The Women Money Business Podcast with Dr Pretty Basra

In this episode, I speak with Anu Jalaf, founder of HSC Recruitment, about her journey from unexpected redundancy to launching a niche recruitment agency for optometrists, audiologists, and pharmacists.We explore:The truth about building a recruitment business from scratchHow hiring expectations are shifting in the optical worldWhy long-term relationships outperform fast placementsAdvice for employers on developing new grads with intentionIf you're an optical business owner, clinical leader, or healthcare recruiter, this conversation is packed with insight on navigating modern recruitment in a high-demand industry.Resources MentionedHSC Recruitmentwww.hsc-recruit.co.uk/ — explore their tailored services for optical professionals.Connect with Anu Jalaf on LinkedIn for insights, network building, or recruitment advice. https://www.linkedin.com/in/anujalaf/#OpticalRecruitment #HealthcareHiring #OptometryCareers #RecruitmentStrategy #WomenInBusiness #OpticalLeadership #HSCRecruitment #ClinicalCareers #CareerGrowthStories #PracticeManagement #HealthcareEntrepreneurs #WorkforceDevelopment

In today’s episode, we dive into the inspiring journey of Katerina Hayes, a community builder, entrepreneur, and resilience champion. Katerina shares her powerful story of overcoming setbacks, failures, and the lessons learned along the way as she embarks on a new chapter in her life.

Originally from Ukraine, Katerina moved to Glasgow in 2008, where she spent 17 years working in senior roles in the oil and gas industry, including offshore work. But six years ago, she left the corporate world behind to pursue her entrepreneurial dreams.

Katerina’s entrepreneurial journey includes creating a fermented foods company, Naked Kimchi, which became a well-known brand in Glasgow and Edinburgh’s restaurant scene. However, despite the success, the business had to close last year. Katerina discusses the challenges she faced with this venture, and how the experience shaped her approach to business and resilience. She emphasizes the importance of talking about failures and setbacks, as too often people shy away from these aspects of their journey.

In this episode, Katerina also opens up about her personal struggle with burnout. As a single mum of two, she pushed herself to the limit while building businesses—working late nights, missing time with her kids, and going beyond her own limits. She now understands the importance of balancing personal life and business and has turned these lessons into a solution: Be Brio, an AI-based app designed to help entrepreneurs and solopreneurs prevent burnout and save time. This app works as both a mindfulness coach and an accountability partner, helping users make better business decisions and automate tasks to free up valuable time.

Katerina’s story is a testament to the power of resilience, self-belief, and continuous growth. She has faced many obstacles, from business failures to personal challenges, yet she continues to push forward, inspiring others to do the same.

Tune in for insights on:

• Overcoming business setbacks and failures

• Building a successful community-driven business

• Battling burnout and finding balance

• The power of resilience and self-confidence

• How AI can help entrepreneurs save time and make better decisions

Katerina’s journey is proof that no matter how many times you fall, you can always rise again stronger.

Follow Katerina Hayes:
LinkedIn: Katerina Hayes

In this deeply moving and empowering episode, I sit down with the phenomenal Ruth Driscoll, founder of The Life Liberator, to have an honest conversation about surviving, and thriving after, a manipulative and controlling relationship.

Ruth opens up about her own experience of being in an abusive partnership while leading a high-performing inner-city primary school. She reveals the silent signs of toxicity, the emotional toll it took on her, and how she eventually found the strength to break free.

Now on a mission to help 10 million people escape the grip of controlling relationships, Ruth shares her top red flags to watch out for, why intelligent and capable women often stay in harmful situations, and practical steps to start reclaiming your life.

Whether you're in a toxic situation, know someone who is, or simply want to understand the subtle dynamics of manipulation, this episode is a must-listen. Ruth's story is one of fierce courage, hard-won wisdom, and pure empowerment.

What you will learn:

• The hidden signs of manipulative and controlling behaviour

• Why leaving an abusive relationship isn’t always straightforward

• Ruth’s story of survival — from respected Headteacher to freedom fighter

• How trauma affects high-functioning women

• Steps to reclaim your power and rebuild your life

• The mission behind The Life Liberator — and how it’s changing lives

  
  

  About Ruth

Ruth Driscoll is the visionary founder of The Life Liberator, an online haven and empowerment movement supporting those suffering from emotionally abusive relationships. With a mission to support 10 million survivors, Ruth’s work is rooted in both her personal experiences and decades of leadership as a headteacher.

Her belief?

“Every woman is entitled to create a destiny that gives her the confidence to be herself and to live her life with happiness, fulfilment, and positivity.”

🔗 Connect with Ruth:

• 🌐 Website: The Life Liberator – Helping You to Manage Difficult Relationships

• 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruth-driscoll-life-liberator/

What if your boardroom was your starting block?

Episode Overview:
In today’s episode, I sit down with the phenomenal Claire Fudge, a world-class clinical dietitian, endurance sports nutritionist, and peak performance coach. Claire grew up in a family-run bakery in rural Dorset (yes, she used to pack gingerbread men for Harrods!) and went on to study at King’s College London before launching a career that now helps high-performing individuals fuel their bodies like athletes.

But her journey took a powerful turn after a freak accident left her unsure if she’d ever walk again. What followed was a deep understanding of the body, resilience, and how to truly fuel performance, on the track, in the clinic, and in the boardroom.

If you’re a business leader burning the candle at both ends, this episode is your wake-up call. Claire teaches us how to integrate nutrition, sleep, and movement into our everyday leadership, because running your business should not cost you your health.

• The parallels between business and endurance sports

• Claire’s personal journey from bakery to boardroom to biomechanics

• What most professionals get wrong about nutrition

• How high performers can fuel like elite athletes, without the lycra

• Building resilience: how recovery, rest, and real food change the game

• Her 3-part framework for sustainable high performance

✅ A new lens on how to treat your body like your business
✅ How to make smarter food choices during high-pressure workdays
✅ Practical tips for sleep, movement, and recovery you can implement this week
✅ Why burnout isn’t a badge of honour—and what to do instead
✅ The mindset shift that separates top leaders from the rest

Raised in a bakery and forged in science, Claire Fudge is a Registered Dietitian, performance nutritionist, endurance athlete, and business founder. Her unique lens blends high-performance science with lived experience, supporting athletes and ambitious professionals to fuel better, feel stronger, and perform at their highest level—without sacrificing wellbeing.

Website: The leading UK Sports Nutritionist for athletes and executivesInstagram: 4th Discipline | Claire Fudge (@the4thdiscipline) • Instagram photos and videos
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claire-fudge-dietitian/

Grab your green smoothie, or your oat flat white, and tune in wherever you get your podcasts. Your body (and your business) will thank you.

Episode Summary:

In this enlightening episode, we sit down with Margriet—trainer, teacher, business consultant, and co-author of Parenting the Heart. Since 2005, Margriet has worked closely with experts, writers, and scientists to understand the deep connection between mindset, emotions, and happiness within family life, especially for highly educated mothers.

We explore:

• How persistent stress and negative emotions impact parenting and child development

• The role of self-regulation and self-awareness in raising emotionally healthy children

• Why many modern mothers feel overwhelmed, despite their success and education

• The inspiration behind the Happy Family Organizer and the Family Dynamics Method

• How to raise your children in alignment with the life you wish for them—by living it yourself

Margriet shares personal insights from her research, international retreats, and transformative experiences, offering a fresh and empowering perspective for parents who want to thrive—not just survive—in their family life.

Whether you're a parent, coach, educator, or wellness professional, this episode will leave you with practical tools and deep reflection points.

🎧 Listen now and discover how small shifts in mindset and emotional awareness can create lasting change in your family dynamic.

Connect with Margriet:

• 🌐 Website: Home - Margriet Darwinkel Coaching Happy family expert

• 📱 Instagram: MARGRIET DARWINKEL (@margrietdarwinkel) • Instagram photos and videos

• LinkedIn: Margriet Darwinkel - Co-founder F.E.M.A.L.E. Reset - FEMALE Reset | LinkedIn

Guest: Megan Hale, Founder of DreamMoney™

Episode Summary:
In this powerful episode, I sit down with the brilliant Megan Hale — psychotherapist turned business strategist and the founder of DreamMoney™, a strategic planning tool infused with soulful money mindset practices.

We dive deep into the unspoken narratives women face when they unapologetically pursue wealth — and why society still labels ambitious women as “gold diggers” while celebrating the same hunger in men.

👀 Megan shares her personal journey from psychotherapy to software, blending emotional insight with practical tools to help entrepreneurs build businesses that feel good and perform even better.

This one’s a masterclass in breaking money myths, reclaiming feminine power in business, and designing a vision-aligned, values-led strategy that’s both scalable and sustainable.

What We Cover:

💡 Megan’s journey from therapist to tech founder
💡 The birth of DreamMoney™ – a strategic planning tool with soul
💡 The money double standard: why ambition looks different on women
💡 How subconscious beliefs affect how we price, sell, and scale
💡 Feminine strategy vs. masculine hustle – redefining what success looks like
💡 The power of integrating mindset, mission, and money

Golden Quote:
"When women go after money, they’re often seen as greedy. When men do it, they’re seen as driven. That double standard keeps women playing small." — Megan Hale

Why You’ll Love It:
If you're a purpose-driven entrepreneur who wants to scale without selling your soul, this episode will shift how you approach your time, money, and mindset. Megan offers a refreshing blend of strategic brilliance and soulful wisdom.

Connect with Megan:
🌐 dreammoney.co

Bal Matharu – Wellness Entrepreneur, Breathwork Educator & Former Advanced Respiratory Specialist Physiotherapist

In this powerful and deeply inspiring episode, I sit down with Bal Matharu, a former NHS Advanced Respiratory Specialist Physiotherapist turned Wellness Entrepreneur, to explore how one moment of crisis led her to transform her life—and now she’s helping others do the same.

After dedicating over 20 years to the NHS and leading the COVID-19 response as a frontline physio, Bal hit complete burnout. But it was in that low point that she found her calling in Root Cause and Lifestyle Medicine. Today, she is on a mission to help people reverse chronic disease, restore balance, and reconnect to their bodies through the science and art of breathwork.

🔹 What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How 1 minute of intentional breathing can reset your nervous system

• The link between chronic inflammation and lifestyle choices

• The science of grounding sheets and how they improve sleep

• Insights from the Blue Zones – what long-living populations teach us about health

• How altered states through breathwork help release trauma and reduce future anxiety

• The importance of reconnecting to the body’s innate intelligence

• Why Bal believes that dis-ease is not the end, but an invitation to heal

Bal also shares a live demonstration of a breathwork technique you can try while listening—so don’t miss it!

Whether you’re battling burnout, looking to improve your mental clarity, or simply want to take control of your health, this episode is your permission to pause—and breathe.

🎧 Listen now and discover how your breath holds the key to transformation.

🔗 Connect with Bal Matharu:
Website: www.balmatharu.com

In this inspiring episode, I sit down with the incredible Krasimira Raykara—a woman who has turned her life around by reconnecting with her inner truth and embracing the power of feminine energy.

Krasimira shares how a life-changing retreat in the Maldives sparked a deep personal transformation. From reigniting the spark in her marriage to finding lasting inner peace, her journey is a powerful reminder that true change begins within.

We dive into her passion for dance, feminine embodiment, and the vital role of self-expression in healing and empowerment. Krasimira opens up about what it means to “show up” as your highest self, both internally and externally, and why this is especially important for women navigating love, relationships, and leadership.

Now a retreat leader and founder of an upcoming academy for women, Krasimira is on a mission to help others find aligned partnerships, speak their truth, and step boldly into their feminine power.

This episode is a beautiful blend of storytelling, wisdom, and radical honesty, centered around modern feminism, feminine energy, and transformation.

💫 Topics We Cover:

• Krasi’s personal transformation story

• How the Maldives retreat changed her life

• Reconnecting with feminine energy and sensuality

• The power of dance and embodiment

• What it means to "speak your truth" as a woman

• Healing relationships through self-awareness

• Feminism through a feminine lens

• Her new academy for women seeking deep, conscious connections

• Hosting her own transformative retreats

👑 Connect with Krasimira:
Follow her journey, upcoming retreats, and academy launch via Facebook:Facebook

🎧 Listen Now:
Tune in on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favourite podcast platform.

If this episode spoke to your soul, don’t forget to rate, review, and share, your support helps this message reach more incredible women like you.

In this episode, we’re joined by Marianna, a marketing and branding powerhouse with over 25 years of experience in the industry. Founder of Women of Worth and the visionary behind the WOW Women Festival, Marianna shares her passion for helping women in business confidently show up online—without sacrificing authenticity.

💬 We dive into what it really means to be authentic in today’s digital world, busting the myth that you need to “bare it all” to connect with your audience. With her warm, thoughtful approach, Marianna shows us that strategy and authenticity can (and should) go hand-in-hand.

🔥 In this episode, we cover:

How Marianna transitioned into entrepreneurship after lockdown

The importance of curating a marketing strategy that feels aligned

Why authenticity doesn't mean oversharing

The challenges women face when showing up online—and how to overcome them

How she bridges cultures and creativity working between the UK and Italy

Her mission behind the WOW Women Festival and the Women of Worth movement

👩‍💼 Whether you're building your brand or just starting to show up online, this episode is packed with wisdom and heart.

🔗 Connect with Marianna:

Instagram: @https://www.instagram.com/womenofwortharewow/

Website: https://www.wearewowwomen.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marianna-penna-prca-9384392/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCERe-zjxuOoroowlGLrnB5w  ⁨@wowwomenofworth⁩ 

🎧 Listen now and discover how to market yourself with purpose, passion, and power—without losing yourself in the process.

Episode Summary:
In this inspiring episode, we sit down with Jordan Cracknell, a powerhouse in the finance industry who’s on a mission to challenge gender norms and encourage more women to consider finance as a fulfilling and impactful career path.

With a background rooted in the World Trade Centre and a move from the fast-paced life of New York to London, Jordan brings a global perspective on what it takes to thrive in a traditionally male-dominated industry. She shares insights from her impressive career in finance, the key lessons she’s learned along the way, and how she’s using her platform to promote financial literacy—starting with the next generation.

Jordan also dives into the inspiration behind her children’s book on money, designed to help families start meaningful conversations around finances early. We explore her passion for making topics like stocks and investing accessible and less intimidating, especially for women who may not have had these conversations growing up.

As the wife of James Cracknell OBE—British rowing legend, Olympic gold medalist, and endurance athlete - Jordan also reflects on how both their worlds of peak performance intersect when it comes to mindset, resilience, and pushing boundaries.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why finance is not just a man’s world—and how to make space for yourself

• Jordan’s top tips for women looking to enter or grow within the finance sector

• How her children’s book helps parents talk to kids about money

• Why understanding stocks and investing isn’t as scary as it sounds

• What it’s like balancing two high-performance careers under one roof

• Life lessons from her move from NYC to London

  
  

Connect with Jordan Cracknell:Jordan Cracknell📘 You Can Count on Penny You Can Count on Penny : Cracknell, Jordan, Dakay, Raymund: Amazon.co.uk: Books📱 Jordan Cracknell - United Kingdom | Professional Profile | LinkedIn

Jordan Cracknell (@msjordancracknell) • Instagram photos and videosFind me and my socials over here at: www.drprettybasra.com