If LinkedIn had a no-fluff filter…
 
How much content would survive?
We put Elisabetta Torretti, in the hot seat to find out,
🌍 The best and worst thing about starting over in a new country  
📊 Her blunt advice for anyone tying self-worth to metrics
📱  The habit she tells others to break… but can’t break herself
💌 And the weirdest DM she’s ever received

Watch the clip now and don’t miss the full episode for more curious moments.

📺 Elisabetta’s full Fast & Curious episode drops today on YouTube. Don’t forget to also check out her full Courageous Leaders interview while you’re there.

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🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:
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How do you turn personal struggles into a platform that changes lives?

In this episode of Courageous Leaders Podcast, I’m joined by Elisabetta Torretti, founder and CEO of Mint and Lemon, who helps founders and teams show up online with clarity and confidence. From moving to London at 25 without speaking English, and overcoming an eating disorder, to growing 100k LinkedIn followers in a year, Elisabetta’s story is a masterclass in courage, reinvention, and building a personal brand that opens doors.

We Cover:
01:21 – Moving to London without English or connections

03:23 – The three teenage dreams that shaped her leap into the unknown

06:10 – From insecurity and imposter syndrome to starting self-belief work

09:29 – Discovering and confronting binge eating disorder

13:30 – Lessons from therapy and how they built her resilience

17:27 – From corporate to 100k LinkedIn followers and why visibility matters

22:18 – Navigating overwhelm, boundaries, and criticism online

26:12 – Why trolls are a sign of success and how to handle them

28:27 – Everyone has a personal brand and here’s how to start building yours

36:54 – One piece of advice for anyone scared to post online

39:30 – Where she still wants to be more courageous and why self-belief matters

Don’t miss out on this powerful episode.

👍 Stay inspired by joining our YouTube community! Click the link, hit the subscribe button, leave a comment, and never miss an episode. Your support helps us empower courageous leaders like you!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2kZ-x8fDHKEVb222qpQ_NQ


🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:
Book a call for transformative leadership and team coaching:
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⏰ 6:07am. Twice a week.

That’s when Check Warner sets her alarm.

Why so precise? 👀

That’s just one of the things you’ll discover in this week’s The Fast & The Curious with Matt & Check, Co-Founders of Ada Ventures.

From parenting lessons to the startup ‘rules’ they ignored, this is the side of two highly successful founders you won’t find on Google.

🎧 Take a listen here: https://podcasts.apple.com/uk/podcast/the-courageous-leaders-podcast/id1594924295

📺 Watch now on YouTube, full Courageous Leaders Podcast episode also live.

👍 Stay inspired by joining our YouTube community! Click the link, hit the subscribe button, leave a comment, and never miss an episode. Your support helps us empower courageous leaders like you!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2kZ-x8fDHKEVb222qpQ_NQ


🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:
Book a call for transformative leadership and team coaching:
Website: https://thechangecreators.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannahowes/

What happens when two unlikely co-founders challenge everything about the venture capital world?

In this episode of The Courageous Leaders Podcast, I sit down with Check Warner and Matt Penneycard, the duo behind Ada Ventures. They open up about money, stress, parenthood, relentless rejection and what it takes to build a business from nothing but trust and audacity.

If you’ve ever wondered how to start a company with zero roadmap, navigate co-founder friction, or fundraise against the odds this one’s for you.

We Cover: 
01:40 – Check’s bold career pivot into VC with no finance background

04:46 – Matt’s courageous leap despite the financial and family strain

06:18 – Why Check didn’t believe Matt was “real” (and how that changed everything)

08:40 – Equal partnership: how they split everything 50/50 from day one

11:54 – Building Ada Ventures with no salary, no certainty, just vision

13:13 – How trust and shared risk carried them through tough times

15:25 – The first moment of friction (and the awkward feedback conversation)

18:35 – Leading with inclusivity, especially when no one else was doing this

29:47 – Did they ever think about quitting? Yes. Here’s how they didn’t.

32:10 – The viral “privilege” article and why Check had to speak up

Don’t miss out on this powerful episode. 

👍 Stay inspired by joining our YouTube community! Click the link, hit the subscribe button, leave a comment, and never miss an episode. Your support helps us empower courageous leaders like you!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2kZ-x8fDHKEVb222qpQ_NQ


🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:
Book a call for transformative leadership and team coaching:
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What do penis pens, naked yoga and an erotic platform...

All have in common?

Lauren Spearman reveals in her The Fast & The Curious episode.

Cannes chaos to 9pm bedtimes

This one moves fast and nothing is off limits.

🙃 What did her family buy her that left her speechless?
 💸 Why have none of her invoices been paid this month?
 🍷 What’s her go-to hobby that involves wine and a fancy tablecloth?
 👀 And which platform would she love to collab with purely for fun?

You’ll laugh.
You’ll raise an eyebrow.
You’ll question your own morning routine.

📺 Full episode of The Courageous Leaders Podcast now live on YouTube.

👍 Stay inspired by joining our YouTube community! Click the link, hit the subscribe button, leave a comment, and never miss an episode. Your support helps us empower courageous leaders like you!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2kZ-x8fDHKEVb222qpQ_NQ


🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:
Book a call for transformative leadership and team coaching:
Website: https://thechangecreators.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannahowes/

How to keep showing up and challenging yourself even when you have no confidence?

In this episode of The Courageous Leaders Podcast, I speak with Lauren Spearman, a Social Media consultant and content creator, about the raw and real journey of building confidence. From leaving a steady job with no plan B to showing up online at her lowest point, Lauren shares what it’s really like to let go of control, show up when you're unsure, and embrace uncertainty. 

Whether you're stuck in your career, struggling to speak up, or just tired of waiting for confidence to arrive, this one's for you.

We Cover: 

00:00 – Introduction
01:30 – The TikTok that changed her career trajectory
03:20 – A lifelong battle with self-worth and body image
05:00 – Why confidence is a wave you ride
08:00 – Quitting without a plan and what changed her mindset
10:30 – Confidence isn’t having all the answers
12:00 – You have to act first
14:00 – Raising standards changed everything
16:00 – Building a portfolio career by following energy
20:00 – Designing a dream lifestyle, not a dream job
34:30 – Getting curious and asking better questions

Don’t miss out on this powerful episode.

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🎧 Listen to the full podcast episode here:
https://thecourageousleaderspodcast.buzzsprout.com/

🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:

Book a call for transformative leadership and team coaching:

Website: https://www.thechangecreators.com 

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

👍 Stay inspired by joining our YouTube community! Click the link, hit the subscribe button, leave a comment, and never miss an episode. Your support helps us empower courageous leaders like you!
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🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:
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What’s stronger, self-discipline or self-awareness?

Which one would you choose?

We put Ross Anderson in the hot seat for The Fast & The Curious.

From topless butler to mindset mentor,

He’s got stories, surprises, and a serious take on growth that’ll make you stop scrolling.

🧠 What’s the one tool he swears by for instant stress relief?

📺 Which guilty pleasure TV show does he watch on loop?

🏆 Which Guinness World Record does he want to break next?

🧊 And why ice baths don’t work for him.

📺 Watch Ross Anderson’s full Fast & The Curious episode now on The Courageous Leaders Podcast.

👍 Stay inspired by joining our YouTube community! Click the link, hit the subscribe button, leave a comment, and never miss an episode. Your support helps us empower courageous leaders like you!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2kZ-x8fDHKEVb222qpQ_NQ


🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:
Book a call for transformative leadership and team coaching:
Website: https://thechangecreators.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannahowes/

What if your worst life chapters could become your greatest teachers? 

In this episode of The Courageous Leaders Podcast, I sit down with Ross Anderson, psychologist, founder of Beyond Baseline, and someone who turned chaos into clarity. Ross shares the pivotal moments that forced him to choose between staying broken or building something better.

We talk about the courage it takes to rewrite your identity, to walk away from the life you were handed, and to chase a version of yourself that doesn't yet exist. If you've ever felt stuck in your past or unsure of what’s next, this conversation will show you what’s possible when you believe in better.

We Cover:
01:35 – The moment Ross nearly faced two years in jail

02:55 – What addiction and panic attacks were doing to his life

05:33 – When Ross began listening to his real, authentic thoughts

09:29 – Why reinvention means letting go of who you used to be

10:26 – How to tell the difference between authentic and false thoughts

15:01 – What media consumption is doing to our sense of stillness

19:15 – The power of strong determination meditation

20:55 – How a psychologist changed the direction of Ross’s life

26:40 – Becoming the first in his family to go to college

31:30 – The three mentors who helped him avoid jail

33:14 – A powerful experiment that proves belief shapes behaviour

47:17 – Why we need to train the mind like we train the body

Don’t miss out on this powerful episode.

👍 Stay inspired by joining our YouTube community! Click the link, hit the subscribe button, leave a comment, and never miss an episode. Your support helps us empower courageous leaders like you!
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Does Ryan Gosling look like Rodney Trotter?

This is a debate I never thought I’d be having.

I love doing The Fast & The Curious with my guests…

But answering the questions myself? 
Way harder. And way more fun.

With my husband Kev firing the questions, I had nowhere to hide, just honest, candid, and occasionally ridiculous answers.

This teaser clip is just a taste of what we got into…

Watch the full episode on YouTube to find out:

😴 Do I snore?

🧠 Which leadership trait I'm still working on

🛗 Who I’d want to be stuck in a lift with

📺 My ultimate guilty pleasure TV binge

🍸 Which wins - Tiramisu or Espresso Martini?

🤷🏻‍♀️ Are Kev and I still married after this interview?! 🥴😂🥰

And when I think about it… has anyone ever seen Ryan Gosling and Rodney Trotter in the same room? 🤔

Let me know how you think you’d get on with questions like this from a loved one!
🎬 Catch the full episode now on YouTube

👍 Stay inspired by joining our YouTube community! Click the link, hit the subscribe button, leave a comment, and never miss an episode. Your support helps us empower courageous leaders like you!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2kZ-x8fDHKEVb222qpQ_NQ


🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:
Book a call for transformative leadership and team coaching:
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If you’ve ever questioned your worth, your voice, or your path, this episode is for you.

For the first time on The Courageous Leaders Podcast, I’m not the one asking the questions. This time, it’s my husband Kevin behind the mic with myself in the ‘guest’ chair.

We unpack the moments that defined how I lead today: grief, pressure, burnout, and what it really takes to rebuild after walking away from a version of ‘success’ that wasn’t serving me.

We Cover:
00:00 – Introduction - Jo in the guest seat with her husband Kev as the host

01:22 – What I wish I knew before saying ‘yes’ to the dream job in Australia

03:45 – Why giving up my career to travel was the best decision I ever made

05:55 – What losing my dad at 18 taught me about courage, fast decisions, and leadership

09:10 – How grief drove me and nearly made me lose myself

11:45 – What I learned from making it to the board without a university degree

14:00 – Why chasing the title and pay cheque left me feeling empty

17:15 – What it took to rebuild my confidence after working in a toxic culture

22:00 – How one weekend helped me find my voice again

26:50 – What self-leadership actually looks like (when no one’s watching)

33:10 – The advice I’d give my younger self and what I still remind myself today

Don’t miss out on this powerful episode.

👍 Stay inspired by joining our YouTube community! Click the link, hit the subscribe button, leave a comment, and never miss an episode. Your support helps us empower courageous leaders like you!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2kZ-x8fDHKEVb222qpQ_NQ


🚀 Elevate Your Leadership:
Book a call for transformative leadership and team coaching:
Website: https://thechangecreators.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannahowes/