McShane, the pair were up
and running in the Inishowen Innovation Hub for the
summer.
Today, Martina works as an accredited Positive
Psychologist and Leadership Coach, helping people to
become emotionally intelligent by recognising,
understanding and managing their human emotions. After
returning from her epic journey, it felt right to make
the change in career in a subject area she is passionate
about. Martina embarked on her Masters in Positive and
Coaching Psychology and now offers in-person and remote
workshops and training programmes for organisations all
over the world.
“The ability to deal with your emotions in the current
volatile, uncertain and complex world is the key to be
happy and healthy within ourselves. No matter what your
industry or profession, being emotionally intelligent is
relevant to everyone,” Martina says.
Working in the hub for the summer Martina outlines how
it has opened the opportunity to work from Donegal more
often. “One of the good things that the pandemic gave us
all was the realisation that we can work from anywhere,
and that location is not indicative of being able to do
a good job. Donegal is a great location to base
yourself. For face-to-face trainings and workshops, the
connectivity of direct flights from Derry to Stansted
mean that working in person with London or Donegal
clients is very easy to accommodate.”
Martina and Nigel returned to London for July and August
for work and other commitments, but plan on returning to
the county throughout the Autumn. Reflecting on her most
recent visit to the county, Martina outlines the
benefits of relocating to Donegal, “apart from being
able to relocate with family and friends, immersing
yourself in landscape of the county is amazing. Being
keen cyclists and walkers, we are spoiled for choice for
outdoor activities across the county, places I never
even knew that existed, that were right on my doorstep.” |
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