The Reinventors

Stine wasn't happy in her law job—until a pottery class changed her life. Now she's a sought-after ceramicist, making beautiful pieces for top chefs and restaurants.We hear a lot about bringing your whole self to work, being the real you in the office. But that can be easier said than done. And for Stine Dulong, it's been a journey. Stine moved from her native Denmark to London and worked as a business criminal lawyer. She got used to a constant low-level anxiety at work - and it took a skiing accident for her to realise being a lawyer was making her miserable. Stine took some time off to look after herself, try out a few hobbies. One of those hobbies was a pottery class - and Stine never intended to become a full time potter. But here she is, seven years later, with her studio SkandiHus making ceramics for some of the UK’s top restaurants and chefs. And her many students call Stine’s classes a ‘clay sanctuary’. For Stine, this profound change wasn’t just about her career. It was a whole life transformation. She went from being this practical-minded lawyer to a creative, intuitive ceramicist - someone brings her spirituality to work and thinks of self-care as a business strategy. We talked about ambition, fulfilment, sitting with difficult emotions - and how Stine carved a path where she is now free to be all parts of herself at work.Follow @skandihus_londonwww.skandihus.co.uk

Barry's decision to leave his corporate job to work for a health nonprofit was deeply personal.When you’re having one of those tough days at work, it helps to focus on the big picture. To remind ourselves why we do what we do. That sense of perspective is what motivated Barry Greene. Barry started out working as an accountant in corporate tax. And then an opportunity came up to join the Global Fund, which is a nonprofit that fights AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. Barry had personal ties to each of those diseases. In fact, he’d lost his best friend at the height of the AIDS epidemic. So he became the Global Fund’s first chief financial officer and continued working in global health after that, as the managing director - finance & operations at Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance. Barry says when it comes to shifting our careers, it’s the things we don’t do that we regret most in life. And contrary to the popular idea of accountants, Barry took real risks in his career - and they paid off.  You can contact Barry at bgreene@bluewin.ch.

Sometimes our career plans are taken out of our hands. That’s what happened to Stephanie Wolf. She was a ballet dancer, performing with companies across the US, including Wonderbound (formerly Ballet Nouveau Colorado), the Metropolitan Opera, James Sewell Ballet and Minnesota Ballet. Stephanie thought she’d be dancing until she was 40. But a serious leg injury changed her plans completely. She started from scratch as a public radio journalist, figuring out how to be a beginner all over again.  Now she is an arts reporter for 89.3 WFPL News in Louisville. Follow Stephanie at twitter.com/StephRWolf. Photo by David Ellis. 

Will is quite the reinventor. He's been an actor, executive, therapist, and personal trainer. Now he's a life coach examining people's dreams. A few years back, a palliative nurse who cared for patients as they were dying, recorded the most common regrets we have at the end of our lives. Number one on the list? "I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me." That idea is what motivates Will Sharon: he helps people figure out what they really want in life. Will has reinvented himself quite a few times… from teaching to therapy, from corporate executive to personal trainer - he was even a soap opera actor for a hot second. Today, he’s a life coach who works with dreams. He talks about what he gained from his many different roles, and why we all have a responsibility to show up in our lives. Follow Will's work at willsharon.com 

When the pandemic hit, many of us had this desire to help in whatever way we could. Aki Naito took that to the next level. Aki had worked in technology for years. She was really good at taking these complicated ideas and tools, and explaining them to people. Then March 2020 came along. Aki saw an opportunity to take what she’d learned in tech, and apply it on the frontline of the crisis, helping families and communities who are most at-risk of COVID. Aki is now the COO of Helping Hands Community, a nonprofit technology platform that empowers food banks and other partners to deliver food and essential supplies to people in need, at scale. Since they launched in 2020, Helping Hands has supported over 40,000 families. Visit helpinghands.community to see how you can get involved. Previously, Aki built teams and grew demand for GitHub (acquired by Microsoft), Cisco and Vistara. Aki went to Dartmouth College for her BA and Stanford Graduate School of Business for her MBA. She’s called the Bay Area home since then, where she enjoys the outdoors and the bountiful farmers markets.

When James Murgatroyd was 18, he had his whole life mapped out. He was going to meet a girl, get married at 25, own a BMW by the time he was 30. But he became a dad when he was 20. That wasn’t in the plan.  Priorities shifted, and he went to work for a bank, then in local government and social enterprise, before becoming a construction manager. Those jobs paid the bills, but they weren’t his dream gig. Facing down his 50th birthday, James knew he had to make a change. Then the pandemic decimated the construction industry, and James saw his chance. This is the story of a man who found his true calling later in life. It’s also the story of a guy who seriously loves teaching maths (James’ enthusiasm is totally infectious) and he really cares about making sure working class kids get the opportunities they deserve.  James changed his career with the help of a UK organisation called Transition to Teach. Right now they have a focus on supporting people who are at risk of redundancy move into teaching. transitiontoteach.co.uktwitter.com/mrmurgsmaths 

Maha Bodhi escaped a brutal childhood and forced marriage in Yemen. When the pandemic threatened her career, she had to transform her life again.Maha grew up in Yemen, where she endured a brutal upbringing and was forced into two violent arranged marriages. She managed to escape and set up a life for herself in the US, working initially in human resources. She quickly realised that teaching yoga was what she really wanted to do.But when coronavirus hit in March 2020 and she couldn’t teach in person, Maha had to figure out a way to transform her life all over again. She decided to bridge her experience in the corporate world with her knowledge of yoga and wellness, becoming a leadership trainer, coach and workplace mindfulness expert. Now she helps stressed-out professionals find balance in their working lives. In this episode, Maha reveals how she survived a harrowing childhood, how she found freedom in yoga, and explains how she used the pandemic as a powerful force for change.Find Maha at yogimaha.com.Content warning: this episode includes frank discussion of violence and sex; take care while you're listening. 

For season two, you'll hear from people whose lives were derailed by the pandemic. These are stories of turning a bleak situation into something bright, to bring you a little solace and inspiration. Hosted by journalist Clare Wiley, The Reinventors tells stories of radical career change. Subscribe and tell a friend! 

For the final episode in our first season, I’m excited to share the incredible story of Elena Joy Thurston. Elena grew up in a really turbulent home, and joined the Mormon church in her teens. She did what good Mormon women do: got married and had kids. But deep down, she knew something wasn't right. She began to develop feelings for a female friend, which in the Mormon church of course, is not allowed. She decided to confess to her husband, and then agreed to go to conversion therapy. What it took to get her from that really dark place was trust: she learned to trust her own instincts, and trust her own body.Elena eventually found the courage to leave her husband and come out. These days, Elena is a motivational speaker and she also launched the Pride and Joy foundation, which offers support for other LGBTQ+ families. Elena calls this her life 2.0. Elena is offering a free Core Values class for listeners of The Reinventors, helping you to figure out what your values are: https://bit.ly/3exUYoy Elena has given many public talks on her journey, including a viral Tedx talk. She previously worked as a theatre production manager, wedding floral designer, real estate agent and professional portrait photographer.  She now uses skills from all of them to run her non-profit foundation and public speaking career. The Pride and Joy Foundation is dedicated to building self-awareness and safety in LGBTQ+ families and their allies.https://www.prideandjoyfoundation.com/elenajoyexperience.com @TheReinventors@Clare_Wiley

When Stephanie Erazo worked as a news producer at CNN, she was basically on call, and eventually the stress really wore her down. So she decided to take a trip to India, where she had a literal epiphany, under a waterfall in the Himalayas. She knew she was in the wrong job and decided to follow her passion of health and wellness. When she came back to LA, she decided to launch a company. It's called Prana Wellness, and it offers yoga, meditation and breath work for companies' employees. Stephanie told me that being a producer is totally different to being a yoga teacher, and her friends actually tell her these days, she's so much more peaceful than she was before. Stephanie got really specific about exactly how she financed her business, and she thinks there's no good time to start a business: you just have to go for it.pranawellnessworks.com@Clare_Wiley@TheReinventors

Amanda Blumenthal was working as a sex and relationship coach, when she saw that the HBO show Euphoria was hiring an intimacy coordinator. This was back in 2018, when no one really knew what an intimacy coordinator was. But Amanda thought she could do it — and when she went for the interview, she was hired on the spot. Amanda is now LA’s first intimacy coordinator for film and TV. An intimacy coordinator is someone who choreographs simulated sex on-screen. Amanda has now worked on over 500 intimate scenes, including on The Affair, The L Word and Carnival Row. And her background as a sex and relationship coach helps her navigate difficult situations and attune to how the actors’ are feeling. Because this job is more than just physically coordinating sex scenes, she’s responsible for looking  after actors’ wellbeing during intimate moments. We chatted about how she helps actors (who are professionally conditioned not to say no) to figure out their boundaries; and how she deals with situations where actors feels uncomfortable. We talked about working in a brand new role, #MeToo, how directors deal with being told no, and Normal People... (because I couldn’t speak to an intimacy coordinator without talking about Normal People). Amanda says her job is basically about helping people feel safe at work — but it’s also about the fact that storytellers have a responsibility to create authentic, representative depictions of gender and sexuality on screen.Learn more about Amanda's work at intimacycoordinator.com.@Clare_Wiley@TheReinventors 

A quick note: this episode of The Reinventors was recorded before the global uprisings sparked by the killing of George Floyd and the swell of support for the Black Lives Matter movement. I want to take this moment to acknowledge my own unknowing complicity in systemic racism, and recognize that I need to do much more to use my privilege to amplify and support Black voices - now and in the long-term.This episode I’m speaking to events producer Brianne Cohen. Brianne creates spectacular parties, weddings and galas — often in the LGBTQ space. (The weirdest request she ever had was someone asking for an ELEPHANT for a benefit she was planning.)  But after a while, Brianne needed more of a challenge, so she decided to pursue one of her all-time passions: wine. She retrained as a sommelier, and if you’ve seen that movie Somm, you’ll know how insanely difficult that is. We chatted about the terrifying blind tastings and all the exams she had to do.  In the world of wine, which can still be pretty elitist and dominated by older white guys, Brianne has made a name for herself with her fun, accessible approach to wine.  Brianne also told me about how she balances the two roles of her career: she has some really great productivity and organizational tips. If you’re looking to become a "multi-hyphenate" or add another string to your professional bow, you’ll get some great ideas from this episode.BrianneCohen.com@Clare_Wiley@TheReinventors 

Josh Klooz was an infantry officer in the US army, serving in Afghanistan in 2011. He loved the volatility and intensity of combat. But because he was starting a family, he made the tough decision to leave the army.   Like many veterans, for Josh, finding a calling outside the military was really difficult. The path wasn’t straightforward. Now, Josh works as a wealth planning associate at UBS, and is training to become a financial advisor. The way he sees it, helping people with their money -  their life’s earnings, essentially - gives his role real purpose.   In combat, Josh was helping people prepare for the worst, helping them think through fear. As a financial advisor, he’s doing a similar thing - especially now, during the pandemic. Josh has this relentless positivity and clear-eyed way of seeing the world which I found really uplifting. Josh says there’s this myth of the broken veteran - leaving the army as victims - but that’s just not true. I want to thank American Corporate Partners for putting me in touch with Josh. They’re a great organisation that pairs veterans with professional mentors to help them transition into the working world.   @Clare_Wiley@TheReinventors  

Pamela Joy worked in Silicon Valley for more than a decade. But difficulties she was having in her sex life prompted her on to go on a journey of self discovery (that word is overused but this really was a journey). She left her job as a data scientist at Facebook to retrain as a sex coach. Now, she helps people who are struggling with their own sex lives. We talked about desire, open relationships, different expressions of sexuality. We talked about why many women received so few positive messages around sex growing up — and what we can do about that. Pamela says getting people to open up about sex is her super power. While her two careers seem totally different, there have actually been some surprising similarities between working in tech and being sex coach. Pamela thinks sparking conversations with people is one of the best ways to get inspired figure out your next career move.--------------------------------Pamela is a Somatica® certified sex and relationship coach, and has a Masters in Counseling Psychology with over 1,500 hours of additional training in the field of sexuality. Through her writing, speaking and coaching, she works collaboratively and experientially with clients to increase their capacity for emotional and physical intimacy. Pamela is also a Trauma-Informed Sex Positive Therapy certified practitioner and on faculty at Esalen.Follow Pamela's work @downtothere------------------------------------------@Clare_Wiley@TheReinventors

This episode I’m excited to be talking with Jen Mattiola. Jen worked in the fashion industry for over 15 years, starting out as a fashion stylist, and then launching her own sustainable handbag company. But stress piled up and eventually she hit rock bottom. The job went from something that gave her joy, to the source of her stress and anxiety. These days, Jen is a mindset and leadership coach, helping people find real fulfillment in their work - and personal lives. We talked about how to detach what you do from who you are, so your self-worth is not wrapped up in your career; that’s something that resonated a lot with me. Jen says: fear of failure is the main thing that’s holding us all back. She talks about how we can shift our perspective and view failure as part of the process.@jenmattiolawww.jenmattiola.com@ClareWiley@TheReinventors

I’m so excited to share this episode: an interview with the wonderful Marlina Moreno. Growing up, Mar always felt like she was in two different camps: the nature nerds and the cheerleaders. That led to a really unusual career path. She started out as an NFL cheerleader and dancer, but then retrained as a conservation biologist and filmmaker. Mar now spends her time out in the wild, filming projects and raising awareness. We talked about how she switched from cheerleading to conservation (and how she paid for it). Because of her background, Mar is able to reach an audience online that probably didn’t know much about conservation before. She also talks about the increase of influencers posing with exotic animals, and how that can actually damage the cause.She says finding your dream career means following your curiosity but also being really honest about what you’re good at—and what you’re not. A quick note here: I recorded this interview before the coronavirus pandemic hit. But listening back, it struck me that a lot of what Mar said is really relevant to what we’re all living through right now. We talked a lot about how we all have a stake in nature, and how we have to step up and protect it. With the skies and air so clear at the moment, we’re seeing what it might be like if we actually did that. Mar also told me how she tries to balance her drive to be out in the wild, disconnected from everything, with needing to promote her work online. She was up front: it’s a work in progress. I think that balance between staying connected with everyone we love and protecting our sanity by not scrolling our feeds constantly,  is something we all grapple with, maybe now more than ever. So, I hope you enjoy this episode and get something from it, whether you’re looking to switch careers or not.   ***********************@marlinamoreno@TheReinventors@Clare_Wiley 

This episode I'm chatting to Anna Mortimer. Anna began her career as a journalist, working as the Moscow correspondent for The Times. Her father had been a journalist too, reporting from war zones in far-off places. But then, when Anna was 19, her father was murdered. That set off a chain of events that led to Anna retraining as a therapist. She went on to co-found The Mind Field, which offers video therapy for journalists and aid workers. We talked about how her father’s death changed her, and why so much of being a good therapist is getting comfortable with not knowing the answer to everything. --------------------@TheReinventors@Clare_Wiley

Saffron Finch worked as a corporate lawyer in London for 10 years. The job got more and more stressful and in her early 30s, it became overwhelming and she had to quit. After a whole lot of soul searching, she is now setting up a luxury furniture and interior design business. We chatted about how Saffron dealt with burnout, how she found a community of like-minded career changers, and why it’s so important to figure out who you are and what really matters to you, before taking the leap.  She says when you’re changing careers, you’re aren’t just moving to another job. A career change often comes out of a desire to realign what you do with who you are as a person – and as such, it often involves making life changes that go far beyond the daily grind.Check out Saff's gorgeous design company, Hausporta. --------------------@TheReinventors@Clare_Wiley

This episode I’m speaking to the seriously ambitious and ever-curious entrepreneur, Jake Lau. In high school, Jake wanted to be a fighter pilot, a race car driver, or an investment banker on Wall Street... really, anything that would bring him white-knuckle adventure. But a twist of fate meant he ended up becoming an accountant. Within days, he knew that wasn’t the right path for him and knew he needed a course-correction. After roaming the world, he went on to launch a total of *six* different companies, everything from a food truck to a pet-food business. He tells me exactly how he walked away from a comfortable, well-paid job into the volatile world of entrepreneurship, and shares his tips for getting outside your comfort zone. Learn more about Jake.--------------------@TheReinventors@Clare_Wiley 

This episode I’m so excited to be talking to Allie and Trent. Just a couple of years back, this amazing couple were working desk jobs — Allie in healthcare and Trent in sales. Every weekend they would take trips in their van, but they quickly realised they wanted to be in the van for longer than just short trips. Now, they’re living full time in the van (the fantastically-named Pamela Vanderson). They’ve been to 14 countries, and even got engaged on the road. They’ve built a career documenting their adventures online, and currently have almost 180,000 YouTube subscribers.When we chatted, Allie and Trent were in Pucón in central Chile. We discussed how they made the transition to living and working from the van, what their family and friends thought about this massive change in their lives, and exactly how they grew their online following. They told me why it’s important to also show the difficult parts of life on the road, and why they thought it would have been more of a risk *not* to pursue #vanlife.Follow Allie and Trent’s adventure on YouTube and Patreon. And if #vanlife is calling to you, they even share their 3D van layout and dimensions on their website.--------------------@TheReinventors@Clare_Wiley