On almost quiting...
Plus opportunities for writers, entrepreneurs and aspiring trustees
When Natasha and I secured the venue for The Pivot Event, we had just two weeks to sell out. But in the first few days, we’d only sold seven tickets… we seriously considered cancelling.
But one week later, we were oversubscribed and asking people to join the next one.
That pilot event taught us an important lesson: stick to your thesis, even when the early signs aren’t exciting. Things usually take time to develop.
We’re conditioned to expect instant results, especially in a world where “Sold Out in 24 Hours” posts dominate our feeds. But more often than not, those headlines are carefully curated to create urgency. Real sustainable growth is slower, it’s quieter.
When we worried, we didn’t just wait and see. We talked about it. We experimented with new ways to share the event, and most importantly, we reminded ourselves why we were doing it. I’m so glad we didn’t quit because it was a beautiful event.
That need to persevere isn’t just about events. I’m deep in the (sometimes gruelling) process of building a new company and it’s testing my resilience in the same way my gym sessions or novel edits do.
Building is just hard. Most of it happens behind the scenes. You have to persevere through the hard parts with no guarantee of results. But in a way the results are guaranteed. If you’re genuinely trying, you always grow. And that growth is the real result.
So whatever you’re working on; keep going. Adjust your approach. Trust your instincts. And give it time. Because we so often quit right before the results start to show.
In this month’s Newsletter:
Project Updates: Starting Up on Youtube & Medical Mysogyny Project Now Out
What I'm Learning: Work-Life Harmony is Cyclical & Seasonal
What I'm Loving: Heights & Diome for restorative sleep
Stories: Failure Friday > Wednesday Wins
Events & Opportunities: The Time Optimisation Masterclass Online, Funding opportunities & a chance to give back as a trustee
Project Updates
Okay so I’ve counted the votes and you guys have me starting a YouTube Channel!
It will be all about how to get started with a new venture, covering the questions I’m most often asked, as well as the ups and downs of launching and growing Ayaa Botanicals (as it happens.)
I’ve come up with a logo concept and I start filming this week. Which logo do you prefer?
In other updates, I’ve been part of a wider project to tackle inequalities in Women’s Health. I told my story of trying to get a diagnosis for suspected PMDD to Vicky Pattison & GMB. Here’s a clip:
What I'm Learning
I always look forward to the summer holidays. My husband’s a teacher, so for six weeks I’m no longer the default parent and I can focus on building. Until the mum guilt creeps in.
I don’t usually struggle with mum guilt. My kids know they come first. I also don’t neglect myself, because I know they need a mother, not a martyr. But summer is different. It’s one of the rare times all six of us are home together. And I want to savour that.
…But I also have work to do.
Every summer I feel this tension. It’s an opportunity to accelerate, or a chance to connect.
I’m learning, again, that Work-Life Harmony is both cyclical and seasonal. School holidays are their own cycle, and they don’t always line up neatly with the seasons of your life. Right now, I’m in a spring season: planting seeds, creating new opportunities, sharing the process in the hopes that it helps others grow, too.
Spring weather in the summer months brings a lot of rain. But rain brings flowers. So I’m continually learning to adapt. To breathe. To stop and smell the daisies.
Recently Work-Life Harmony has meant working odd hours so I can make the most of long summer days with my family.
My big lesson is that creating Work-Life Harmony is an ongoing process that never really ends. Regular adjustments should be expected as life isn’t static. And what a privilege to choose how we spend our time.
What I'm Loving
As I mentioned in the GMB feature, I have issues with sleep. I’ve tested a bunch of products that claim to help with sleep and my favourite combination is Heights Magnesium for helping me get to sleep and Diome for helping me stay asleep and get back down when one of the kids wakes me up in the night.
You can get 20% off Heights Magnesium using this link:
Diome offer free UK shipping and 10% off when you subscribe to their mailing list:
Stories
Whilst finalising FLOAT I took a hiatus from new short stories, but here is my last Failure Friday post.
I’m pausing that series and switching to Wednesday Wins which will be all about sharing little wins in community. Things that we may not want to post about but that we’re proud of.
Please do join in on my LinkedIn page.
Events & Opportunities
The Time Optimisation Masterclass
One of the most common questions I get in my inbox/during Q&A at events/from mentees is “how do you juggle it all?”
And I have methods! So the first in a series of masterclasses for The Raenaissance Club will be on Time Optimisation
The reality is, I’m not “naturally good” at managing my time… and I don’t even really believe in time management. I’ve learnt that managing your energy allows you to optimise your time and that’s what this session will be about. I’ll walk you through the Time Optimisation handbook and run live mentoring to answer your questions on the call.
Tickets are £10. I’m testing a Pay What You Can Ticket and a Pay It Forward ticket to ensure that the cost of living crisis doesn’t prevent anyone from being able to attend.
StartUp Funding
Values driven entrepreneurs/founders can pitch for up to $1m in this super cool competition!
Enterprise Hubs are running a Deeptech Accelerator Programme with a grant of up to £75,000 plus coaching, training and mentoring:
https://enterprisehub.raeng.org.uk/programmes/enterprise-fellowships/
Deadline: Tuesday, 26 August 2025
New Writer’s Prize
The Nero New Writers Prize seeks to uncover the best and brightest untapped writing talent and support them as they develop into the stars of the future.
Entries must be an original, unpublished short story of up to 5,000 words in either fiction or non-fiction.
The winner receives £3,000, a scholarship for an MA in Creative Writing at Brunel, and an introduction to a literary agent. Each runner-up will receive £1,000 and a mentorship session with a member of Brunel’s Creative Writing faculty.
Deadline: 5pm BST on 29th August 2025.
Apply: https://nerobookawards.com/new-writers-prize-2025/
Opportunity to make a difference
Environmental activists have been unjustly jailed whilst trying to stop illegal mining in Ghana that is destroying villages and polluting the water supply. Please sign and share the petition.
2-3 Degrees recruiting Trustee
2-3 Degrees is entering an exciting new chapter — and you could be a part of it.
Since 2016, they've worked with over 10,000 young people across the UK, inspiring young people aged 14-25 to become the best version of themselves.
They’re recruiting trustees who want to connect their skills to real-world change and have direct impact on services for young people from underrepresented backgrounds.
Details:
✅ Voluntary | Hybrid (London-based) | Expenses paid
✅ 4 hours/month min | 3-year term
✅ Anonymous recruitment process | Deadline: 31 August 2025
xoxo – Rachael
p.s. What did you find most helpful about this post? I’d love to hear your thoughts over email or in the comments.
p.p.s. If you loved reading this, please do forward on or hit the restack button.