About The Adventure About The Adventure

How can the power of observation shift your perspective? In this episode, Ali Foxon shares how sketching outdoors transformed her life, career, and her mental health.
She talks about the incredible benefits of sketching nature and making it more accessible, where the idea for green sketching began, what it’s been like to leave previous jobs behind, her experience of becoming an author, and how she delivers workshops despite anxiety about public speaking.
At the end of the interview, Ali asks a question for you to explore if you are thinking about a career change.
Here’s the list of that questions that Sarah asked Ali:
If you had your sketchbook with you now, what would you choose to draw first?When you're sketching, what does it do to you and your state of energy?How do you encourage people to start sketching?Have you seen people break through their worries, barriers or resistance about spending time sketching?Where did green sketching all begin for you?What was your first experience of sketching like?How did you come up with the idea of “green sketching” and how has your career evolved?What has worked really well in terms of engaging people with your work?What will people experience from your book?What was your experience of writing the book like?What does your son think about what you do?Did you take your decision to change your career lightly?How do you feel now about stepping away from your previous career?What’s helped you most along the way?What are some of the skills you’ve learnt?How do you deliver workshops when you’re anxious about public speaking?Where would you like things to go from here?How would you describe your experience of making a living from your work?Do you feel like it’s given you more freedom in terms of how you spend your time?Do you feel like your priorities have changed?What question would you ask somebody who is thinking about a career change that allows them more time to connect with nature?
This episode was recorded while sitting in a woodland along the start of the Pennine Way in the Peak District, by Sarah Lister on 7th October 2022.
Take a look at Ali Foxon’s website to find out more about her work, watch her Tedx Talk on YouTube - Drawn to love nature, and follow her on Instagram.
Final notes
About The Adventure has a patreon community where you receive support with your own career change. Sarah is in the process of starting a career change support network to include both online and in-person events. You can support the podcast and get involved with the community for £5 per month.
Visit About The Adventure website to email Sarah, the podcast host, with your comments, questions or suggestions for future guests. Subscribe to Sarah's newsletter to receive episodes in your inbox, along with career change interviews and career coaching questions.
Podcast music is by Tsarzi and artwork by Tiffany-Francis Baker.
Thanks for listening!

What happens in the space between starting to think about a career change and actually making it happen? In this episode, Andy Darnton shares his story about leaving a career as a commercial lawyer. 
He talks about the need for change, his concerns about what other people might think, how he started to explore alternative options, why Legal Tech appeals to him, and his experience of getting back into the mountains and becoming a Mountain Leader.
At the end of the interview, Andy asks a question for you to explore if you are thinking about a career change.
Here’s the full list of questions that Sarah asked Andy:
Can you start by describing what you were going through when you started to think about a change in direction?What was on your mind while you were at work? What types of questions were you asking yourself? How did you start to explore and find your answers?What have been the highs and lows for you so far?Do you think that the culture of work can change?Do you think that having a purpose is an important part of your career change story?Has freelancing given you the freedom that you wanted to spend more time in the mountains?Have your stress and anxiety levels changed since you became self-employed?Which aspects of the course have you found the most challenging and how did you approach them?Why is having the ML qualification important to you?As a leader, what do you think is unique about you and the experiences you’re offering to people?How has the transition into a leadership position been for you so far?Do you think it comes down to exploring different elements of your personality and what you enjoy?What question would you like to ask, to help people think creatively about making a change in their own lives?
This episode was recorded while sitting on Kinder Scout by Sarah Lister on 29th July 2022. 
Take a look at Andy’s website to see the adventures he has planned, his blog Highs and Lows, and follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
References
Alastair Humphreys
Final notes
About The Adventure has a patreon community where you can support this podcast and receive support with your own career change through a Facebook group and outdoor events in the Peak District.
Visit About The Adventure website to email Sarah, the podcast host, with your comments, questions or suggestions for future guests. Subscribe to Sarah's newsletter to receive episodes in your inbox, along with career change interviews and career coaching questions.
Podcast music is by Tsarzi and artwork by Tiffany-Francis Baker.
Thanks for listening!

In this episode, Sarah interviews Stella Bolam, who has switched from a long-term career in communications and writing to join the wonderful world of tree care and science, working in Community Forestry.
Stella shares why she began reflecting on what to do with the rest of her career, how she found the courage to explore a new path, and what life has been like since she started taking the first steps. 
Here’s the full list of questions that Sarah asked Stella:
Why did you start reflecting on what you want to do with the rest of your career?Questions from Milly on twitter - What gave you the courage to make the final step out of your previous career? Was it a gentle bit by bit shift or was it a down tools and step completely into the unknown?What does your work involve as a volunteer street warden? What are the sorts of issues that you look out for?Through talking to people, what did you find out about their relationships with the trees?How would you best describe your personal connection with trees and how has that evolved over time?Is there a type of tree or woodland that you particularly like?Were there any aspects of your previous work that you found difficult to let go of?How did you find out that you were really drawn to this work? Did anything make the decision really clear in your mind?Is the certificate you’ve got an expensive course to pursue?Are you still spending a lot of time at your desk?Do you feel like it is an accessible sector for people to enter?Is there anything that you’ve learnt or experienced so far that has really amazed you?Has this change in career had an impact on other areas of your life?Do you feel like there’s been any shift in your identity?How has it felt to reconnect with your interest in trees and nature?How has it been for you to learn new skills?Have you noticed a change in your energy and motivation? Do you feel like your work now is more meaningful?What’s the experience you can get from touching nature?Do you have a particular approach that you want to take with this new career path?Do you have an idea about when you’re going to finish your diploma?What question would you ask people that might help them get beyond the block of thinking it’s too late for a career change?How can people start to explore outside of their current world?
This episode was recorded while sitting in the beautiful Bolehill Wood in Grindleford, by Sarah Lister on 14th March 2022, and edited by Gabby Wolstenholme.
You can follow Stella's journey on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter. Read her article: 'Why I chose arboriculture as a career' which was submitted to the Arboricultural Association's Student Book Prize Award 2021 and won first place in the written category in March 2021. 
References
Arboricultural Association
Professor Lynne Boddy - Professor of Fungal Ecology at Cardiff University UK
Sheffield City...

In this episode, Sarah interviews her friend Jon Hyde about his leather goods business based in Sheffield. Prior to this he was a photographer and ran a queer film programme at a cinema in Brighton.
Jon shares why he started making leather goods, how earlier aspects of his life and career have played a part in running his business, and what it's been like moving up north. He also talks about his love of nature and learning about geography, and some of the challenges that he has faced throughout his life. Please note that he briefly talks about death and grief.
Here’s the full list of questions that Sarah asked Jon:
Why did you start making things from leather?How do you get through the challenges of picking up a new craft?How have you learned this craft?Do you think it requires a certain level of patience?How long did it take you to start selling your goods?Have you had customers from all over the world?What’s the process that you go through from designing to selling a product?Do you have help with any parts of the business?What lifestyle does this work facilitate for you?How did you arrive at the point where you feel comfortable with what you’re earning?Do you feel like you value money in a different way now?Where do you think that your love of the outdoors is rooted?What prompted you to move to Sheffield?How has it been moving into a new city and away from a place where you had friends and you felt quite established?What’s gone on behind the scenes?Why do you think it can feel so hard to step out of societal norms and pressures?Do you have particular values that you stand by and hold close within your business as well?What question would you ask someone who is thinking about designing, making, and selling their craft, but they are perhaps feeling overwhelmed by all the different aspects of setting up a small business?
This episode was recorded while sitting on a hillside of Kinder Scout in Edale, by Sarah Lister on 16th December 2021, and edited by Gabby Wolstenholme.
You can visit Jon's website Hyde Wares, visit his Etsy shop, and follow him on Instagram. Find out more about his work in this beautiful short documentary by Sam Binstead which celebrates small makers.
Visit About The Adventure website to email Sarah, the podcast host, with your comments, questions or suggestions for future guests. Subscribe to Sarah's newsletter to receive episodes in your inbox, along with career change interviews and career coaching questions.
If you enjoy my podcast I'd really appreciate it if you could please write a quick review on Apple podcasts or Podchaser, this will help more people to find the show.
Podcast music is by Tsarzi and artwork by Tiffany-Francis Baker.
Thanks for listening!

In this episode, Sarah interviews Karen Weir, who changed career from working as a management consultant in London to becoming a running and triathlon coach and personal trainer.
Karen shares how running has made a difference to her life, why her approach to work hasn’t changed since she left her job in London, what learning curves she has noted along the way, and about her involvement with parkrun and RunWell.
She also tells us about how her Masters in Coaching Science is going, the proposed topic for her dissertation, and about the transition from city life to living in the Peak District.
Here’s the full list of questions that Sarah asked Karen:
How has running made a difference to your life?What transformations do you see in the people that you coach and train?How has your approach to work changed since you left your job in London?What do you think have been the biggest learning curves for you since you started offering your coaching and training services?Where did you discover your passion for running?How do you separate your own training and running from working with other people?What’s your experience of being involved with Park Run?Why did you set up RunWell and what’s your involvement with it now?Where do you hope that your Masters in Coaching Science will lead?What are you enjoying and finding challenging about the course?Do you feel a sense of adventure living here in the Peak District?How would you approach working with somebody who wants to run but worries it’s too late in life to make a start?What question would you ask someone who is thinking about a career change into sport coaching or training?
This episode was recorded at The Bothy, Cafe Adventure in Hope by Sarah Lister on 26th August 2021 and edited by Gabby Wolstenholme.
You can visit Karen’s website and follow her on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
References during this episode include:
Parkrun
RunWell Club
About The Adventure has a patreon community where you can support this podcast and receive support with your own career change. By getting involved with the community you can put forward your own questions for guests, suggest the types of work that you'd like to hear more about, and get invited to events. With your contributions I can make episodes more regularly and create a community that focuses on values, creativity and connection as a more inspiring approach to career change. I hope to see you there!
Visit About The Adventure website to email Sarah, the podcast host, with your comments, questions or suggestions for future guests. Subscribe to Sarah's a href="https://abouttheadventure.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer"...

“If I ever feel overwhelmed by the world, I do this thing where I just zoom out.”
In this episode, Sarah interviews Rachael Shaw, a self-employed Business Consultant who previously worked in a high level job in the travel industry.
Rachael shares the personal experiences that led towards her career change, how working with a coach helped, why running has an important role in her life, what things have changed since she left her full-time job, and how she enjoys spending time in nature.
Here is the full list of questions that Sarah asked Rachael:
What personal experiences led you towards your career change?How did you start to open up other options for yourself?What was it that made you go towards the business consultancy work rather than pursuing the trail running coach route?What approaches did you try when you started looking for a new job and did any of these work for you?How has coaching helped you along the way?How did you come across the coach that you worked with?Are there any tools or experiences that you took away from your experience of being coached?Why does business consultancy appeal to you?Is there anything that you’ve brought from your previous work working in the travel industry into the self-employed work that you’re doing now?Is it mainly small businesses and startups that you want to work with?How did you discover your values and match these up with the work that you do now?How have things changed since you left your job?Why do you think it was that you were so focused on work?Do you think you lost any parts of yourself while working in the travel industry?How do people you work with usually discover you? Have there been any resources that have helped you to create your business and to guide you on how much to charge?Is there anything that you’ve struggled to adjust to?Why do you think it’s so hard for people to give themselves the permission to have a bit more freedom with how they spend their time?How have your family, friends and husband responded to your career change?Where would you like your work and lifestyle to move towards from here?How did you get into trailrunning?What are you like when you’re out running compared to when you’re sitting in front of your laptop?What do you think it was that gave you the motivation to start running?How do you enjoy spending time in nature, and why is this important to you?Do you think that there is anything that stops people from spending more time outside? What powerful question would you ask somebody who is thinking about changing their career, but concerned about leaving a secure and well-regarded position - that might help them in taking a step towards a new decision?
This episode was recorded outdoors in the Peak District by Sarah Lister on 26th July 2021 and edited by Gabby Wolstenholme. We were sat in the sunshine, with the slopes of Mam Tor towering above us and bees buzzing around us. After the interview we enjoyed a trailrun together, picked up some litter along the way, and cooled off for a quick dip in Grindsbrook.
Since recording this interview, Rachael has decided to pause her consultancy work and has started a part-time job at Mind, a mental healthy charity. Mind is an organisation where she was keeping an eye on roles for around 5 years and this felt like the right place, right time, and right role for her. She still isn't quite over the burnout that she's been going through, and running a consultancy was too much too soon.
You can visit Rachael's website here and connect with her on a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachael-shaw-57256751/"...