Humans, being.™ with Lael Stone

I grew up with Ali Daddo on my wall. And like so many of us, I looked at that image and thought - that's it. That's what it means to arrive. What I didn't know - what none of us knew - was that even being the ‘it’ girl comes with challenges.
This beautiful conversation really opens up about the pressures we feel as a woman, from the tween and teen years, into motherhood and menopause. We explore Ali's "standing in front of a 747 jet engine" image of society's pressure not to age, and what women actually find on the other side of all that noise.
We also get deep about long-term love - Esther Perel's three marriages to the same person, (what it takes to reinvent in the third one), and what "making art from a marriage" actually looks like in practice.
We explore:
The "currency" of appearance: what we inherit, what it costs us, and what happens when the market changes as we age
The grandmother whale theory: why Ali believes women stop being fertile because they're meant to lead
Reinventing long-term love post-menopause
Aviiana, the wellness platform Ali co-founded with Mary Doube, and the whole vision to help women thrive with confidence
What it feels like to finally be "out of the game you never asked to be in" - and why that might be the most liberating thing that's ever happened to us
Ali is a little further down this path than me and I am so grateful to have her shining a light from up ahead. What she's showing me is that the other side isn't smaller. It's more. More voice. More space. More of yourself. 💛
[Recorded Remotely November 2025]
About Ali Daddo:
Ali Daddo began her career as one of Australia's most recognisable models and presenters before spending 25 years in the United States, where she worked as a birth assistant and Steiner early childhood educator. She's the author of Queen Menopause: Finding Your Majesty in the Mayhem, co-host of ‘The Heart of It’ podcast with hubby Cameron Daddo, co-founder of the women's wellness platform Aviiana, and host of the Foxtel LifeStyle wellness series, Gen Well.
Connect with Ali:
Website: aviiana.com.au
Instagram: @alidaddo
Podcast: The Heart of It

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Connect with Humans, being™:
Web: humansbeing.au
Instagram: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
Facebook: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
TikTok: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
YouTube: @humansbeingwithlaelstone

Humans, being™ is produced on the lands of the Bunurong and Wadawurrung people. We pay respect to their unique and diverse cultures and to elders past, present and future.

What if the story you tell about your body isn’t really yours to begin with?
In this warm, honest, and beautifully grounded conversation, I sit down with Steph Claire Smith – co-founder of KIC, model, podcaster, and mum – to explore the imprints that shape how we see ourselves, and what it takes to slowly, gently, rewrite them.
Steph grew up in the public eye at a time when the wellness world had a very particular idea of what health was supposed to look like. We talk about what it meant to internalise that, how it showed up in her relationship with food and her body, and the long, non-linear journey towards actually feeling at home in herself.
We also talk about motherhood, the pressure of building a business in the health and fitness space while doing your own inner work, and why Steph believes the most powerful thing she can do for her daughter is to keep going on her own healing journey.
We explore:
Growing up in the public eye – and what that does to a young woman’s sense of self
The shift from performing wellness to actually living it
Building KIC from the inside out – and why the mission has always been bigger than fitness
Motherhood as a mirror: what Steph sees in herself through her children
The ongoing, imperfect work of breaking old patterns
What stayed with me after this conversation was Steph’s honesty about navigating the public eye and staying true to yourself.
[Recorded January 2026]
About Steph Claire Smith:
Steph Claire Smith is the co-founder of KIC, a leading Australian health and wellness app focused on movement, mindfulness and nourishing food. A model, podcaster and mum, Steph has been open about her own journey with body image and mental health, and uses her platform to champion a more balanced, compassionate approach to wellbeing.
Connect with Steph:
Instagram: @stephclairesmith
KICApp: kicwellness.com
Use the code humansbeing for one month free when you sign up to the KICApp via the above website on a monthly subscription. Available for new and returning users only.

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Connect with Humans, being™:
Web: humansbeing.au
Instagram: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
Facebook: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
TikTok: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
YouTube: @humansbeingwithlaelstone

Humans, being™ is produced on the lands of the Bunurong and Wadawurrung people. We pay respect to their unique and diverse cultures and to elders past, present and future.

What if the feelings you’ve spent a lifetime pushing down are the very things asking to be heard?
In this solo episode, I want to talk about something people ask me about all the time – what does it actually mean to “do the work”? I recognise that the majority of us grew up in homes where feelings weren’t exactly welcomed. Anger got shut down. Tears got ignored. Mistakes got shamed. And so we learned pretty early that the safest thing to do was to push it all down and get on with it. The problem is, those feelings don’t go anywhere. They just wait.
We explore:
Why most of us were never taught to process our emotions – and how that shapes our adult behaviour
The “dark night of the soul” – the crisis moments that often push us toward deeper self-examination
The loneliness of changing when the people around you aren’t
What does doing the work actually look like – inner child work, journaling, reparenting
How to start noticing your triggers as invitations, not problems
Why going slowly and gently is not weakness – it’s wisdom
What I know from many years of working with people – and from my own journey – is that nobody ever regrets doing this work. Nobody regrets healing. The invitation is simply to get curious, go gently, and take one step at a time.
[Recorded October 2025]
About Lael Stone:
Lael Stone is an educator, counsellor, and author of Own Your Story: Understanding your past to create your future. With over 20 years of experience working with families, Lael helps people understand how their childhood imprints shape their adult lives – and how to do something about it.
Connect with Lael:
Instagram: @laelstone
Website: laelstone.com.au

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Connect with Humans, being™:
Web: humansbeing.au
Instagram: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
Facebook: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
TikTok: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
YouTube: @humansbeingwithlaelstone

Humans, being™ is produced on the lands of the Bunurong and Wadawurrung people. We pay respect to their unique and diverse cultures and to elders past, present and future.

What if the worst thing that ever happened to you turned out to be the thing that taught you how to live truly?
In this deeply moving and beautifully honest conversation, I sit down with Lisa Corduff – podcaster, storyteller, entrepreneur, and solo mum to three extraordinary kids – to explore what it means to carry grief, raise children through loss, and still choose joy.
Lisa's husband Nick died in September 2019 while travelling in India and Lisa’s challenge was to keep showing up, to stay open to find joy even inside profound grief. We talk about the gifts that grief can give, the messy reality of solo parenting, what it means to let yourself fall apart so you can come back together differently, and the extraordinary five-month adventure Lisa took her kids on when she realised she needed to stop pretending she was okay.
We explore:
What Lisa's children taught her about joy and grief coexisting
The "good vibes only" trap – and why grief has to be felt to move through
Keeping Nick present in positive and loving ways as the kids grow
Becoming the "fun parent" and straddling joy and boundaries solo
What it really means to live fully in the face of death
Crafting the story your children carry: the power of the imprints we give in our darkest moments
What struck me most in sitting with Lisa was her willingness to hold all of it at once. The sadness and the adventure. The grief and the laughter. The very worst thing and the extraordinary life she has built in its shadow.
[Recorded October 2025]
About Lisa Corduff:
Lisa Corduff is a podcaster, storyteller, and entrepreneur passionate about helping women find and share their own voices. She is the host of Conversations with Lisa, where she explores big topics including AI, climate change, and what it means to raise children in this moment in time. Lisa also teaches storytelling and is a passionate advocate for women claiming the power of their own stories.
Connect with Lisa:
Instagram: @lisacorduff
Podcast: Conversations with Lisa: This Moment in Time

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Connect with Humans, being™:
Web: humansbeing.au
Instagram: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
Facebook: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
TikTok: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
YouTube: @humansbeingwithlaelstone

Humans, being™ is produced on the lands of the Bunurong and Wadawurrung people. We pay respect to their unique and diverse cultures and to elders past, present and future.

What if the moment that changed your life wasn’t a success story... but a 15-year-old boy dying with his feet planted on the ground, reminding you not to waste yours?
In this raw, joyful, and deeply moving conversation, I talk with Tommy Herschell – former Queensland primary school teacher, founder of ‘Find Ya Feet’, and one of the most genuinely human people I’ve had the privilege of knowing.
This conversation is about the moment Tommy hit rock bottom. It’s about what it really means to find your feet – to stop, think about where you are, and think about the best person you can actually be. And it’s about the extraordinary ripple effect that happens when blokes – young and old – are finally given permission to feel.
We explore:
Bastien Madrill – the 15-year-old whose final days completely changed Tommy’s life
Why Tommy calls his work “mental mechanics” and why that reframe matters for boys
The pit crew theory – how to choose the mates who will actually change your tyres
People pleasing, self-worth, and the real reason we’re always the last to leave the pub
What a session with one boy who stayed seated after a workshop taught him about the power of being heard
The red truck theory of teenage behaviour – and what it means for every parent listening
I’ve known Tommy for a while now, and every single time I’m around him I leave feeling like the world is going to be okay. Not because everything’s easy – but because people like Tommy are out there in schools every single day, making space for the conversations that save lives.
[Recorded remotely, October 2025]
About Tommy Herschell:
Tommy Herschell is a former Queensland primary school teacher and the founder of Find Ya Feet – a not-for-profit organisation delivering mental health workshops to men and boys aged 10 to 70 in schools, sporting clubs and corporate settings across Australia. Tommy calls his work “mental mechanics” rather than mental health, and describes himself as a story farmer – creating spaces where vulnerability is modelled and blokes learn that speaking up isn’t weakness. His work is supported by ambassadors including Mitch Marsh and Nicho Hines, and the organisation is about to release its first children’s book, Timmy and the Wonky Fence.
Connect with Tommy:
Instagram: @FindYaFeet
Website: findyafeet.org

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Connect with Humans, being™:
Web: humansbeing.au
Instagram: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
Facebook: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
TikTok: @humansbeingwithlaelstone
YouTube: @humansbeingwithlaelstone

Humans, being™ is produced on the lands of the Bunurong and Wadawurrung people. We pay respect to their unique and diverse cultures and to elders past, present and future.