Gemma manifested going viral… just not like this. One vegan café, one potty-training toddler, and one silicone toilet brush later, she became the internet’s latest cautionary tale. Three million views, a Radio 2 feature, and a lifetime’s worth of trauma (and Dettol). Gemma's mum’s always telling her to wash her potty mouth out, and apparently, the universe decided to get involved and help her do just that in the most shocking, horrendous and vile of ways. In this week’s episode, she rel...

Eight weeks ago, Gemma left her job with 24 hours’ notice, expecting to take on another child through kinship foster care. That didn’t happen (for reasons she can’t go into), but what did happen was a huge wake-up call. She realised she couldn’t go back to the way things were. In this episode, Gemma talks about taking the scariest risk of her career - walking away from a job and colleagues she adored with financial security to focus on her own creative work. The Honest to Gob podcast is...

This episode wasn’t planned. It started as a simple mic test during the first time I tried my camera and audio setup. It turned into a full-blown rant about perfectionism, procrastination, and getting in my own way. Filmed at home at 10 pm with bad lighting, a snoring dog, and my husband watching conspiracy docs in the background, it was meant to stay on my laptop. But when my friend Zoe listened, she said, “Gemma, the irony of this is exactly why you should put it out.” So here it is... the ...

I didn't know whether to be appalled or over the moon that I made it to the telephone audition stage of Stacey Solomon's TV show, Sort Your Life Out. Sadly, the TV appearance was not to be. However, I did do my own version of the show on my patio with a bajillion Barbie shoes and a shit load of patience. Because clutter was ruining my life. Clutter isn’t just “stuff”. It’s stress, guilt, procrastination, and sometimes nine washing baskets, baby rockers, Barbie shoes and air fryer boxes you’ll...

If you have ever thought “I cannot do this parenting sh*t anymore” or found yourself Googling “is it bad to hide from your children in the shed” this episode is for you. Author and kinship foster carer Gemma Ray did not exactly choose Non Violent Resistance parenting, now often called New Vision for Relationships, out of curiosity. She arrived at it like most parents arrive at desperate solutions, exhausted, tear-stained and one step away from waving a white flag and saying “I’m out.” NVR is ...

What happens when you think your family is complete, your husband’s had the snip, and then life hands you two more children overnight? In this deeply personal episode, I open up about the unexpected journey into kinship foster care from the trauma, the family politics, the social worker chaos, to the moments I thought I couldn’t go on. It’s also a story of resilience, love, and learning. From newborn night feeds with bottle in one hand and laptop in another to compassion fatigue, therap...

We’re back after three years away… and honest to God, it feels like we’ve lived a whole other lifetime since you last heard from us! In this comeback episode, we catch you up on everything from broken bones to bonus kids, vasectomies that didn’t do the job, and why Claire got so furious about empty toilet rolls that she packed her bags and moved out (before running off to India, catching typhoid, and coming back as a Kundalini yoga teacher). Gemma shares how her son’s broken leg led to losing...

In this episode Claire & Gemma talk about breath, not only does it keep us alive – no shit Sherlock... Once we are aware of our breath and work with it in different ways, we can begin to explore how it can help us with the following: • Aid positive self-development • Processes emotions • Heals emotional pain and trauma • Develops our levels of self-awareness • Improves relationships • Enhances our confidence and self esteem • Overcoming addiction ...

In this episode, Claire and Gemma talk about Values. Personal, human values and corporate values too. A juicy conversation - What are Values? Do you know what your Values are? Where do they come from? How do we display them? We also explore an amazing tool called ‘Values Jam’ – a set of cards to help you discover and question yours. Lots of laughs, insights and take-aways. Also catch our new regular feature – ‘Gobbing off’ find out what’s boiling our urine. &...

The power of reflective practice, vision boarding and how to use identity-based goals to achieve your dreams in 2022 is the topic of this Honest to Gob podcast. Claire and Gem talk in this episode about the power of reflection and how to look back over the difficult year that has been 2021, achievements and challenges, vision boarding, boredom, work, books and retreats. Where are you with your reflections and learnings on 2021? What have you learned about yourself?What can you take with...

Zoë Dew is the operations manager for Lisa Johnson the online business strategist and passive income expert. She left running her own business to become a very happy employee, working in a team she adores. As Lisa's business has grown at an exciting and impressive rate, Zoë finds herself acting as the gatekeeper and gets inundated with voice notes, Facebook messenger messages and Loom videos... which she ignores! She's not rude, she's just setting boundaries. In this episode, she talks ab...

In this episode of Honest to Gob podcast, Claire opens up about having a crap week. Imposter syndrome had crept in and she'd been comparing herself to others. It isn't something she usually does but everyone falls victim to 'mind monkeys' at times. In this episode we discuss authenticity and the masks we wear in our work and our real lives. We also talk about the struggle many entrepreneurs face with loneliness and selling themselves - something they rely on for their livelihood. GOB O...

This episode is all about sobriety and in particular the issues that people have with the word ‘sober’. No, it doesn’t mean you’re an addict but it does mean you choose to turn your back on substances that you know aren’t helping you live your best life. In this extremely open and honest podcast, Gemma opens up about the reason she became sober curious in the first place “I thought I’d killed my son” and Claire shares her story of going booze-free for 100 days. In this episode, we referenc...

Dani Wallace is a powerhouse of positivity and authenticity. She's the self-proclaimed 'Queen Bee' because "When I learned the Queen was born the Queen I was like WTF?" and she teaches other people to show up, wise up and rise up in their lives and business. A former professional vocalist turned corporate leadership trainer, Dan experienced her fair share of heartbreak and low points after being left homeless and a single parent with two young girls. She fell victim to a narcissist but...

Ellen Murray had plan A, B and C boxed off when COVID hit and the pandemic closed the venues she used for her well-renowned boutique female fitness and nutrition business. She pivoted quickly to take her fitness classes online and learned new things about tech, marketing and teaching remotely. Ellen tried to be strong for everyone else; her full team of staff, her husband who also worked full time in her business and her two young children. She knew she was stressed but the impact of worki...

Are you a good sleeper or are you a revenge bedtime procrastinator like Gem and Claire's husband Mark? In this episode we discuss our relationships with sleep, why we seem to not get enough of it, the impact it can have on our mental state and how we are tracking it to try get more of it! In this episode, we mention Matthew Walker's book Why We Sleep and Gemma chatted about her Oura ring which she's been using to 'gamify' her sleep since early 2020. With ❤️ love Claire & Gem T...

In this episode Getting Honest About Manifesting – Claire & Gem talk about all things meditation and manifestation. Both of them are keen on the subjects of the 2 MM’s, they decided to give themselves homework to study, the work of Dr Joe Dispenza –and his book called ‘Becoming Supernatural’ Gemma talks about how she manifested a Juice retreat into her universe, whilst Claire joins in to discuss that we all manifest the life that we have today through the thoughts we ...

This week's episode is dedicated to the life changing magic of PLANNING! This could possibly be one of Gemma's ultimate favourite topics as you'll often see her with her Best Self Co planner and erasable pens, planning out every minute of her life. Claire also loves to plan, she's just not that great at implementing the plans as she admits in this episode. Thankfully, the girls enlisted the expert advice of Monique Sviensson, CEO and founder of The Perfect Planner Company. Monique enjoyed...

Claire & Gem talk about managing life, as a mum, wife, daughter, friend, sister, business woman, puppy nan, motorcross mum and much more. In this episode Claire & Gem share their experiences of how they manage their time or not!! Sometime you just have to let the plastic balls drop and keep the glass ones going. Not everything is a priority so why do we treat it like it is? Why do we not like asking for help? Give this a listen, we hope this inspires you to know that ...

Rachel Winstanley is a teacher who wants to see a change in our schools in terms of personal development for children and teens. Working in schools in Merseyside and teaching and mentoring children from all walks of life, Rachel can see major flaws in the way children are supported for life. She’s on a mission to motivate other teachers, policy makers and parents to realise there can be another way. Passionate about personal development and helping children instil self awareness, join us f...