notes on being unruly

Solution-focused hypnotherapist Jess Johansson joins me on the pod this week. She shares her journey from chronic shyness, grief and a mysterious health crisis to a fuller understanding of exactly how the mind affects the body; and how tuning into that connection can help us to shift from merely surviving to fully thriving and tangibly move closer to the things we want for our lives. In this convo...

Wellbeing and rest coach Emma Longbottom joins me in this episode to refine rest as one of the most rebellious things we can do for ourselves (and the world!). We explore how busyness, productivity and exhaustion have become so deeply embedded in how we live and work, and how we can start to resist these pressures to bring more rest into our days. We talk about: Emma’s journey from corporate burno...

For real, you don’t need any more advice from ‘experts’; you’re already the expert on your own biz! Wealth expansion and spiritual business coach Sonya Highfield joins me to chat all things intuition, wealth and wellbeing in business. What a gorgeous, uplifting convo we’ve had, looking at all that becomes possible when we stop forcing ourselves into someone else’s idea of success and when we give...

Let’s get riskyyyy! Libby Duffy joins me to talk about being audacious and what that really means: taking risks, bold decisions, having the courage to “show off your weird!” We also talk about shadow work, social media overwhelm and how to discover what “being yourself” actually looks like when we’re constantly bombarded by messages on what to be. In this episode, we discuss: What "audacity" reall...

We’re all so ready to start breaking those rigid rules around food. Nutritionist Kate Wall unpacks how “healthy eating” can slip into socially acceptable disordered patterns. We explore the patterns of food policing shame and the unhelpfulness of restrictive rules, and what it looks like to eat in a way that actually matches your life. We talk about: When “healthy eating” becomes socially acceptab...

Founder of Aligned Insights Coaching, Erin Heisel, shares her unruly path from academia to coaching: leaving rigid systems, questioning “objectivity,” and building a business by following intuition and a spark instead of a plan. This is a gorgeous, heart-led conversation about self-trust, creative ownership and what becomes possible when make your move before you have all the right answers.  We ta...

Let’s do it - let’s demystify the horrors of Taxes... Accounting…. Your bank balance ARGGGG! I’m joined by Clare Marsh who set up an accountancy practice specifically to support women business owners in the UK and to bring proper understanding, support and even a little joy back into our business accounts. Clare brings warmth, clarity and a refreshing dose of practicality to a topic that we often...

It's been a long time coming - a breaking up with all those outdated rules we've carted around for years. This is a podcast  about questioning the social and cultural scripts around success, identity and work, and sharing the messy, human stories behind choosing differently. No step-by-step guides, rigid strategies or ordered plans. Just real, authentic conversations about living life on your own...

I’m joined by the luminous Sue Anderson, massively successful copywriter and the visionary behind Wild Woods Retreat, a 30-acre haven she built (literally with her own hands) in the Smoky Mountains to help entrepreneurs step out of hustle culture and back into their bodies and creativity. Sue’s story is the quiet but life-changing revolution so many of us need: after 17 years of nonstop grind, rai...

I’m joined by Lesley Andrew, artist and trauma-informed art psychotherapist and creator of the PACE framework, for a rich reality-check convo about the pressure to “have your life sorted out” and how that expectation keeps so many of us feeling behind, stuck or not enough. Lesley shares how art and creativity can support emotional regulation, give us access to feelings we struggle to articulate an...

In this hugely energising episode, I talk with own coach and ‘sifu’ Karli Whitwell, a quantum self-concept and manifestation mentor who blends NLP, hypnotherapy, neuroscience and identity work to help women rewrite their reality and start calling in their goals and desires fast. We unpack why strategy alone doesn’t quite work… and why the real power sits in who you are being, not just what you’re...

I’m joined by Anna Campbell — founder of The Good Girl Rebellion, author of the book by the same name, and all-round champion for women ready to break free from people-pleasing and being the rule-abiding good girl. Together, we talk about what it really means to do business and life your way, using ease and joy as your compass, and how to let go of all the inherited “shoulds” about what success sh...

Today, I’m joined by the gorgeous Jo Bibby, nutritional wellness and energy coach and founder of The Energised Woman. Jo’s coaching and mentoring work is rooted in one simple, life-changing truth: when women put themselves back at the centre of their own care and needs, everyone benefits and everything gets better. Jo shares her own journey from postpartum depression and exhaustion to becoming an...

On the podcast this ep: my brilliant coach and mentor, Juliane Nietsche, a business strategist and corporate positioning coach who has built not one, but two multi six-figure businesses without ever following the traditional rules of success. Juliane’s story is a refreshing reminder that you DON’T have to tick every box, follow every template, or “scale at all costs” to enjoy massive success. She...

What if the “perfect” life you’ve been building - the career, the marriage, the house, the family - isn’t actually your life at all? And then you suddenly realise you never actually wanted any of that? In this very raw, honest, heart-wide-open convo emotional alchemy mentor Fay Varsos shares her tumultuous journey of leaving behind decades of cultural conditioning, massive success, a picture-perfe...

I’m joined by the fabulous Amy Downes - aka The Content Wizard - who’s whose magic lies in helping small business owners find their own rhythm and style online without losing their d*mn minds to the endless scroll, the pressure to “do it all” or that flipping algorithm. With her signature blend of strategy, heart and straight-talking realness, Amy shares how you can create content that feels fun,...

Today’s guest, Bobbie Loughlin, is a neurodevelopmental screener who works with families to build safety, understanding, and support at home. She’s also a parent with lived experience of ADHD and autism - and her journey is full of the kind of messy, real-life insight that you rarely find in the glossy parenting books. If you’re parenting a neurodivergent child (or navigating your own neurodiverge...

Your relationships are sooo ready for a glow-up - with others AND with yourself. In this rich and tender conversation, I’m joined by the very wonderful, heart-led relationship coach Erica Marmai whose work invites people to meet themselves - and everyone they’re in relationship with - more deeply, lovingly and honestly. She explains the impact of early life experiences on our relational patterns,...

What if the key to a successful business isn’t the perfect funnel, an immaculate website or 5-year plan — but the energy, joy, excitement and lightness you bring to your ideas? Oh yeah, it really can be that easy. This week I’m joined by the fabulous Tricia Murray — mindset coach, business mentor, yoga teacher and total QUEEN of fizzy, bright ideas — to talk about building a business that’s light,...

I’m joined by the deeply wise Geraldine Crane, spiritual hypnotherapist, coach and all-round beacon of calm and healing. Geraldine helps women heal from the complex and often painful experience of the mother wound. In this powerful conversation, she shares her own moving story of her difficult relationship with her mother and the many beautiful lessons she’s since learnt and is now sharing with he...

This week, I’m joined by the radiant Danielle Thornton-Walker, a transformational coach, meditation teacher and all-around soul whisperer for women craving deeper self-love, self-care and permission to live another, better, easier way. Together, we crack open a truth that so many of us carry quietly: the invisible weight of shoulds, perfectionism and people-pleasing that leaves us feeling like we’...

Today, I’m joined by the brilliant Anna Rumbold, award-winning business and marketing mentor, for a conversation that feels like a deep exhale for anyone tangled up in the “shoulds” of marketing, messaging and content creation. Anna and I dive into her journey from freelance social media manager to trusted business mentor, and what it really means to communicate your message in a way that’s true t...

This week on The Should-Free Life and Business Podcast, I’m joined by Jana Krizanova, a brilliant, adventurous business experience strategist and online business manager who’s here to bust the myth that there’s only one right way to do business. Jana and I dive deep into the pressures entrepreneurs face to follow one-size-fits-all advice, and she shares refreshingly practical, straightforward advi...

If you’ve ever worn yourself out doing endless cardio because you believed that’s what you should be doing to lose weight and get fit; if you’re ever punished yourself at the gym to force yourself to get smaller and thinner, you’re about to discover a much better way of enjoying fitness and getting truly healthy right here. In this powerful episode, I’m joined by Alice Butler, a former competitive...

While most of us have grown up with all manner of rulebooks and ‘shoulds’, Chloe grew up in a household that, in her words, “actively shunned the shoulds”. On this week’s episode, guest Chloe Weatherhead, founder of Andiomo Business Assistance and host of the Strings to Your Bow podcast, reveals a wonderfully unconventional way of learning to make your way in the world, making decisions throughout...