“I think whenever you feel yourself being resistant, the challenge is to find acceptance. Because you have to accept something to shove that resistance out of the way. And once you've accepted it, you can move beyond it.”

In this episode, I’m speaking with Kreena Dhiman, a friend, and an incredible keynote speaker who leaves you feeling like you can achieve anything!

Kreena shares her story of unexpected redundancy after a decade in a successful accounting career, and how that shock forced her to confront not only her professional identity but also lifelong struggles, setbacks, and cultural expectations. And the need to get out there and gare her story to inspire others.

But this isn’t just a tale about job loss, it's a deeply personal story of navigating serious illness, infertility, family challenges, and grief, all while steadily building a foundation for a brave future on her own terms.

You will be nothing but charged to go out into the World, be bold and brave and rise after listening!

Here are the highlights:

10:31 Resilience: life's journey and key moments

14:35 Survival, infertility, and finding acceptance

17:15 Where does “drive” come from?

21:42 Journey to self beyond expectations

30:48 Pursue your dreams; life's too short.

35:43 Building resilience through everyday acts

The things that helped Kreena navigate change -

Book: Brown Girl Like Me by Jaspreet Kaur

Music: Brand New Me by Alicia Keys and Titanium by David Guette ft. Sia

The one piece of advice: “Words, hold on, pain ends, and it spells out HOPE. There's always hope. Hold onto it. Because it will get better.”

About Kreena:

Kreena is a keynote speaker about The Art of Being Brave. Adversity and failure are never our weakness, these are the experiences that lay the foundations from which we grow. Within each set back, lies the opportunity for resilience to rise, and it's resilience that allows us to survive and thrive in an ever changing world.​

Pain x Resistance = Suffering, but Pain x Acceptance = Growth

Kreena's charismatic presence captivates audiences, while her heartfelt vulnerability fosters deep, authentic connections. Through The Art of Being Brave she enables powerful storytelling and thought provoking insights. She engages, inspires, and challenges perspectives, leaving a lasting impact on every listener.

With an ability to blend wisdom, warmth, and wit, Kreena transforms complex life lessons into relatable, actionable takeaways.

Connect with Kreena:

Instagram: @kreenadhiman

Website: www.kreenadhiman.com

About your host Eleanor Tweddell:

Eleanor supports individuals, teams and organisations through change. Whether it’s 121 coaching or large scale organisational change through communications and training. Eleanor’s work centres around how we, as humans, work through change, embracing the messy bits, the role of playing, with the aim to see opportunity. “Too often we get stuck in the change happening to us, when just through that next door is an exciting next chapter.”

Eleanor is the founder of Another Door, and Get-Recommended.com and the author of Why losing your job could be the best thing that ever happened to you.

Connect with Eleanor:

Instagram:instagram/anotherdooruk

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/eleanor-tweddell/

Website: eleanortweddell.com

Produced by winteraudio.co.uk

“It was a phenomenal time looking back, of anxiety at the beginning and disbelief that this was going to do anything for us, to finally being acquired at the end of 2021 in a life changing deal.”

In this episode, I speak to David James about the reality of walking away from a, on paper, dream corporate role in search of something else.

David left the Walt Disney Company and joined the startup world, he shares the story of facing into the setbacks, the moments of wonderful serendipity, the moments of deep, dark doubt (my words, not David’s!).

We talk about the emotional highs and lows of career change, what it means to redefine success, and how sometimes, failure can lead to the most valuable opportunities.

If you're navigating change or just curious about what happens when you take a leap, this one’s for you.

Here are the highlights:

03:17 The quiet build-up to letting go

07:45 Push vs pull: What drives us to change

09:38 Starting a business from scratch

12:21 Facing failure head-on

16:14 The free fall: Losing identity after leaving corporate

22:01 A serendipitous conversation that changed everything

29:19 Finding your voice and your value in something new

33:10 Learning to focus on the real problem

40:54 Adjusting after the business was acquired

David’s ‘another door opens’ go-to list -

Book: Broken Open, How Difficult Times Can Help Us Grow by Elizabeth Lesser

Music: Saint Cloud by Waxahachie

The one piece of advice: “Own your own narrative.”

More about David:

David James is the Chief Learning Officer at 360Learning and a highly respected voice in the Learning & Development industry. With a focus on harnessing technology to drive impactful learning strategies, David is recognised as one of the top 10 global influencers in the L&D space. His expertise lies in helping organisations modernise their approach to workplace learning, ensuring measurable results and business alignment.

David is also the host of The Learning & Development Podcast, which has amassed over 500,000 downloads and ranks in the top 1% of podcasts globally. With nearly 30,000 LinkedIn followers, he continues to shape the conversation around L&D innovation and best practices, drawing on his deep experience, including his time as Director of Learning, Talent & Organisational Development at The Walt Disney Company.

Find out more: https://360learning.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidjameslinkedin/?originalSubdomain=uk

About your host Eleanor

Eleanor supports individuals, teams and organisations through change. Whether it’s 121 coaching or large scale organisational change through communications and training. Eleanor’s work centres around how we, as humans, work through change, embracing the messy bits, the role of playing, with the aim to see opportunity. “Too often we get stuck in the change happening to us, when just through that next door is an exciting next chapter.”

Eleanor is the founder of Another Door, and the author of Another Door Opens - Five steps to navigating change in work and life

Instagram:instagram/anotherdoor_opens

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/eleanor-tweddell/

Website: www.anotherdoor.co.uk

Produced by winteraudio.co.uk

“What does success actually mean to me? Why did I quit my job really? How do I build this freedom, flexibility, fulfillment? How do I redefine it?”

In this episode, I talk to Anna Lundberg, an executive coach, business mentor and strategic adviser who challenges us to think about success and what it means to us. Anna shares her career change from corporate marketing to creating a business with more freedom and fulfillment. We explore the evolution of success, exploring unexpected paths and random connections that shape our careers and personal growth, like finding me on ChatGPT!

Here are the highlights:

03:50 The big door: Leaving corporate life and the journey since

05:06 Serendipitous lunch leading to new life paths

09:23 Embracing life changes and the idea of different life seasons

13:03 Shifting mindset from employee to entrepreneur

14:26 Moving into freelance consulting

26:25 Redefining personal career success and what truly matters

30:49 The ongoing journey - always a work in progress

The things that helped Anna navigate change -

Book: The Art of Non-conformity: Set Your Own Rules by Chris Guillebeau and "The War of Art" by Steven Pressfield.

Music: Defying Gravity from the musical Wicked

The one piece of advice: " Take those little steps, don’t put too much pressure on yourself to find the right answer, and just have a bit of faith that something good will come of it.”

More about Anna:

Anna Lundberg is the founder of One Step Outside, where she helps professionals and entrepreneurs redefine success on their own terms. After stepping away from a successful corporate career, she built a business that gives her both financial stability and personal freedom - without following the traditional ‘hustle’ playbook. Through her Business Accelerator, strategic coaching, and thought leadership, she supports leaders in designing a business and career that aligns with their values, lifestyle, and ambitions. She is the author of Outside of the 9 to 5 and Leaving the Corporate 9 to 5, and the host of the Reimagining Success podcast.

Find out more: https://onestepoutside.com/

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

About your host Eleanor

Eleanor supports individuals, teams and organisations through change. Whether it’s 121 coaching or large scale organisational change through communications and training. Eleanor’s work centres around how we, as humans, work through change, embracing the messy bits, the role of playing, with the aim to see opportunity. “Too often we get stuck in the change happening to us, when just through that next door is an exciting next chapter.”

Eleanor is the founder of Another Door and the author of Why losing your job could be the best thing that ever happened to you.

Instagram:instagram/anotherdooruk

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/eleanor-tweddell/

Website: eleanortweddell.com

Produced by winteraudio.co.uk