What happens when you decide "if everyone else can do it, so can I"? In this episode, I'm joined by Katherine, writer, songwriter, and mum of two based in Chester, who's built not one, but two businesses.

One started when her cat Tiggy took up residence at Chester train station and unexpectedly became a local (and now online) phenomenon. The other is Skill Seeds, a five-minute microlearning app Katherine built from scratch with zero app-building experience, designed to be ad-free, safe, and genuinely rewarding for creators from day one.

We talk about what it takes to start something completely new in midlife with no prior experience, why "doom scrolling to bloom scrolling" might be exactly what families need, and how curiosity, not a five-year plan, has driven Katherine's midlife reinvention.

If you've ever thought "it's too late to try something new," this one's for you.

Get in touch with Katherine :

Skill Seeds Website

Follow Tiggy on Facebook

This episode was edited and produced by The Productivity Playground Ltd. Podcast editing and admin support for small businesses.

The Productivity Playground website

Louise Brown was invited to a future-CEO programme at Oxford's Saïd Business School and her first instinct was to say no. Not me. Not Oxford. I'm too northern. What would I wear?

She went anyway, dragging a bright pink suitcase with a broken handle onto a four-hour train, where a procession of helpful strangers took turns explaining to her how to work a handle. By the time she arrived she was sweating, disheveled and ready to cross the platform and go straight home to Lancashire. What stopped her was a realisation in a small room with the telly on: the only thing keeping her paralysed there was her.

In this episode, Louise, author of Bold, Brave, Brilliant, NLP coach, TEDx speaker and former vice principal with 30+ years in public service, makes the case that imposter syndrome isn't something to fix. It's a phenomenon, not a disorder. It's energy, and it's proof that you care. We talk about why confidence often gets quieter the further up you climb, why senior leaders are the last to admit it, journaling as a way to catch your inner critic in the act, and who's looking after HR while HR looks after everyone else.

Plus: what's next for Louise, a companion journal, a second book on leadership and culture, and why her best ideas arrive mid-run.

You can contact Louise on :

This episode was edited and produced by The Productivity Playground Ltd. Podcast editing and admin support for small businesses.

The Productivity Playground website

You thought healing had an end point. Heather Angell is here to tell you it doesn't and that's actually good news.

In this episode of Life Begins at Midlife, human dynamics coach Heather Angell joins me to talk about the patterns we inherit without ever choosing them, the "coding" we pick up as kids that shapes how we show up in our careers, our relationships, and our sense of who we are. Heather explains why understanding these patterns isn't about being broken or needing fixing, and why awareness alone isn't enough to change anything.

We talk about the difference between reacting and responding, why the wellness industry has become bigger than big pharma (and what that says about us), and why you don't have to heal every single part of yourself to live a full life. Heather also opens up about her own journey — from people-pleaser to the woman she is today and why it took her ten years to get there.

If you've ever felt like your past has decided your future, this conversation will help you see it differently.

In this episode:

• Why your patterns aren't your fault
• The difference between reacting and responding
• Why "being healed" isn't actually the goal
• How small shifts create a domino effect in your life
• Why you don't have to fix everything to move forward

You can contact Heather on

This episode was edited and produced by The Productivity Playground Ltd. Podcast editing and admin support for small businesses.

The Productivity Playground website