When Hellen Ashiko Mbune started her career as a sales representative for a leading media house, she immediately knew she was cut out to succeed - except that she had one problem: Not having the patience to see a job through to the end. What followed was a series of short stints at various workplaces... until her luck ran out and she found herself unemployed and adrift.

That's when she fell back on a skill she had no idea she had been honing all her life: Cooking. After the death of her best friend forced her to confront her demons and realign herself to her goals, she has seen success as a caterer and chef, and is currently now back to working in media - this time, in front of the camera - as the host of a KBC talk show called The Dadas Show. This is her story.

Pastor Pauline Mwarabu, 41 and a co-pastor at JCC Ongata Rongai, is no stranger to failure. She first experienced it when she failed her KCSE exams - but because she was determined to go to university, she took it upon herself to find some money to take herself back to school to repeat the exam.

She passed with flying colours and made it to university, but her life then took a series of twists and turns that took her from being happily married, to not-so-happily married; from well-off to very poor... and finally, the most tumultuous journey, which was from regular church-going Christian to struggling to become a pastor's wife, with all the responsibilities it brings.

She's here to tell us how she finally found her happy.

When fitness enthusiast and HR business owner Butch Singh, 48, took it upon himself to raise funds for a girls' school at the Coast, he chose a most taxing challenge: To ride a bicycle all the way from Nairobi to Mombasa... alone.

Having made the decision in an instant, and with very few weeks to train before he kicked off the ride, Butch took himself through a punishing daily routine to get his endurance levels up. But nothing could prepare him for the lonely, physically and emotionally draining journey he was about to embark on.

Thus started his journey through punishing conditions and numerous instances where he had to fight with all his will to keep going. Here's how he learned to make his body obey his mind.

Joseph Odindo is a one-man masterclass in the art of good journalism. A self-taught journalist, he has worked in the profession for decades, rising through the ranks to earn the title all upwardly-mobile journalists covet: Group Editorial Director. He served in this role at The Standard Group, and has also served as Editorial Director at the Nation Media Group.

And yet, despite his vast knowledge of the profession, he will never forget the one day he made the decision to carry a particular picture on page 1 of the Daily Nation… and nearly lost his job in the aftermath of what the entire country determined was 'the worst decision the newspaper ever made."

Press play to hear his story.

When Amakove Wala and her husband separated nine years ago, thus began her new life as a mother of four - one son and triplet daughters. Raising four children in a single-income household is no easy feat, and thus she has dabbled with various business, won some, and lost some.

She has also learned the value of personal relationships of all sorts through her journey navigating her new life, and she's here to share her personal story of loss and triumph.

Carol Nyaga, a mother of three, had no idea how to raise a child when she had her first one just after she finished high school. Having watched her parents fumble in their effort to raise her, she, in turn, became a detached mother whose only focus was to provide for her child. She eventually ended up in the advertising sector where her career grew in leaps and bounds... but she was using her work, and alcohol, as crutches to run away from her emotional problems and her inability to be a present mother. In 2020, she experienced a sea change when her third pregnancy and the Covid pandemic forced her to spend time reflecting on her chaotic childhood and what wounds she needed to heal to become a better mother. Here are the lessons she learned.

Amani Maranga, a marketing and communications executive and current host of the men-only podcast Living Truthfully, was doing really well in his career, holding two jobs that put him in the orbit of the rich elite of the country, and starting a successful communications business... until an unfortunate decision he made led to the demise of his marriage. Thus started a downward spiral and bout with depression that took him many years to overcome, and a necessary 'meeting with himself' to figure out who he really was and what he needed out of life. This is his story.

John Muriithi is a serial entrepreneur who has worked in media, events, real estate development and sales, and farming. He started off working for a local media house before he followed his entrepreneurial urge and launched into business. Thus followed a raft of interruptions from the political and economic climates he was dealing with at the time. He's here to tell us how external circumstances interrupt business, and what he learned about navigating difficult times even when the best-laid plans are insufficient. Listen to learn more.

Miriam Nabakwe is a food and beverage manager who has worked for leading restaurant chains and hotels in Kenya such as The Tamarind Group, Dorman's and The Fairview Hotel. Despite her success in employment, she chose to go the solopreneur route... and after a series of bad decisions, shortly found herself facing the auctioneer's hammer. She has since recovered and gone on to launch a highly successful western Kenyan cuisine restaurant called Kienyeji's. She tells us how she found her way back home.

This week we're talking to Nancy Kairo who is a certified life-coach, stylist and budding author... and her experiences with failure and how she moved past them will blow your mind! She re-started her life at the age of 44, but when you listen to her, you realise that 'age' is nothing but a number... and it's been nothing but favour from God since then. This is her story.