The Positive Habits Podcast

In this episode, Kat speaks about what she has learnt and noticed from delivering her talks to teams and from her own experiences of the power of habits. She shares how many of us get lost in life and don’t prioritise ourselves, and how easy it is to not recognise the bad habits we have been creating. Kat talks about the power and influence habits have on shaping our entire life and shares an exercise she delivers in her talks to get you thinking about what things you can change in your life to start living better. KEY TAKEAWAYS • Kat’s toxic and negative habits that led to complete burnout in 2016 were the result of not prioritising herself. • One of the biggest things Kat has come to realise when delivering talks is how easy it is to sleepwalk into bad habits and how transformative recognising the power of habits, both positive and negative, can be. • Even if people think life is generally good, just taking 10 minutes for yourself can make such a difference in your life. • Think about some of the things you are doing in your daily life that you know are affecting you, whether that’s your mood, energy, relationships or anything else. • What are the things that make you feel good and give you energy, these can be things that you do now or things you have done in the past. • What habits could you commit to doing, and what impact could these habits make on your life? BEST MOMENTS “I love having just 10 minutes with my microphone to talk about things that I am passionate about” “It’s really easy for us to get lost in life” “What are the things that give you energy, what are the things that make you feel amazing?” ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself. She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe. LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/katthorne/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/the_morning_gamechanger/ Sponsor : VennCard, the last business card you’ll ever need. Whether you’re a creator, coach, or consultant, VennCard helps you share your details with a tap, capture leads instantly, and follow up automatically.

In this powerful episode, Kat is joined by entrepreneur Rasha Shammout to explore the skills schools often overlook — like emotional resilience, daily habits, and independence. Together, they dive into the habits that matter most at home and in life, from screen-free family meals to teaching children how to manage change with confidence. Rasha shares her journey from the corporate world to the classroom, highlighting what she believes every child should be learning. Whether you're a parent, educator, or just passionate about the future of education, this episode will leave you inspired to take small actions that make a big difference. 🔑 Key Takeaways: Schools prioritise grades over real-world skills like organisation, independence, and accountability. Daily habits like making the bed or prepping breakfast help kids build confidence and life readiness. Teaching children to embrace change builds long-term resilience. Phone-free family time strengthens mental health and connection. Kids mirror their parents — modelling good habits is essential. Every child is unique — even twins — and needs an individualised approach. ✨ Best Moments: “If you're organised at home, you're going to be organised in life.” “We never learned how to be entrepreneurs or even how to present to a group.” “I told my child not to have a phone in their bedroom — then realised mine was right next to me.” “Kids are struggling with change because they’ve never been taught how to manage uncertainty.” ABOUT THE GUEST Rasha Shammout is an entrepreneur and the visionary Founder and CEO of EduGlobal Management, a firm specialising in education reform, strategic consulting, and financial services. She is known for empowering communities through innovative school improvement models, high-impact proposals, and dynamic leadership across regional and global platforms. LinkedIn ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself. She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe. LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/katthorne/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/the_morning_gamechanger/ Sponsor : VennCard, the last business card you’ll ever need. Whether you’re a creator, coach, or consultant, VennCard helps you share your details with a tap, capture leads instantly, and follow up automatically.

Kat talks with Karen, who went from accidentally building a global creative agency to nearly killing herself saving it. Karen shares how this led to adrenal fatigue so severe that she developed pre-diabetes, and what she had to change in her life to survive. Karen shares why the 'have it all' mentality is toxic, her glass balls vs rubber balls theory for managing life and how she's rewiring her perfectionist brain. KEY TAKEAWAYS • Working in the events industry, which ranks alongside firefighters in the top 5 most stressful jobs, Karen admits Type A personalities like herself can’t help themselves and will fight through everything until they crash. • Life feels like living with a thousand tabs open in her brain. Unlike her business partner, who compartmentalises perfectly, Karen is constantly juggling work emails, school WhatsApp groups, and the mental load of motherhood, making it impossible to truly switch off. • As someone in a position of power, Karen refuses to perpetuate the lie that women can have everything simultaneously without paying a price. • Karen has abandoned all or nothing exercise training for 10-minute walks and weekly tennis lessons, admitting triathlons now 'sound horrible' compared to 15 years ago when they felt fun. • Dr. Mark Hyman's research changed her perspective completely, learning that sedentary lifestyles are more dangerous than smoking transformed how she views getting up every hour for squats or water as essential survival, not productivity breaks. BEST MOMENTS "I fought like hell, not just for my life, but for everybody who works for us, for all of our clients and every supplier that counts on us for business." "We can have it all, guess what? It's gonna come at a price. It's really unrealistic to think you can have it all, or at least all together all the time." "A sedentary lifestyle is more dangerous than smoking to your health. We grew up seeing cigarette packs with shrivelled lungs, but now it's the lack of movement that will kill you." ABOUT THE GUEST Karen is the Co-Founding Partner of Brands at Work, the award-winning creative communications and events agency that unleashes the power of experience to build trust and loyalty between brands and the people who matter most.Her passion lies in helping companies become better storytellers — building vibrant brand communities from the inside out. ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself. She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe. LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/katthorne/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/the_morning_gamechanger/ Sponsor : VennCard, the last business card you’ll ever need. Whether you’re a creator, coach, or consultant, VennCard helps you share your details with a tap, capture leads instantly, and follow up automatically.

In this short solo episode, Kat shares the powerful story of Steve – a guy who felt tired and overwhelmed, until he committed to just one small habit: a 10-minute walk each morning. What followed surprised even him – increased energy, sharper focus, and a ripple effect that inspired his entire family. Kat also shares real examples from others who’ve completed her 21-day habit challenge and dives into why small changes are often the most powerful. If you’re feeling stretched or stuck, this episode will show you how just 10 minutes a day can shift everything – mentally, physically, and even professionally. KEY TAKEAWAYS: • Try a small habit for 21 days – the impact can be bigger than you think • If you can't find 10 minutes for yourself, something needs to change • Participants in the 21-day challenge report feeling fitter, calmer, and more productive • Feeling better physically improves your mindset, relationships, and performance BEST MOMENTS: “If I can’t even give myself 10 minutes, then there’s something wrong” “If you’re feeling fitter, fresher, you are going to be more productive, but you’re also going to be a nicer person to be around” “It’s had a ripple effect both personally and professionally” ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself. She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe. LinkedIn⁠ ⁠Instagram Sponsor : VennCard, the last business card you’ll ever need. Whether you’re a creator, coach, or consultant, VennCard helps you share your details with a tap, capture leads instantly, and follow up automatically. Get your free VennCard now

Former Royal Marine and police officer Simon doesn’t hold back as he shares his unapologetic take on parenting, discipline, fitness—and why your morning routine might be holding you back. The discussion covers his recent observations on the physical state of men, his opinions on vaping and his approach to raising his 11-year-old son Charlie. Simon and Kat discuss discipline versus motivation, screen time, parenting approaches and what Simon sees as society's increasing softness. KEY TAKEAWAYS • Morning routines can become counterproductive and Simon argues that obsessive morning routines harm more than help when people focus more on the routine than actual productive work during the day. • Exercise can easily be integrated into daily life, Simon demonstrates fitting training into everyday activities like doing dips while cooking or pull ups during screen breaks, making fitness accessible without gym memberships. • After 47 years of training, Simon feels motivated only 50% of the time, but still trains daily by making it non-negotiable and asking "when will I train" not "will I train." Discipline matters more than motivation. • Children shouldn't be pacified with screens, Simon never gives his son screens at restaurants or when crying, instead engaging him in conversation and teaching him to interact with adults and handle boredom. • Simon judges people's ability to protect and help others based on basic physical tasks, viewing fitness as functional rather than aesthetic. • Self-esteem comes from achieving goals, confidence is built through "an undeniable stack of evidence that you are who you say you are" rather than positive affirmations. • Modern society promotes instant gratification. From Amazon Prime to dating apps, Simon sees society losing the ability to wait, creating what he calls "the Amazon Prime Society" where everything must be immediate! • Simon views vaping as "an adult dummy" that shows lack of self-control, comparing the constant use to pacification rather than the occasional nature of traditional smoking. BEST MOMENTS "If Instagram disappeared tonight, I'd be in my garden tomorrow morning training. Nothing changes for me." "A man should do what he says he's gonna do. That to me is the mark of a man." "Self-esteem isn't chanting mantras in the mirror in the morning. It's building an undeniable stack of evidence that you are who you say you are." ABOUT THE GUEST Simon Martin. Father first, always. Follow on instagram Old_School_Strength_Coach ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself. She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe. LinkedIn Instagram Sponsor : VennCard, the last business card you’ll ever need. Whether you’re a creator, coach, or consultant, VennCard helps you share your details with a tap, capture leads instantly, and follow up automatically. Get your free VennCard now⁠

That’s how Phil Carr describes the surreal moment after selling his multimillion-pound business. Kat is joined by serial entrepreneur Phil for a conversation about the real cost of building successful businesses. Phil talks about founding MyPT Hub in his grandmother's spare bedroom and how he sold it for millions. This isn't a typical success story; it's a brutally honest account of how stress manifested into ulcerative colitis, the moment everything changed when he sold his company and the life changing habits he then built his life around. Kat and Phil also discuss why work/life balance is a myth, the simple power of being present and the importance of vulnerability in leadership. KEY TAKEAWAYS • Work/life balance is a myth for entrepreneurs. Having built multiple businesses since 2013, Phil explains that success requires periods where work is heavily skewed, but staying conscious of when you're doing too much is also crucial. • Chronic stress manifested as ulcerative colitis for Phil. During the most demanding period of building MyPT Hub, his autoimmune disease developed, then disappeared within 48 hours of selling the business, proving the mind and body connection. • Small changes create compounding effects, rather than overhauling everything at once, Phil’s approach focuses on changing one habit at a time, which he learned creates sustainable changed through compounding. • Being present requires conscious practice, Phil admits it can feel difficult and strange to begin with, but it makes a huge difference. • Vulnerability strengthens leadership, leading his team of friends and family through openness about struggles and failures has created deeper connections and better business performance without ego or status getting in the way. • Most people don't care about your failures and we overestimate others' judgment of our setbacks. • Phil found that removing his phone from the bedroom and reading before sleeping for seven hours improved his anxiety levels and helped his digestive health, changing everything about his life. BEST MOMENTS "I was walking on a tight rope, but I never realised it was only six inches off the ground” "I think that people naturally gravitate towards wanting to help people." "Are you lying to yourself? Because you can't deceive yourself. You will know in your heart of hearts if you are doing something you genuinely believe in." "It feels alien at first... but being present with your children is so fundamentally important." ABOUT THE GUEST Phil Carr, CEO of VennCard Get your free personalised card ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself. She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe. LinkedIn⁠ ⁠Instagram The episode is brought to you by VennCard, the last business card you’ll ever need. Whether you’re a creator, coach, or consultant, VennCard helps you share your details with a tap, capture leads instantly, and follow up automatically. Get your free VennCard now⁠

Fitness expert Michael Newman joins Kat to shatter one of the biggest myths in health: that you can out train a bad diet. He reveals why 80% of your results come from what you eat, tackles the toxic "cheat day" mentality and gives advice on how to navigate family resistance when changing habits. Discover why your morning routine could be the secret weapon you've been missing and learn how to make sustainable changes without turning your entire life upside down, Michael's honest approach will challenge everything you think you know about getting healthy! KEY TAKEAWAYS • You can't out-train a bad diet, food accounts for roughly 80% of your results, making nutrition far more impactful than exercise alone for health and fitness. • Ditch the "cheat day" mentality. This toxic language creates guilt and shame around food, leading to unhealthy relationships. All foods can be enjoyed in moderation! • Most people have no idea how many calories they consume daily. A 3-5 day food diary will reveal truths about eating habits. • Getting up just 30 minutes before your family gives you quiet time for exercise, meditation, or planning, setting a positive tone for the day. • Make tiny changes, not complete overhauls. Shrink the change to increase success, for example Mike suggests reducing takeaways from 3 to 2 times per week rather than eliminating them entirely. • Simple meal prep strategies work best. Make enough dinner for lunch the next day, or dedicate time on weekends to prepare a few meals ahead. • Most people find time for Netflix and phone scrolling but claim they're too busy for health. Challenge this limiting belief. • Get everyone on board gradually by involving kids in cooking and making sustainable changes that work for the whole household. Family resistance is normal but manageable. BEST MOMENTS "You could eat that donut 200, 300 calories in seconds. You've gotta train hard in the gym to sort of burn that equivalent." "You're not cheating on your diet if you have some pizza. You are not cheating on your diet if you happen to want to have a few beers." "My girlfriend would probably agree with this as well. I'm a different person if I've had a gym workout that morning." "Everything we are doing every single day is a choice. It's just whether it's an unconscious or a conscious choice." "They would never let their kids down, but they let themselves down all the time by saying they're gonna go to the gym." ABOUT THE GUEST Michael Newman , Health & Performance Coach for Executive men & business owners @michaelnewmancoaching ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself. She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe. https://www.linkedin.com/in/katthorne/

In this solo episode, Kat tackles one of the main habits that contributed to her losing everything in 2016 and how she’s managed to conquer it: the snooze button. If you’re someone who hits snooze on repeat, feeling groggy, guilty, and behind before the day even begins—this episode is for you. Kat shares why snoozing isn’t just a minor morning habit but a mindset killer that impacts your sleep, energy, and goals. She shares her simple, powerful tips to help you finally break free from the snooze cycle. Key Takeaways: Start with self-compassion. Snoozing isn’t your fault—it’s a setting in pretty much every alarm device. Snoozing sabotages your sleep. If you’re struggling with tiredness or disrupted sleep, the snooze button may be making it worse. Broken promises add up. Every time you snooze and skip what you planned to do, you’re reinforcing the idea that you and your goals don’t matter. Change your environment. Move your alarm away from your bed so you have to physically get up to turn it off. Reframe your morning thoughts. Replace “just 10 more minutes” with a reminder of what you chose to wake up for. BEST MOMENTS "I used to snooze my alarm every single morning, 4-6 times.” “You trick yourself thinking you’re going to get this lovely extra sleep” “You’re telling your subconscious that the thing you committed to isn’t important enough now” This episode has been brought to you by VennCard, the last business card you’ll ever need. Whether you’re a creator, coach, or consultant, VennCard helps you share your details with a tap, capture leads instantly, and follow up automatically. ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself.  She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe.  LinkedIn Instagram

Join Kat as she sits down for a conversation with inspiring Operations Director, Carolann Denne. Together, they take a look at what it really means to create a healthy, open workplace where employees feel safe to prioritise their mental health. Carolann also opens up about her own experience with intermittent fasting and how small changes can make a big difference in how we feel and show up in life. KEY TAKEAWAYS Employee well-being is a shared responsibility between employers and employees.  In a fast-paced world, people often neglect their own well-being due to time constraints. It's essential to prioritise reflection and self-care, even if it means scheduling time for it in a busy calendar. Employers should create an environment where issues can be raised and heard, while employees need to take the initiative to speak up about their mental health and well-being. Carolann notes how getting to know your team, and treating employees as individuals, can help to improve workplace performance. BEST MOMENTS ‘There's a lot of times where employees don't talk or speak up until the last minute and it becomes too late and it's a bigger issue than potentially what it needs to be.’ ‘I met somebody very senior in the week and she said that her boss can tell when she's been running before work without even having a conversation about the fact that she's been running.’ ‘I think there's something in today's culture around that where we seem to be a lot more free in what we have the ability to chastise people around these days than we would have done a few years ago.’  ‘We don't recognise the journey that people have been on to achieve milestones, whether that's career or personally, or maybe, you know, recovering from an addiction or whatever it might be. We just look at the moment when people are achieving some kind of success.’ ‘Your truth can sometimes be very different to what the truth is, and having the ability to separate them can really take you down a different path.’ ABOUT THE GUEST Carolann is Operations Director @ QFM Group, mum of two and a dynamic leader with over 16 years experience in hospitality, following a strong start in retail. She leads nearly 100 stores across three global brands, with a proven track record of growing brands through strong operations, creativity, and commercial focus. Passionate about people and supporting women in leadership, she’s driven by helping others grow and thrive in their careers.  LinkedIn ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself.  She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe.  LinkedIn Instagram The Positive Habits Podcast is Sponsored by VennCard, the last business card you’ll ever need. Whether you’re a creator, coach, or consultant, VennCard helps you share your details with a tap, capture leads instantly, and follow up automatically. Get your free VennCard now

In this episode, Kat speaks to Chris James, who reveals the lies we tell ourselves that keep us stuck and shares his powerful SCALE framework for growth. Chris shares his thoughts on optimism, relationships, and why most productivity apps are just expensive procrastination tools. Kat and Chris will challenge everything you think you know about success, time management and what it takes to build a life you don't want to escape from. KEY TAKEAWAYS Chris shares his SCALE framework: systemise processes, create evergreen content, use automation/AI, delegate labour to others and eliminate unnecessary tasks to clone yourself in business Phone notes and pen and paper with weekly planning work better for Chris to keep him focused and organised. For most of us, productivity apps create procrastination instead of actual progress Chris uses a ‘perfect week’ calendar to balance daily business tasks with personal non-negotiables, which creates a better work life balance If you're not following through on scheduled commitments, you're simply not experiencing enough pain to drive real change Chris maintains optimism by zooming out, every problem becomes smaller when you widen your perspective If you’re struggling with a situation, Chris suggests you write out the problem and you'll feel better, then create a solution and realise it wasn't that bad Chris's business philosophy shifted from money driven to impact focused after he achieved financial freedom BEST MOMENTS "You're not in enough pain. If you are in enough pain, you'd do the thing." "I have found the most productivity apps are actually just stopping you from being productive because they're forcing you to procrastinate when you should just be doing the thing.” "Your mood, follow the plan, you feel bad about something, does it tie in with the main thing? No. Well, it doesn't matter then, does it?"  "We're overconsuming and we're underproducing, it's no wonder so many people are feeling really overwhelmed." "The man who moaned about having to walk a mile to work suddenly shut the hell up when he saw the man with no feet." ABOUT THE GUEST Chris James helps coaches and marketers build 6 figure businesses without ads. He's a best-selling author and speaker. LinkedIn ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself.  She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe.  LinkedIn Instagram The Positive Habits Podcast is Sponsored by VennCard, the last business card you’ll ever need. Whether you’re a creator, coach, or consultant, VennCard helps you share your details with a tap, capture leads instantly, and follow up automatically. Get your free VennCard now

Kat shares a powerful reminder in this solo episode that you are not your thoughts. In every talk she delivers, she asks the same question and urges you to do the same “What is one of the first thoughts that you have when you open your eyes?” Kat shares why this question is so important, and you need to start taking note of these thoughts and how they impact your day. KEY TAKEAWAYS The thoughts you have first thing in the morning are shaping your day. Thoughts create actions, behaviours and your feelings. Negative thoughts have an evolutionary advantage to protect you, but in day to day life, they are sabotaging your growth and potential. When we believe every thought we have, including the negative ones, that’s when we impact our self-esteem and progress. You can’t stop your thoughts, but you can notice them without becoming them. BEST MOMENTS “Those thoughts are shaping your entire day” “The job of this voice is to protect you and keep you safe, but often that voice can end up sabotaging you” “I have got to a point now where I recognise those thoughts and I don’t let them control me or my actions” ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself.  She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe.  LinkedIn Instagram

Kat talks with Allen Johnson who shares his tough love approach to breaking unhealthy cycles, making sustainable lifestyle changes and being a positive role model for children. He shares his personal story of overcoming family challenges and gives practical advice on movement, accountability and raising your standards as a parent. KEY TAKEAWAYS Many parents neglect their own health while claiming to prioritise their children, missing the connection between self-care and effective parenting. Breaking large health goals into smaller, manageable steps is essential. Start with one meal improvement, one 10-minute workout per week or reducing alcohol consumption gradually, instead of attempting complete lifestyle overhauls. Tracking your habits creates awareness and accountability, many people overestimate their healthy behaviours until they actually document them. Practising gratitude and appreciating life itself can shift your perspective. Allen suggests comparing your life's value to material wealth: if you wouldn't trade tomorrow for a million pounds, why aren't you treating each day as the precious gift it is? Digital distractions, particularly phones and social media, are destroying quality time and relationships and stopping people from investing in their health. These "easy now, hard later" choices lead to long-term dissatisfaction. Movement is the foundational habit that creates positive ripple effects throughout your life so find physical activities you genuinely enjoy to build sustainable consistency, leading to better mood, energy, relationships, and self-image. Start with micro-commitments to overcome inaction; a 5-minute daily walk with your kids or 10 minutes at the gym can break the "all-or-nothing" mindset that prevents many people from beginning their health journey. Alan shares how growing up with an alcoholic father and challenging family dynamics fuelled his passion to help others transform their lives. BEST MOMENTS "If someone was to give you like a million pounds, would you be happy and excited? And of course you would be... Would you accept that million pounds if you couldn't wake up tomorrow? Of course answer is gonna be no. So then why aren't people treating their life like that?" "There's a saying that hard now easier later or easy now, hard later and I think most people are choosing easy now, hard later. It feels easier in the moment... but in the medium to long term, you are only gonna be gaining more weight, feeling worse about yourself."   "Whenever I step into that gym and train my body hard, I always walk out of that gym feeling 10 times better than when I walk in. And that's why movement, exercise, workouts, whatever you wanna call it, is such a powerful habit to embed into your lifestyle." "What did you come here for? Did you come here to just survive? Or did you come here to really, really live a great life, and I definitely know that I wasn't put on this earth to have an average life." "Stay consistent for long enough, and that's how you get life changing results." ABOUT THE GUEST Allen Johnson, dad of two young boys based in Essex, who helps other parents work smarter with time & become an inspiring, energetic role model model for their children inside his transformation programme ‘Reach Your Peak’. Follow Allen on instagram. ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself.  She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe.  LinkedIn Instagram

In this episode, Kat talks about the 10 things she has learnt by setting herself the challenge to run every day, for 100 days. Whether you are a runner or not, these lessons will still apply to you as Kat talks about why you can change more than you think when you commit to doing something small every day. KEY TAKEAWAYS No matter what habit you are trying to create, you just need to start. Once you do, you will build momentum and motivation to continue. We have all broken so many promises to ourselves, but by creating a small every day habit and sticking to it, we are honouring a promise to ourselves. Progress isn’t just about your best days but your average ones too. Making one positive habit change begins a ripple effect on the rest of your life, this is the power of habit. BEST MOMENTS “Honestly, it’s changed so much more than my fitness” “It was reminding me that action beats overthinking” “I started running because I wanted to honour the promise to myself” “The best thing you can do is just begin” ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself.  She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe.  LinkedIn Instagram

Kat speaks with Rick Lorenzo, who challenges the traditional work week with his day one to seven philosophy. Rick shares how he broke free from the 9 to 5 life and started his own business. Their conversation explores societal expectations, from career choices to family planning and the importance of authenticity and kindness. Anyone listening to this episode, be mindful of your conditioning and your views and ask yourself, is it possible for you to have a completely different life in just a year? KEY TAKEAWAYS Rick's day one to seven philosophy reframes the traditional workweek, advocating for flexibility in when and how you work to create a life that aligns with your authentic self rather than conforming to societal expectations. The pressure to conform to conventional life paths (education, career, marriage, children) can lead to misalignment with our true values and desires, creating unnecessary suffering that often only surfaces during major life changes. Creating space for self-reflection is important and Rick and Kat both share how journaling and quiet contemplation help them recognise misalignments between values and daily choices. Getting comfortable with being uncomfortable is essential for anyone seeking change; Rick had to embrace uncertainty rather than clinging to false security to create the life he has now. Building a business culture based on trust, output rather than hours and genuine care for employees' wellbeing creates loyalty and productivity. Rick's team has had no staff turnover in seven years! Traditional ideas about legacy and ownership often distract from what truly matters such as experiences, relationships and making a difference while you're alive rather than accumulating stuff. Giving without expectation, whether through kindness, time, or opportunity, creates unexpected returns through connections and growth, a principle Rick learned from "The Go-Giver." Being mindful of our biases and judgments allows us to approach others with empathy, recognising that everyone's life experiences shape their choices and behaviours in ways we may not immediately understand. BEST MOMENTS "The whole point of being a human being is we do have the choice to actually do what we wanna do, when we wanna do it, as long as we can feed ourselves and look after ourselves. And that freed me up so much."  " Well, that win-win sort of mindset means you're expecting something in return. If you can make somebody else win without any expectation... the universe has a way of paying you back in so many weird and wonderful ways." "I think one of the things I'd like anyone who's listening to our episode today to kind of think about is just to be mindful of your own conditioning and your own views... it is possible in 2025 to have a completely different life?" "The biggest buzz I get out of doing is when you show someone kindness and you get a smile back. Giving is a gift, literally gives you a good feeling. So give to people, be kind every day."  ABOUT THE GUEST I look back at life, reflecting on the rules and guidelines given to us from a young age. Study, get a job and save for retirement. Years later, when I was broke and had no real career prospects in my late 40's, all I heard was that it's too late for me. The best I could expect was a low level sales job, to keep me fed and sheltered. All conventional wisdom indicated it was over for me. This fueled me into rethinking everything. The average life expectancy of a job today is 4 years. I had nothing to lose. So I started my own path, knocking shop doors, selling one product.. the start of a business. Fast forward 11 years, I have changed how I look at time and how I spend it. No weeks, no weekends.. just day one to day seven, with choices to do anything on any of those days. Unshackled from the norms, I can use my time (which is the most valuable and unknown) asset I have, in a way that works for me. Connect with Rick on Linkedin ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself.  She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe.  LinkedIn Instagram

Kat speaks with David Harkin, CEO of 8 Billion Ideas, about his viral LinkedIn post about his phone detox. David talks about the impact constant digital connectivity was having on his life, including his performance as a CEO and father. He shares how setting boundaries with phone use and creating phone free periods, helped him regain focus and presence and build healthier relationships with his loved ones and technology. KEY TAKEAWAYS David's phone detox revealed that only 1-2% of notifications were truly urgent, we all overestimate the importance of immediate digital availability. Implementing 'batch processing' of communications at specific times of day can dramatically reduce the mental load of constant interruptions. Schools' communication strategies are adding to parents' digital overwhelm with multiple platforms and frequent updates, another source of micro-doses of stress. Starting Mondays with personal time (e.g no meetings before 10 AM) sets a positive tone for the entire week and creates space for creativity and strategic thinking. Creating a phone me culture at work can reduce the thousands of unnecessary messages exchanged, streamlining communication and improving focus. Removing work apps from your phone during weekends or designated periods creates crucial boundaries that protect personal time and mental space, too. Constant notifications interrupt creative flow, particularly for tasks requiring longer concentration, significantly extending the time needed to complete them. Finding your third dimension beyond work and family, like running, learning piano, or reading, is essential for personal wellbeing and maintaining energy for other areas of life. BEST MOMENTS "I was realising something's gotta change here because I'm sitting here reading my 8-year-old boy a story and I'm thinking about work and I can't stop thinking about work. I'm in two places at the same time." "What I found interesting was when I turned the phone back on, there was a billion notifications there, but really the stuff which was urgent, you're talking about one or 2% of the stuff." "I'm dyslexic as well, so it's not very helpful having that constant interruption when you're trying to write emails or get into a flow state of thinking." "I think it would be great to see quick phone calls coming back into fashion again and using that as a way to get quick answers from people so we are not falling into the trap of just waiting for an update." "Being present is one of the most beautiful things I've ever experienced. I feel like we're creating a better quality experience for people who are listening. It's more enjoyable for both of us to have this conversation."  ABOUT THE GUEST David Harkin is a husband, father of three, and CEO of 8billionideas—a global education company delivering its Critical Curriculum to over 500,000 students in 25 countries. A recognised leader in education, he’s delivered two TEDx talks: "Can a 4-Year-Old Change the World?" and "How We Can All Embrace a World-Class Mentality." Ranked 8th globally by ISC Research, he’s received multiple awards, including the EduFuturist Award. Formerly at IBM, David led a multi-million-dollar business by 24 and earned the CEO Award. Outside work, he’s Vice President of Sevenoaks Vine CC and a passionate cricketer.  LinkedIn 8billionideas ABOUT THE HOST Kat started her career as a teacher, before moving into Tech where she worked in different executive roles within teaching and consulting working across the globe, both in the public and private sector. Despite appearing 'successful' on the outside, she paid a heavy ‘life’ price. In 2016, her whole world collapsed. The reason? The compound effect of years of unhealthy and toxic habits that destroyed her health, relationship and career. She suffered a severe breakdown and lost everything. In the middle of this she got headhunted for her first CEO role. She rebuilt herself by changing just one small habit, and built a series of positive habits which has transformed her professional and personal performance, resulting in becoming the healthiest and happiest version of herself.  She is a positive habits international keynote speaker and teacher, giving talks and delivering high impact programmes to organisations across the globe.  LinkedIn Instagram