Awesomely Off-Topic: Books, Brands, Business and Everything Else We’re Not Supposed to Say Out Loud

We woke up this morning and something slightly weird had happened… there were a lot more of you here than there were a few days ago.

So if you’ve just found us, this is a quick hello.

We talk books, brands, business… and quite a lot of things we probably shouldn’t say out loud.

This episode was recorded in the car on the way to see Taz’s mum in hospital, so expect tangents, traffic cones, red kites, and absolutely no editing whatsoever.

If you’re new here - you’re very welcome.

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater

Do you remember the first time someone paid you for what’s in your head… not what’s in your hands?

In this episode, we rewind to the messy, brilliant, slightly chaotic beginnings of getting paid for our brains. From £45 “I’ll charge you for my time then” moments… to kitchen table strategy sessions… to building a business off the back of relationships, reputation and being brave enough to ask.

We talk about:

• The shift from “can I pick your brain?” to “here’s my rate”
• Why most people underestimate what they actually know
• How one small opportunity can open doors you didn’t even know existed
• What working with celebrities really taught us (hint: they’re just people)
• The power of relationships, referrals, and doing things properly
• And why asking the question you’re scared to ask changes everything

If you’ve ever thought, who am I to charge for this?

This one’s for you.

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater

Welcome to season 2.

This time, we’re bringing a bit more shape to the chaos - starting by going right back to where it all began.

Before the books, the businesses and the podcast, we were both young journalists learning fast in local newsrooms. In this episode, we talk about the lessons that stayed with us - writing hooks, interviewing people, working to deadlines, spotting spin, standing your ground and learning how to communicate with people from every walk of life.

It’s a look back at the roots of what we do now, with plenty of newsroom memories, banter and a few thinking points to take away.

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater

For your second BONUS episode between seasons, Taz and Asha share exciting plans for the future of Awesomely Off-Topic.

Thanks so much for all your support so far - you rock!

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater

The one we recorded in the shadow of the Acropolis, on a balmy evening in Athens.

We meant to upload this way earluer - it was recorded in September 2025, but hey, better late than never!

Enjoy

x

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater

When we started Awesomely Off-Topic, we had no studio, no production team, and absolutely no idea what we were doing.

What we did have was a couple of microphones, a stubborn belief that podcasting shouldn’t cost a fortune, and the willingness to figure it out as we went along.

Forty episodes later, we’ve recorded in offices, cars, woodlands, and anywhere else we could make it work. We’ve upgraded our kit, made plenty of rookie mistakes, and discovered that sometimes the best moments are the ones you never planned.

In this Season One finale we look back at what we’ve learned along the way – from the technical mishaps to the unexpected listener messages that made us realise the show was reaching far further than we ever imagined.

We talk about the laughter, the lessons, and the strange places people have told us they listen to the podcast… including supermarket aisles and train platforms.

We also share what’s coming next: new guests, improved audio, a growing podcast community, and the upcoming book Podcasting on a Shoestring.

So… is this the end?

Not even close.

It’s simply the end of Season One – and the beginning of the next chapter.

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater

Episode 39 - ADHD: Superpower, Disability… or Both?

Is ADHD a superpower… or a disability?

It’s a question that keeps popping up online, and every time it does the internet seems to split into camps. Some people argue that calling ADHD a superpower minimises the very real struggles people face. Others say recognising the gifts that can come with it helps them stop seeing themselves as broken.

In this penultimate episode of the season, we dive into the messy middle of that conversation.

We talk about the realities of living and working with ADHD - executive function struggles, time blindness, overwhelm, burnout and those moments where the smallest task somehow turns into a mountain. We also explore the other side of the experience: hyperfocus, creativity, intuition, pattern spotting and the ability to dive deep into something that genuinely matters.

Along the way we unpack things like late diagnosis, masking, the scaffolding many people build just to stay organised, and the crash that can come after days of high-energy “peopling”.

We also ask a question that stopped us both in our tracks:

If someone could wave a magic wand and make you neurotypical tomorrow… would you do it?

As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Do you see ADHD as a superpower, a disability, both… or something else entirely?

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater

WE'RE OUT IN THE WILD - AND YOU'RE COMING WITH US!

We've been banging on about the importance of 'Inspiration Days' for yonks and, this week, we've decided to bring you along for the experience.

We have our posh new microphones (though there was a bit of a technical panic when we realised we'd forgotten the adaptor, plus we need to remember not to get too close while we're recording - apologies for occasional reverb!), our walking shoes, open minds, water and an inhaler... just in case! :D

There's some uphill heavy breathing, an abundance of gorgeous wildlife and plenty of chat about everything from AI to writers' block, using descriptive language on podcasts to what makes a good hug.

Listen carefully... you might hear red kites, buzzards and even the occasional woodpecker.

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater

Episode 37 – The AI Devolution: Broetry, Bots and the Death of Voice

Everyone’s calling it an AI revolution. We’re asking whether it’s becoming a devolution.

In this episode of Awesomely Off-Topic, we take a proper look at what’s happening when creativity gets outsourced a little too eagerly. Not from a place of panic. Not from a place of fear. But from lived experience.

We use AI. We value AI. But we’re also noticing something uncomfortable – when you lean on it too heavily, your own thinking, confidence and creative muscle can start to atrophy.

We talk about:

• Why so much content now sounds eerily the same
• The overuse of rhetorical “broetry” patterns
• Why AI is only ever as good as what you feed it
• The difference between complementing creative professionals and bypassing them
• Art scraping, genre styles and where the ethical line sits
• Why the least interesting thing ChatGPT can do is write your LinkedIn posts
• And what the real power of these tools actually is

This isn’t anti-AI.

It’s pro-standards. Pro-voice. Pro-thinking for yourself. Pro not using really obvious triads, like this one! (Well, it was before we added a fourth :D ).

If you’ve ever wondered whether you’re using AI – or whether it’s starting to use you – this one’s for you.

🎧 Listen now and join the conversation.

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater

Episode 36: Ecosystem vs Egosystem – The Difference Between Building Community and Building a Cult

Leadership isn’t the problem. Exploitation is.

In this episode, we dive headfirst into a question that makes a lot of people uncomfortable:

Are you building an ecosystem… or an egosystem?

We talk about the subtle (and not-so-subtle) difference between healthy leadership and hierarchical control. Between fair value exchange and monetised proximity. Between building real community and building something that revolves around one person at the top.

We unpack:

• The red flags of pay-to-play cultures in business and publishing
• Monetised hierarchy and “guru” dynamics
• What happens when people leave a space – and how leaders respond
• The difference between decentralising power and abandoning leadership

We also challenge the idea that good coaching should make itself redundant – and explain why long-term developmental partnerships are not dependency, they’re growth.

This isn’t anti-leadership. We lead spaces. We facilitate. We’re paid for our expertise.

But when revenue flows upward without reciprocity… When growth threatens the leader… When leaving is shamed… That’s not community. That’s control.

If you care about books, brands, business – and the ethics behind them – this one’s for you.

Something you’d love us to know? Send us a message - we’d love to hear from you.

Support the show

✨ Unfiltered. Unedited. Awesomely Off-Topic. New episodes every Tuesday.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more rants, rambles and random brilliance: 👋  @AwesomelyOffTopic, plus our co-hosts @thetazthornton + @ashaclearwater