Untangling Life

What do you do when the world feels like it’s on fire? In this episode, we explore how to stay hopeful, grounded, and proactive in a time of constant bad news, algorithmic negativity, and digital overwhelm. We get into why so many people feel stuck in doom loops, how social media and the attention economy are reshaping our minds, and why endless scrolling can leave us feeling helpless rather than...

There's a phrase that took off in the 1890s called bicycle face. A made-up affliction that posters warned women about right at the moment they started riding bikes, wearing trousers, and gaining freedom. We open this episode with a real question: is imposter syndrome the same thing? A label that arrived just as more women, more people of colour, more people from non-traditional backgrounds st...

We're back and we're talking about reinvention of self. The urge to become someone new. The haircut after the breakup. The identity shed after the big life event. The promise of a cleaner, more disciplined, more together version of yourself that's always just one decision away. In this episode we get honest about our own reinventions and where they've helped, where they've...

What stays valuable when AI can do so much? In this episode we untangle the skills we believe won't be replaced by AI, and how to actually use AI in a way that sharpens your thinking rather than rotting your brain. We get into why live experiences are becoming more valuable as AI grows, the widening gap between people who use AI well and those who don't, and why critical thinking is the...

When did rest become something you have to earn? In this episode, we're talking about the one thing most of us are genuinely not doing well: resting. Not stopping. Not collapsing. Actually restoring. We get into the guilt that sits underneath most people's relationship with rest, the ADHD boom-bust cycle that keeps so many of us in a permanent pattern of sprint and crash, and what it act...

What if the goals you're working towards aren't actually yours? In this episode, we dig into borrowed goals: the ambitions we absorb from the people around us - parents, teachers, religion, culture, social media - without ever really stopping to ask whether we actually want them. Marriage. University. The promotion. The venture-backed startup. Some of these feel so deeply ingrained it&ap...

What if the secret to learning better isn't about absorbing more - it's about staying curious in the first place? In this episode, we dig into continuous learning: what it really means, why most of us arrive in the workplace at about 40% of our true selves, and how we can reconnect with the childlike wonder we all started with. They get into why curiosity gets socialised out of us long b...

Bonus episodes weren't in our series plan - but this one couldn't wait. While recording the latest episodes, we heard about the viral essay by Matt Schumer that's been doing the rounds. His argument? We're in the "this seems overblown" phase of something much bigger than most people realise - and the job displacement is coming faster than anyone is prepared for. So we...

Boundaries. The topic everyone’s talking about… and very few of us are actually implementing. In this episode of Untangling Life , we explore what boundaries really mean - at work, at home, and with ourselves - and why we often wait until we’re at breaking point before setting them. From family dynamics (“it’s always me”) to back-to-back meeting culture, from people-pleasing to entrepreneurial ove...

What do you do when life changes… but nothing new has landed yet? In this episodem we’re talking about transitions - the in-between periods where the old version of your life has ended, and the next one hasn’t fully arrived. Whether you’re between jobs, navigating a breakup, grieving a loss, moving house, changing how you work, or simply feeling unsettled without knowing why, this conversation is...

Money is rarely just about money. In this episode of Untangling Life, we explore the messy, emotional, deeply human relationship we all have with finances - from financial freedom and anxiety, to ambition, guilt, generosity, and the question we rarely stop to ask: what is actually enough? We unpack how money shapes our decisions, our stress levels, our careers, and our sense of self. We reflect on...

How much of your life is being shaped by the spaces you’re in… and the people you’re around? In this episode of Untangling Life, we get into the real impact of environment and community - from messy rooms and what's in your backpack (yes, we went there) to the bigger stuff: how where you grow up can shape your beliefs about what’s possible. Andy shares the moments that expanded his world beyo...

In this episode, we’re talking about limiting beliefs - the stories we tell ourselves that quietly (and sometimes loudly) stop us from taking action. We took it to the streets and asked people to describe limiting beliefs in the real world and from there, we break down what limiting beliefs actually look like in practice - including the difference between “I’m not good at this yet” and “I’ll never...

Welcome to the start of our journey! In this first episode, Hattie Willis and Andy Ayim MBE introduce the show and share why we finally decided to hit record on our deep and messy conversations.  We introduce the core idea of Design vs. Drift: the subtle difference between building the life you want versus simply defaulting to the one you accidentally inherited. It's a cosy invitation into th...