Self-Promotion Without the Ick: What’s Holding You Back

Staying Small Comes at a Cost: What It Really Takes to Scale Your Impact

What happens when staying small starts costing you more than taking the risk to grow? In this episode of Lessons Not Yet Learnt, host Kiran Kachela is joined by Jenny Garrett, a coach and founder with over 20 years’ experience, to explore the hidden costs of holding back - personally, professionally and commercially. Jenny shares her journey from senior corporate marketing roles to building a values‑led coaching business, reflecting on moments when fear, caution, and a desire for control kept her playing smaller than she needed to. Together, they unpack why so many leaders, women in particular, wait too long to build teams, step into visibility, and fully own their potential. This episode goes beyond inspiration, diving into the mindset shifts, commercial realities and leadership decisions required to scale impact without burning out or losing purpose. In this episode, we cover: · How staying solo limits your impact, income and capacity · Balancing meaningful, values‑led work with commercial confidence, especially in coaching and purpose‑driven careers · Jenny’s transition from marketing director to founder · Why visibility is not optional in business, and how not being heard leaves value and revenue on the table. · The shift from solopreneur to business owner, and how Jenny built a sustainable business without drifting from her purpose. · Why coaching, clarity and community are essential for growth - and how leaders can scale without burning out. This episode is sponsored by Rocking Ur Teens [https://rockingurteens.com/].   About Our Guest Jenny Garrett – Founder and CEO of Jenny Garrett Global, and Co-Founder of Rocking Ur Teens. Jenny is a coach and business founder with over two decades of experience working across corporate leadership and purpose‑driven entrepreneurship. After leaving senior marketing roles, she spent 20 years building a coaching business grounded in values, impact and human‑centredleadership. Through her work, Jenny supports leaders, particularly women, to step out of self‑limiting patterns, build commercially sustainable businesses, and grow with intention rather than exhaustion. Her approach blends strategic clarity with deep insight into the mindset barriers that quietly hold people back from scaling their true impact. Learn more about Jenny’s work: · https://jennygarrett.global/ [https://jennygarrett.global/] · https://rockingurteens.com/ [https://rockingurteens.com/] Follow us on: Instagram @Lessonsnotyetlearnt [https://www.instagram.com/ciprojects_uk/] TikTok @Lessonsnotyetlearnt [https://www.tiktok.com/@lessonsnotyetlearnt] YouTube @Lessonsnotyetlearnt [https://www.youtube.com/@LessonsNotYetLearnt] Want to get involved? To ask Kiran a question, be a guest, sponsor an episode, visitour website: www.lessonsnotyetlearnt.com [http://www.lessonsnotyetlearnt.com]

The "Busy" Trap: Reclaim Your Time with the 6Ds Time Management Framework

In this bonus episode of Lessons Not Yet Learnt, Kiran Kachela shares a personal, hard-won approach to time management - shaped by Lean thinking and the reality of leading a business while protecting health and wellbeing. She opens with a powerful distinction: a life that’s busy can feel out of control, while a life that’s full is intentional and focused on what really matters. From there, she walks through her practical “6Ds” framework for deciding what to do with every task, alongside habits like time batching, time audits, and a 7-day challenge to reset how you spend your time. In this episode, we cover: • Busy vs Full (the mindset shift) • The “6Ds” time management framework for every task • Practical habits and tools • The 7-day challenge Follow us on: Instagram @Lessonsnotyetlearnt [https://www.instagram.com/lessonsnotyetlearnt/] TikTok @Lessonsnotyetlearnt [https://www.tiktok.com/@lessonsnotyetlearnt] YouTube @Lessonsnotyetlearnt [https://www.youtube.com/@LessonsNotYetLearnt] To ask Kiran anything, be a guest, sponsor an episode, or chat, visit our website: www.lessonsnotyetlearnt.com [http://www.lessonsnotyetlearnt.com]

Self-Promotion Without the Ick: What’s Holding You Back

Why does talking about what we do feel so uncomfortable, and what is it really costing us? In this episode of Lessons Not Yet Learnt, host Kiran Kachela is joined by leading voice coach and author Susie Ashfield to unpack the “ick” so many leaders feel when it comes to self‑promotion, public speaking and visibility. From downplaying job titles to avoiding the spotlight altogether, Kiran reflects on her own journey with self‑advocacy - and the realisation that staying quiet doesn’t just limit leaders, it sets a ceiling for their teams and future generations. Drawing on her work with senior leaders across industries, Susie explores why cultural conditioning, imposter syndrome and perfectionism hold people back - and how shifting the focus from “me” to “them” transforms confidence, clarity and impact. Together, they challenge the myth that self‑promotion equals ego and show how storytelling, practice and purpose can help leaders speak up - without losing authenticity.   In this episode, we cover: ·      Self‑promotion without the “ick” ·      The English problem ·      From cringe to confidence ·      The opportunity cost of staying quiet ·      Storytelling over self‑selling ·      Voice, visibility and vulnerability   About Our Guest Susie Ashfield - Voice Coach, Speaker, Author & Founder of Speak2Impact Susie Ashfield is one of the UK’s leading voice coaches and the founder of Speak2Impact, a communication and public‑speaking company that helps leaders, founders and teams share their ideas with clarity, confidence and impact. Trained as an actor, Susie brings a deep understanding of audience psychology, storytelling and performance to herwork. Through Speak2Impact, she delivers one‑to‑one coaching, group workshops, keynote talks and an online academy - helping people move from being unclear or uncomfortable to sounding credible, authentic andcompelling when it matters most. Over the past decade, Susie has worked with senior leaders and organisations across the public and private sectors, and has been featured on platforms including BBC Radio 2, Forbes and international media. She is also the author of Just F*cking Say It, a practical and humorous guide to speaking with confidence in any situation. Learn more about Susie’s work atSpeak2Impact: https://academy.susieashfield.com/ [https://academy.susieashfield.com/]     Follow us on: Instagram @Lessonsnotyetlearnt TikTok @Lessonsnotyetlearnt YouTube @Lessonsnotyetlearnt

The Five Decisions That Define a Leader

What really defines leadership when there’s no audience, noapplause, and no one else to share the accountability? In this bonus episode of Lessons Not Yet Learnt, host Kiran Kachela reflects on the unseen side of leadership - the difficult decisions made behind closed doors that quietly shape culture, standards, and outcomes. Drawing on her experience as CEO and founder of CI Projects,Kiran challenges the idea that leadership is about vision statements and bold speeches. Instead, she explores five critical decisions that define leaders every day: who we hire, who we let go, the boundaries we set, what we say noto, and how we spend our time. This episode is a candid reflection on accountability,courage, and the weight of leadership - and a reminder that the real work of leadership often happens when no one is watching.   In this episode, we cover: ·  Why leadership isn’t about visibility or charisma ·  The loneliness of decision‑making when “the buck stops with you” · How hiring choices reveal leadership confidence and values · Why leaders are defined by what they tolerate · The danger of weak boundaries and “good enough” standards · How low standards quietly become cultural norms · Why time is the most valuable - and misused - leadership resource · What the real work of leadership looks like day to day Follow us on: Instagram @LessonsnotyetlearntTikTok @LessonsnotyetlearntYouTube @Lessonsnotyetlearnt   To ask Kiran anything, be a guest, sponsor an episode, or chat press? Visit our website: www.lessonsnotyetlearnt.com [http://www.lessonsnotyetlearnt.com/]

Big Ideas, Bigger Gaps: When Governance Fails to Land

Why do so many well‑intentioned strategies fail to translate into real, lasting change? In this episode of Lessons Not Yet Learnt, host Kiran is joined by governance advisor and board consultant Janhavi Dadarkar to explore why today’s leadership failures often originate at the top - not through bad intent, but through gaps in cultural, strategic, and people‑centred leadership capability. Drawing on insights from her upcoming book and decades of experience working with boards, governments, and global institutions, Janhavi challenges the dominance of short‑term thinking and Western‑centric governance models. She introduces lessons from overlooked and ancient governance systems around the world, asking what it truly takes to build legitimate, trusted, and values‑led organisations in an increasingly unstable environment. Together, they unpack why strategy alone isn’t enough - and what modern leaders must rethink if they want their organisations to last.   In this episode, we cover: ·       Why leadership isn’t just strategy ·       Legitimacy, trust, and hope ·       What Western governance gets wrong ·       Learning from the longest‑running systems ·       The short‑termism trap ·       What good governance looks like now   About Our Guest Janhavi Dadarkar – Governance Advisor, Thinking Partner and Portfolio Board Member. Janhavi Dadarkar is a governance advisor, thinking partner, and portfolio board member with over three decades of experience supporting entrepreneurs, boards, governments, and global institutions. A former corporate lawyer, she brings a deeply people‑centred lens to leadership, helping organisations strengthen legitimacy, trust, and long‑term value creation. Drawing on insights from overlooked global and ancient governance systems, and her upcoming book, Janhavi explores what sustainable, values‑led leadership looks like in a fast‑moving, short‑term world. Her current portfolio includes being a Blue Kraft Distinguished Fellow, CEO of the Academy for Board Excellence, and IOD Programme Lead, as well as serving as a Commissioner on the Institute of Directors’ most recent report on the role of the Non‑Executive Director. Follow us on: Instagram @Lessonsnotyetlearnt [https://www.instagram.com/lessonsnotyetlearnt/] TikTok @Lessonsnotyetlearnt [https://www.tiktok.com/@lessonsnotyetlearnt] YouTube @Lessonsnotyetlearnt [https://www.youtube.com/@LessonsNotYetLearnt]   To ask Kiran anything, be a guest, sponsor an episode, or chat press? Visit our website: www.lessonsnotyetlearnt.com [http://www.lessonsnotyetlearnt.com/]