A Thought I Kept
<p><em>A Thought I Kept</em> is a podcast about the ideas that stay with us, long after we’ve forgotten the rest. In each episode, a guest shares the one thought that shaped their life — the one they couldn’t let go of, and maybe you won’t either.</p>
Episodes
"Be Brave Enough to Suck at Something New" — Sadia Ghazanfar
What if confidence isn't where we begin? What if courage comes first?This week on A Thought I Kept, I'm joined by women's leadership and career development coach Sadia Ghazanfar, founder of Slay Your Dragons, to explore the thought she has carried with her for years:"Be brave enough to suck at something new."Together we unpack why so many of us wait to feel confident befor
How We Learn to Matter Too with Lois Jackson
What happens when you spend so long supporting everyone else that you begin to lose sight of yourself?In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I talk to coach and charity co-founder Lois Jackson about caregiving, identity, emotional wellbeing and learning to matter in your own life too.In 2017, Lois’s fiancé, former professional rugby player Ed Jackson, suffered a life-changing spinal cord injury. Loi
How Mothering Becomes a Radical Act with Elinor Cleghorn
Motherhood is often talked about as something instinctive, natural, or inevitable. But what if the stories we've inherited about mothering tell only part of the story?In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I sit down with feminist cultural historian and bestselling author Elinor Cleghorn to explore the hidden history of motherhood and the women whose experiences have so often been left out of t
How We Reclaim Movement in Everyday Life with Wendy Welpton
What happens when movement stops being something we measure, earn, optimise or squeeze into a busy day, and becomes something much simpler?In this episode, I’m talking to Wendy Welpton about the idea that everyday movement matters just as much as exercise. It’s a conversation that begins with movement, but quickly becomes one about trust, self-compassion, ageing, wellbeing, and our relationship wi
When Being Good Is Exhausting with Alice Bramhill
There are times in life when trying to be a good person can become exhausting.A good daughter. A good mother. A good friend. A good employee. A good partner. A good citizen. So much of our lives can be shaped by trying to meet expectations, keep the peace, and make other people comfortable. But what happens when being good starts pulling us away from ourselves?In this episode, I talk to Alice Bram
How We Stay Creatively Conscious with Claire Venus
In a world that often feels noisy, fast-moving, and full of other people's expectations, how do we stay connected to ourselves? How do we know what's truly ours, what lifts us up, and what might be shifting us into someone we were never meant to be?This week, I’m joined by Claire Venus, writer, mentor, Substack strategist, and founder of Creatively Conscious. Claire is someone I turn to
How We Find Our Way Back From Burnout with Dr Jillian Bybee
Burnout is often described as being too busy, working too hard, or having too much on our plates. But what if it has as much to do with how we relate to ourselves as it does with how much we do?In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I talk to Dr Jillian Bybee, a paediatric intensive care physician, certified coach, writer, and host of the Humans Leading podcast. Having experienced burnout twice hers
When Wanting Something Is Reason Enough with Rachel Hartigan
What happens when wanting something is reason enough?In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I’m joined by writer and journalist Rachel Hartigan to explore a thought that has stayed with her for years: “I do it because I want to.”This opens up some surprisingly big questions: How often do we feel the need to justify what we want? How do we separate our own desires from expectations, responsibilities,
How People Pleasing Stops Us Choosing Ourselves with Natalie Lue
My guest this week Natalie Lue is known to many people for her groundbreaking work on people pleasing, boundaries, emotional baggage, and relationships through The Baggage Reclaim Sessions and her book The Joy of Saying No. We talk about the emotional roots of perfectionism and over-responsibility, the pressure to keep proving yourself, and the exhausting belief that you have to “earn” permission
When Self-Help Becomes Something We Do Together with Toni Jones
This week, I talk to Toni Jones about all things self-help. Toni is the founder of Shelf Help, the world’s first self-help book club and over the last decade she has read 1,000 self-help books while building a global community around reading, reflection and connection.We explore the difference between trying to optimise yourself and actually learning how to care for yourself. Toni shares why she t
How We Live Between Belief and Doubt with Hiroko Yoda
In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I talk to Hiroko Yoda about grief, Japanese spirituality, uncertainty, ritual, belonging, and what it means to live somewhere between belief and doubt. We explore the idea of “half belief, half doubt” — the Japanese concept of hanshin hangi and how it can offer a more spacious way of relating to uncertainty, spirituality, and even ourselves.Hiroko shares how th
Hope, Hulp and Human Tricky Things with Jacky Power
In this episode, I talk to Jacky Power about feelings — the ones we hide, the ones we soften, and the ones we’re not always sure we’re allowed to have. We explore what it means to be seen, and why that can feel both deeply wanted and quietly risky. There’s something here about the tension between expression and protection — how we might say things sideways, through poetry or humour or busyness, an
When You’re Here and Not Quite Here with Cathy Rentzenbrink
There are days when you’re here, fully in your life, in your conversations, in the small, ordinary moments, and days when part of you feels somewhere else entirely. That's what I get into with Cathy Rentzenbrink this week. We explore what it means to live a life that feels both grounded and slightly unreal at the same time. We explore the tension between being present and being pulled elsewhe
How We Learn to Trust Things Will Be OK with Tanya Lynch
In this episode, I talk to Tanya Lynch about hope, resilience, and the ways we hold ourselves through change. We explore what it means to believe that things will be OK, not as a forced positive mindset, but as something lived and felt over time. Through stories of heartbreak, midlife, motherhood, and starting again, Tanya shares how this trust has been shaped not just by ease, but by everything s
When Trying is Enough with Imogen Partridge
What if trying — in your work, your parenting, your creativity — was already enough?There are time when it can feel like you’re doing everything you can, and still wondering if it’s enough. The days where you’re holding work, parenting, and life all at once, trying to build something, care for others, and look after your own mental health in the middle of it all.In this episode, I talk to Imogen P
Why Life Feels Better When We Do It Together with Laurence McCahill
There’s something that changes when we stop doing life on our own. Maybe that's an idea that only makes sense once it’s shared, a feeling that softens when someone else is there to hear it, or the magic that comes from being a room of likeminded people singing Queen.In this episode, I talk to Laurence McCahill about connection in its most everyday form and what it means to gather, to listen,
When Grief Changes You But Doesn’t Define You with Rachel Hart-Phillips
In this episode, I talk to Rachel Hart-Phillips about grief, suicide, and what it means to be there for someone in the hardest moments of their life. We explore that quiet, often uncomfortable space where words feel inadequate and yet, where they can matter most.We talk about the fear of saying the wrong thing, the silence that can grow around loss and mental health, and how even the simplest gest
Making Space for All That We Feel with Dr MaryCatherine McDonald
In this episode, I talk to Dr MaryCatherine McDonald about what it means to make space for all that we feel, especially the emotions we’ve been taught to push away. We explore anxiety, grief, joy, and all the ways our nervous system tries to protect us, even when it leaves us bracing against life rather than living it.MaryCatherine shares how her understanding of emotions shifted from something to
How We Break Free from Alcohol with Ellie Nova
Sometimes the things we reach for to cope slowly become the things we feel trapped by. A glass of wine at the end of a long day. Something to take the edge off anxiety. Something that promises connection, relaxation, or a moment of relief from the noise of everyday life.In this week’s episode of A Thought I Kept, I talk to sober coach, sober mentor, and writer Ellie Nova about our relationship wit
How to Find Beauty in Everyday Life with Josephine Dolan-Dufourd
What if the way to feel better isn’t about doing more but learning how to notice what’s already here? In this episode, I talk with occupational therapist Josephine Dolan-Dufourd about what it means to find beauty in everyday life, especially when you're not quite where you thought you'd be.We explore burnout, the pressure to keep producing, and the curious way our attention can get pulle
Tea, Freedom and the Moment You Come Back to Yourself with Erica Moore
There are moments in life when everything looks fine on the outside, but something inside you is wondering, is this it? In this episode, I talk to Erica Moore about career change, rest, tea, and the small, pivotal moments that can shift the direction of a life. The bath before work. The cup of tea. The sudden clarity that life is short and this isn’t a dress rehearsal.Erica shares what happened wh
When You Realise You Get to Be Here with Gabrielle Treanor
This week I’m joined by writer, ADHD coach and founder of The Quiet ADHD Club, Gabrielle Treanor. Together, we explore what it means to feel fully here in your own life, especially if you’re a quiet woman in midlife who has spent years trying to be smaller, more consistent, or more “together” than you actually feel inside.We talk openly about ADHD in midlife, including the experience of late diagn
How to Live in Surrender Without Losing Yourself with Ray Martin
What happens when the life you carefully built no longer feels like it fits? When the version of success you were chasing leaves you anxious, or strangely unfulfilled? In this episode, I sit down with Ray Martin to explore what it really means to live in surrender without losing yourself.Ray shares the story of a year that unravelled everything he thought he knew — his marriage, his business, even
When Your Story No Longer Fits You with Hilary Salzman
Sometimes it isn’t a dramatic breaking point that tells us something needs to change. It can be quieter than that. Maybe just a sense of disconnect, or a feeling that the story we’re living no longer quite belongs to us.In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I talk to Hilary Salzman about what happens when you start to notice that misalignment — between who you are, how you’re seen, and the roles yo
When No One Is Coming to Save You with Edwina Jenner
This week’s thought I kept comes from Edwina Jenner, and it’s one that fundamentally reshaped how she thinks about responsibility, self-trust, and the way we move through midlife. It’s a thought that can feel confronting at first but, when given some space, can open up a surprising sense of clarity and freedom.In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I talk with Edwina about what happens when we stop
When You Let Go of Beliefs That Aren’t Even Yours with Nicky Denson-Elliott
In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I’m joined by Nicky Denson-Elliott for a conversation about the beliefs many women carry without ever consciously choosing them and what can shift when we begin to let those beliefs go.We talk about the emotional weight of comparison, competition, and feeling like we have to stay small or agreeable just to feel safe. About confidence not as a personality trait,
How Neurodiversity Changes the Way We Experience the World with Matthew Bellringer
In this episode, I talk to Matthew Bellringer about what it can feel like to move through a world that doesn’t always seem to be made for you and how impactful it can be to realise that other people may be experiencing that same world in fundamentally different ways.We talk about neurodiversity, but always through lived experience rather than labels. About overwhelm, burnout, boredom, joy, and cur
How We Learn to Live With Our Emotions with Isabelle Fielding
In this episode, I’m joined by Isabelle Fielding for a conversation about our emotions — the ones we try to manage, the ones we push down, and the ones that keep resurfacing when something important is at stake.We talk about what it’s like to live in a world that often asks us to be happier, calmer, more confident, while quietly struggling with anxiety, self-doubt, overwhelm, or a sense that we’re
How Curiosity Can Shape a Life with Rebecca Frank
This is a great episode to start the year with as well as a new season of the podcast. I sit down with wellbeing writer Rebecca Frank to explore how curiosity might offer a way of beginning when we might not be quite ready.Rebecca and I talk about what curiosity looks like when life is full, messy, and changing. We explore how it can soften judgement, widen our view of other people, and help us st
How We Learn to Feel Held with Lauren Barber
What does it really mean to feel held – not just by others, but by ourselves, our bodies, and the rhythms of everyday life?In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I’m joined by Lauren Barber for a conversation about anxiety, aliveness, self-trust, and the quiet practices that help us come back to ourselves when life feels loud or overwhelming. Together, we explore what it means to hold space – for ot
What to Do When You Can’t Think Straight with Katie Driver
When your mind won’t settle, your thoughts won’t line up, or you feel like you can’t hear yourself think, what do you do? In this episode, Claire is joined by Katie Driver, founder of The Thinking Alliance, to explore how we can reclaim clarity in a world that demands constant noise, answers, and action.This conversation explores how to think for yourself, how to listen deeply, how feelings shape
Grief, Joy and the Energy That Turns the Lights On with Georgina Jones
What if your energy is more than just a feeling? What if it’s your currency? In this conversation, host Claire Fitzsimmons speaks with Georgina Jones about the invisible threads that connect us: joy, grief, presence, and the power of what happens when we stop trying to fix and start feeling. They explore how energy shapes how we show up, how we hold space for others, and how movement, music and hu
Reimagining Self-Care in a World That Teaches Us to Be Selfless with Suzy Reading
What if self-care wasn’t about adding more to your to-do list but about rethinking what care even means? In this episode, Claire Fitzsimmons speaks with Chartered psychologist, coach and author Suzy Reading about the often invisible emotional labor of women, the cultural messaging that teaches us to ignore our needs, and the radical act of allowing ourselves to be cared for.Suzy, author of the new
Lovely Messy Humans: Understanding Self-Harm, Emotional Coping, and the Nervous System with Beth Derry
What if your nervous system was quietly shaping everything — from your relationships to your resilience — and no one ever taught you how to understand it?In this episode of A Thought I Kept, Claire Fitzsimmons speaks with Beth Derry, resilience coach and founder of Lovely Messy Humans, about the deep and often overlooked influence our nervous systems have on how we cope, connect, and show up in th
Burndowns, Creative Energy, and the Longing for Real-World Connection with Liana Fricker
What if your creative energy didn’t need an algorithm — just some more self-trust and a room full of the right people?In this episode of A Thought I Kept, Claire Fitzsimmons speaks with PR strategist, founder of The Inspiration Space, and self-described “idea-laying machine” Liana Fricker, about navigating creativity, burnout, and how we reconnect with ourselves — and each other — beyond the onlin
Joy, Grief, Squirrels, and the Real Work of Being Okay
In this special episode of 'A Thought I Kept,' host Claire Fitzsimons is joined by Amanda Sheeren, her close friend and co-founder of 'If Lost Start Here', a wellbeing company aimed at helping people navigate modern life's complexities with creativity, curiosity and humour. This episode centers on Amanda’s thought that even in the dark times there is light. They discuss ho
Following Joy Out of Burnout | A Conversation with Katharina Geissler-Evans
In this episode of 'A Thought I Kept,' host Claire Fitzsimmons engages in a heartfelt conversation with Katharina Geissler-Evans, founder and editor-in-chief of heiter. The discussion explores how to find resilience during exhaustion and overwhelm, and how to create intentional and joyful connections in our increasingly online lives. Katarina shares how the philosophy 'if there&apos
Reclaiming Calm in a World on High Alert | A Conversation with Carrie Ekins
Why do our hearts race at the sound of an email? Why does one glance at our phones send us into full-blown panic? In this episode, we're joined by massage therapist and author Carrie Ekins, who helps us understand what’s really going on in our bodies when everything feels like a threat.Carrie shares how the nervous system can get stuck in survival mode and why modern life triggers ancient fea
A Library Made of Moments | A Conversation with Andrea Rathborne
In this week’s episode of A Thought I Kept, storyteller and creative leader Andrea Rathborne shares a memory so vivid, it feels like a short film stitched into the fabric of her life. This experience taught Andrea to appreciate the everyday small but meaningful moments, which she likens to a series of dashes and dots, forming a personal Morse code of memories. Host Claire Fitzsimmons talks with An
Are You Feeling Your Thinking? A Conversation with Anya Pearse
In this episode of A Thought I Kept, host Claire Fitzsimmons invites Anya Pearse, a coach, mentor, and creative thinker, to discuss a thought that's stayed with her: 'Am I feeling my thinking?' The conversation explores the origins of this thought, inspired by the works of Byron Katie and Michael Neil, and explores themes of self-awareness, self-compassion, and acceptance. Anya shar
Transforming Fear into Adventure: A Conversation with Emma Simpson
In this conversation, Claire Fitzsimmons and Emma Simpson explore the profound question of 'What's the worst that can happen?' as a guiding principle in life. Emma shares her journey of transforming fear into adventure, resilience through grief, and the balance between safety and freedom in parenting. They discuss the importance of emotional energy in nurturing friendships and the c
Wellness Reimagined: A Conversation with Rosamund Dean
In this episode of Thought I Kept, host Claire Fitzsimmons welcomes journalist and author Rosamund Dean, creator of the brilliant Substack Well, Well, Well. They discuss the complexities and contradictions of wellness including Rosamund's mindful approach to drinking and her experience with breast cancer. This conversation explores how to make health choices fun and sustainable, the impact of
Leaving Space for Magic: A Conversation with Eleanor Tweddell
In this episode of A Thought I Kept host Claire Fitzsimmons talks to Eleanor Tweddell, a writer, speaker, and change consultant. Eleanor discusses what it was like to write and publish her new book, Another Door Opens: Five Steps for Navigating Change in Life and Work. The discussion ranges from the importance of pausing, the reassuring nature of messiness, and holding space for magic during trans
The Relationship We Keep Forgetting: A Conversation with Sarah Rees
We talk about love, family, friendship and even boundaries — but we rarely talk about this: the relationship we have with ourselves.In this episode, Claire Fitzsimmons is joined by therapist Sarah Rees to explore the quiet power of self-compassion and why it’s the most overlooked relationship of all. Sarah shares how her work evolved from cognitive behavioural therapy and nursing to compassion-foc
Navigating the Comfort and Overwhelm of Ideas: A Conversation with Emma Lightfoot
In this episode of 'A Thought I Kept,' host Claire Fitzsimmons welcomes Emma Lightfoot, a pet grief expert and animal behaviorist, who shares an impactful epiphany from a wise friend. Emma discusses her tendency to immerse herself in learning and preparation to avoid the discomfort of starting and the fear of failure. She reveals her 2025 pledge to stop spending on self-help books and co
The Quiet Rebellion of Honoring Your Inner Seasons: A Conversation with Lyndsay Kaldor
In this episode of A Thought I Kept, host Claire Fitzsimmons interviews Lindsay Kaldor about the impactful teachings from a yoga class fifteen years ago that taught her the importance of seasonality and rest. Lindsay shares her journey from living a nonstop 'summer existence' in her twenties, to embracing the cyclical nature of life inspired by the wisdom that 'flowers don't bl
Creating Space for Thought: A Conversation with Sarah Philp
In this episode of A Thought I Kept, Sarah Philp discusses the profound impact of Nancy Klein's quote, 'The quality of everything human beings do depends on the quality of the thinking that we do first.' She reflects on the relationship between thinking and action, the importance of creating thinking spaces, and how these concepts have shaped her work as an educational psychologist
The Strength Paradox: What We Love vs. What We're Good At: A Conversation with Irena Meštrović Štajduhar
In this episode of 'A Thought I Kept,' host Claire Fitzsimmons talks with her friend Irena Meštrović Štajduhar about redefining the concept of strengths. Irena, based in Croatia, is a life observer who shares insights on how traditional metrics of success often lead to burnout and disconnection. They delve into Marcus Buckingham's idea that true strengths are activities that bring
Embracing What's Meant For Us: A Conversation with Sarah Robertson
In this episode of 'A Thought I Kept' hosted by Claire Fitzsimmons, brand designer and creative mentor Sarah Robertson discusses the lasting impact of a saying from her Scottish grandmother. Sarah shares how this phrase has been an anchor throughout various personal and professional challenges, offering comfort and encouragement. She reflects on the insights gained from creating and laun
Create What You Love: A Conversation with Emily Charlotte Powell
In this episode of A Thought I Kept, host Claire Fitzsimmons talks with Emily Charlotte Powell about the one idea that has guided her creative journey. Emily shares her realisation that prioritizing joy and personal fulfillment in her creative pursuits over external validation and algorithm-driven demands is everything. They discuss the importance of staying true to one's own interests, the t
A Thought I Kept | Trailer
A Thought I Kept is a short-form wellbeing podcast about the single ideas that shape how we live — the ones that stay with us, long after we’ve forgotten the rest.Hosted by Claire Fitzsimmons, each episode features a different guest sharing the one idea they’ve carried with them through life. A line from a book, a sentence said at the right moment, a realisation they couldn’t un-hear. These are th
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