How do you go from dancing and singing in the West End to becoming a luxury event designer working all over the world, with brands like Dior and celebrities like Adele and Benedict Cumberbatch? According to Larry Walshe, who’s done just that - you follow your creative instinct and your authenticity and relish a challenge. In this episode of Story Slurp Podcast, event designer Larry Walshe shares his unique journey from a background in musical theatre to becoming a successful event designer. He discusses the importance of storytelling in event design, the challenges of building trust with clients, and the significance of creative frustration in finding one's path. Larry emphasizes the need for authenticity in business and the role of sustainability in the events industry. He reflects on his proudest moments and his vision for the future, highlighting the importance of creativity and resourcefulness in overcoming challenges. Larry simply oozes with positivity and self awareness, and I loved hearing all about his journey and his business wisdom on how to build trust with clients, follow your creative path and never give up.

  What's your Brand Story? Some people say Brand storytelling is a bit ‘fluffy’, or ‘nice to have’ for their business, but I believe digging deeper into your Brand Story has the potential to transform it into your dream business. Far from being ‘airy fairy’, your Brand Story is the beating heart of your business, the solid foundation. And there are endless benefits to getting it right. The only brands that thrive are the ones that truly understand this. And the ones that don’t, usually fail. That’s goes not just for global brands, but for small businesses too. Brand Story is often misunderstood by business leaders, so in this episode I explain what your Brand Story is and why it’s essential to understand it if you are a business leader. In this episode you’ll find out what your Brand Story is, the many benefits of getting cleary on it and why digging deeper into your Brand Story could give you the answers you didn’t know you needed.

Meet Alex Merry - the public speaking expert and former TedX organiser that actually hates public speaking himself! In this episode Alex gives us loads of practical tips on how to be a better speaker, why he thinks most of us put too much pressure on ourselves and why the Ted events we see on our screens are never the same as what actually happens in real life. If you’ve ever wanted to get better at speaking or peep behind the scenes of what it takes to do a Ted talk, this episode is for you.

Ever been part of a meeting that just seemed like a huge waste of time? Have you ever considered using visuals as a tool to create better conversations, make better decisions and help everyone to feel involved? Meet Ellie Chapman, the Creative Director of Lim - a Graphic facilitation agency - which brings events and meetings to life, so that participants can understand the meeting on a deeper level, and get more impactful results. So many of us learn visually, so working with a graphic facilitator can really help bring a different dimension to conversations, and help make them more inclusive. In this episode, Ellie talks about how she started her business, why visual storytelling is essential for effective communication and how facilitation runs in the family as well as oodles of tips on how to bring your own meetings to life visually. Enjoy!

You've worked countless hours. Your team's exhausted. You’ve put so much effort and time into creating this new website, which you're so excited about because it's gonna change everything in your business. And it looks amazing. You press go on the website and nothing. You fast forward a few weeks, even months. And still nothing happens because you have not done the foundational work you need to do before you created your website. We've all been there and felt that pain. If you don't do the foundational work you need to do before you create that website, your website is not going to be effective. You’ve missed an opportunity to create a website that brings you sales, and wasted a shedload of money and time in the process. I want to save you that pain. So in this episode of Story Slurp Podcast, I’ve come up the three things that you need to do before you hire that website developer to make sure your website delivers. Grab a notebook and pen, you’re going to want to take notes for this one!

Meet Gus Bhandal. Gus is a brilliant Linked In Trainer - in fact his mum says he’s the best one in the country. The secret to his success? He’s absolutely nailed how to create personality led content on social media in a way that’s funny, relatable and spot on to his audience, and repels anyone that wouldn’t ‘get’ him. Gus spills the tea (not the coffee) on some brilliant tips to create great personality content for social media, and reminds us that we should stay in our own lane and not care about anyone else. 
We talked about personality vs personal content, why we should lean into ourselves more and why you should think carefully about becoming a pub landlord. There was also a fair mention of chocolate oranges. Enjoy!

“How can I be more vulnerable and still stay professional?” That’s one of the most common things I’m asked as a Story Coach and it’s a tricky balance. I think jewellery consultant Jessica Steele gets it bang on in terms of being open and honest, but not oversharing. Jessica has overcome some huge challenges in her business and has always been transparent about them, and I’m in awe of her storytelling ability. In this episode we talk about Jessica’s approach to sharing her stories and how her business and brand has evolved.

Personal Branding. Heard the buzz, but not sure if it's for you? Spoiler alert, it is. Whether you're an ambitious professional or business leader working inside an organisation or a founder building your own business, building your own personal brand is essential and will open up all kinds of opportunities for you. If you don't put yourself forward and make yourself visible, how will people give you opportunities? And who's going to do it if you don't? In this episode we chat about how personal brand isn't just for extroverts, how you can get started on your personal brand and why you're missing out if you don't. Takeaways from this episode: Personal branding is essential for everyone, not just business owners. Understanding your personal brand can open up new opportunities. It's not about being loud; it's about being strategic. Building a personal brand helps you stand out in competitive markets. People connect with people, not just brands. Future-proofing your career requires a strong personal brand. Self-awareness is key to effective personal branding. Visibility is crucial for attracting opportunities. You have control over your personal brand story. Embrace discomfort as part of the growth process.

Meet Laura Tye - a former soloist with the Birmingham Royal Ballet. Laura was with the prestigious ballet company for 20 years, leaving and returning twice to have children, something virtually unheard of in that industry. Laura describes what it’s really like to be a ballerina at the top of your game, and how it feels to build a new business around your children. We talk overcoming failure, the gruelling and perfectionistic world of ballet, having to prove yourself a second time around and building a new future on your terms. As a little girl that dreamed of a dance career myself, I loved this sneak behind the scenes. Enjoy.

Meet Katey Martin - a hostage and terrorism negotiator for the Met police. Katey has done it all, from being one of the only women in the riot police and negotiating with terrorists to being a bobby on the beat, but she says he biggest challenge has been dealing with mum guilt. She talks about the importance of using storytelling in teaching and communicating, why we should all know our own values and actively listen more and why these vital life skills should be taught in schools. I loved chatting with Katey, herself a master storyteller, and hearing her crazy stories about her 30 year career in the force. To me, it really shows the power of storytelling and how it can bring us together. Enjoy!

Meet Angela Lyons, the graphic designer behind Lyons Creative, and a wonderfully kind human being. In our chat Angela talked about her journey to overcome her fear of public speaking, the importance of community and kindness, and what it was like growing up as a black, female creative, with so few role models out there to look up to.

There's huge power in sharing your Origin Story, but so many businesses don't use them to their full potential. In this episode of Story Slurp podcast, you'll find out why you're missing out if you're not sharing your Origin Story, why it can feel so hard and how to find and share yours.

After getting so much out of mentoring herself, Chelsey Baker is now on a mission to show the world the power of mentoring - so much so that she created National Mentoring Day. Mentoring is something I discovered when I trained as a coach, and can be so transformative for leaders as a mentor or mentee - hearing the stories of others who’ve been there before can make sure a difference. On this episode you’ll find out more about the benefits of mentorship and Chelsey’s experience in the communications industry. Consider this your own mini mentoring session. Enjoy!

Are you sharing your authentic story? The story that's written on your heart? Or are you getting caught in the 'should's' of someone else's story? Mark Shayler is a sustainability expert - but he’s so much more than that. A brilliant speaker, it’s his purpose to give people and the planet a voice to be heard. Mark’s someone whose sheer authenticity draws you in, and you can’t help but be inspired by him. I first came across him when he started free Qigong sessions online and I loved his honesty. On this episode of Story Slurp podcast we talked about his own journey, how he came to be good at storytelling, and how you can do the same…

Not many people can say they've accidentally started a successful stationery business, especially one that started in calendars for downstairs loos -but this was the reality for Michele Ferron - the Founder of Good Tuesday (formerly Once Upon a Tuesday). Her brand started in lockdown and is now going from strength to strength a few years later - with a whole team behind it and even an endorsement from Hollywood star, Drew Barrymore! Find out about the journey she's been on, and what she attributes to her success.

After 63 successful episodes of Creative Slurp, it was time for a change. In this first episode of the new series of Story Slurp, find out why I decided to change the focus and learn how to find your own Brand Story thread...

In the social media 'time suck zone'? News flash: You DON'T have to be on social media for your business. In this episode find out how to know if you should quit social media for your business - and what you could do instead.

Meet Sue Pryke - an award-winning ceramicist at the top of her game, with more than 20 years of ceramics design under her belt. Sue still has so much passion and excitement about her craft and business - which is a joy and an inspiration to see. in this episode we talked about Sue’s story, the importance of teaching creativity to kids, collaborating with chefs, what it’s like to see your face in Ikea, and the power of the Great British Pottery throwdown (on which Sue was actually a judge). Enjoy!

Meet Roșie Greener, the founder of Good Daze jewellery - an independent brand that celebrates love, humour and positivity. Rosie started her jewellery brand several years ago after becoming disillusioned with her job designing for a corporate company. She’s now living the dream and running her brand full-time. in this episode of Creative Slurp podcast she talks about her journey, the importance of market research, feeling like an imposter in business and how she made her dream collaborations happen. Rosie’s mantra is not to take things personally in business, and I think that’s brilliant advice. I really loved her honest and practical advice around building your business, and I think it's great reassurance that there is no shortcut to success in business, you just have to keep going, and good things will follow. I hope this episode inspires you as much as it did me, enjoy :-)

Want to transform and improve your life, your business and EVERYTHING? Then self-awareness is a game changer. Since I started to learn more about myself, I found I was better equipped to create a life that I love, a life that was truly aligned with me. If you don’t truly know yourself, how can you hope to create a life and business that’s fulfilling and suited to you? So, in this episode, I take you through three amazing tools that can help you find out more about yourself, the way you view the world, your values, your beliefs and preferences. They are: Personality profiling tools/self-awareness tools Journalling - especially free writing Coaching From my experience, I’ve found that these tools are mind-glowingly effective at really helping you to know yourself better and see past the blind spots that we all have. Find more information about these tools and how they can help you in the episode.