*NEWS!* - The first live episode of WDYD? will be broadcast on the Culture Channel on Soho Radio on Thursday 5th March at 6pm - it will be in honour of International Women's Day and will be all about women's experiences of working in the arts with two fabulous guests. Tune in at sohoradiolondon.com or download the app! If you miss it, you'll be able to listen back on Mixcloud.

In today’s episode I speak to the wonderful Gillian who has been a school teacher in South London since the mid 1980s. I was very interested to speak to Gillian to understand not only what her day-to-day entails and how it might have changed over the years, but also why it might have changed - in a career that has spanned over 35 years, she has navigated an education system that’s seen 7 Prime Ministers and 15 governments, all with their own agendas. The introduction of a national curriculum, of Ofsted, and rigorous regulation of the education system has impacted just how much teachers are expected to do and to cope with, which Gill talks about very honestly. 

We address some of the stereotypes of teaching - like the long holidays and supposedly short working hours, having the big responsibility of the duty of care of so many children all at once, feeling like you’re inspiring a future generation every single day (according to the recent TeachFirst adverts) - and if they ring true in Gillian’s experiences and we also hear some great advice for those who are considering a career in the classroom.

Thank you Gillian for taking part and I hope you’ll all enjoy joining me as I ask a teacher, What Do You Do? 

Hello and welcome to episode 7 of What Do You Do! In today’s episode I talk all things sport and life with professional footballer Paco Craig. After training regularly all throughout secondary school, Paco joined West Ham’s Youth Academy - also known as ‘the’ club - in 2008 at the age of 16, and went through the system until 2011. Following his release - i.e when he found out he wouldn’t be signed to the Premier league team - he tried out a couple of non-league clubs in the UK before deciding to travel to the States where he played college soccer and, as you’ll hear, broadened his horizons in many different ways. In 2016 Paco signed his contract with Louisville City FC in Kentucky, a United Soccer League Championship club, and happily enjoyed a lot of success and growth. Whilst it might not have been the football journey he had imagined back when he was a teenager, it truly feels like Paco made the most of his international experiences and found peace with who he is both on and off the pitch.

In our conversation about the life of a budding footballer going through the academy system, we talk about some really important issues in the broader world of professional sport, like the sacrifices you have to make from such a young, formative age, and the potential disillusionment and identity crises that can take over when things don’t work out as you had dreamed. 

And not only is he my first blue tick official, wikipedia verified guest, he is also my long-standing friend and birthday twin (doing it for the Libras!). Thank you for taking part and I hope you’ll all enjoy joining me as we ask a professional athlete, What Do You Do?

Email: [email protected]
Insta: @wdydpod

To follow Paco: 
Insta - @Pacogigicraig 
Twitter - @Pacogigicraig

For further reading: 

Michael Calvin - No Hunger In Paradise:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/No-Hunger-Paradise-Players-Journey/dp/1780896301

Joel Sked - 'The Pressure is Immoral - Uncovering the Dark Side of Youth Football'
https://inews.co.uk/sport/football/dark-side-youth-football-michael-calvin-525876

David Conn - 'Football's Biggest Issue': The Struggle Facing Boys Rejected By Academies'
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/oct/06/football-biggest-issue-boys-rejected-academies

WDYD? is back! I hope you’ve all enjoyed a great start to 2020.

My first guest of the decade is the wonderful Jackie Fast - businesswoman, author, keynote speaker, Apprentice 2018 candidate and above all, a very successful entrepreneur. We talk about the reality of Jackie’s journey from one-woman operation in her bedroom to the build, scale and sale of her sponsorship business, and what life has been like after the fact. 

She tells about living in a shed out the back of a pub in Tooting Broadway to working on Necker Island, to the day-to-day that met her after she sold her company Slingshot, and what happened after a spur-of-the-moment decision to apply to sit opposite Alan, Claude and Karen for a few weeks. Jackie is super honest about, well, everything - it’s utterly charming - and I was grateful to gain such genuine insight into the joys and challenges of entrepreneurship. 

Email: [email protected]
Instagram: @wdydpod - follow me! I follow back, promise 

We'll be back in 2 weeks!

Our two side-hustling guests David and Hannah met 18 months ago - David is the co-founder of Foundervine, a social enterprise that aims to help underestimated and underserved entrepreneurs to build and scale their businesses, such as the BAME community and women in tech. It was at one of Foundervine’s events that Hannah met the team and also her co-founder. Leveraging her expertise in coding and software engineering, Hannah joined forces with an experienced businesswoman to launch vrcalm, an uplifting virtual reality experience that aims to improve the quality of life of people with dementia. They’ve both enjoyed success with their ventures whilst working full-time as a management consultant and software developer respectively - both demanding careers - so how have they made it work? 

We hear about Hannah’s busiest month ever surviving on very little sleep (not recommended!) and how David found strength and motivation in his belief in Foundervine’s product. We also discuss other obstacles in the business world like gender, ethnicity, and broader inequality of opportunity, which could all impact someone’s success in getting an idea off the ground with an existential fear of failure, and in practical terms with limited time and other commitments. 

I learned so much from David and Hannah - turns out there are very many hours in the day to take advantage of, and I’m definitely guilty of spending a few too many of those parked in front of either the telly or the bar - and was inspired by their commitment to positively impacting the world around them. 

To find out more about the wonderful Foundervine and their mission, and to see if you’d like to attend one of their events for budding entrepreneurs, visit:

www.foundervine.com 

And to find out more about how Hannah is using tech for good with her virtual reality platform (and to even try it out for yourself!), go to:

www.vrcalm.co.uk 

For further reading: 

The Next Web - Research shows many women developers are stuck in junior-level roles:

https://thenextweb.com/dd/2018/03/01/exclusive-research-shows-many-women-developers-stuck-junior-level-roles/

HackerRank 2018 Women in Tech Report: 

https://research.hackerrank.com/women-in-tech/2018/

STEMettes: https://stemettes.org/ 

Codefirst: Girls: https://www.codefirstgirls.org.uk/

Interesting BBC article about ‘slashies’ and people who pursue multiple careers at the same time:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47984295

Welcome back! Continuing the healthcare theme from the last episode of WDYD?, this week I am joined by the brilliant Chloe and Brian to discuss what life is like as a nurse in the private healthcare sector in 2019. They work on an oncology ward together and both made the move from public to private a few years ago - we discuss what their motivations were, and how their experiences differ now. We also talk about the emotional and physical demands of being a nurse, of being the ‘shock absorber’ of the care system for both patients and family during times of crises, and how important it is to make sure to look after one’s own health alongside a busy day - #self-care guys. Speaking of which, it seems each busy day is as unique as each patient - but Chloe and Brian articulate wonderfully how their careers have been defined by the daily motions as much as those memorable moments, be they uplifting or harrowing.

As always, please bear in mind that our interview reflects our guests’ experiences only and does not claim to represent those of all nurses. 

Email - [email protected]
Instagram - @wdydpod - follow me! I follow back, promise

For further reading: 

The Language of Kindness - A Nurse’s Story - Christie Watson
https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-language-of-kindness/christie-watson/9781784706883 

Differences Between The Public and Private Sector - Nursing Times
https://www.nursingtimesjobs.com/article/differences-between-the-public-and-private-sector/

Working for the NHS vs the Private Sector - Medical Locums Group
https://www.medical-locums.co.uk/2018/10/working-for-the-nhs-vs-the-private-sector

In today's episode, Ebo and I discuss the ins and outs (quite literally) of being a Junior Doctor in 2019.
He's three years into his career with the NHS, and is currently a Senior House Officer - with Registrar being the next step and beyond that, the heady heights of Consultant - and it seems he's still settling into his profession in many ways. Amongst the busyness of choosing what specialism to focus on, which vague part of the country to live in (or near) and paying/studying for extremely difficult exams whilst working day and night shifts, Ebo manages to maintain a positive outlook on life both in and out the ward.
We delve into what motivates him on a day-to-day basis, when he decided to pursue such a supposedly noble vocation, and how he feels our strained healthcare system is coping under the well-documented pressure it's experiencing. Are Junior Doctors suffering from Stockholm Syndrome?

Please be advised this episode contains graphic medical descriptions.

As always, please bear in mind that the interview reflects our guest's experiences only, and we do not claim to represent the views of the NHS or of all doctors.

Email - [email protected]
Instagram - @wdydpod - follow me! I follow back, promise

For further reading:

This Is Going To Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor - Adam Kay
https://www.waterstones.com/book/this-is-going-to-hurt/adam-kay/9781509858637

HSJ: Tens of Thousands of Junior Doctors Working Beyond Contract:
https://www.hsj.co.uk/7023993.article

HSJ: Junior Doctors Suffering 'Stockholm Syndrome':
https://www.hsj.co.uk/workforce/junior-doctors-suffering-stockholm-syndrome/7024164.article

For those who can't access the HSJ:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-6589931/NHS-pay-250-000-fines-making-junior-doctors-work-contracted-hours.html

In the second episode of WDYD? I speak to a lawyer who is currently 2 years PQE (i.e 2 years since qualification having spent 2 years training) about his years in the profession, and what the future might hold.
Amongst juicy tales of getting through a training contract and facing off to tough bosses, our solicitor friend tells us about the somewhat jubilant highs, and sometimes crushing lows of daily life in the world of justice. We hear some very honest advice about how to get into the profession, the intricacies of Britain's legal structures (what’s the difference between a barrister, a solicitor, a paralegal? Is everything like Suits? Turns out - absolutely not), how to get ahead and succeed in such a competitive market and, most importantly, how to navigate your inevitable and frequent hangovers (something it seems you probably learn in your first week).

As always, please bear in mind that the interview reflects our guest's experiences only, and we do not claim to represent all lawyers' experiences or views.

Email - [email protected]
Instagram - @wdydpod - follow me! I follow back, promise

For further reading:

Visit The Secret Barrister's blog for insights into barrister life - they also have an excellent book:
https://thesecretbarrister.com
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Secret-Barrister-Stories-Law-Broken/dp/1509841105

The very useful list I mentioned:
https://www.prospects.ac.uk/careers-advice/what-can-i-do-with-my-degree/law


 

In today's episode I talk to Ollie, a military vet who served in Afghanistan after training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. He returned to civilian life in 2015 and has since worked at an investment bank, a large corporate and is now in the start-up world, and has some fascinating insights into not only the daily japes of an officer in the Armed Forces, but also into how other returning service people can successfully leverage their skills in the commercial world. Oh and guys - don't skip leg day! 

Please do bear in mind that our chat reflects Ollie's experiences and does not claim to represent all veterans' and current serving officers' experiences.

Email - [email protected]

For further reading: 

Article re: Army husbands - 

https://metro.co.uk/2019/05/28/military-husband-fed-people-assuming-army-spouses-women-9697791/

Deloitte Veterans Work Report - Recognising the potential of ex-service personnel

https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/about-deloitte-uk/articles/veterans-work.html

More interviews:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2019/06/03/do-ex-soldiers-need-help-returning-civvy-street/

Unfortunately I couldn’t find Ollie’s tank-dressed-up-as-Santa video that got him 30,000 likes - we’ll just have to use our imaginations for that one...

Ex-forces schemes to explore:

Barclays Bank (and many others will offer similar): https://home.barclays/careers/our-programmes/after/
Network Rail: https://www.networkrail.co.uk/careers/experienced-hire/defence-engagement/
TFL: https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/careers/smart-sourcing-programme
Deloitte (and the rest of the Big 4 will offer similar):  https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/careers/articles/military-recruitment.html
GSK: https://uk.gsk.com/en-gb/careers/armed-forces/

And many, many more - there are also recruitment firms that have specific offerings for ex-forces individuals, including:

https://www.fdmgroup.com/careers/ex-forces/

https://www.forcesrecruitment.co.uk/

https://www.first-military.co.uk/