The Undiscovered You: Recent Episodes
Kimberley L Johnston
Welcome to THE UNDISCOVERED YOU - a podcast for anyone who knows they have more to offer but just feel stuck. Join us as we talk to some incredible people who are just like you. On this podcast we will be looking at ways to help get you un-stuck so that you can discover The Undiscovered You.
In this insightful episode of 'The Undiscovered You', host Kimberley Johnston uncovers the remarkable journey of Ruth Astle. As a professional athlete and working in finance, Ruth unveils her personal balancing act, navigating the worlds of sports, work, and life.
Discover the origins of Ruth's path as a triathlete, born from a childhood in Essex teeming with sibling rivalry, sports hobbies, and active pursuits. Understand how a spot offered to her for the London Triathlon sparked her love for swimming, biking and running her way to glory and set the stage for her future successes.
Experience the thrill of Ruth's relentless pursuit of her passion, as she took on increasingly demanding Ironman races. Listen to her compelling narrative of resilience and adaptability, overcoming hurdles including a significant bike crash and intense training conditions.
Hear the heartening account of Ruth's battles to balance her corporate role with her dedication to triathlon training. She highlights valuable lessons in prioritising personal goals and efficiently utilising time in order to pursue her passion and find some semblance of balance.
Finally, learn about Ruth's vision for her future and her reflections on her inspiring journey. This episode is a testament to the indomitable spirit of sports enthusiasts and a guide for anyone wrestling with their work-life-passion balance.
Welcome to another engaging episode of 'The Undiscovered You', featuring Kirsty Andrews, a professional lawyer, renowned underwater photographer and regular columnist for Scuba Magazine.
Explore the fascinating world beneath the waves as Kirsty shares tales of scuba diving in the waters around the United Kingdom and her brush with a great white shark! Kirsty's thrilling encounters with marine life and underwater photography not only captivate listeners but also shed light on the complexity and beauty of underwater ecosystems.
She shares her perspective on witnessing the effects of climate change on oceanic habitats. Through her experiences, Kirsty gives listeners a firsthand account of global warming's ramifications on marine flora & fauna, from coral bleaching to changes in aquatic species' habitats.
Discover the hopeful story of crawfish's resurgence due to effective conservation efforts and learn about the world of competitive underwater photography. Kirsty's stories illuminate the thrill of capturing the undersea world and the satisfaction of winning prestigious awards in the field.
In this enlightening discussion, Kirsty also shares her journey of juggling a demanding corporate career with her scuba passion. She emphasizes the importance of a flexible workplace and achieving work-life balance for personal satisfaction and employee loyalty.
Moreover, Kirsty talks about the detailed preparations needed in scuba diving and encourages listeners to pursue a passion outside work. The episode concludes with the importance of being part of a like-minded community and accepting constructive criticism for personal growth. Dive into this captivating conversation and discover a unique balance of work and passion with Kirsty Andrews.
What a way to close out this season! This was such a fun podcast to record with the amazing Nicole Parry. She fell in love with food and cooking and became a Dream Catcher when she went to study at Le Cordon Bleu and then sailed around the world on super yachts as a chef before joining Richard Branson as his personal chef on Necker island in the British Virgin Islands. She also has a stint as a personal chef for Madonna and has now set up an incredibly successful culinary business "The Curious" with a restaurant in Kent, pop up experiences that sound out of this world and some high-end catering which looks breathtaking. Grab a glass of something and sit back to enjoy this incredible amuse bouche! ;)
Join me for this incredible journey into Irish Politics with Lucinda Creighton who is a former Irish Member of Parliament, the Minister for European Affairs who went on to found Vulcan Consulting where she is the CEO. She shares her story of dreams, aspirations and disillusionment and how trusting her gut got her where she is today. Insightful, intelligent and a great crash course in Irish politics - this is not to be missed!
Join me for this exciting story of our next dream catcher: Chris Farr who shares his tale of growing up around the world with a dad who worked for the U.S. State Department and finding a way to follow his dreams of becoming a professional drummer. We manage to cover everything from the perils of egos to the loss of the art of communication and the importance of networking no matter what you do in life. I loved this conversation and I hope you enjoy it too.
Join me for this fascinating conversation with professional artist (and I would argue philosopher) Ian Roberts as we discuss following your passions, finding your Dharma and re-connecting with your calling. Be prepared to be inspired and make sure you have a notebook (or sketchbook) handy! You can find his courses and more about him at ianroberts.com.
I absolutely loved speaking to my latest Dream Catcher, Lili Klein, a professional actress, singer and acting coach about following your passion/following the love, keeping your work free from monotony and the gift you can give others by giving them permission to support/help you. You can see some of her amazing work and hear her incredible vocals on her website: http://www.lilianeklein.com/
If you are enjoying the podcast - please consider supporting me by "buying me a coffee" @ www.buymeacoffee.com/undiscoveredyou so I can keep putting content out there.
Dr. Maureen Murchie, a professional violin and viola player is full of insight and wisdom on this episode. I just adored sitting down with her and hearing how she used some challenging times growing up to build resilience, to see the positives in her experiences and to move forward with what became her dream. You'll learn about the divas of the orchestra, the joy in constantly evolving and how she used her fluency in Japanese to help her play viola and violin professionally. Tuck into this rich episode as soon as you get a chance... as a bonus the episode opens with her STUNNING playing.
Don't miss this incredible episode with Antonio Negret, a Hollywood Director, Producer and Writer who shares insights around following your dreams, creating content and just doing what you love and how to embrace the fear! Interesting, informative and a great story to boot - this episode is a must listen! You can preview his work here: https://www.antonionegret.com/
I can't help but have my Southern accent slip out in this interview with the Former Miss South Carolina, Jane Jenkins Herlong who is a renowned humorist, an author of several books including the amazon bestseller "Bury me with my Pearls", is a keynote speaker and a recipient of the National Speakers Association "Speakers Hall of Fame Award." Join us for some great stories from the Deep South, some pertinent advice about overcoming adversity, catching dreams and lots of laughs.
In this episode, I speak to the multi-award winning photojournalist Peter Nicholls who is currently working for Reuters but spent a large portion of his career at The Times. He talks about what it takes to be a photographer and throws in his opinion on the age old debate re: Cannon vs. Nikon! He has some incredible stories to tell and you can check out some of his incredible work here: http://www.peter-nicholls.com/
It was absolutely incredible to sit down with Diane "Di" Hunwin Wakely who was a Dancer in the Royal Ballet a "few" years back. She shares her journey of trying to procure funding to come to London, breaking through barriers and fulfilling her dream of dancing for the Royal Ballet. I LOVE her spirit, story and advice and I hope you have a good cup of tea in hand while you sit back and enjoy this lovely episode.
WE ARE BACK!!! Hold onto your seats for this amazing episode where I speak to Laura Evans Manatos. Laura is is a multi-Emmy-award winning journalist who shares her story of falling in love with reporting in the 7th grade (Year 6 for our UK listeners) and how she turned that passion into a career. You will laugh out loud, you might shed a tear and you'll definitely enjoy this incredible episode.
Tune in for this INCREDIBLE episode. Make sure you have a spare hour to get tucked into Dani's journey and how she played the hand she was dealt when something unthinkable happened and how she created so much joy and positivity out of such a difficult trial. Get a notebook out - there are LOADS of gems in this one. A huge thank you to Dani for sharing her story with us!
Allie is a female empowerment coach and shares how, through her journey of self-discovery she has learned to love herself enough to let go of destructive relationships, move to a new city and start over. She is now helping others peel away the layers of conditioning to reveal the beauty beneath. Join me as Allie honestly walks through her story and shares what she has discovered about herself along the way - there are a lot of hidden gems and top tips in this episode. I share my favourite at the end!
This is the last episode in the season "Playing the Hand You're Dealt" - I have loved all the honesty in this season. It has been raw at times but I have learned so much and hope you have too. Join me next season as I speak to "The Dream Catchers" - people who haver pursued big dreams and what they have discovered along the way.
Jen Green cashed in her corporate chips and headed off on what was meant to be a year-long sabbatical in East Asia... that was over a decade ago. She is now living a much more purposeful existence and the distance from the rush of the City gave her a chance to reflect and recalibrate - listen to how she uniquely played the hand she had been dealt. There is LOTS to learn in this episode and I hope, like me, it will make you walk away and think about the direction your life is taking and whether it is where you want to go!
Lise and I got together to talk through a hand she was dealt after the birth of her second child when she discovered she had breast cancer and then was dealt another twist over a year later when she developed what she thought was just a cough. Do take some time to listen to her powerful story and I hope you are as inspired as I am by her positivity and her ability to create beauty from a really hard hand that she is still playing. Websites mentioned on the episode are: https://www.callanish.org and https://www.movebecauseyoucan.ca
PS: Lise managed to run the 1/2 marthon and bike the rest of the way on 1 May 2022 and is hopeful she can do it again in June... you can donate to "Move because you STILL can" and support her efforts to help others here: https://www.canadahelps.org/.../move-because-you.../...
I loved getting some time with Dan Farag who is the Director of Innovation & Practice as the Young Foundation to talk about how he transitioned from competitive couples ice skating and ice hockey into government and ultimately into what he is doing now. He has some amazing tips for people who are thinking about shifting gears and shares some fabulous tips. Get a parachute out and get ready to jump into this fabulous episode (that will make more sense once you listen!!)
I sat down with 22-year old Maisie Kearsey for one of the more inspirational podcasts I have recorded to date. Maisie was diagnosed with OCD and Anorexia in close succession in her teens while trying to break into the world of acting and get into university. Her story of how she played the hand she was dealt left me close to tears. This is not an easy listen and may be triggering for those who have suffered from, or been close to someone, who had treatment for eating disorders in the past - but do take some time out to sit back and listen to this incredible story of how one girl fought the odds and is on the road to recovery.
Sam and I had an amazing conversation about playing the hand she was dealt when, after the death of her father, she had to leave Nigeria and come back to the UK with her two brothers as a pre-teen and how she adjusted to school here and how a comment from one teacher changed the course of her life. Prepare to be inspired and encouraged by her amazing story of how she has played the hand she's been dealt.
NB: for the sharp-eared among you who picked up the reference to 2021- we recorded this at the end of last year so it was actually 2021 at the time!!
Elodie Attias is my incredible guest for this episode of "Playing the Hand You're Dealt". She has an amazing story about how the Green Card lottery saved her life and ultimately took her in a whole new direction. She now coaches people on body and heart intelligence, is producing a documentary and is launching a digital platform called "The Heart Workers" to help people connect to their emotions, bodies and feminine and masculine strengths. You can find her on elodieattias.com and theheartworkers.com. Her book "The Lucky Card" is also available on Amazon. She explores some incredibly unique ideas and concepts - so tune in!
In this first episode of Season 4: "Playing the Hand You're Dealt" - I sat down with Penny Hunt - an award winning, best selling author, an internationally renowned speaker, an ex-professional dancer and a Navy Wife. She shares how, as a single mom of two kids, choosing to marry a U.S. Naval Officer changed her life in ways she was not expecting. There are some amazing lessons in here and I am sure you'll be running out to pick up her book "Bounce Don't Break" from Amazon once you've heard her story. OH! and stay tuned for the big reveal at the end of the show :)
In this final episode of season three "The Skills that Pay the Bills" - I pick up with Paul Birkenfeld who is an Aviation Specialist and has worked around the world for the past 20 years with some of the top airlines doing everything from managing to flying to scheduling, to stewarding to finding his dream role as a pilot on the ground.... he is full of advice and ideas and shares his journey, lessons he learned along the way and how he found his joy through his pursuit of his dreams. There are some major takeaways here - so don't miss this season finale!
I was honoured to get a chance to speak to Amanda Mackenzie, OBE - the CEO of BitC - all about the transferable skills she has used to move between sectors and roles throughout her career. Her refreshing honesty and self reflection made for an enlightening conversation. Not one to miss - we chat about everything from drive to confidence to ensuring you are not the one undermining yourself. I just love this episode and hope you will too!
I sat down with Eileen Willett, co-founder of Cucumber Clothing (cucumberclothing.com)- to talk about some of the transferable skills she has developed and used over the years. She gives us a sneak peak into her methodical approach to tackling development goals and demonstrates how far she has come by just BEING ON the podcast. She was a pleasure to have as a guest and I am sure that, like me, you will learn a ton from this episode.
I really enjoyed catching up with Lucy Jones who is a Senior HR Exec who has worked across a variety of industries in various HR roles. Lucy shares her thoughts and ideas around using your transferable skills to grow in your current role, change roles and how you can recognise when it is time to take on a new challenge. I learned so much about the HR profession and picked up some fabulous tips on how to think a bit differently about how you can develop more transferable skills.
I sat down with Philippa Bird and had the BEST conversation about progression, CVs, identifying your transferrable skills and some incredible top tips. So, grab a glass of wine, a green tea or a sparkling water and sit back and enjoy the amazing nuggets Philippa has to share about how she moved from Media to Finance - I promise you won't regret it. I am off to listen to it again!!
Stephanie is a former news correspondent, is the founder of an incredibly successful Communications Consultancy - Goetz Communications which helps people discover and perfect their authentic voice, presence & influence. She also founded The Goetz Mental Wellness Initiative; Imagine Thriving in 2013 to honour her brother Cam Goetz, who took his life on August 11th, 2002 – the day before his 20th birthday... and if that were not enough... she is also an aviator and a flight instructor, and is championing the advancement of more women and ethnic minority pilots! \
Don't miss this fantastic conversation in our first episode of Season Three "The Skills that Pay the Bills" which is all about identifying and using the transferable skills you have to get yourself unstuck. It was a pleasure to have had Stephanie on the show and I know you will take something away from this episode - so tune in!
Michelle Taylor (aka The Funky Celebrant) and I sat down for our LAST EPISODE of SEASON TWO to chat through her journey from being a police officer to becoming a celebrant to creating inclusion & diversity courses for the wedding industry. Join me as she shares some incredibly valuable lessons about the strength found in being authentic and how you should not be comparing yourself to anyone but you! I love her genuineness, authenticity, her joy and just laughing with her through this episode and I know you will too!
You can check out what she has been up to here:
https://www.mtaylorcelebrant.co.uk
https://www.instagram.com/michelle_funkycelebrant/
https://thesavvycelebrant.co.uk
And link up with her on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelletaylorcelebrant/
I had an amazing conversation with Majda Dabaghi who is a Project Finance lawyer turned Sustainability Champion. She talks about her experiences of being her Authentic Self in different cultures, companies and countries and how she has found a way to keep her authenticity while adapting to incredibly different working environments. I found the conversation enlightening and profound and hope you enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed speaking to her!
I absolutely loved getting a chance to speak to Olivia about being her Authentic self in the Renewable Energy space. She talks about the incredibly intentional way she has decided to approach her career, her appearance and her life. This was an episode that really challenged a lot of my personal thinking and I hope it will help you take a step back and think about your personal brand and whether you are letting your career happen to you or whether you are proactively moving it (and yourself) to where you want to be.
In this episode, I got to chat with Destynee Onwochei, a children's author and Business Support Manager who has been on an incredible journey to discover her authentic self. She shares some amazing insights into the perils of putting on a mask and trying to be someone you are not and the harm in trying to please others all the time. This is a fabulous episode full of gems - I actually discovered something new along the way!
If you never listen to another episode - listen to this one!! Gill Wylie got a degree in computers when others were just talking about them, she has transformed that degree into an illustrious career where she is an agent for transformational change. I was honoured to sit down with Gill while she was on gardening leave between amazing roles to talk about being her authentic self and how she found her courage, her voice and her ability to accept and cherish others as they were, where they were. Grab some paper, your smartphone, tablet or wherever you like to jot things down - cause you are going to want to take some notes! Buckle up - you are in for a fabulous ride.
Izeldi joined me to talk about being her authentic self in the world of valuations at a major global property advisory firm. I personally found her insights and ideas challenging and thought provoking - she has some fabulous thoughts around finding your true-north and being kind to yourself as well as truthful. As an added bonus, I enjoyed learning a bit more about the world of valuations!
Lucy is a Maths and Economics major who went into banking has worked in change and technology and is now an Executive Director for a large financial institution... not areas or roles one would typically think of as female heavy! She shares how, throughout her career, she has found ways to be her authentic self - and how she worked out what that even was for her! Her intelligence, knowledge and humour shine through in this engaging episode.
Sarah is the CEO of Thames Water, sits on various Boards, is the mother of five (yes, you read that correctly) and is an unashamed Maths lover! She shares how she worked her way circuitously to be the CEO of a major utility and has taken the role and turned it on its head by showing up as her authentic self. I loved speaking to her in this, our first episode of Season Two of The Undiscovered You - I hope her authenticity is as contagious to you, our listener as it obviously it to those who work with her!
Alex is an Area Director in a major financial institution and opens up about how mentors have helped her excel in male-dominated environments and she teaches us what plámás is and how we can use it to get a mentor and then shares the importance the relationship you have with your mentor and how to dump one if the relationship is not working. I massively enjoyed her honesty, sense of humour and sage advice. It's obvious she has kissed the Blarney Stone because she definitely has the gift of the gab. Tune in to hear more from this incredible Irish force of nature!
I had a blast speaking to my friend Angela Blake who is also my mentor... so we are coining the phrase "Friendtor." In this episode, Angela shares her refreshing and unique take on corporates and the fruitlessness of doing something just for status, money and/or prestige. She has been a fabulous Friendtor to me, challenging my thinking and helping me get a new perspective from time to time. Her outlook, humour and honesty all shine through in this episode.
Jody is the Head of Communications at a major financial institution. He became my "Marvellous Mentor" through an official programme at work. In this podcast, he shares top tips on getting and keeping a mentor and some great advice he gave me when I was feeling stuck. His easy manner and fabulous understated sense of humour made him a fabulous guest and an amazing mentor. When I was feeling stuck, Jody helped me assess the reality behind that feeling and I hope this episode will do the same for you.
I am so honoured to be joined by my Marvellous Mentor, Ali Levin who is the "'Me' I want to be" in 5-10 years. On this episode Ali shares her journey from law to organisational psychology to executive coach. She has worked with some huge household names as a coach, facilitator and keynote speaker and through her engaging and easy-going style shares some incredible tips on how to get yourself unstuck by finding your true purpose. She is also the creator of the "CLEAR" coaching programme which she launched to make coaching more accessible to women who need coaching but can't afford it. You can find out more about Ali and the CLEAR programme at coachalilevin.com. Join us for this incredible episode of "The Undiscovered You."
I would like to note that to date all of my guests have been lawyers, American and white... I promise more diversity in nationality for the rest of the season and more diversity across the board starting with my next season "The Authentic You" - in making this podcast I have been challenged by the lack of diversity in my mentors and am seeking to rectify that!
On our second episode of The Undiscovered You, I had the honour of sitting down with one of my Marvellous Mentors - Dean Peter "Bo" Rutledge - the Dean of the University of Georgia School of Law and someone who has had an incredible career, is passionate about helping and developing others but who, despite his incredibly impressive resume is humble and modest and just an incredibly lovely person. It was only in putting this podcast together that I looked back and realised he had been an unexpected mentor of mine. Join us on this episode where Bo shares some incredible stories about what he learned about mentoring in the halls of the U.S. Supreme Court, he shares whether he studied under President Obama when he was studying at Chicago and gives all the listeners some top tips on how to get and keep a mentor. N.B.: The full session was over an hour long which I will post in its entirety at the end of this Season for those who want to hear more from Bo!
On this, our first ever episode of The Undiscovered You I caught up with one of my Marvellous Mentors, Paula Davis who is the founder of the Stress & Resilience Institute and author of "Beating Burnout at Work." She shares how she moved from law into studying positive psychology, setting up her own business and teaching U.S. military personnel resilience. She is a funny, inspirational speaker and has some great tips on how to get unstuck and make that next move.
Welcome to THE UNDISCOVERED YOU - a podcast for 20, 30 and 40 year-olds who think they have more to offer but just feel stuck. Join us as we talk to some incredible people who are just like you. On this podcast we will be looking at ways to get you un-stuck so that you can discover The Undiscovered You.