A Purpose Lab Success Celebration and the Christmas Carol: How I Met My Past, Present, and an AI From the Future

BusinessEducation
Written By The Purpose Coalition

If Charles Dickens were rewriting A Christmas Carol for students today, Scrooge wouldn’t be counting coins; he’d be avoiding reflective blogs, CV feedback, and the dreaded question: “So… what’s next for you?” 

That Scrooge was me, until the Purpose Lab Success Celebration. 

Before Purpose Lab, writing about myself felt harder than debugging code. I questioned whether my story mattered, how I fitted into tech spaces, and whether I really belonged in conversations about careers, purpose, and the future of work. Blank pages felt like judgement. 

The celebration day became my Ghost of Christmas Present. 

Being in a room with Purpose Lab ambassadors past and present, and organisations genuinely listening to student voices, made something shift. Purpose Lab didn’t just celebrate success; it created belonging. I could finally see how my Computer Science background connected to ethical AI, digital health, and purpose-driven careers. 

Then came the future. 

I asked myself: what would have helped me at the start? 
That question became my Christmas gift to Purpose Lab and its ambassadors, Purpose Lab’s very own custom-trained GPT Companion. 

This isn’t a generic chatbot. It’s a Purpose Lab–trained AI companion, built by a student, for students, to help with CV audits, vacancy links, reflective blogs, career confidence, and ethical use of AI, all grounded in Purpose Lab values. Not a shortcut, but a guide to help students get unstuck and move forward with clarity. 

As I often say: 

“I didn’t build the Purpose Lab AI Companion to give students answers. 
I built it with future-ready AI design principles, inspired by how students will learn in 2030, so they feel brave enough to ask any question through their very own Purpose Lab GPT Companion.”   

🎥 Explore the journey: 

Merry Purpose Lab Christmas, and a Future-Ready New Year to you all, may your reflections be honest, your CVs confident, and your work always guided by purpose.

This is a guest blog by Manel Bouchekoua, Purpose Lab ambassador at Teesside University

The Purpose Coalition

The Purpose Coalition brings together the UK's most innovative leaders, Parliamentarians and businesses to improve, share best practice, and develop solutions for improving the role that organisations can play for their customers, colleagues and communities by boosting opportunity and social mobility.

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