Power Done Differently

Brought to you in partnership with 50:50 Parliament, I’m joined this week by Wera Hobhouse MP, the Liberal Democrat Shadow Leader of the House of Commons and Spokesperson for Energy and Climate Change and Transport as we delve into the importance of championing an open society in Parliament. In the episode, Wera reflects on how her upbringing in post-war Germany helped shape her commitment to protecting the values of liberal democr...

Do you ever feel like your life is all about achieving what other people expect of you, ticking boxes to get ahead in a corporate career that, while others are excited… you’re not? Have you thought about launching your own business, but felt startup culture wasn't inclusive enough? Well, you’re not alone. My guest this week has been there, done that, and wrote the book on it! Joining me is Lu Li, Founder of Blooming Founders, ...

In another episode brought to you in partnership with 50:50 Parliament, this week I sit down with the formidable Baroness Jenkin of Kennington, or Anne as she prefers, to talk about the challenges of getting conservative women elected to Parliament.  As the Co-Chair of Women2Win, a campaign group she co-founded with former Prime Minister Theresa May, Anne has been on the front lines of the fight to get more women elected on behalf ...

Do you ever wonder what it takes to build a successful brand that's true to your values? Join me as I sit down this week with Jan Livingston Mokhtari, Co-Founder & Chief Marketing Officer of Gray Whale Gin. We explore how family and environmental purpose is driving this premium gin brand from strength to strength while helping the planet, one “glass of California” at a time. Jan shares the story of how nature inspired the ...

Joining me for the first of a very special new sub-series looking at getting more women elected to power across the UK is Frances Scott, the driving force behind 50:50 Parliament, an organization dedicated to increasing the number of women in parliament. In this episode, Frances shares the mission and vision of 50:50 and how her daughter's election to school council opened her eyes to the lack of representation for women in le...

To kick off a new season, I’m joined by one of my personal heroes, Elizabeth Lesser as we dive into the power of women's storytelling and the modern woman's fight for agency. In this episode, Elizabeth delves into her book "Cassandra Speaks," the #MeToo movement, and her own journey toward claiming her power. We discuss the fear of being disliked for speaking up and the importance of being true to oneself, ...

For my last episode of the season, I’m joined by my fellow American in London: Joy Morrissey. Joy is the Member of Parliament for Beaconsfield and currently serves as Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. I wanted to talk to Joy in part because she has such an incredible story. She’s only the third American-born female MP in UK history, the first to enter Parliament after a general ele...

After yet two more police shootings, and video of a black soldier being pepper sprayed, all in less than a week, this was an episode I originally planned to release as part of my next series in September, but I simply couldn't hold this back now. So, joining me on this week’s Power Done Differently is Sophie Williams, an advocate, activist, and author of the books Anti-Racist Ally and the newly released Millennial Black. A Cre...

If you’ve been following the never-ending saga that is Brexit, or even just looked at Twitter at any point during, Gina Miller will be a household name to you. A serial entrepreneur, passionate philanthropist and advocate for responsible capitalism, Gina shot to fame over twice leading successful Supreme Court cases to ensure Brexit be democratically debated in parliament and who, in the process, became something of a favourite pun...

You know how leftovers can sometimes be the best bit of a gutsy meal? Well, it’s the same with podcasts - there’s always rich pickings cut in the editing process, and they’re just too good not to share. I simply had to make a bite-sized episode from some of the best bits I cut from my interview with Tessy Anthony de Nassau, UNAIDS Ambassador, Co-Founder of the new feminist clothing line, Human Highness, and (of course) former Princ...

Joining me on this week’s Power Done Differently is Naomi Smith, CEO of the pro-Europe campaign group Best for Britain, and co-host of one of my favourite podcasts, ‎OH GOD, WHAT NOW? Naomi has been up close on some of the most significant political failures in the UK over the last decade. She was one of the few who predicted that the last election would end badly for Remainers, but when she tried to warn them, she was shouted down...

Diving right into the controversial topics, renowned biologist, fertility expert, and former Utah State Science Advisor, Dr Carol Curchoe joins me to talk about everything from abortion terminology and vaccine denialism to the challenges of STEM cell research in the US. A high school dropout with a complicated family background, Dr Curchoe didn’t take the usual path to becoming a distinguished scientist and successful start-up entr...

It feels like the entire world is talking about Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, whether they watched the Oprah interview or not, and while I'm not one for royal gossip, I am interested in what it can tell us about discussions of power and the ways in which women in the public eye are portrayed for trying to do things differently. In watching the media coverage, it was the same age old stories being told: It was Meghan who was ...

You don’t need to figure out everything on your own, that’s the message of this week’s Power Done Differently guest, Kristy Wallace. Kristy is a former investment banker, turned startup executive, who is now CEO of Ellevate Network, the world’s largest professional network for women, alongside serving as host of the Ellevate Podcast: Conversations with Women Changing the Face of Business. In the episode, Kristy and I talk about why...

This week’s Power Done Differently guest is on a mission to get people drinking better, and talking more. Former ad executive, turned entrepreneur, Dee Charlemagne is Co-Founder of AVEC Drinks, a line of premium, better for you mixers that bring 21st century values to a market still mostly stuck in the past. A first generation American, born and raised in the Bronx, Dee delves into the importance of intersectional identity as a bla...

Imagine being told you only had five years to live unless you ditched your high-stress lifestyle ASAP. Well, that’s exactly what happened to high-flying entrepreneur and former tech marketing exec Jennifer LeBlanc. Jenn is the Founder and CEO of Palo Alto-based ThinkResults Marketing, ranked as the 10th fastest growing private company in Silicon Valley in 2017, alongside serving as Founder of the Changing Tides movement, a platform...

Quite the opposite of many of my Power Done Differently guests, Divya Gugnani never had huge aspirations growing up. Instead, all she wanted was to be a mid-level lawyer living in suburban utopia; white picket fence and all. But 60+ investments and a talent for co-founding successful start-ups are proof of her ‘accidental’ entrepreneurial story, and she’s not building that picket fence anytime soon. Listen as Divya shares her journ...

Deliberate, brazen and direct, Anna Soubry is one of the most outspoken figures in UK politics, and yet she’s also someone who refuses to get her fingers dirty in the cesspits of populist extremism. In this week’s Power Done Differently episode, the former barrister, journalist, MP and Government Minister joins me as we dissect the decline, and tribalisation, of the Liberal Democrat party, the Remain side’s failure to use emotion w...

Everybody watches porn. Nobody talks about watching porn. Former BBH America Chair Cindy Gallop is adamant that this needs to change, and since her 2009 Ted Talk on socialising sex went viral, she’s been driving the discourse on that area we’re all the “most f*cked up” about. The Founder of the world’s first crowdsourced social sex platform, Make Love Not Porn, Cindy is a fierce advocate for everyone knowing the difference between ...