Ever had your day derailed by a last-minute request? A sudden change of plan? Or that dreaded moment when you're put on the spot and don’t have the answer? In this episode, Helen and Sarah explore the curveballs that show up in our working week—and how we can respond to them with more confidence and control.

From tech fails to surprise tasks, curveballs can throw us off track and test our confidence. Helen and Sarah share personal stories, reflect on their own curveball capability, and offer practical ideas for action to help you deal with the unexpected, think on your feet, and stop small things from snowballing.

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Welcome to the Squiggly Careers Podcast

00:33 Day-To-Day Curveballs

05:52 Acknowledging & Receiving Curveballs

07:46 Why Curveballs Feel Hard In The Moment

09:06 Curveballs Are More Likely In Squiggly Careers

11:00 Rating Your Curveball Capability

16:55 Idea For Action — Anticipating & Thinking On The Spot

20:35 Idea For Action — Using Multiple Workarounds

26:14 Idea For Action — Avoiding Curveballs Becoming Snowballs

🎯 What You’ll Learn

- Why curveballs feel hard in the moment

- Why curveballs are more common in squiggly careers

- How to anticipate the unexpected and think on your feet

- How to stop curveballs from becoming snowballs

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free career tools: https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🏃‍♀️ Join our next Skills Sprint: https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

📮 Get Squiggly Careers in Action in your inbox: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books: The Squiggly Career and You Coach You: https://www.amazingif.com/books/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do you make sure your message gets heard—and acted on? In this Squiggly Careers Ask the Expert episode, Helen speaks with author and influence expert Steve Martin about the powerful role of the messenger in communication.

Drawing on insights from his book Messengers, Steve explains how people respond differently depending on who delivers the message, and why understanding the difference between hard and soft messenger traits can transform your influence at work.

Together, they talk about how you can be more effective in meetings, remote settings, and team communication—plus how to match the right message to the right messenger for maximum impact.

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Welcome to the Squiggly Careers Podcast

01:00 Why the Messenger Matters as Much as the Message

04:40 Trust vs Truth: How We Really Decide Who to Listen To

07:20 Hard vs Soft Messengers (and When Each One Works Best)

13:15 The Kevin Keegan Story: Choosing the Right Messenger

15:20 Why Content Isn't Everything: Choosing the Right Voice

16:30 A Better Way to Start Meetings (That Builds Credibility)

20:00 The Role of Introductions in Empowering Messengers

21:15 Influence in Remote Work: Tips for Zoom & Teams

25:30 Mimicry and Mirroring: Small Shifts That Build Connection

29:08 Announcements

🎯 What You’ll Learn

- Why who delivers a message can be more important than what they say

- The difference between hard and soft messenger traits—and when to use each

- Practical ways to increase your influence in meetings and remote settings

- How to elevate others as effective messengers to get results as a team

📚 Resources Mentioned

Steve's Book, Messengers: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Messengers-Who-Listen-Dont-Why/dp/1847942350

Try Steve’s free quiz: https://www.influenceatwork.com/quiz/

Influence with Robert Cialdini: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9d5VBsx-Rec

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free careers tools https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🏃‍♂️ Sign-up for our Squiggly Careers Skills Sprint https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

📮 Sign up for Squiggly Careers in Action, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books ‘The Squiggly Career’ and ‘You Coach You’ www.amazingif.com/books/ http://www.amazingif.com/books/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are you always doing too much yourself? Do you struggle to let go, even when you know you should? In this episode of the Squiggly Careers Podcast, Helen and Sarah explore why so many of us don’t delegate—and what we can do differently to delegate with clarity, confidence, and collaboration. Learn how to avoid the 4 common delegation mistakes and how to give people space without leaving them stuck.

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Welcome to The Squiggly Careers Podcast

00:48 Why You Don’t Delegate (Even When You Should)

12:55 4 Don'ts Of Delegation (And What To Do Instead)

13:15 Don’t Delegate the How

16:52 Don’t Delegate and Disappear

22:41 Don’t Do It for Them

25:06 Hybrid Approaches to Teaching & Delegating

26:25 Don’t Expect It Done Your Way

28:00 Letting Go of “Your Way” and Embracing Other Styles

🎯 What You’ll Learn

- Why delegation feels uncomfortable for even experienced leaders

- 4 delegation mistakes to avoid & what to do instead

- How to give people freedom without micromanaging

- The power of clear outcomes, expectations, and trust

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free careers tools https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🏃‍♂️ Sign-up for our Squiggly Careers Skills Sprint https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

📮 Sign up for Squiggly Careers in Action, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books ‘The Squiggly Career’ and ‘You Coach You’ www.amazingif.com/books/ http://www.amazingif.com/books/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Helen and Sarah explore how to help teams think better—together. They share simple but powerful tools you can use to encourage reflection, collaboration, and better decision-making in your team. Discover a practical matrix to help you choose the right thinking tool for your team—whether you need to improve performance or inspire new ideas. From “worry lists” to “borrowed brilliance,” you’ll learn how to create space for smarter, more intentional team thinking.

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Intro: Welcome to the Squiggly Careers Podcast

00:43 Why We Struggle to Think as Teams

01:56 Who Are Your Thinking Partners?

02:18 Team Thinking Drives Team Performance

03:02 Principles for Better Team Thinking

07:38 Signal Thinking Activities in Your Team

08:46 Turning Thinking into Action via Experiments

09:43 The Team Thinking Matrix Explained

11:48 Idea for Improvement: Worry Lists

17:20 Idea for Improvement: What's Not Working (The "Knots")

23:30 Everyday Idea for Inspiration: Borrowed Brilliance

🎯 What You’ll Learn:

- Why teams need more time to think (and how to make that time work)

- 3 powerful principles for better collective thinking

- Tools like “worry lists,” “what’s not working,” and “borrowed brilliance”

- How to run quick team exercises

- Ways to turn thinking into action—without overcomplicating it

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free careers tools https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🏃‍♂️ Sign-up for our Squiggly Careers Skills Sprint https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

📮 Sign up for Squiggly Careers in Action, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books ‘The Squiggly Career’ and ‘You Coach You’ www.amazingif.com/books/ http://www.amazingif.com/books/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We often talk about the value of having a role model - someone to learn from and be inspired by. But what about the impact of being a role model?

In this week’s episode, Helen and Sarah explore how being a role model can support your development, raise your profile, and help you build stronger connections at work. When you're intentional about how you show up, you attract opportunities and create a community around your work. They explore practical ideas to help you decide your role model focus, borrow brilliance, and put role modelling into practice in your day-to-day work.

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free careers tools https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🏃‍♂️ Sign-up for our Squiggly Careers Skills Sprint https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

📮 Sign up for Squiggly Careers in Action, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books ‘The Squiggly Career’ and ‘You Coach You’ www.amazingif.com/books/ http://www.amazingif.com/books/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better conversations help you build stronger relationships, understand others more deeply, and make meaningful progress - together.

In this episode, Sarah talks to Jefferson Fisher, lawyer, speaker, and best-selling author, about five common situations where conversations can get tricky. From dealing with someone very different to you, to getting interrupted, or feeling stuck in people-pleasing, Jefferson shares simple shifts that can help you handle these moments with more clarity and confidence.

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free careers tools https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🏃‍♂️ Sign-up for our Squiggly Careers Skills Sprint https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

📮 Sign up for Squiggly Careers in Action, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books ‘The Squiggly Career’ and ‘You Coach You’ www.amazingif.com/books/ http://www.amazingif.com/books/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Change at work isn’t always something you choose — sometimes your role is restructured, your team shifts, or decisions are made around you. When that happens, it’s easy to feel stuck, like your career progression is out of your hands. In this episode, Helen and Sarah share some practical actions you can take to regain control, build your confidence, and keep moving forward, even when change feels uncomfortable.

They explore how to make the best of where you are right now and take action, from shifting your mindset, to spotting opportunities in uncertain situations and choosing your change story — so change doesn’t stall your Squiggly Career.

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free careers tools https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🏃‍♂️ Sign-up for our Squiggly Careers Skills Sprint https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

📮 Sign up for Squiggly Careers in Action, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books ‘The Squiggly Career’ and ‘You Coach You’ www.amazingif.com/books/ http://www.amazingif.com/books/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Self-reflection and career development can be supercharged with the right questions — and AI can help you ask them. In this episode, Helen and Sarah explore 4 practical AI prompts designed to help you accelerate your Squiggly Career. They focus on key areas including how to build better relationships at work, get unstuck when you’re feeling uncertain, cope with change more confidently, and understand what your LinkedIn profile might be saying about you (without you realising it!). Whether you're curious about AI or looking for new ways to learn and grow, this episode will help you get started.

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free careers tools https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🏃‍♂️ Sign-up for our Squiggly Careers Skills Sprint https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

📮 Sign up for Squiggly Careers in Action, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books ‘The Squiggly Career’ and ‘You Coach You’ www.amazingif.com/books/ http://www.amazingif.com/books/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We spend so much of our time at work on autopilot that we often miss what's right in front of us. In this episode, Helen and Sarah explore the art of noticing — how paying closer attention can unlock creativity, spark new ideas, and help you learn and lead in more meaningful ways. They share 9 simple and practical ways to start noticing more at work, from tuning into what’s left unsaid in meetings to spotting the tasks that never seem to get done.

00:00 Introduction

01:20 What is noticing?

03:57 Idea 1

05:04 Idea 2

07:15 Idea 3

10:35 Idea 4

12:36 Idea 5

15:37 Idea 6

18:42 Idea 7

22:27 Idea 8

26:33 Idea 9

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free careers tools https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🏃‍♂️ Sign-up for our Squiggly Careers Skills Sprint https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

📮 Sign up for Squiggly Careers in Action, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚Read our books ‘The Squiggly Career’ and ‘You Coach You’ www.amazingif.com/books/ http://www.amazingif.com/books/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a recent survey, many of our listeners told us that their biggest career worries are around learning new skills and staying relevant. But what skills really matter most for your future career? It’s a big question — and one that can feel overwhelming when you’re juggling a busy job and facing constant pressure to keep up and reskill. In this episode, Helen and Sarah share practical and reassuring ways to take ownership of your skill development, so you can navigate your squiggly career with confidence and control. You’ll learn how to identify the skills that matter most to you right now, which ones to invest in for your future self, how to stretch your strengths, and how to make space for learning — even when time feels tight.

00:00 What skills matter most for your future career?

03:32 Identify your skills

13:47 Learn skills from others

16:54 Stretch your strengths

19:10 How to find time to improve your skills

21:09 How to skill swap in your team

26:08 Find a skills sponsor



Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SquigglyCareers

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email: [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

1. Download our free careers tools https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

2. Sign-up for our Squiggly Careers Skills Sprint https://bit.ly/skillssprint2024

3. Sign up for Squiggly Careers in Action, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

4. Read our books ‘The Squiggly Career’ and ‘You Coach You’ [www.amazingif.com/books/](http://www.amazingif.com/books/)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.