What if the answer isn't somewhere out there, but something you already know?

Susan Ní Chríodáin began her career in finance, where she was often labelled “the numbers person”. But numbers were something she did. They were never all of who she was.

In this conversation, we talk about the labels work gives us, why senior people still need to feel seen, and what Susan discovered when she stopped looking for the “right” way and began trusting her own. We explore creativity, friction, AI, writing, the strange freedom of getting things wrong and why, sometimes, the most useful thing another person can do is simply listen.

Susan's journey has taken her from numbers to coaching, from certainty to experimentation and, unexpectedly, to poetry. Underneath it all is a deceptively simple idea: perhaps we don't always need another answer. Perhaps we need enough stillness to hear what we already know.

A conversation about work, creativity, humanity and learning to start close in.

Links to Susan's work are below:

Website: https://www.beyond-thenumbers.com/

Life Beyond the Numbers: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/life-beyond-the-numbers/id1530212404 

Why Name? [poetry podcast] https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/why-name/id1863221435

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/susannichriodain 

Substack: https://thewholeequation.substack.com/

In this episode of Where We Place Ourselves, Archana sits down with coach and therapist-in-training Alice Thompson-Boyd to explore what happens when external success no longer feels like home.

Together they unpack Alice's journey from co-founding one of Scotland's most celebrated social enterprises to stepping away from a life that looked successful on paper but felt increasingly disconnected from who she was becoming.

Their conversation explores purpose, burnout, identity, leadership, internal versus external validation, and the question that sits beneath so many of our decisions. Is the juice worth the squeeze?

Along the way they discuss why transformation happens in the fire rather than after it, why placement may matter as much as purpose, and how learning to become the CEO of our own lives changes everything.

This is a conversation about letting go, finding alignment, and discovering that the place we belong may have been waiting for us all along.

Links to Alice's work: Alice Thompson Coaching

In this reflective solo episode of Where We Place Ourselves, Archana explores the emotional backstory behind making a podcast and the quiet struggle of creating something public.

Beginning with Mira Nair’s words, “You cannot be an artist if you strive to please,” this episode asks whether that is as true in life as it is in art.

Archana reflects on the desire to be taken seriously, the pull towards polish and credibility, the disappointment of rejection, and the moment when striving becomes visible enough to question. What begins as a reflection on podcasting becomes a wider meditation on creativity, belonging, visibility, and the difference between being well known and being truly known.

This episode is about the mess behind the making, the people worth knowing, and the question that sits at the heart of the series. Where do you place yourself when things feel unresolved?

In this episode of Where We Place Ourselves, I explore how music, attention, and reflection shape the way we think and communicate.

What looks like distraction may actually support deeper thinking. Drawing on a simple moment from everyday life, this episode reflects on listening, focus, and how we show up in conversations at work and beyond.

Topics include:

• listening and communication
• focus and deep thinking
• music and memory
• leadership and presence
• reflection and self-awareness

A quiet reflection on what happens when we stop filling space. This podcast was previously titled Where We Place Ourselves. It is now continuing as Echoes, from Els.

In this first episode of Echoes, from Els, a summer spent mostly alone becomes something unexpected. Not isolation, but recognition.

Through small moments, this episode explores solitude, the idea of the “uncarved block,” and the subtle thresholds we cross when we step back from the noise. Not as something to solve. But as something to enter.

• Solitude doesn’t take you away from yourself; it brings you closer
• Much of what we think is “us” is learned, not innate
• Distance can create clarity in ways activity cannot
• Small pauses (thresholds) change how we see

What does it mean to be known over time?

In this episode of Where We Place Ourselves, I speak with one of my closest friends, Robin. Someone who has known me since the mid-90s, when we were both just beginning to understand who we might become.

This is a conversation about growing up, friendship, and the quiet beauty of being there for someone not just in the easy moments, but across the many versions of a life.

We talk about the feeling of being unstoppable when we were younger, and how that shifts as life unfolds. About the different versions of ourselves we bring to work, to relationships, and to the spaces where we feel most at ease.

Robin shares how humour became a way of holding perspective not because life is always light, but because sometimes it’s what makes it livable.

And one line from this conversation stayed with me:

“The world is tough… but not in here.” 

A reminder that while we can’t always control what happens outside of us, we can create spaces in our homes, in our friendships, where something softer, lighter, and more human exists.

This is a conversation about being witnessed, about growing alongside someone, and about the rare gift of a friendship that stays.

We explore:

• What it felt like to be “unstoppable” in our early twenties
• How friendship changes as we grow and what allows it to endure
• The difference between who we are at work and who we are at ease
• Why humour can be a form of perspective, not avoidance
• What it really means to “not let someone down”
• How time and distance reshape how we understand our lives

It left me thinking about how the most meaningful relationships in our lives aren’t the ones that change us, but the ones that stay with us as we change.

If this conversation stayed with you, following the podcast helps it reach the people who need it and lets you know when the next episode is released.

And if you’re thinking of someone who has known you across time…maybe send this to them.

In this episode, I speak with Dana Galin about voice, belonging, and the quiet ways we come to feel at home in ourselves. Dana’s work sits in the space before reaction, before performance. She helps people notice how they are showing up, not just what they are doing.

We explore:

• The difference between reacting and choosing
• The idea of being “above the line” and “below the line”
• Why we are all meaning-making machines
• How our internal “parts” shape our behaviour under pressure
• The gap between intention and impact
• And the quiet practice of offering ourselves a little more grace

This is not a conversation about fixing yourself.

It’s about recognising yourself.

And from that place, choosing how you want to show up.

This is Where We Place Ourselves.

• Why Dana focuses on how safe people feel to speak—not just how they speak
• Understanding “above the line” vs “below the line” leadership
• How quickly we create meaning from small signals
• The idea of leading your “internal team”
• Why perfectionism and people-pleasing are protective, not flaws
• The difference between facts and the stories we tell ourselves
• Parenting, leadership, and learning to respond with intention
• The power of pausing before reacting

“Don’t believe everything you think.” And: “Offer yourself a little more grace than you did yesterday.”

If this episode resonated, I explored a more personal version of this idea in this week’s Ordinary Love essay:

📖 The Look They Remember
www.archanamohan.net

Where We Place Ourselves is a series of conversations about identity, meaning, and how we understand our lives.

Not advice, not success stories. Just perspective. Moments where something that once felt confusing begins to make sense, when we step back and see it differently.

This is part of Well Placed. A space that explores how we live, lead, and love from the inside out.

Dana works at the intersection of communication, leadership, and self-awareness. Her focus is not just on how people speak, but on how safe they feel to speak.

She helps leaders recognise the patterns that shape their behaviour so they can move from reaction to intention, and lead in a way that feels more aligned with who they truly are.

https://www.imprintlp.com/bio

Follow the podcast, share it with someone who might need it, or leave a review. It helps more people find these conversations.

Where We Place Ourselves is written, produced, edited and hosted by Archana Mohan.

Music: Lotus Pond by Akash Gandhi
Artwork: Created using Canva

“If you want to understand culture, don’t look at the values on the wall. Look at what behaviour leaders tolerate.”

For years, food companies believed there must be one perfect spaghetti sauce. The recipe everyone would love. So they searched for it. The research revealed something surprising: There wasn’t one perfect sauce. There were many. Some people wanted chunky sauce.  Others smooth. Some spicy. Some sweet. What looked like a problem of taste was a problem of assumptions about human behaviour.

And I’ve been thinking about that idea a lot in the context of leadership. Because organisations often assume behaviour is driven primarily by motivation, values, or personality. But in reality, behaviour is often shaped by something else entirely.  The systems people operate within.

In my last episode of Where We Place Ourselves, I explore this idea with organisational psychologist and leadership expert @John Amaechi.

We talk about:

•       why incentives often override stated values

•       how decision-making structures shape outcomes

•       why culture is defined by what leaders tolerate

•       and why lasting change comes from designing better systems, not simply asking people to behave differently.

One idea from the conversation stayed with me.  Leadership isn’t just about who we are. It’s about the environments we create.

Connect with John Amaechi

Website
https://www.apsintel.com

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

Books
The Promises of Giants
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1529345871

It’s Not Magic
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1394338279

In this episode, Archana Mohan speaks with Robin Bayley about the power of storytelling, finding one's truth, and the impact of personal narratives on our lives. They explore the art of storytelling, the pursuit of truth, and the role of leadership in guiding others to their truth. The conversation explores the power of storytelling and its impact on communication. It delves into the realization of personal narratives and the resonance they create with audiences. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of connecting with the audience through storytelling and the role of curiosity and light heartedness in effective communication.

Takeaways

• The power of storytelling lies in its ability to convey truth and connect with others.
• Leadership involves guiding others to discover and live their truth, fostering a deeper understanding of themselves and their impact on the world. Power of personal narratives
• Resonance and connection through storytelling

Connect with Robin here: robinbayley.com and keynotedoctor.com.

In this episode, I speak with leadership communications expert Sarah Lloyd Hughes about what she calls the “Diamond Edge” of communication. The clarity, authenticity, and human connection that allow leaders to truly cut through the noise.

Sarah is the founder of Ginger Leadership Communications, an award-winning coach, TEDx speaker, and the bestselling author of How to Be Brilliant at Public Speaking. She works with leaders around the world to help them find their voice, communicate with purpose, and inspire meaningful change.

We explore what the Diamond Edge means in practice, how leaders can sharpen their message, and why the most powerful communication starts with being authentically human.

Learn more about Sarah’s work:

• Ginger Leadership Communications: https://uk.gingerleadershipcomms.com/teammember/sarah-lloyd-hughes ()
• Sarah’s book How to Be Brilliant at Public Speaking: https://us.gingerleadershipcomms.com/resource/how-to-be-brilliant-at-public-speaking ()
• Sarah on LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/sarahlloydhughes ()