The Absolute Empowerment Pod

The end of the season!? Join me for a dig into the themes and commonalities among the confidence tips from all the brilliant women I caught up with this season.Hugs and debitchings...until later this year for Season 2 xx

How are you presenting yourself to the world? Are you opening up your windows and yelling good morning to the world, or are you quietly admiring the view? Are you impatient, creating your own stepping stones, or are you patient, waiting for the water to recede? Do you wear clothes to stand out or blend in? Do you choose clothes to look like you're in the know, or because you like the comfort? All of these things add up to your personal brand. There is no right or wrong, no black and white. It's about getting ‘conceptual' about who you are.

The older I get, the more f*cks I give about my community and the planet. When I took myself off the pill last year because I could hear my divine feminine calling me from under many layers of progesterone - her tone sounding rather desperate - I knew it was time to find out more about this washable period product game, and that's how I met this week's fabulous guest...Lauren Derrett is mother of 6, author of Filter Free and founder of Wear Em Out washable period products. ‘I've created a pretty darn cool, totally reliable and efficient reusable pad for you to use when you period. It's for all you eco-curious, modern women out there. It's time to pave the way, set new trends, cross new boundaries, be the influence all while contributing to our shared one home, our innocent and affected planet. ⁠Try it, I promise you won't look back.'Take a look here.https://wearemout.co.uk/https://www.instagram.com/wearemoutpads/

The words 'diversity and inclusion' exploded in 2020 after the George Flyod atrocity, so I wanted to chat to a highly experienced (and FABulous) woman working in the media in this role to find out exactly what it means, and how we make changes in our thinking and behaviour. *** Maxine Penney is a creative engineer, born in the UK however 'grew up as an adult' in Amsterdam for the last 12 years.  She is a creative connector, storyteller, relationship builder, content maker, natural born seller, radio co-host and social media addict....who created a bespoke creative agency called FreshhhConnections; making introductions to leading companies and the creative community within Amsterdam and Europe.  She is now the Culture Manager - Diversity, Equity & Inclusion EMEA & APAC for MediaMonks.  Connect with her here: https://www.instagram.com/mpenney/https://www.instagram.com/freshhhconnections/https://www.mediamonks.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxinepenney/https://www.freshhhconnections.com/

We are active TRYING to judge people less. We are active trying to stop stereotyping. To stop making assumptions. We are calling each other out, checking ourselves.We are doing the work that needs to be done. We are being accountable. We are pushing things forward.But I want to ask you something. All this work you're putting into being a better human, to make sure you're not assuming, not putting people into boxes, not being a dick, not using senseless labels, how much of this are you putting into practice when you look in the mirror?

The stories you tell yourself about your past dictate you place in the present, and your direction into the future.Where does your story plot on your map? What's in store for you because of how you say things went down?You're the author of your story. You can use Tippex if you want to. You can do a re-write.

Claire Gillies is a 40-something year old mum who loves to cook for her family and friends. She founded Delicious and Real to show people that cooking can be easy. If you plan your meals, you will be able to make more balanced choices; you will save money and you will definitely reduce those dreaded dinner-time dramas!    Her business was born from the grief of losing three close family members in quick succession. A truly inspiring story of turning catastrophe into something good.

My chat with Tracy the professional organiser made me think about organising the mind, which is a great metaphor to illustrate what the hell the coaching journey is and what Debitching Your brain can do for your sanity and your confidence. With an organised mind, you get to step into your power and create the life you want.

Tracy Ross is a Professional Organiser with over 11 years' experience of supporting clients to simplifying their lives by simplifying their home organisation. She's also a member of The Association of Professional Declutterers and Organisers (APDO). Blissfully Organised is based in St. Albans, Hertfordshire, UK.  Also connected globally with virtual organising coaching sessions.Tracy understands the effects of living in a cluttered environment and the positive benefits of being organised. Over the last 11 years she have supported so many clients who were feeling overwhelmed, to make a transformation, to control the chaos and restore order into their lives. 

Great things are not born from complacency. They are not created with a sedentary life of acceptance. While acceptance is a beneficial part of processing emotions, it is not a concept to make your driving force in life. If you just sit back and accept well, this is just the way it is, this means you're handing the power over to other people. You are letting your life be shaped by the world rather than YOU shaping the world you live in. WOMEN - it our duty to challenge our thinking! As a thank you to those who came before us. Let's do this!

I have always loved being silly, being an entertainer, being a dick and making people laugh. Probably comes from being the youngest of the family. While messing around at various comedy events in London I came across a night for brand new female comics called That Time of The Month. A space for anyone with a yearning to try out what it feels like to be on stage, but no risk of being heckled or booed. It was ace! It led me to discover the Funny Women Awards and their other events called HERlarious which is about using humour in the workplace. Talk about rabbit holes! Who knew such a supportive world helping women on the journey into comedy existed! It's how I met this week's ruddy brilliant guest...Lynne Parker is an award-winning producer who created Funny Women In 2002, now a leading community for female comedy empowering women to perform, write and do business with humour. The Funny Women Awards have changed the face of comedy. The 2020 Funny Women Awards went ahead despite COVID restrictions and the cancellation of all live events.  The final of the Stage Award took place ‘behind closed doors' at the world-famous Comedy Store London to industry acclaim. In addition to producing comedy shows all over the UK, including the Edinburgh Fringe, Lynne is a renowned performance coach encouraging people in business and public life to 'stand up to stand out'. Using techniques based on stand-up Lynne and her team of experts have developed workshops and events under the HERlarious brand to improve self-confidence, develop presentation skills and build teams. Her work empowers many women both professionally and personally to have a voice.https://www.herlarious.co.uk/https://funnywomen.com/The Funny Women Award open on April 1st - get involved!

After chatting to Michelle in the previous ep, I got to thinking about adventuring and how we can apply the concept to our own minds. Do you remember those choose your own adventure books from the 80s? You can CHOOSE the direction of your life. Everything you have - your job your relationships, your friends, your home - is a result of how you think and the choices you have made. What happens if you pick up the pen and the tip ex, and whack a massive PLOT TWIST in there?  What else is out there for you? What haven't you questioned? Is it time to step into your courage and take the first step into your NEW ADVENTURE? I

Michelle Ellison has been an adventurer, author, speaker, film producer and podcast club host since connecting with her love of the outdoors back in 2015. She has since paddle boarded the length of the River Thames for citizen science, the longest fjord in Norway, the English Channel, and more recently the width of England along the Liverpool and Leeds canal to support mental health awareness. Describing herself as a self professed non-athlete, but someone who'll throw herself full body into a physical adventure, she took on cycling the length of the UK, running the width of the UK for a government petition to improve A&E care of those feeling suicidal, and climbing the highest point in every European country. A kiwi at heart, her mantra of ‘make shit happen' pushes her to create new experiences for herself and others, believing in the power of connection and getting out of your comfort zone. When she's not in the outdoors you'll find Michelle scheming her latest adventure, spending hours talking to her friends and family on the phone (covid-times), binging on netflix and tending to her career in HR.https://www.shellsellison.com/https://www.instagram.com/shells_ellison/

The language of your mind is different to the language of your tongue. It's made of concepts, colours, sounds, tones, memory, abstract notions, vibrations, sensations. Your senses build your reality, your internal representation of the world outside. And your submodalities are the building blocks of your senses that shape this reality in your head. Join me in this ep to understand more about NLP. And if you want kick-start your confidence, download my free Confidence Hack Pack over on my website right now.

I talk a lot about mental health and I'm very open about having a breakdown back in 2013. I had CBT, counselling and psycho-dynamic therapies -  all of which I found helpful. But it wasn't until I started to explore things outside of the traditional talking route that my world really started to change. This week, I chat to the hypnotherapist that helped me rewrite my story in 2016.*An Advanced Clinical Hypnotherapist and NLP Master Practitioner, Kirsten has trained extensively in both London and Denmark, where she is from. Beyond her impressive list of qualifications, Kirsten has over 20 years of experience helping literally thousands of clients to overcome a multitude of emotional and behavioural problems.Having relocated to London full time about 14 years ago, Kirsten now brings her very unique and special brand of warmth, compassion, inspiration and skill to clients across London.Kirsten has featured in numerous magazines, newspapers and TV Shows as an expert guest and she was recently voted ‘Best for the Overthinkers' by Tatler Magazine!Kirsten co-founded one of London's leading places for hypnotherapy and NLP: The Therapy Lounge www.kirstendahlerup.comwww.thetherapylounge.com www.instagram.com/kirstendahlerup/

Talking to Metz, the woman who was part of a team that founded an ad agency last year got me thinking about the comfort zone, as she strove to spend as little time in it as possible. As someone who gets an itchy arse if I stay still for too long, I know where she's coming from. Do you live in your comfort zone?  By staying in the c-zone, you are depriving yourself of experiencing the wonderful wheel emotions that make the human experience so rich.  The laws of the universe we live in mean the swing of the pendulum is equal, meaning the good doesn't come without the bad. The more you stay put, the damper your experience of existence becomes.Would you rather be comfortably numb or courageously alive? Let's dive in...If you want more confidence right now, then download my Confidence Hack Pack. It will help you step up and step out of your comfort zone.

Amid the chaos and catastrophe of 2020, there were some inspiring stories , some glimmers of hope. The socials were buzzing with people starting side hustles or going all-in with new business ventures. In this ep, I chat to a founder of a brand new ad agency. How the hell do you start an agency in a pandemic?  Let's find out!* Metz Bryan-Fasano is Co-Founder and Production Leader at Other London, the latest addition to the Mother Family of fiercely independent creative agencies.She believes that Creative Operations & Production is about using emotional intelligence to influence the creative process and connect with people to make the best work possible. Metz has worked at award-winning agencies including adam&eveDDB, McCann London, and BBC Creative. She is also a big fan of hard working entrepreneurs with fabulous & glamorous energy such as Beyonce, Lady Gaga and RuPaul.Connect with Metz on LinkedIn and on insta

In this solo ep, I talk triggers - what they are (and what they aren't!) and how to deal with them.I delve into what I call The Immersion Zone - the place you shoot off to when you've over identified with an emotion. Uh-oh.Put the gun down!If you want more confidence right now, then download my Confidence Hack Pack. It will help you to manage your triggers too.

A few weeks ago I had my mind blown by breathwork. I was speaking at a mind, body, business summit and one of the speakers did a 40 min intense session of very fast and deep breathing. It was the most intense and most spiritual experience of my life - there's a very emotional video on the gram of me straight afterwards.I wanted to talk to someone who knows their shit about breathwork, because honestly, this world is worth knowing about and can make you feel POWERFUL.  And that's why I invited   this week's guest to come to play...Susie Smith a comical, worldly and luminous bean. She's a mother, energy intuitive, Laughter Therapist and Trauma Informed Conscious Connected Breathwork Coach offering 1:1 facilitation and group workshops in all of the above.Her dedication to the Breath started back in 2016 and it was an instant feeling of knowing after she experienced her first Transformational Breath Workshop. She never really understood at that point where it was going to lead, but she just trusted her intuition which literally bellowed at her to do it. She embarked upon an 18 month training program with Judith Kravitz and Transformational Breath Foundation UK, her training took her all across the UK, to Ireland & Turkey. It's without doubt, her calling and her passion.In 2018 she trained as a qualified MHFA (Mental Health First Aider). In 2020 she picked up additional trauma informed training working with BioDynamic Breathwork & Trauma Release, plus she's currently in a certified training program with Mastin Kipp.Connect with Susie on InstagramListen to her podcast

Launching on  March 1; stop being a Bitch to yourself and join the mindset revolution with empowerment coach Jess Nicks, creator of the DebitchYourBrain™ methodology. Your inner critic is a bitch, and there's a bitch for every emotion and she gets in the way of you living the life you want.In a world of over earnest self-help, Jess brings a refreshing take on how to deal with the inner critic, and she's on a mission to show that EVERYone has a bitch in their head, getting in the way of confidence and clarity. Even the people that we assume have it all worked out and are doing better than us. The bitch isn't biased: she targets us all. But the great news is, there are many ways to shut her up and feel more confident.A podcast uniting women through humour and humility? Hells yeah!Guests in the first series include :Susie Smith - BreathworkerMetz Bryan-Fasano - Founder of the ad agency OtherKirsten Dahlerup - Hypnotherapist Michelle Ellison - Mountaineer and extreme marathon runnerTracy Ross - Professional OrganiserMaxine Penney - Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Media MonksClaire Gillies - Founder of Delicious and RealLauren Derrett - Founder of Wear ‘Em Out washable period productsJoin us!.