Almost two years ago, I came across an episode of the Interior Design Business Podcast titled ‘Career Changing To Interior Design’. It featured several established interior designers who talked about their route into the profession.

Charlotte Dawson was one of those designers and she, like me, had previously been a teacher. I was captivated and I can truthfully say that hearing Charlotte talk about her career change helped me to believe that I could do that too.

I connected with Charlotte on Instagram and she is one of the most encouraging and supportive people I know. I was delighted when she agreed to share her story and chat to me here on the Creative Career Change podcast.

“I started to interior design my classroom without realising. I made curtains, bought carpets, rugs, cushions, canvasses. I even decorated. I painted the classroom and my teaching assistant would leave every Friday not really knowing what to expect when she’d come back on the Monday. Nor the children.” - Charlotte Dawson

Links

* Charlotte’s website: Chestnut Interiors

* Chestnut Interiors on Instagram

* Charlotte’s Renovation Room membership

* The episode of Interior Design Business podcast where I first discovered Charlotte: Career Changing to Interior Design

A note from the author

I’m aware that those in the thick of a career change, who have left a job or taken a pay cut, may not have the means to pay to listen and so the Creative Career Change podcast will always be free to all subscribers. I hope the conversations may inspire others to make changes in the way they approach their work in order to seek more balance in their life.

Making this podcast is a labour of love and I do everything myself. This includes finding guests, writing questions, recording the conversation, editing, mixing, composing music and publishing the episode.

By becoming a paid subscriber, you help to ensure I can continue to record new episodes and make the Creative Career Change podcast available to all who can be inspired by it. Alternatively, if you’d prefer to make a one-off contribution to the podcast you can buy me a coffee here. I’m hugely grateful for all and any contributions!

Have you made a creative career change? I’m going to be recording some new episodes in the New Year and am always on the look out for interesting guests to talk to. If you think you might be a good fit for Creative Career Change, send me an email to info@hannahashe.co.uk explaining why. I’d love to hear from you.

See you in 2025 for more inspiring stories ✨

p.s. On Monday at 7pm (UK time) I will be hosting the final online Create Ensemble session of the year. It’s a festive edition where I encourage you to spend the hour doing something creative AND festive: writing cards, wrapping gifts, making decorations or perhaps writing your end of year newsletter. This is a session for paying subscribers and you can find more details and the link here (after subscribing):

Support the show

Hosting a podcast is a wonderful thing, not least because I regularly find myself talking to truly fascinating individuals who inspire me and open my eyes to what work can look like for women across the world.

Lucy Pearson is testament to this. She is a freelance writer, a bibliotherapist (listen to find out what that is), a curator of libraries for hotels and a literary salon host. Her work is centred around books and words and her journey to this point has been anything but straightforward.

In this interview Lucy shares honest and frank reflections on money, explains how her book blog eventually landed her a dream job at the Women’s Prize for Fiction and ends with recommendations for books I should read. It’s a seriously good listen!

Do say hello and leave us a comment if any of this resonates with you.

“There’s a special place in hell for gatekeepers who don’t share knowledge when they’re in a position to do so.” - Lucy Pearson

Links

* Lucy Pearson’s Substack - The Literary Edit

* Lucy’s website: thelitedit.com

* Follow Lucy on Instagram @the_litedit

* Sandwich by Catherine Newman

* Places I Stopped On The Way Home by Meg Fee

A note from the author

I’m aware that those in the thick of a career change, who have left a job or taken a pay cut, may not have the means to pay to listen and so the Creative Career Change podcast will always be free to all subscribers. I hope the conversations may inspire others to make changes in the way they approach their work in order to seek more balance in their life.

Making this podcast is a labour of love and I do everything myself. This includes finding guests, writing questions, recording the conversation, editing, mixing, composing music and publishing the episode.

By becoming a paid subscriber, you help to ensure I can continue to record new episodes and make the Creative Career Change podcast available to all who can be inspired by it. Alternatively, if you’d prefer to make a one-off contribution to the podcast you can buy me a coffee here. I’m hugely grateful for all and any contributions!

Thank you.

Hannah x

Support the show

Judith and I first met in 1996 when we started secondary school together. We’ve been friends ever since despite living in different countries for the past 13 years.

With a career in business that has evolved and been shaped by changing family responsibilities, Judith has carved out a career that is both practical and fulfilling.

This is the first time I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing someone I know well on this podcast and it was a very enlightening experience.

We imagine that we know most things about our friends but, in reality, the finer details of each other’s work are not necessarily something we talk about a lot and I learned so much about Judith in this interview.

We would love to hear from you; either just to say hello or to let us know how this episode resonates with your own work/life situation.

“Having multiple activities has actually changed me quite considerably. I’m naturally a perfectionist but because I have so much going on; so many different activities, so many deadlines, so much pressure coming from everywhere, I’ve learned to trust myself and to trust my abilities to produce something good very quickly.” - Judith Giraud

Links

* You can find out more about Judith on LinkedIn

* Judith’s company’s website: dokeraa.com

🎤 Voiceovers on Substack workshop 🎤

A reminder that I am hosting a FREE online workshop on adding audio to Substack posts this coming Sunday, 6th October at 4pm UK time. Find out more and register here: How to use voiceovers on Substack with Hannah Ashe

A note from Hannah Ashe

I’m aware that those in the thick of a career change, who have left a job or taken a pay cut, may not have the means to pay to listen and so the Creative Career Change podcast will always be free to all subscribers with no adverts. I hope the conversations may inspire others to make changes in the way they approach their work in order to seek more balance in their life.

Making this podcast is a labour of love and I do everything myself. This includes finding guests, planning questions, recording the conversation, editing, mixing, composing music and publishing the episode.

By becoming a paid subscriber, you help to ensure I can continue to record new episodes and make the Creative Career Change podcast available to all who can be inspired by it. Alternatively, if you’d prefer to make a one-off contribution to the podcast you can buy me a coffee here. I’m hugely grateful for all and any contributions!

Thank you.

Hannah x

Support the show

Emily was one of the first people I connected with on Substack when I joined the platform just over a year ago. It was clear from the start that we had several interests in common, namely that we are both highly focused on exploring our creativity. An accountant for most of the week, but also a published illustrator and a multi-faceted creative, Emily is not afraid to try new things.

I’m certain you will find listening to Emily to be extremely inspiring, both in her willingness to pivot and try new things and in the diversity of her work.

Please do leave a comment if you find the discussion interesting or are pursuing similar avenues yourself. We’d love to hear from you.

“I don’t want to just do one thing. I’m going to try it all out. I’ve been crocheting, I went to a pottery lesson last Friday, I have spent a fortune in the craft shop; I bought a load of raw wool for needle felting and I found a book with the most cute little felted dogs that I want to make…” - Emily Charlotte Powell

Links

* Emily Charlotte Powell’s Sustack: While I Was Drawing

* Is Aunt Moll From The North Pole? - The children’s book that Emily has illustrated with her friend Lydia Saward

* Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

* Emily’s website: www.thomkatillustrations.co.uk

A note from the author

I’m aware that those in the thick of a career change, who have left a job or taken a pay cut, may not have the means to pay to listen and so the Creative Career Change podcast will always be free to all subscribers. I hope the conversations may inspire others to make changes in the way they approach their work in order to seek more balance in their life.

Making this podcast is a labour of love and I do everything myself. This includes finding guests, writing questions, recording the conversation, editing, mixing, composing music and publishing the episode.

By becoming a paid subscriber, you help to ensure I can continue to record new episodes and make the Creative Career Change podcast available to all who can be inspired by it. Alternatively, if you’d prefer to make a one-off contribution to the podcast you can buy me a coffee here. I’m hugely grateful for all and any contributions!

Thank you.

Hannah x

Support the show

Brina Patel is a California-based content writer and copywriter. Her work primarily covers mental health and BIPOC representation and I was fortunate enough to connect with her some months back. It became clear to me that Brina had much to share that would resonate with listeners of Creative Career Change and I was delighted when she agreed to be interviewed.

Now considering herself to be a multi-hyphenate and working a range of roles, Brina’s outlook has been heavily influenced by a year of traveling through India, Nepal, Thailand and other places as well as some of the challenges she has faced in her life. We discuss what it means to be an Indian-American woman in Northern California, career expectations and challenges and how speaking about stigmatised topics has helped her to become more confident.

“There was a man that I met who ran a school, he also had a mobile repair business and then he had a real estate gig on the side. So he was doing three vastly different things, but he was really loving it.” - Brina Patel

Links

* Elna Cain: Advice and blog on content and copy writing

* Alex Cattoni: Copywriting courses

* Brina’s piece on travel: A chance encounter near the Himalayas on her Substack page The Tuesday Tapestry

* Brina’s PopSugar article: ‘Therapy Helped Me Find Pride in My South Asian Heritage’

* ’s website: www.brinapatelwriter.com

A note from the author

I’m aware that those in the thick of a career change, who have left a job or taken a pay cut, may not have the means to pay to listen and so my Creative Career Change podcast will always be free to all subscribers. I hope the conversations may inspire others to make changes in the way they approach their work in order to seek more balance in their life.

Making this podcast is a labour of love and I do everything myself. This includes finding guests, writing questions, recording the conversation, editing, mixing, composing music and publishing the episode.

By becoming a paid subscriber, you help to ensure I can continue to record new episodes and make the Creative Career Change podcast available to all who need it. Alternatively, if you’d prefer to make a one-off contribution to the podcast you can buy me a coffee here. I’m hugely grateful for all and any contributions!

Thank you.

Hannah x

p.s. and I would love to hear your thoughts on this episode as well your own career stories. Please do share in the comments.

Support the show

Several months back I was lucky enough to go to a writing retreat with and hosted by . It was a day spent with 14 other women, sitting around a big oak table in a gorgeous farmhouse in the beautiful Oxfordshire countryside. It was November, yet the sun was shining and it was a day filled with hope, creativity and new connections.

One of the new connections made that day was with . Sara is a sales expert, bestselling author and business mentor.

Since the retreat we have met up in person a couple of times and I was thrilled when Sara agreed to be part of the Creative Career Change podcast series.

Sara’s career began in banking and has pivoted in various directions since then. She is a multi-hyphenate in every sense of the word and we discuss the challenges and benefits of working in this way.

“I don’t even like to pick one thing for dinner, Hannah. I like a meze!” - Sara Dalrymple

Links

* Sara’s book: More Sales Please*

* Sara’s website where you can find out more about the courses she runs

* The Trained Eye 12-month photography course that Sara mentions

* Sara’s Substack: The Scoop

* Follow Sara on Instagram

A note from the author

I’m aware that those in the thick of a career change, who have left a job or taken a pay cut, may not have the means to pay to listen and so my Creative Career Change podcast will always be free to all subscribers. I hope the conversations may inspire others to make changes in the way they approach their work in order to seek more balance in their life.

Making this podcast is a labour of love and I do everything myself. This includes finding guests, writing questions, recording the conversation, editing, mixing, composing music and publishing the episode.

By becoming a paid subscriber, you help to ensure I can continue to record new episodes and make the Creative Career Change podcast available to all who need it.

Thank you.

Hannah x

p.s. Sara and I would love to hear your thoughts on this episode as well your own career stories. Please do share in the comments.

*affiliate link

Support the show

The new series of Creative Career Change is here, complete with a new logo and a few changes here and there!

I’m thrilled to share these interviews with multi-hyphenate women as we explore the challenges, the joys and everything in between of navigating a variety of income steams.

I’d read about the term ‘multi-hyphenate’ some years back, and the idea of it hugely appealed to me. At that time, I was working in a full-time teaching job with no idea how I could make it a reality. And yet, here I am now earning my living from at least five different methods.

In this episode I talk to arts, design and travel journalist who was catapulted into multi-hyphenate life after an unexpected move to Istanbul.

I'm a huge fan of Lucy’s ‘Lucy Loves’ series of writing on her Substack where she shortlists things to see, do and book each month. The June edition is out now and has some excellent recommendations for London and beyond.

“I had no choice, I had to dive in and really give it a go. Sometimes I think, of course you’d have been able to do that if you’d stayed in London. And then I think no, I wouldn’t have done. I’d have been too scared. So, sometimes a little helping hand or a push is what’s needed to make you do that jump, but I’m so glad that was how part of my path has turned out.“ — Lucy Scovell

Links

* Lucy’s Substack: The Istanbulist

* Lucy’s Instagram page: lucy_scovell

* The Multi-Hyphen Method by Emma Gannon

* Culture Whisper - Things to do in London now

* Pandora Sykes

* Laura Jackson’s Instagram page: iamlaurajackson

* Lucy Williams’ Substack: Remotely

* Mayfair Art Weekend

* Affordable Art Fair

A note from the author

I’m aware that those in the thick of a career change, who have left a job or taken a pay cut, may not have the means to pay to listen and so my Creative Career Change podcast will always be free to all subscribers. I hope the conversations may inspire others to make changes in the way they approach their work in order to seek more balance in their life.

Making this podcast is a labour of love and I do everything myself. This includes finding guests, writing questions, recording the conversation, editing, mixing, composing music and publishing the episode.

By becoming a paid subscriber, you help to ensure I can continue to record new episodes and make the Creative Career Change podcast available to all who need it.

Thank you.

Hannah x

p.s. Lucy and I would love to hear your thoughts on this episode as well your own career stories. Please do share in the comments.

Support the show

Substack is a place of constant connection, and over the past few months I’ve had the pleasure of discovering and getting to know many people from all over the world via the platform. Collaborating with others is by far my favourite way of working, so I was delighted when reached out to see if I was interested in creating something together.

Sarah and I share a background as teachers who moved away from the profession at a similar time.

I’m thrilled to publish this bonus episode of Inspiring Creative Career Change which is more of a conversation than an interview. Sarah and I delve into our career achievements, the traps of perfectionism and finding the confidence to try new things as we enter a new season of our lives.

I hope you enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed chatting to Sarah. Do leave us a comment or question if any part of our discussion resonates with you. We will both respond!

To find out more about Sarah, take a look at her Substack page:

We mention ’s photography page in our conversation. If you’re interested in photography then do check it out. It’s so full of joy!

You can find previous episodes of the Inspiring Creative Career Change series on the ‘podcast’ tab of my Substack page and linked at the bottom/side of this post.

I have a new podcast series currently in production, which will focus on women and non-binary people who consider themselves to be multi-hyphenates. The first episode will be published in the next few weeks.

Support the show