Knowing When to Quit

Back in November 2022, I invited my very good friend, author and journalist Kim Willis, onto the pod. At the time I was 37 and she was 41 and we were DEEP in the question about children. Whether we wanted them, whether we could/would/should have them, and crucially what a life would like without them. Were we ready to ‘quit’ the idea of having children? The episode was shared widely and we were in...

Today, I'm speaking to the wonderful Zahra Davidson about her process of letting go of being CEO of her organisation, Huddlecraft. Zahra spent 8 years founding and developing Huddlecraft, a social enterprise specialising in peer-to-peer learning, action and change. In spring this year Zahra stepped back after a 15 month transition process, handing over navigation of Huddlecraft to Dan Ford and Ann...

Today we're talking to Sieske Valk about the difficult, and often avoided part of pet ownership - the end of their life. Sieske is an End of Life Doula and an advocate for ageing pets; She guides pet guardians through the autumn of their best friend's life. Combining a background in veterinary medicine and the social sciences, she has set up Autumn Animals to support people in maintaining a good q...

Welcome back writer, journalist and strategist Kim Willis to the show! You may remember Kim from series 2 when we talked about Knowing When To Quit the desire to have children (the pod's most downloaded episode to date). Today we're back discussing Kim's decision to quit her creative project Heroine's Journey - an event series, which championed female storytelling. At the point of recording (Novem...

Always wanted to go freelance? Today I'm talking to Anna Codrea-Rado - a journalist, podcaster and campaigner, whose writing has appeared in the New York Times, The Guardian, BBC and many others. I brought Anna on as a specialist in working life and freelancing. She's the author of 'You're The Business' - a book which supports people to make it alone. She knows the questions to ask if you're think...

Today we're talking about Knowing When to quit relationships. We live in a society which tells us that the hallmark of a good relationship is one that lasts for a long time, but does that mean that we often stay in relationships too long? Today's guest is Rosie Wilby - an award-winning comedian, author, speaker and the creator of global hit podcast and book The Breakup Monologues. Rosie believes t...

This is part 2 of a double episode with Dr Jude Galea on her decision to quit the medical profession after 20 years. This is a live coaching session where we explore this decision. At the end you'll hear a voice note from a few week's after the recording, with a final update. Thanks again, Jude for allowing us into your process. Dr Jude Galea is an A+E doctor of 20 years, the founder of the Witchy...

I am so excited about today's episode, which is part 1 of a 2 part series with Dr Jude Galea - she's an A+E doctor of 20 years, the founder of the Witchy Women platform -  and host the of the podcast Dr Body Mind Soul, both of which help people inform themselves about alternative therapies away from western medicine. Jude is changing the conversation about medicine and is in the process going thro...

Today's show I have the wonderful Selina Barker - life design and career change coach, the author of Burnt Out, and founder of 'Project You' and the Hello 2023 Goodbye 2022 journal series. Selina was my entry point into designing a life I loved when I took her course back in 2013, and so it was a wonderful full circle to have her on the pod today.  In this episode we discuss: 🔥How we sometimes ha...

Emily is a secondary school teacher in Yorkshire and when we met a few months ago she was really grappling with whether to stay in the profession. She was exhausted from the workload, the children and the families and was wondering if this was the right job for her. As many of you know, I also started my career in teaching and have recently returned to education to coach teachers.  In this episode...

WELCOME TO SERIES 3! Thanks for being here! Today we're talking about the dreaded dating apps, the damaging narrative about being single and how we can start to shift it. Shani Silver is a writer based in New Orleans. She hosts A Single Serving Podcast and is the author of A Single Revolution: Don’t look for a match. Light one . It’s a book that’s changing the narrative around being single, and ho...

Today is a biggie.  Have you ever changed your life so much that you feel like you're completely starting over again? Today's guest, Rob Grundel has done just that.  After 12 years of living in London and building a life there, Rob said goodbye to the people, communities and projects he'd built and returned to Australia with his family. While in London Rob started the music community Imaginary Mil...

TW: Grief In today's episode I'm talking to Emma Sexton - an entrepreneur, marketing specialist, design thinker and creative doer. I met Emma back in 2016 when I was running a Female Founders Accelerator and she was working at the Kings Accelerator as Creative Expert in Residence. Back then we talked a lot about our love of starting ventures and knowing when to fold them. Emma has in the past run...

TW: Suicide When I first thought about this podcast, I knew that I didn't just want to talk about jobs + businesses. Today, I have my dear friend, arts psychotherapist, and wise wise woman Zaira Mughal on the podcast sharing about her divorce. It's a deep, honest episode about the cultural, societal and emotional reasons we hold on to relationships, even if all the signs are there that it is over....

The place you feel the most resistance is the most important place for your soul's evolution... In today's episode we look at the other side of quitting: NOT quitting. Whenever we start a new project, habit or venture there is a part of us that is screaming to give up. How do we know if this is fear talking or a voice we should listen to? How do we keep going even if we're feeling a lot of resista...

Ooof! This is a big topic today, and one we've been wanting to put out for a while. Between our mid 30s and mid 40s most women are preoccupied with a big decision - whether or not to have children. The decision is complicated: while it's partly in our hands, it's also, in many ways totally not. We wanted to have a frank discussion about what it means to be in this time of deliberation, how we pers...

TW: suicide and grief In 2008 Tiffany Philippou returned to university, having lost her boyfriend to suicide over the summer. For the next decade she kept herself busy with work, love and London - anything to take her mind off facing her grief. Now, 14 years on, she's written a memoir documenting her 20s and the journey she went on to stop pretending that things were 'totally fine.' It's brave, ra...

What can ADHD teach us about Knowing When to Quit? Today's guest Matthew Bellringer has some ideas... Matthew is a divergent innovation guide, neurodiversity advocate and social entrepreneur. They believe that with the right support, unconventional people can make a unique contribution to addressing big, messy problems that affect everyone. Working with (mostly) neurodivergent professionals, acade...

''When we think nothing is happening, A LOT is happening.'' - Sam Moyo Welcome to SERIES 2 of Knowing When to Quit! We're so excited to have you back here. This week I'm speaking to Samantha Moyo: Founder of Morning Gloryville (MGV), Creative Coach and Consultant, and as of this summer Shambala Festival's favourite cowgirl. If you don't know MGV, it was a revolutionary sober rave movement, which g...

Hello! Welcome back. In between Series 1 and 2 I've taken some time to reflect on my own journey with Quitting since the podcast began in November 2020. In Part 1 I looked at the podcast itself and use the Quitting Quadrantl® Framework to map my journey from Beginners' Flow, to Midway Burnout... In Part 2 I reflected on two big life changes that I was committed to starting in 2021 but that in the...

Hello! Welcome back. In between Series 1 and 2 I've taken some time to reflect on my own journey with Quitting since the podcast began in November 2020. In Part 1 I look at the podcast itself and use the Quitting Quadrantl® Framework to map my journey from Beginners' Flow, to Midway Burnout... In Part 2 I reflect on two big life changes that I was committed to starting in 2021 but that in the end...

Hello! Welcome back. In between Series 1 and 2 I've taken some time to reflect on my own journey with Quitting since the podcast began in November 2020. In Part 1 I look at the podcast itself and use the Quitting Quadrantl ® Framework to map my journey from Beginners' Flow, to Midway Burnout... You may recognise your own patterns with creative projects as I talk through the model. In Part 2 I refl...

‘I had all the external support I could have hoped for, but it still wasn’t making me happy. There was a deeper, bigger, issue within me.’ This week we talk to Vicky Johnson - Co-founder & Director at the Museum of Happiness, an organisation which uses the Science of Happiness to spread more love, peace and happiness into the world. You'd imagine that to run a Museum of Happiness you'd have to...

‘If you’ve waited until the point until you hate the thing to close it, you’ve waited too long.’ John Williams is the bestselling author of 'F**k Work Let's Play' and a coach for creative entrepreneurs who want to make money from the things they love. I first met John 10 years ago when I attended one of his Scanners' nights and it's no exaggeration to say that his work changed the course of my car...

‘Quitting doesn’t have to mean stopping the car and getting out - it can just be taking a different direction.’ Today's episode is with Mathy Silvakumaran - she's a writer, filmmaker and disability activist from Yorkshire, who is sharing her story of knowing when to quit her PHD. In this episode we explore: 🧘🏽‍♀️The importance of taking time away to get clarity and headspace on a decision. 😣 Ho...