Clowning Around Again

For years, Ali Spooner was trying to win approval from people she didn't even like. So what changed? On this episode of Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud chats with Ali, founder of Liberated Leadership, about breaking free from people-pleasing, trusting yourself and finding the confidence to be who you really are. Ali shares how a difficult period after leaving corporate life led her towards an unexpected path to personal freedom, why the word 'should' can hold us back, and what workplaces often get wrong about having fun. From leadership and self-trust to the freedom of trying something new without needing to be good at it, this is an honest, funny conversation about letting go of expectations and finding your own way.

Ali is Chief Liberation Officer, recovering people-pleaser, rock chick and founder of Liberated Leadership.

She helps brilliant women stepping into bigger leadership roles spot the patterns, contradictions and teeny tiny moments where they dismiss their brilliance, dilute their ideas or wait for permission they no longer need.

She holds up a mirror to what they can't yet see for themselves, so they can say what they really think, trust their judgement when there's no guaranteed right answer and end a difficult day knowing they're bloody good at their job.

Connect with Ali:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ali-spooner/

Follow Em:

• Skool: https://www.skool.com/get-your-spark-back/about

• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheComicCoach

• TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@emthecomic

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/em-stroud/

• Website: https://emstroud.com

What does entrepreneurship actually look like beyond the success stories? On this episode of Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud is joined by Shalom Lloyd MBE to talk about entrepreneurship as a way of life, from leaving a 30-year corporate career and learning to live with risk and ambiguity to building purpose-led businesses across the UK and Africa. They get into the loneliness that can come with entrepreneurship, learning to put yourself first, the people who help cushion the difficult moments, and why success does not have to mean following somebody else's formula. Shalom also shares the story behind Naturally Tiwa Skincare and UTÖ, her intimate lubricant created to open up conversations around vaginal dryness, women's health and pleasure. It's a funny, candid conversation about business, purpose, impact, self-care and creating solutions to problems that deserve to be talked about. Pasted text Pasted text

Shalom Lloyd MBE is a mother, pharmacist, entrepreneur, and business leader with over 30 years of experience in drug development, clinical research, and building purpose-led businesses across Africa and the UK. She is the founder of Naturally Tiwa Skincare, a natural skincare brand rooted in African heritage and sustainability, Founder of eMQT and General Manager of The Body Shop Nigeria, where she led the launch of the brand's first store in Nigeria and West Africa. Passionate about ethical leadership, innovation, and social impact, she champions representation, women's empowerment, and the creation of businesses that deliver meaningful change.

Connect with Shalom:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shalom.lloyd3/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shalomlloyd/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shalom-ijeoma-lloyd-mbe-25980b6/
• Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/ShalomLloyd
• Naturally Tiwa Skincare: https://naturallytiwaskincare.com/

Follow Em:

• Skool: https://www.skool.com/get-your-spark-back/about
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheComicCoach
• TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@emthecomic
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/em-stroud/
• Website: https://emstroud.com

Why can one sleep tip work brilliantly for one person and do absolutely nothing for another? On this episode of Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud is joined by sleep coach, author and professional speaker Beatrix A Schmidt to talk about insomnia, why sleep is deeply individual and why generic advice can only take us so far. Beatrix shares her own experience of developing insomnia in her twenties, what it taught her about working with the mind and body, and why she encourages people to think about sleep as a skill and a puzzle rather than something they should simply be able to do. They also explore overthinking, how sleep changes through life, self-care and why curiosity can be more useful than judging yourself when sleep isn't working.

About Beatrix A Schmidt Beatrix A. Schmidt is a sleep coach for adults, professional speaker, and the author of Sleep Skills for Life (2025) and The Sleep Deep Method® (2014). She works with professionals who have tried and tested generic sleep advice without success, helping them fully overcome long-term insomnia and persistent sleep problems. After living with long-term insomnia herself, Beatrix has spent over 12 years studying sleep and helping clients develop practical and effective Sleep Skills so they can sleep well consistently again every night.

Connect with Beatrix: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesleepdeepmethod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beatrixaschmidt LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beatrixaschmidt Website: https://www.beatrixaschmidt.com/ Sleep Skills for Life: https://www.beatrixaschmidt.com/bookpurchase

Follow Em: Skool: https://www.skool.com/get-your-spark-back/about YouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheComicCoach TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@emthecomic LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/em-stroud/ Website: https://emstroud.com

What happens when people are already working at full capacity and leaders keep adding more change? On this episode of Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud is joined by leadership expert Graham Wilson to explore human capacity, high performance and what organisations can learn from elite sport and the military about recovery. They get into overwhelmed teams, why clarity matters when leading change, creating space to think, designing a business around a life you actually want, and why play, reflection and celebrating progress all have a place in high-performing teams. Graham also brings in lessons from his own experiences in the British Army, leadership, entrepreneurship and historic motor racing. A conversation about how we work, lead and perform without forgetting the humans doing the work.

Graham Wilson is a leadership expert, author and founder of Successfactory®, who has spent more than three decades helping leaders and teams around the world create high-performance environments where extraordinary results become possible. Drawing on a career that spans the British Army, corporate leadership, entrepreneurship, mountaineering and historic motor racing, he brings a practical, human and refreshingly real-world approach to leadership. His purpose is simple: awakening possibility in leaders and teams to deliver extraordinary results.

Connect with Graham:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrahamWilsonLeadershipWizard Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadership_wizard/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leadershipwizard/ Successfactory: https://www.thesuccessfactory.co.uk/ Website: https://www.grahamwilson.com/

Follow Em:

• Skool: https://www.skool.com/get-your-spark-back/about
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheComicCoach
• TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@emthecomic
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/em-stroud/
• Website: https://emstroud.com

What does bravery actually look like when you're building something from scratch? In this episode of Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud talks to Louise Hill about building GoHenry, taking risks and learning to keep going when the answer is no. Louise shares how her parents gave her permission to fail, what repeated fundraising rejection taught her about knowing when to stop changing the pitch and start finding the right people, and why GoHenry once pitched to 103 funds during a single raise. They also explore making space for life alongside work, the importance of play and wonder, and the uncertainty of deciding what comes next after years spent building a business. A candid conversation about entrepreneurship, resilience and having the courage to try. About Louise Hill

Louise Hill, financial education campaigner and Founder of GoHenry

Louise Hill is Executive Chair and Founder of GoHenry - the money app helping kids learn to earn, save, spend and invest. Louise has built the business from the ground up, from launching GoHenry in the UK in 2012, expanding to the US in 2018, then acquiring French Fintech Pixpay in 2022, followed by the merger with US Fintech Acorns in 2023.

Louise is a passionate advocate for financial education and campaigned tirelessly to make the subject compulsory in all schools from primary age, with success - financial education is now set to be introduced in primary school curriculums in England from September 2028. Her expertise in kids' banking was recognised when she appeared as an expert judge on The Apprentice (Series 19).

Keen to nurture UK businesses, Louise works to support several UK-based start-ups and is part of Innovate Finance's Unicorn Council for UK FinTech (UCFT), driving growth in the UK FinTech sector, as well as a Board Advisor for The Payments Association. She is also a huge supporter of women in business, regularly mentoring female founders to drive cultural change around female leadership.

GoHenry: https://www.gohenry.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louise-hill-5197614/

Follow Em:

• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheComicCoach
• TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@emthecomic
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/em-stroud/
• Website: https://emstroud.com

What if a career isn't a ladder to climb, but a creative extension of who you are and the contribution you want to make? On this episode of Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud is joined by Eleanor Ford to rethink what careers can actually look like when we move beyond linear paths, fixed job titles and inherited ideas of success. Drawing on Eleanor's experience as a founder, coach, systems thinker and Chief People Officer, they get into creativity, career transitions, emotional runway, reflection, experimentation and why fear can shut down the very thinking we need when the future feels uncertain. It's a lively, thoughtful conversation about giving ourselves permission to explore, challenge the rules we've inherited and build working lives that make more sense for who we are now.

Ellie Ford is an anthropologist-turned-founder, coach and systems thinker working at the intersection of leadership, human behaviour and ambitious systems change, partly through her role as Chief People Officer at Zine VC, and partly through her work with founders, leadership teams and boards navigating growth and high-stakes decisions. An exited founder herself, Ellie previously founded and sold a tech startup to Time Out Group and later led The Good Lab, a cross-sector innovation lab backed by 12 of the UK's largest charities. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eleanor-ford-8b27661/

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/eleanorhford

Follow Em:

• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheComicCoach

• TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@emthecomic

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/em-stroud/

• Website: https://emstroud.com

What happens when the thing you love becomes your work, and how do you keep the passion alive? On this episode of Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud is joined by Nick Elston to explore passion, purpose and the choices that shape what we give our energy to. Drawing on Nick's work as a speaker and transformational speaking coach, they get into childhood ambitions, creativity, the emotional energy behind performing, why authenticity matters more than polished perfection, and why some of the hardest human skills are still dismissed as "soft". They also explore personal brands, building businesses that can exist beyond us and what it really means to create a legacy. It's a funny, candid conversation about staying human, following what lights you up and allowing your passions to evolve.

Nick Elston is an award-winning mental health and keynote speaker, transformational speaking coach, and Founder of Forging People. Known for blending lived experience, humour, and practical insight, he helps organisations, leaders, and audiences have conversations that matter around resilience, communication, wellbeing, and human performance. Nick works globally across corporate, education, frontline, and reform environments, reaching audiences others often struggle to engage.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickelston/

Follow Em:

• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheComicCoach

• TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@emthecomic

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/em-stroud/

• Website: https://emstroud.com

What does inclusion actually cost us when we get it wrong? On this episode of Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud is joined by Nadia Edwards-Dashti and Samantha Emery to explore the economics of inclusion and why this conversation belongs at the heart of business, not on the sidelines. Drawing on Nadia's experience in financial services recruitment and Samantha's perspective as a financial services executive and former regulator, they get into hiring and investment bias, AI, leadership, workplace culture and the very real consequences of who gets heard, funded, promoted or left behind. It's a thoughtful, lively conversation about making the business case for inclusion while never losing sight of the humans living with the consequences.

Nadia Edwards-Dashti is Co-Founder and Chief Customer Officer of Harrington Starr Group, a leading technology and sales recruitment firm in Financial Services and FinTech. She is the host of FinTech's DEI Discussions and author of FinTech Women Walk the Talk. She sits on the Exec Board of the European Women's Payments Network and holds an Honorary Doctorate from Anglia Ruskin University for her commitment to inclusion in the sector.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nadiaedwardsdashti/

Samantha Emery is a financial services executive, NED and advisor. Her portfolio covers start-up and scaling firms, including a seat on the board of ClearBank UK. She has wide-ranging experience as a tier-one banker, regulator and deputy Chair of Swift, the global financial market infrastructure. Samantha knows how the sector works from policy through to product, is an innovation and transformation practitioner and has a personal mission to drive responsible sector growth through greater inclusion.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samanthaemery Follow Em:

• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheComicCoach
• TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@emthecomic
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/em-stroud/
• Website: https://emstroud.com

What if better leadership starts not with having all the answers, but with asking better questions? In this episode of Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud is joined by Lucy Jeffrey for a lively conversation about leadership, learning and what it takes to keep growing when the world of work refuses to stand still. They explore curiosity, emotional intelligence, constructive conflict, psychological safety and critical thinking, alongside the challenge of helping successful leaders rethink habits that may have served them for years. With plenty of warmth, humour and honest reflection, Lucy shares why becoming more curious has changed the way she works with people and why continuing to learn might be one of the most important leadership skills of all. About Lucy Jeffrey:

Curious by nature and optimistic by choice, Lucy Jeffrey is passionate about capability, leadership, learning, culture and helping others realise their potential.

Her career has spanned transformation, business leadership, talent development, and culture, always with a focus on making a positive impact.

She is a firm believer that small actions, genuine relationships, and continuous learning can create extraordinary results.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucyjeffrey/

Follow Em Stroud:

• YouTube: @TheComicCoach for complete video interviews
• TikTok: @emthecomic for clips and latest updates
• Website: emstroud.com

Twenty five years in Formula One teaches you a fair bit about what happens when a message lands and what happens when it really does not. This week on Clowning Around Again, Em Stroud is joined by Nicole Bearne, former Head of Internal Communication at the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team, whose working life started at the British Embassy in Moscow as the Cold War was thawing. They get into why communication sits at the very heart of being human, the piece of choral music Nicole chooses to describe it and the rather lovely reason it fits, and the pattern she keeps spotting in organisations that are convinced their problems are about process. Expect Billy Connolly, roller coasters, a fence that refuses to paint itself, and the kind of thinking about leadership and internal communication that you will find yourself repeating to someone else by Thursday. About Nicole Bearne:

Over a career spanning 25 years in the highly competitive world of Formula One motor racing, Nicole helped her team win nine World Championships – eight back-to-back. Her experience encompasses executive and technical operations, Internal Communication, CSR programmes and Employee Experience. She was Head of Internal Communication at the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team for over a decade and is also a Non-Executive Board Director of Motorsport UK - the governing body of four-wheel motor racing in the UK. LinkedIn: Nicole Bearne Website: https://comms-exchange.com/ Follow Em: YouTube: @TheComicCoach for complete video interviews TikTok: @emthecomic for clips and latest updates Website: emstroud.com