Work and Wellness

We talk a lot about working parents. We talk far less about the people who have chosen not to be one.

In this episode, I sit down with my dear friend Candice Harvey — speaker, workshop facilitator, former HR leader, author and founder — to have a conversation that is long overdue. What is it actually like to be child-free by choice in the workplace, in friendships and in life? And what are the hidden challenges that nobody thinks to ask about?

This is not a conversation about which path is better. Both are valid and both come with trade-offs. It is an honest, warm and at times very funny conversation about identity, purpose, belonging, burnout, boundaries and what it means to build a rich life on your own terms, whatever that looks like for you.

Whether you have children or you don't, this one will make you think differently about the assumptions we make and the questions we forget to ask.

Key Topics
What people most misunderstand about women who choose not to have children
Why burnout does not check your parenting status before it finds you
The hidden wellbeing challenges of being child-free that nobody talks about
Why leaving work early for yourself can feel less legitimate than leaving for a child and what to do about it
How child-free people find purpose and legacy outside of parenthood
The most unhinged things people have said when told someone doesn't want kids
The real trade-offs on both sides and what you gain and what you consciously give up

About Candice
Candice Harvey is a speaker, workshop facilitator and business owner with 15 years of experience in HR. She now helps people manage themselves — shaking up their thinking so they can behave differently and get different results. She is also the author of her debut book, The Shake Up.

Show Notes
Connect with Candice on ⁠Instagram⁠
Buy her book ⁠The Shake Up:  This isn't another self-help book. This is a shake-up⁠
Learn more about Candice's ⁠work and workshops.⁠ 

Keywords: child-free, women at work, identity, purpose, burnout, wellbeing, boundaries, belonging, life choices, workplace culture

What if everything you've been told about manifestation is wrong?

In this episode I sit down with Georgie Stevenson — co-founder of Naked Harvest, founder of Rise and Conquer, and one of Australia's most followed entrepreneurs — to talk about the concept that sits at the heart of everything she has built. That you don't manifest what you want. You manifest who you are.

Georgie unpacks what manifestation actually means beneath the vision boards and the hype, why your self-concept shapes your reality more than any goal-setting tool ever will, and how she has done the inner work to completely rewrite who she believes herself to be — multiple times.

We also get into the dark 18 months postpartum that forced her to question everything, what she has learned about identity and worth as a founder, and why coming back to self is the most practical thing any of us can do.

This one is honest, grounded and will change the way you think about what you're actually creating.

Key Topics
Why manifestation is about identity, not intention and what most people get completely wrong
How your self-concept shapes your reality more than your vision board ever will
The postpartum ego death that completely redefined Georgie's definition of success
How to separate your worth and identity from your work when your personal brand is your business
The limiting belief Georgie has worked hardest to overcome and why hustle culture makes it worse
What wellbeing actually looks like for Georgie in this season and why simplicity wins
Why curating your online experience is just as important as curating your real one

About Georgie
Georgie Stevenson is an entrepreneur, investor, content creator and mum, best known as co-founder of Naked Harvest and founder of the Rise and Conquer brand. With a community of more than 400,000 people, Georgie has built a loyal following by openly sharing the realities of business ownership, motherhood, health, wellness and personal growth. A qualified life coach and host of the Rise and Conquer podcast, she is passionate about helping women step into their potential and create lives aligned with their goals, values and vision.

Connect with Georgie
Instagram: @georgiestevenson / @riseandconquer /@nakedharvestsupps
https://www.nakedharvestsupplements.com/

Keywords: Manifestation, identity, self concept, mindset, entrepreneurship, burnout, motherhood, wellbeing, limiting beliefs, personal growth

Have you ever felt stuck but couldn't quite explain why — or felt like you were doing all the right things but still felt deeply unsatisfied?

In this episode, I sit down with Dr Emily Musgrove, clinical psychologist, author and resident psychologist on The Imperfects podcast, to explore the psychology behind why we feel stuck, what we're really searching for beneath the surface, and what it actually takes to build a life that feels meaningful rather than just successful.

Emily brings over 15 years of clinical experience and a refreshingly honest perspective — including her own experience of a breast cancer diagnosis that completely reframed how she thinks about resilience.

We get into the difference between belonging and fitting in, why people pleasing quietly costs us our identity over time, what the research says about meaning versus purpose, and the one psychological skill Emily believes every leader needs above all else.

Key Topics
What resilience actually means and why it has nothing to do with holding it together
The difference between belonging and fitting in and why fitting in is exhausting
How people pleasing quietly erodes your sense of self over time
Why feeling stuck is not a problem to fix, it's a signal to pay attention to
The difference between meaning and purpose and why purpose doesn't have to come from work
The one psychological skill Emily says every leader needs: curiosity

Show Notes 

Emily's Book is Unstuck: A Guide to Finding Your Way Forward to Live the Life You Want to Live — ⁠available here. ⁠

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dremilymusgrove/ 

Join Emily's ⁠mailing list⁠ to be the first to hear about her upcoming membership community focused on finding meaning and purpose in midlife.

As AI takes over more of what we do at work, the question isn't whether your job will change. It's whether you're developing the skills that machines simply can't replicate.

In this episode, I sit down with Sonia Clarke, collaboration designer, facilitator and founder of Clever Manka, to explore what it really means to work well with other humans and why that skill has never mattered more. With over two decades of experience helping organisations communicate, think and work better together, Sonia brings a perspective that is equal parts rigorous and deeply human.

We get into why good collaboration never just happens, what the MIT research on high performing teams actually tells us, and why the way we work today was designed for factories — not knowledge workers. We also explore Sonia's upcoming book The Collective Code, which makes the case that there is another way to work, and it might be closer to how people worked hundreds of years ago than we think.

Key Topics
Why good collaboration has to be intentionally designed and what most organisations get wrong
The three things MIT research found in every high performing team
Why the modern work day was built for factories and is fundamentally broken for knowledge work
The human skills that will matter most as AI reshapes the workforce
How to build trust and deeper relationships in hybrid and remote environments
What collectives are, why they're growing, and what they mean for the future of work
Why women are leaving the workforce — and why that should concern all of us

About Sonia
Sonia Clarke is a collaboration designer, facilitator, writer, yoga and meditation teacher, and the founder of Clever Manka. With more than two decades of experience helping organisations communicate, think and work better together, Sonia brings a unique blend of corporate expertise and human-centred leadership. Her career spans senior leadership roles including Director at PwC's Future of Work Practice and leader of its creative communications business. She is the author of The Collective Code newsletter and is currently writing a book of the same name — exploring the human skills that will matter most as technology continues to reshape how we live and work.

Connect with Sonia
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sonia-clarke 
Substack: substack.soniaclarke.com

Resources Mentioned
Humankind by Rutger Bregman
John Demartini Values Process 

Keywordscollaboration, future of work, human skills, AI, collective intelligence, remote work, hybrid work, trust, wellbeing, leadership

What if burnout isn't the price of success — but actually a sign you're doing it wrong?

In this episode I sit down with Alex Davids, founder of Next Evolution Performance and high performance coach to CEOs and executives across the globe, to challenge one of the most persistent myths in leadership culture. That working yourself into the ground is what it takes to get to the top.

Alex brings over 20 years of experience combining psychology, applied neuroscience and business strategy — and her message is clear. True high performers don't burn out. They learn to understand how their brain works, build recovery into their day, and operate in a way that is sustainable for the long haul. We get into the neuroscience of decision making under pressure, why your values and your behaviours are probably telling two very different stories, and the surprisingly simple tools that can completely change the way you perform and lead. This one is practical, science-backed and full of things you can do today.

KEY TOPICS
Why burnout is not a badge of honour — it's a sign your performance isn't actually sustainable
How AI is creating a brand new kind of burnout that nobody is talking about
The neuroscience of what happens to your brain under pressure — and the fastest way back
A simple values exercise using nothing but sticky notes and your bank account
Why the brain can only truly do deep work for four to five hours a day — and what to do about it
Three non-negotiables Alex gives every leader: breath, phone-free focus time, and real recovery breaks
The difference between control and choice — and why it changes everything

CONNECT WITH ALEX

Website: nextevolutionperformance.com

LinkedIn: Alexandra Davids

Free monthly webinars: 20 minutes of neuroscience and leadership content + 20 minutes live Q&A — recordings available. Join via the website.
John Demartini Values Process — a free online tool to help you identify your true values based on where you spend your time, money and energy. Find it at drdemartini.com