The WildEdge Podcast

People very rarely come to us with the actual problem.

They come because they're overwhelmed. They're drowning in admin. They need to be more productive. They need more confidence. They need to get out of the weeds.

But when we start digging, there's nearly always something else going on underneath.

In this episode of the WildEdge Podcast, Ant and I talk about the problem behind the problem, and why sometimes the most valuable thing we can do for a client is not give them what they're asking for.

We share the story of a tech co-founder who came to me with crippling imposter syndrome after returning to work and stepping into the MD role of a highly technical business. She didn't believe she had the credibility to lead the people around her.

We ended up working together for more than five years. She went from MD to CEO, grew the business from 16 people to more than 60, and eventually exited for a life-changing sum of money.

We also talk about the founder who thought he had a productivity problem when actually he needed to get out of delivery and start directing the business, and the CEO in the middle of a merger who thought they needed help getting through the admin, when really they were absolutely bricking themselves about whether they could lead the much bigger business that was emerging.

Different presenting problems. Same thing underneath.

There was a gap between the leader the business needed them to be and how they currently saw themselves.

Founders, CEOs and business leaders who keep trying to solve the same problem and wondering why it keeps coming back.

Especially if your business has grown and you're struggling to let go of the stuff that used to make you feel valuable.

Because there comes a point where your value to the business isn't in doing the do anymore.

It's in stepping away, thinking strategically and steering the ship.

And that can be both incredibly empowering and absolutely terrifying.

💎 Why the problem you think you've got often isn't the real problem

💎 The identity shift that happens as you move from founder to CEO

💎 Why so many founders cling onto delivery for far longer than they should

💎 What imposter syndrome looks like when your business reaches a new level

💎 Why being more productive isn't always the answer to overwhelm

💎 The difference between giving clients the value they ask for and the value they actually need

💎 Why sometimes half an hour thinking strategically can be more valuable than a whole week of delivery

💎 Why we believe our best work happens when we're able to go deeper

🏔️ Peak of the Week: Meugher

This week Ant is taking us away from the busy Yorkshire Dales honeypots to Meugher, a very unassuming little bump on the horizon in one of the most remote parts of England.

Check out the route here

🧭 Claire's Coaching Corner

A slight last-minute change this week because the woods decided to provide us with trains, alarms, dog walkers and every other distraction possible while we were recording.

So I take you through a short centering exercise to block out some of the noise and come back to what you know to be true.

What do you really want to do today?

What have you said yes to that really you don't want to?

What do you need to give yourself permission to do?

Because all you have as a leader, founder or CEO is a choice about where to spend your energy.

And sometimes you don't need another quick fix.

You need somebody to help you see what's actually going on underneath.

Summer has a way of testing business owners.

School holidays, family commitments, opportunities you don't want to miss, and the constant feeling that if you slow down, your business might too.

In this episode of the WildEdge Podcast, Claire and Ant Ackers share a very personal story about turning down a high-profile speaking opportunity because it clashed with one of their daughter's biggest milestones: her school prom.

On paper, it looked like the wrong decision. Commercially, it made perfect sense to say yes.

But leadership isn't just about making good business decisions. Sometimes it's about having the courage to honour your values, even when it feels uncomfortable.

This is an honest conversation about FOMO, ambition, family, and why the business you're building should create more freedom to be present for the moments that matter, not less.

Plus:

🏔️ Peak of the Week: Fairfield in the Lake District – one of our favourite horseshoe walks, complete with incredible views, wild swimming spots around Rydal Water and, importantly, a pub at the end.

See the route here

🧭 Claire's Coaching Corner: A practical exercise to help you identify your core values and use them as a compass for making clearer, more aligned decisions in business and life.

If you've ever found yourself torn between a brilliant opportunity and the people you love most, this episode is for you.

• Why saying "no" can sometimes be the bravest business decision you'll make
• The hidden cost of making decisions from fear of missing out
• Building a business that supports your life, rather than competing with it
• Why your values matter most when decisions feel difficult
• A simple values exercise you can start today
• How alignment creates clarity, confidence and better leadership

Have you ever had to choose between a business opportunity and a family moment?

Did you make the right call?

Come and tell us - we'd genuinely love to hear your story.

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the podcast, leave us a review, and share it with another founder or business leader who might need the reminder that success is about far more than saying yes to every opportunity.

Find out more about WildEdge Worx here

Welcome to Season Two of the WildEdge Podcast.

This season marks a new chapter.

Rather than recording from behind a microphone in a studio, WildEdge Worx founders Claire and Anthony Ackers are taking the conversations outside, recording as they walk through the places that inspire their work.

Expect honest conversations, fresh thinking and practical leadership insights from the hills, forests, lakes and trails where many of WildEdge's biggest ideas are born.

Alongside longer conversations about business, leadership and life, every episode now includes two new regular features:

Peak of the Week – Anthony shares one of his favourite mountains, walks or adventures to help inspire your next trip outdoors.

Claire's Coaching Corner – A simple, practical coaching tool or mindset shift you can put into practice straight away.

In this second episode of the season, Claire and Anthony tell the story behind WildEdge Worx.

On paper, their first business was everything they thought success should look like. A growing team. Beautiful offices. World-class clients. Healthy profits.

Behind the scenes, it was a different story.

They explore what it feels like to become an accidental CEO, how easy it is to build a business that no longer fits who you've become, and the difficult decision to walk away from something successful in order to create something that felt truly aligned.

If you've ever wondered why success doesn't feel the way you thought it would, or questioned whether you've been building somebody else's version of success, this conversation will resonate.

• Why success on paper isn't always success in reality
• The hidden cost of building a business that no longer aligns with who you are
• The truth about becoming an accidental CEO
• The conversation that changed everything for Claire and Anthony
• Why WildEdge Worx exists
• How to recognise when it's time to build differently

Claire shares one of her favourite productivity tools: the Pomodoro Technique.

Learn why working in focused 50-minute blocks, followed by 10 minutes of deliberate recovery and celebration, helps build momentum, reduces overwhelm and makes it easier to tackle the work that really matters.

Anthony's recommendation this week is Sharp Haw, near Skipton in the Yorkshire Dales.

A brilliant walk for families, with stunning views, a little scrambling and just enough adventure to remind you why getting outside matters.

Check it out here.

WildEdge Worx helps founders and business leaders reconnect with themselves so they can lead with greater clarity, courage and authenticity.

Through Beacon Sessions, Trailblazer Days, leadership coaching and immersive Rewilding Retreats, Claire and Anthony combine business strategy with the transformative power of nature to help leaders make better decisions, build aligned businesses and create meaningful, sustainable success.

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the podcast and leave a rating or review. It helps more founders discover the show and join the conversation.

Find out more about WildEdge Worx here

Summer is supposed to be a season of abundance.

A chance to enjoy the seeds you've spent the rest of the year sowing.

Yet for so many founders, it ends up becoming a season of survival.

You juggle childcare, holidays, family commitments and the day-to-day demands of running a business, only to arrive in September wondering where the last eight weeks went.

In this episode, I share a simple planning exercise I created during a coaching session with my Audacity community that helps you intentionally design your summer, instead of simply reacting to it.

Grab a notebook and a pen because by the end of this episode you'll have your own Summer by Design plan.

• Why summer doesn't have to mean losing momentum in your business

• How to identify the 3-5 priorities that will genuinely move the needle

• The difference between your "big rocks" and your "pebbles"

• The Daily Essential Standards that keep momentum going, even when life is busy

• How better boundaries protect both your energy and your business

• A simple framework you can return to throughout the summer

If you've ever reached September feeling like you've been treading water, this episode is for you.

If you'd like support putting this into practice, I've created a short coaching experience for founders and business leaders who want to enjoy their summer without losing momentum.

Over eight weeks we'll create clarity around what matters most, build a plan that works around your real life, and make sure you head into September with energy, focus and genuine progress.

To find out more, drop me an email at [email protected] I'd love to help you design your version of a brilliant summer.

Please follow the podcast, leave a rating or review, and share this episode with another founder who needs permission to stop simply surviving the summer and start designing it instead.

There is a conversation I keep having at the moment with founders and business owners, and it feels too important not to bring here.

If you are running a business right now, you will be aware that there is a lot going on outside the window. There is a steady stream of noise about markets tightening, clients hesitating, and things generally feeling harder than they should.

What I am seeing, again and again, is capable, experienced entrepreneurs starting to look for the answer outside of themselves. They are searching for a better strategy, a smarter system, or something that will finally make things click.

That instinct is completely understandable, but it is also the thing quietly getting in the way of the results they are capable of.

In this episode, I challenge that pattern and offer a different perspective on what is really driving your business results right now.

• Why the current narrative around the economy and market conditions is affecting entrepreneurs more than they realise
• How looking for external solutions creates a subtle but powerful loss of agency
• The difference between acknowledging reality and blaming it
• Why redefining your own version of success is essential if you want your business to feel meaningful
• What happens to your identity when you start questioning the path you have been following
• The concept of micro leadership and how your daily habits shape your results
• Why the clarity you are looking for is often already there, just buried under noise and pressure

If you are waiting for something outside of you to fix your business, you are giving your power away.

The shift happens when you acknowledge what is going on, stop outsourcing responsibility, and start looking at how you are leading yourself inside your business.

Where am I currently attributing my business results to external factors instead of looking at how I am showing up as a leader?

This episode is for founders and business owners who feel the weight of what is happening in the wider environment and have started to question whether it is affecting their results.

It will resonate if you recognise the pull towards finding a new strategy or solution, while also knowing that something deeper is at play.

You do not need more information right now.

You need enough space to think clearly, to step out of the noise, and to access the level of thinking that your next stage of business requires.

That is where the real work is, and that is where things start to change.

This is a raw, unfiltered conversation recorded outside after almost not happening at all.

Claire and Ant talk honestly about what it actually feels like to be in the middle of building a business while raising a family, carrying responsibility on all fronts, and trying to hold everything together.

They share the tension of knowing they should be working on the business while being pulled into delivery, logistics, and day-to-day demands. They speak openly about guilt, about the pressure of being needed at work and at home, and about how easy it is to stay stuck at the desk even when it is no longer producing clear thinking.

This episode captures the reality that rarely gets spoken about. Not the highlight reel of business ownership, but the messy middle where nothing is broken, yet everything feels stretched.

It also explores what shifted when they stepped outside, and why environment, energy, and perspective play a far bigger role in decision-making than most leaders realise.

This will resonate if you are a founder or leader who:

• Feels pulled between business and family, and not fully present in either
• Knows you should be working on the business but cannot seem to get there
• Is carrying a constant mental load of decisions, messages, and responsibility
• Feels guilty, stretched, or disconnected

00:05 — Setting the scene
Recording outside after resistance to leaving the desk and stepping away from work.

01:17 — The messy middle defined
The reality of being stuck in the business while knowing you should be working on it.

02:00 — “It’s nuts”
Building the business, delivering, and raising three children at the same time.

03:10 — Family pressure and emotional load
GCSEs, SATs, perimenopause, and the cumulative weight of life alongside business.

04:00 — Triggers and guilt at home
The reality of parenting while working flat out, and the emotional reactions that come with it.

06:00 — Holidays, time, and pressure
The tension between creating family experiences and the constraints of running a business.

09:30 — Why this conversation matters
Normalising the messy middle and the importance of stepping out for perspective.

11:00 — What it feels like at the desk
Isolation, overwhelm, negative news cycles, and the sense of “why isn’t this working yet?”

14:00 — Resistance to stepping away
The internal negotiation before leaving the desk, even when you know you need to.

15:00 — Immediate shift outside
Perspective, conversation, and thinking beginning to clear within minutes.

16:00 — The limits of productivity
Why sustained output without space leads to burnout rather than clarity.

17:00 — The real lever: energy and focus
Where you place your time, talent, and energy is what actually drives the business.

17:40 — The uncomfortable truth of leadership
One clear idea can outweigh a week of graft, but many leaders struggle to own that.

A clearer understanding that the challenge is not simply time or workload.

It is where your energy is going, and whether the conditions you are operating in are allowing you to think properly.

If this feels familiar and you would value stepping out of your usual environment to think alongside other like-minded business leaders, you can explore upcoming experiences on the WildEdge events page.

We recorded this walking by the River Aire in the sunshine, finally.

After a long winter of just getting on with it, holding things together, keeping the faith, it feels like something is starting to shift.

And that felt like the right place to have this conversation.

Because what we are seeing right now with founders and leaders is not a lack of ideas, or strategy, or ambition.

It is overload.

The world is moving faster than ever. AI is accelerating everything. Decisions are stacking up. And instead of creating more ease, it is creating more pressure.

So this episode is about that.

It is about why time and space to think is becoming one of the most important leadership advantages you can have.

And why stepping out of the noise might be the most productive thing you do.

We talk about what it actually feels like to be leading right now.

The constant decision-making. The mental load. The sense that things are moving quickly and you are trying to keep up.

We talk about how AI is changing the way we work. Not by removing work, but by increasing the speed and frequency of decisions, which brings its own kind of pressure.

We talk about why even the best strategy is useless if it is even slightly off, and why getting yourself right first matters more than ever.

We also get really clear on who this work is for.

The founders who have built something that is working.

But it feels like it is starting to outpace them.

The ones who did not set out to be CEOs, but suddenly find themselves leading people, making big decisions, and quietly wondering if they are the right person to be doing it.

The ones who care deeply about what they are building.

Who are values-led, heart-led, impact-led.

And who can feel the gap between how they are showing up now and who their business needs them to be.

We also clear something up.

We do not just go for nice walks.

Yes, we work outdoors. Yes, we climb mountains and get into cold water.

But that is not the point.

The point is creating the conditions for people to think properly again.

To get out of the noise.

To have the conversations they have not been able to have.

To access ideas, clarity and creativity that have been buried under the day to day.

Between us we bring decades of coaching, strategy and behavioural work.

The environment just lets it land differently.

Walking side by side changes the conversation. It removes the pressure to perform and gives people space to actually say what they think.

Time away from the noise is not indulgent. It is often the moment where everything starts to make sense again.

And those moments where you push yourself slightly, whether that is a climb or getting into cold water, they stay with you.

If you are listening to this and thinking “this is me”, the best place to start is a Beacon Session.

FIND OUT MORE

It is a short, focused, nature-led session designed to get you unstuck and moving again, with follow-up built in so it actually lands.

We also talk about the Rewilding Retreats for 2026.

FIND OUT MORE

We also talk about Claire's book on Imposter Syndrome - download a copy here

This is not us explaining the Rewilding retreat.

This is Mia, Chloe and Juliet, trying to put words to something that is quite hard to describe.

They came expecting space to think about their business.

What actually happened was something else.

In this conversation, they share what it felt like to arrive, what shifted during the retreat, and what stayed with them afterwards.

There are moments of laughter, moments of honesty, and a few lines that land harder than anything we could say ourselves.

If you have ever wondered whether this is for you, this is the closest thing to being in the room.

We talk about what it feels like to step away from the noise of business and into a very different environment.

They describe how quickly connection builds when you remove the usual roles and expectations that people carry in their day to day lives.

We explore the difference between taking time off and actually slowing down, and what becomes possible when you do.

They share what they thought they needed before they arrived, and what actually surfaced once they had space to think and feel properly.

We also talk about the weight of leadership, and how easy it is to lose yourself in something you have built.

“It felt like this real life-affirming week where you’re like, oh my God, this is what it is to be alive. I shouldn’t just be sat in front of a screen for 40 hours a week.”

“Sometimes it feels like none of it is about me anymore.”

This is not about fixing your business.

It is about creating enough space to hear yourself again.

From that place, things tend to become much clearer.

This episode will land if you are leading something that matters, but you feel the weight of it more than you expected.

It will land if your days are full, but your thinking feels crowded.

It will land if you have not had proper space to step back and look at your life for a while.

There are a small number of spaces left on the upcoming Rewilding retreats.

If this resonates, you can register your interest here or message me directly and we can have a conversation.

In this special episode of the WildEdge podcast, founders Claire and Ant Ackers share the story behind the Rewilding Retreats and the impact they have had on founders and leaders over the past four years.

What began as a small, experimental retreat for women has grown into one of the most powerful experiences WildEdge offers. Across multiple retreats in the Lake District, Claire has witnessed leaders arrive carrying the weight of business, responsibility, and constant decision-making, and leave with something entirely different: clarity, energy, and a renewed connection to who they are as leaders.

In this conversation, Claire reflects on the moments that have defined those retreats. She shares stories of the transformations that happen when founders step away from their usual environment and spend time walking, talking, swimming, and thinking in nature.

Ant joins the discussion to explore why these experiences work so powerfully and why the time feels right to introduce something new: the first WildEdge men’s Rewilding Retreat.

Together, they talk about:

• What actually happens on a Rewilding Retreat
• The shifts they have seen in leaders over the past four years
• Why stepping away from the noise of business often unlocks the clearest thinking
• The different pressures men and women experience in leadership
• Why Ant felt called to create a men’s retreat for the first time

This episode is both a reflection on the journey so far and a look ahead to the next chapter of WildEdge retreats.

If you have ever felt the need to step away from the constant pace of business to reconnect with what truly matters, this conversation offers a glimpse into what becomes possible when leaders give themselves that space.

Find out more and register your interest here

This is not our polished origin story.

This is the real one.

If you're the founder or the leader of a business that's currently playing in the messy middle, this is for you.

The Saturday morning in bed that turned into IKEA craft paper on the bedroom floor. The golden cage we built the first time. The moment we realised something had to change. And what it looks like to burn the bridges behind you when you are already established.

If you are building something new while still standing in the middle of it, this episode is for you.

In this episode, WildEdge CEO & Co-Founder Claire Ackers heads into the woods to tell the real story of how WildEdge was born. She shares the Lake District dream that has been quietly shaping her and Co-Founder Ant’s lives for over a decade, the success-on-paper business that felt wrong in truth, and the practical, emotional and financial reality of pivoting when you already have reputation, income and identity on the line.

This is an honest conversation about risk, alignment and what it means to build something in real time rather than looking back safely from the other side.

• Why success on paper is not the same as alignment in your body
• How to recognise when you have built a “golden cage”
• What it really takes to pivot when you are already established
• Why burning the bridges behind you creates a different level of commitment
• The power of building in motion rather than waiting until everything is tidy

00:00 – Out in the woods, and why the podcast format changed
03:01 – The WildEdge story begins
03:14 – Welcome to the messy middle
03:21 – The Saturday morning that became the WildEdge plan
04:06 – IKEA craft paper, and the “million pound idea” moment
05:05 – The Lake District dream, and why this has been brewing since 2013
05:40 – Meeting Ant, GPS coordinates, and the early adventure roots
08:51 – The first business, success on paper, and the golden cage
10:08 – How our two paths evolved, and why they had to merge
10:52 – Rewilding, the outdoor work, and what WildEdge really is
12:12 – The 2024 double house move, the stretch, and the wall we hit
12:32 – The eureka moment that made the pivot non-negotiable
12:44 – Where we are now, and what it means to be all in
12:57 – Burning the bridges, and why there is no Plan B
13:47 – Why this is legacy work, and what we believe we are building
14:51 – Closing words

To find out more, visit https://wildedgeworx.com