Figuring It Out As I Go Along

We're backkkkkkk!! It has been a whirlwind of a few months to say the least, but that doesn't mean I've forgotten about you, my lovely listeners! This episode is a little bit of a catch up, covering my recent Radio 1 Adventure, battling burnout & a full time job, and the fact that I have (finally) been diagnosed with ADHD (yay!) I also chat about the incredible book 'The Defining Decade' by Dr Meg Jay (that you MUST read), being vulnerable online as well as diving deep into your thoughts on ambition and success in your 20s. I must say, it was so much fun getting back behind the mic, and I can't wait to do more in the New Year. Thanks for all the love & support in 2025, here's to 2026!

Hello and welcome to another episode of FIOAIGA, and this time with the wonderful Kiera Ford. Kiera & I met doing student radio, and have got a shared passion for the world of audio, so I knew she’d be an excellent guest on the pod. In this week’s episode, Kiera and I dive deep into the difficulties of seeing your peers with their dream jobs on LinkedIn, whilst battling job rejections yourself, and tackling the conflict of celebrating other people’s wins whilst also crediting our own hard work and effort too! From there, we reflected on how friendships can change drastically in your 20s, as our priorities, routines and locations change drastically from year to year. We talk difficult friendship breakups to touching reunions, and cherishing these connections even if we can’t see people as much as we’d like to! It was a therapeutic episode, I must say, and I really enjoyed reflecting with Kiera about some things I hadn’t thought about much before! Thanks for being a super guest Kiera, and I can’t wait to hear what you guys think! Enjoy - K xxxx

hello and welcome back to a brand new episode of FIOAIGA, and this week I’m joined by the lovely Ben Smith to debate the age-old claim that ‘University is the best time of your life’. Coming at it from different perspectives, this lay down the perfect foundation for an extensive discussion. Ben agreed wholeheartedly with the statement, adding that it has made for a sudden drop back down to reality in post-grad life, whilst I described how I was desperately ready to leave and how this allowed me to find more joy in my life after graduating. From discussing ‘pseudo-adulthood’, to sleep procrastination and the importance of mindset, we really covered all bases and found a way to meet in the middle of the debate. I truly enjoyed reflecting on university with Ben in a way that I hadn’t before, and it was an honour to have him on the podcast. I would be curious to hear your opinions, let me know what you think!

helloooo and welcome back to a brand new episode of FIOAIGA, and this week I wanted to get your thoughts on the matter, all about Transitional Periods! after chatting to some friends recently, I’ve realised that too often we repress uncomfortable emotions that arise during change as we feel unable to understand or articulate them. With a mixture of listener insights & psychological research, we explore the grief that comes with closing a chapter, and the anxiety that can arise when taking on a fresh start. We chat about all the big ‘firsts’ that crop up during your 20s, and the ups and downs that come alongside them (as well as starting off with a little catchup, as usual!). hope you enjoyyyy:))

Hello and welcome to another episode of FIOAIGA, and our first EVER video episode! Ahh I’m so excited ! Today I’m joined with my glorious friend Emma, who honestly is like my soul sister. Emma and I were flatmates in our first year at uni, and bonded instantly as two very nervous girls starting this scary new chapter in our lives. Now, 6 years on, Emma is training to be a psychotherapist over in Greece, and I thought she’d be the PERFECT person to come on the pod. Together, we explore the extremely interesting topic of attachment styles, and how they affect our relationships from infancy all the way into adulthood. Within this, we discuss how childhood trauma can influence our attachment styles and whether or not we can learn to heal from unhealthy relationship habits and break the cycle of toxicity. On top of all this, we also dive deep into Emma’s experiences in training, how we can nurture our inner child, and whether or not ChatGPT therapists are actually legit. Wow, it was so healing to connect with one of my dear friends, even if we are time zones apart, and I truly know you’ll find all that she has to say super interesting. Thank you Emma, and I hope you enjoy! K x

We did it guys - we made it to the 50th episode! After a bit of a break, I’m back at the end of summer, ready to catch you up with what I’ve been up to and share some thoughts with you. We explore the topics of freedom, fresh starts and transitional periods, before diving deep into what you guys at home are still ‘Figuring Out’ as you go along. It truly means the world to get the lovely feedback that I do and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for FIOAIGA! Thank you for everything, here’s to at least another 50:) K x

This week’s episode was a super fun conversation with my lovely friend Harriet ! Now, one of the ongoing jokes we have in our friendship is to do with our age difference. Although it’s only 10 years, we joke constantly about how much things change between your early 20s and early 30s. So, we decided to riff off this idea and talk about the life lessons she’s learnt since she was my age. We explore changes in friendship dynamics, career changes and social batteries, whilst also reviewing societal expectations and how much we’re supposed to have ‘figured out’ by the time our age starts with a 3. We debate whether there really is a ‘right time’ to have children, or really a ‘right time’ to do anything at all! With laughs about funny anecdotes, and emotional reflections about grief, we really covered all grounds. It was truly an honour to share the studio with someone I respect & care about so much and I’m so happy we finally got time in our busy schedules to finally do it! So, thank you Harriet, and I hope you all enjoy! K x

In this week’s episode, I was joined by award winning financial advisor and ‘Financial Wellbeing’ champion, Kaye Price. Now I don’t know about you, but I feel like we were never taught at school how to look after our money, and especially going from being a student to being a graduate, I feel more in the dark than ever. Kaye guides us through her best top tips for managing your finances, from meal planning to avoiding Klarna at all costs. We talk about the social pressures to go out, how financial stress can affect our mental health, and how one can look after their money and their mind simultaneously. Honestly, I learnt so much and I’m sure you will too!

**DISCCLAIMER** Kaye is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Content is for financial education only, and does not constitute financial advice or a recommendation to act. Seek professional financial advice before taking action on anything discussed.

hey guys - i'm back with another edition of 'Your Thoughts on the Matter', in which I enlisted the help of you lovely listeners so that we could have a joint reflection on toxic guilt and that inner critical voice that can sometimes get a little loud inside my mind. Now, i'm chronically guilty, and this has something that has come about over the last few years. Feeling guilty about potential misunderstandings, not being able to attend a party or even just calling in sick to work: you name it, I've probably felt guilty about it. But why is this? Why are some people more likely to ruminate about these things than others? In this episode we dive deep into this question, alongside some of your input via instagram, and overall we review how we can take back control over that loud critical voice and use self-compassion tools to show it who's boss. Thank you yet again for getting involved, i can't express how grateful I am! Because when you get in touch, I'm made aware how much we really are just all figuring it out as we go along... enjoy! K x

In this week’s episode, I met with the lovely Emma Brown to discuss her fascinating PHD topic, which explores how accessible the classical music industry really is for physically disabled musicians. As a double-leg amputee herself, Emma is really passionate about exploring whether or not conservatoire settings allow for disabled students to thrive alongside their able-bodied counterparts. We explored the barriers in the industry, ignorance and assumptions about disabled individuals, alongside the importance of the representation of disabled musicians in the media and the impact of internalised pressure and perfectionism! It was a truly eye opening conversation, and Emma is so eloquent about both her experience and her research thus far. With poignant anecdotes, thought provoking opinions, and a sprinkle of humour, this episode provides just a little bit of everything. Enjoy!:) K x