Another Door Opens

"I have found, when I've shared my fails as well as the journey to getting to my wins, the people who are there with me at the winning line, that finish line, are more involved in that story because they've come with me on the journey. And more often than not, the fails on the journey have led to more opportunities landing for me because people want to talk to me about the fails more than the the...

In this heartfelt conversation, Anthony Kavanagh shares the ups and downs of his journey from aspiring pop star to author, exploring themes of resilience, vulnerability, and authentic self-expression. This episode is about overcoming personal challenges and embracing life's unpredictable twists.   Key topics we cover -  Anthony's early dreams of music and the drive to succeed in the 90s pop scene...

"Don't confuse comfort with alignment. Just because something is familiar, stable, or impressive on paper doesn't mean it's meant for who you're becoming or what the universe has in store for you." What happens when you land the job that seemed perfect only to find, deep down, it isn't right at all? In this episode, Cara-Lyn talks about the daunting process of leaving a high-profile role that simp...

Ever wondered what happens when you say "yes" to life's weird coincidences and let them lead you somewhere completely new?  In this episode I talk to Joy France, a retired teacher turned poet, performer, and battle rapper about her wild ride into creativity and adventure… all by simply following unexpected doors as they opened.  Joy shares her story of evolving after retirement: from socially anxi...

#168: Paying attention to endings, the power of closing things well with Philip Atkinson "Keep moving, keep learning, keep investing in your own development. Don't hang on to the value that you used to have that's no longer relevant, no longer fit for purpose." Have you ever felt the seasons of your own life shifting, nudging you to find the courage to start anew? That's exactly what we're explori...

"Life's been tough over the last couple of years not just for me, but economically, for a lot of businesses. If I can bring joy into business owners' lives and make them feel better about what they're doing, that's brilliant." Ever wondered how to reopen doors (or even build brand new ones) after life throws you a curveball? This episode is all about finding the spark of joy, even in your darkest...

"Be brave enough to say yes even if it wasn't in your niche or part of 'the plan'. That's what keeps you moving forward before you're ready for that next door to open." Ever wrestled with the idea of turning down your "dream job"?  This episode is exploring the tricky decisions we have to make in moments of change and how to solve leadership problems that are really just life problems in disguise....

"It's not a tick box exercise. It's a genuine need to care for people and other human beings. Ultimately they'll thrive again given the right support…and bring a whole new level of compassion and empathy if they're nurtured the right way." What happens when your life changes in an instant, not by choice but by tragedy? In this episode I'm with Caroline Roodhouse, who shares her incredibly moving s...

"No matter what you do in life, you're gonna get judged. You may as well just embrace exactly what you want to do at that moment in time. Open that door. Go through it. You'll be a bit scared. It'll be new, it'll be novel. You'll definitely learn a lot about yourself. You will be challenged, you will be supported."  What happens when you choose to walk away from what society expects of you and ste...

"If you look for them, glimmers, these little micro moments of joy, are everywhere."  What if being lost isn't a problem to fix, but a path to joy and self-discovery? In this episode, I speak with Gavin Oattes author, speaker, creativity advocate, and former stand-up comedian for a conversation about closing doors, moving forward, and how letting go can be the bravest thing you do. Gavin shares hi...

"Start to not tolerate things, and the bigger things will become easier." What if the hardest (and most transformative) endings in our lives are the ones we choose ourselves?  In this episode, I chat with Elizabeth Aldana, Breakup Artist, coach, and advocate for navigating change on your own terms. Elizabeth shares her story of moving across the world from LA to Singapore in a whirlwind week, not...

"Change is messy, but it's also fertile ground. Pause. Rest. Play. Try. Restart. The five steps aren't a life 'hack' , they're a thinking space to get you through so that you can find joy, calm and opportunity amongst the chaos." How good are you at navigating change? What happens when life throws you out of your comfort zone and into the unknown? How do you let go, rest, experiment, and eventuall...

"If you look back on your life and see that you would have done something differently, that means you're wiser now than you were then. And that means, by definition, the best thing you've ever done is ahead of you and will always be ahead of you."   What happens when you walk away from the thing that defined you, your job, your identity, your sense of success and step into a space of not knowing? ...

"Are you at least willing to push through the discomfort so that the team can win, so that your family can win, so that the mission can win and ultimately perhaps so that you can win?" Have you ever had life slam a door in your face maybe even in the most public way possible? What if, in that moment, you could hit pause, dig into the mess, and come out the other side with fresh lessons (and maybe...

"When you're too comfortable, when you have space to overthink, then nothing happens... But when there's fire under you, you have to move, or you die." In this episode, we are joined by Mike Morrison, entrepreneur, founder of Membership Geeks, and a true veteran of life's unexpected detours.  Mike shares openly about the many doors that have closed throughout his career and personal life, includin...

"Resist that urge to jump right into job applications and start applying. You want to give yourself some space to process what you've been through and maybe avoid making any big decisions." In this episode, we have Steve Jaffe, author of The Layoff Journey: From Dismissal to Discovery. Steve has been laid off four times during his career each time making space for reflection, resilience, and ultim...

"Sympathy is rushing to turn the light on into someone's darkness so that we feel better, whereas empathy is being prepared to sit with somebody in their darkness and connect with them and just be there for them." In this episode, I'm joined by June Hogan. June helps organisations to do redundancy and layoffs well! So of course I'm a fan. It's never easy or simple when companies have to let people...

"You can have a bad day, some days, that's fine. But then at some point, you've got to go, all right, I've got to take a little bit of responsibility now and get on with this."   In this 'epic' (long!) episode, I sit down with Chris Hirst, author known for his "no bullsh*t" approach to leadership and work. We go deep, wide and around the block talking about the realities and myths of career progre...

"I want to frame my journey to be an example, to be a road map, to hand the baton to somebody else, to the next generation."    In this episode, Marie-Ange Eyoum Tagne, PhD, a product leader, and technologist, shares the inspiration behind her new memoir "For Such a Time Like This".    From her childhood in Cameroon, dreaming of going to the moon, to leading teams at Meta, Amazon and  Yahoo, Marie...

"There has to be a different way for me to use my magic in the world. My magic can't keep mopping up messes that are created by ridiculous decisions like this."    When HR Director Emma Djemil hit a moment of 'enough is enough' she knew it was time for her skills, energy, passions to be directed elsewhere.  Stuck cleaning up the messes of others, she knew it was time for a big change. In this epis...

"There were two significant moments, two significant doors. One was the thought of that's it. I'm dead. Door closed on everything. And the other moment was when the consultant said, you can have all this back. You've just got to work for it. Door open."   In this episode, Mark Green, founder of Change Rebellion, shares his wild story of a door closing, nearly for good, and how it changed him and h...

"I think whenever you feel yourself being resistant, the challenge is to find acceptance. Because you have to accept something to shove that resistance out of the way. And once you've accepted it, you can move beyond it."   In this episode, I'm speaking with Kreena Dhiman, a friend, and an incredible keynote speaker who leaves you feeling like you can achieve anything! Kreena shares her story of u...

"It was a phenomenal time looking back, of anxiety at the beginning and disbelief that this was going to do anything for us, to finally being acquired at the end of 2021 in a life changing deal."   In this episode, I speak to David James about the reality of walking away from a, on paper, dream corporate role in search of something else. David left the Walt Disney Company and joined the startup wo...

"What does success actually mean to me? Why did I quit my job really? How do I build this freedom, flexibility, fulfillment? How do I redefine it?"    In this episode, I talk to Anna Lundberg, an executive coach, business mentor and strategic adviser who challenges us to think about success and what it means to us. Anna shares her career change from corporate marketing to creating a business with...

"Sometimes the doors closing are not just physical things. Sometimes it is about closing the way we do something, the way we think, so that we can step into a different space for ourselves." Have you ever felt the weight of certainty pull you down, trapping you in a life that doesn't truly fulfill you?  In this episode I sit down with Suzanne Penny, a transition and career coach, who shares her ow...