Story-Based Learning Methodology
I’m Carmel O’ Reilly, a WorkLife professional development practitioner and writer, creating story-based resources that support self-direction, self-coaching, and self-leadership across a working life.
My Approach
I believe stories are our most powerful mechanism for teaching, learning, and communicating authentic identity. Through character-driven narratives and structured reflection, these resources help you understand and navigate your WorkLife challenges, develop essential professional capabilities, and articulate your unique journey.
The Storytelling Newsletter
Every Tuesday and bi-weekly Thursday, I share a story exploring WorkLife challenges, professional growth and purposeful learning and development. Free in the Reading Room tier of the newsletter – with paid tiers for deeper engagement. These stories form the foundation of comprehensive professional development resources with guided workbooks, practical frameworks, and structured assignments.
Explore Newsletter Stories: The Storytelling Newsletter
Free stories | Paid tiers for deeper engagement (£5, £15, £30/month— writing assignments, follow through actions, challenge missions)
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WorkLife Compass Guided Professional Programmes
The WorkLife Compass Guided Professional Programmes approach helps you explore, understand, and align your professional and personal choices with what truly matters most. Through insightful self-questions and effective self-feedback, you develop the core capabilities of self-directing (choosing your path), self-coaching (supporting your growth), and ultimately self-leadership (guiding your life and work with intention).
Each programme builds practical skills to recognise your strengths, assess your challenges, and uncover meaningful solutions — supporting personal and professional development as you move forward with confidence and direction.
Five Collections
Self-Discovery Programme Collection
Empower yourself by identifying a path aligned with your core values, purpose, vision, and motivated abilities.
Book Club Books Programme Collection
Embrace learning through fiction and non-fiction and apply those lessons to real-life situations.
The Art of WorkLife Storytelling Programme Collection
Find, develop and tell the right story at the right time in all WorkLife situations, in a meaningful and compelling way.
Enhance Your Character Traits Programme Collection
Develop your unique personal qualities to be as effective as possible in achieving what is important to you.
Good Mental Health and Wellbeing Programme Collection
Incorporate effective self-care practices into your daily routine to support everyday ebbs and flows and realise your potential.
What Makes These Programmes Different
These programmes are shaped by over 20 years of working with people navigating the realities of WorkLife — growth, uncertainty, responsibility, change, confidence, doubt, and decision-making at every stage of a working life.
Each WorkLife Compass Guided Professional Programme is a self-directed digital programme.
Each programme offers a structured, story-based way to think more clearly about your working life, understand what is happening beneath the surface, and make choices that align with who you are and how you want to work.
You are guided through 20+ hours of structured work that you can return to whenever you need perspective, grounding, or a reliable way to work something through.
What Each Programme Includes
A Complete Learning Experience
- A story-based narrative (10+ chapters) grounded in real WorkLife situations
- 25+ guided reflection points connecting the story to your situation
- 25+ practical assignments for immediate application
- 10 in-depth exercises across for core development areas
Integrated Tools for Ongoing Use
- A Comprehensive Workbook with structured exercises
- A Quick-Start Guide for everyday orientation and practice
- An Emergency Toolkit for acute situations
- Frameworks, templates, and assessment tools used throughout the programme
A Foundation for Ongoing WorkLife Development
Each programme supports five core practices that strengthen how you navigate your WorkLife over time:
- Self-Awareness
- Observation
- Effective Self-Feedback
- Insightful Self-Questions
- Writing Your WorkLife Stories
Time Investment: 20+ hours of structured, guided work
Lifetime Access: One Investment, Ongoing Value
Return to these resources during transitions, challenges, times of uncertainty, or whenever you want to reconnect with clarity, direction, and purpose in your working life.
Professional Investment
Individual Programmes: £150
Each programme is a complete, self-contained professional development resource, designed for ongoing use across your WorkLife.
New programmes launch each month.
Language and Methodology
Some of the language used across School of WorkLife has specific meaning within this methodology. You can explore core concepts and terminology here: Explore the Language and Methodology
Learn More
Explore All Programmes:WorkLife Compass Guided Professional Programmes
About Carmel: My WorkLife Journey
About School of WorkLife: What It Does and Who It Serves
News: Discover what’s happening at School of WorkLife—From new professional development resources releases to special offers and upcoming developments.
Work With Me: Commissioned learning resources, speaking engagements, and organisational partnerships
If you think my work would be helpful to others, share it forward.