What if mentoring had nothing to do with seniority — and everything to do with strengths? In this Squiggly Shortcut, Sarah makes the case for a more inclusive, more accessible approach to mentoring that every team can make happen straight away.

🎯 What You'll Learn

– Why strengths-based mentoring is more useful than traditional senior-to-junior mentoring

– Three ways to make it work: one way, two way (strengths swapping), and one to many

– How to make your ask for mentoring specific, easy to say yes to, and genuinely flattering to receive

– Why building a spreadsheet of team strengths could be one of the most useful things your team does this year

📚 Resources Mentioned

Episode 122 — How to make your strengths show up and stand out 

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When did you last draw something at work? In this episode, Helen and Sarah borrow brilliance from the science of drawing — and make a surprisingly strong case for why picking up a pen (or a Post-it® Note) could be one of the most useful things you do this week.

From boosting your mood to supercharging your memory, drawing does things for your brain that writing simply can't. Helen and Sarah put this to the test live, working through four drawing exercises — some just for you, some brilliant for teams — including how you're feeling about work this week, a strength you want to make stronger, your confidence gremlins, and your dream work day.Want to see Helen and Sarah's drawings for yourself? Make sure you're signed up to the Squiggly Careers Newsletter — we'll be sharing them there.This episode is brought to you in partnership with Post-it® Brand. If today's episode sparked an idea, stick it down — find out where to buy Post-it® products at go.3M.com/squiggly

🎯 What You'll Learn

– Why drawing beats writing for memory and mood — and the research behind it– Four drawing exercises to try by yourself or with your team– Why "I'm not a good drawer" is the one thing that should never hold you back– How drawing someone else's dream day can tell you more about their values than almost any other team exercise

📚 Resources Mentioned

Squiggly Careers on YouTube (watch the drawings in action)Squiggly Careers on SpotifyFor questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email: [email protected]

Need some more squiggly career support?

Download our free career tools

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How do you get people to actually listen — and say yes — more often? In this Squiggly Shortcut, Helen shares three simple, research-backed ways to become more influential at work. Whether you're trying to get an idea across, shift an outcome, or build stronger working relationships, this episode will give you practical things you can do both in the moment and over time.

🎯 What You'll Learn

Why mirroring language (not just body language) is a subtle but powerful way to build connection– How likability works as a persuasion tool — and why it's less about being smiley and more about genuinely listening– Why reciprocity is a long game, and how to think about what you have to give

📚 Resources Mentioned

Influence with Robert CialdiniFor questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email: [email protected]

Need some more squiggly career support?

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What does it actually take to go from good to great at work — and is "mastery" even the right word for it?

In this episode, Helen and Sarah borrow brilliance from The Big Think's collection of articles on mastery, and make it feel a lot more relevant to everyday squiggly careers than the word itself might suggest.

They explore two big ideas: how to master your response to tricky situations (think: the passive aggressive Canva comment, the "I'll just do it" default, or the unexpected tears in a meeting), and how to master your ability to succeed — including how elite athletes think about risk and failure in a way that's surprisingly useful for anyone with an ambitious goal.

🎯 What You'll Learn

How to move from a default response to a deliberate decision — and why that space in between is everything– What elite athletes do differently when things go wrong (and how to apply it to your own goals)– Why naming your version of success — and stress-testing the risks — makes you more likely to actually get there– How to reframe failure as a data point rather than a verdict on you

📚 Resources Mentioned

The Big Think newsletter

The Big Think — Mastery collection

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email: [email protected]

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Careers Newsletter, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools4. Order our new book Learn Like a Lobster

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90% of us think we're good listeners — but we retain about 20% of what we hear. In this Squiggly Shortcut, Sarah shares five practical ways to close that listening gap, starting with the one thing most of us never even notice.

🎯 What You'll Learn

– Why listening isn't just about words — and what to pay attention to instead

– How the pressure to respond is the biggest enemy of good listening

– Why repeating back the words someone uses can unlock a whole new conversation

– What a no-interruption meeting feels like — and why it's worth trying with your team

– The simple summarising habit that will make you a noticeably better listener overnight

📚 Resources Mentioned

Episode 319 — Listening with Kate Murphy

You can also find Kate Murphy's book I Never Said I Was a Good Listener via your usual bookshop.

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email: [email protected]

Need some more squiggly career support?

Download our free career tools

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2.Sign up for our Squiggly Careers Newsletter, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools

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What if the way you read could transform how much you actually learn, remember and use? In this episode, Helen and Sarah borrow brilliance from Ryan Holiday's video How to Read Like a Pro — and add a few rules of their own.

From building an anti-library (the books you'd never normally pick up) to treating your books like they're meant to be used, not preserved, this is a practical and personal exploration of how to get more from your reading. Helen also unveils her new Post-it® Note system, and there's a genuine debate about whether folding a page corner is an act of ownership or an act of disrespect.

This episode is brought to you in partnership with Post-it® Brand. If today's episode sparked an idea, stick it down — find out where to buy Post-it® products at go.3M.com/squiggly

🎯 What You'll Learn

– What an anti-library is and why reading outside your comfort zone changes how you think

– How to read with a pen and Post-it® Notes in a way that actually sticks

– Why rereading a book you love can be more valuable than picking up a new one

– The five rules for reading nonfiction more intentionally — plus Helen and Sarah's personal additions

– Books Helen and Sarah would both reread and recommend right now

📚 Resources Mentioned

How to Read Like a Pro — Ryan Holiday (please swap in direct link if you have it)

Unreasonable Hospitality — Will Guidara

Right Kind Wrong — Amy Edmondson

Uncharted — Margaret Heffernan

The Wonder Box — Roman Krznaric

Mash-Up — Ian Sanders

How to Have a Good Day — Caroline Webb

The First 90 Days — Michael D. Watkins

Essentialism — Greg McKeown

Toby Sinclair on LinkedIn

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email: [email protected]

Need some more squiggly career support?

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2.Sign up for our Skills Sprints

3.Sign up for our Squiggly Careers Newsletter, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools

4.Order our new book Learn Like a Lobster

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Does work feel a bit knotty right now? In this Squiggly Shortcut, Helen shares three practical ways to find your footing when everything around you feels uncertain — whether that's a restructure, a shifting role, or just the general noise of a complicated economic moment.

🎯 What You'll Learn

– Why focusing on what you do know is the best antidote to feeling overwhelmed by what you don't

– How to use uncertainty as a trigger for learning — and how to build a simple learning list that puts you back in control

– Why "mental time travel" — fast forwarding 12 months into the future — can help you get unstuck and decide what to do differently right now

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email: [email protected]

Need some more squiggly career support?

1.Download our free career tools

2.Sign up for our Skills Sprints

3.Sign up for our Squiggly Careers Newsletter, a weekly summary of the latest squiggly career tools

4.Order our new book Learn Like a Lobster

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Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Helen and Sarah explore how to 'Kaizen your squiggly career', borrowing brilliance from the Japanese philosophy of continuous improvement.

They discuss why big career changes can feel overwhelming and how focusing on small, manageable improvements can help you build momentum without triggering fear or overthinking. Along the way, they introduce four key Kaizen ideas and translate them into simple, actionable tools for your working week.

From spotting where you might be waiting rather than creating, to eliminating wasted effort, to building in better reflection habits, Helen and Sarah share how to move from intention to action in a way that actually sticks.

If you’ve ever felt busy but not progressing, unsure where to focus your energy, or stuck in cycles of overthinking, this episode will help you take small steps that lead to meaningful change.

🦞 Learn Like A Lobster:

🇺🇸PRH US - https://bit.ly/3KxTeBn

🇬🇧 Amazon UK - https://bit.ly/46lj8Av

Episode 547

(00:00) Introducing Kaizen for careers

(02:00) What Kaizen actually means (and why it works)

(06:30) Gemba: why observation beats speculation

(11:15) Muda: eliminating waste in your work

(17:45) Are you busy… or actually productive?

(22:10) The risks of “waiting” in your career

(25:10) Hansai: the power of reflection

(29:00) Plan, Do, Check, Act (PDCA) explained

(34:00) Why reflection is often overlooked

(38:00) Standardising what works

(41:00) Small changes that create big impact

📚 Resources Mentioned

Kaizen: The Japanese Method for Transforming Habits by Sarah Harvey - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kaizen-Japanese-Method-Transforming-Habits/dp/1529005353#:~:text=Kaizen%20by%20Sarah%20Harvey%20brings,working%20style%2C%20preferences%20and%20personality.

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free career tools: https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

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In this Squiggly Shortcut, Sarah shares how to bring small, low-pressure moments of play into team days, without falling into the trap of forced fun. She shares why play matters for learning, connection, and wellbeing, and offers simple, practical ideas that teams can try in just a few minutes.

Episode 546

🦞 Learn Like A Lobster:

🇺🇸PRH US - https://bit.ly/3KxTeBn

🇬🇧 Amazon UK - https://bit.ly/46lj8Av 

📚 Resources Mentioned

Play by Stuart Brown - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Play-Shapes-Brain-Imagination-Invigorates/dp/1583333789

The 100 Year Life by Lynda Gratton - https://www.100yearlife.com/

Humor, Seriously by Jannifer Aaker and Naomi Bagdonas - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Humour-Serious-Business-Superpower-Work/dp/0241405939

Episode #441 How to fit more play into your day - https://youtu.be/hSsiRr0WXWE

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free career tools: https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

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📮 Get Squiggly Careers in Action in your inbox: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books: The Squiggly Career and You Coach You: https://www.amazingif.com/books/

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In this episode, Helen and Sarah borrow brilliance from a talk by Lord Michael Hastings at the London Interdisciplinary School about leading responsibly in an uncertain world. The conversation sparks the question: what happens when cynicism creeps into our careers?

They explore how everyday thoughts like “there’s no point applying", ” “the system is rigged,” or “nothing will change anyway” can quietly stall progress in a squiggly career. Instead of staying stuck in that mindset, Helen and Sarah share practical ways to shift from cynicism to a more proactive and generous approach.

If you’ve ever felt frustrated with work, doubtful about opportunities, or tempted to disengage, this episode will help you replace cynicism with curiosity, action, and generosity.

Episode 545

🦞 Learn Like A Lobster:

🇺🇸PRH US - https://bit.ly/3KxTeBn

🇬🇧 Amazon UK - https://bit.ly/46lj8Av

(00:00) How Cynicism Shows Up in Your Career

(01:54) The London Interdisciplinary School

(06:35) Common “cynical” thoughts at work

(11:34) The danger of the cynicism echo chamber

(13:47) Small actions add up

(17:53) Learning from people who think differently

(25:05) Why generosity matters at work

(29:00) The power of the five-minute favour

(31:41) Finding ways to stay grounded

📚 Resources Mentioned

LIS - https://www.lis.ac.uk/

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free career tools: https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

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In this Squiggly Shortcut, Helen shares three simple ways to boost your motivation when you’re stuck in a “knotty moment” at work. Whether it’s unexpected feedback, a tricky project, a difficult relationship, or even feeling stuck in the wrong role, these situations can quickly drain your energy and momentum. This episode gives you practical, in-the-moment ideas to help you reset, regain a sense of control, and keep going even when things feel hard.

Episode 544

🦞 Learn Like A Lobster:

🇺🇸PRH US - https://bit.ly/3KxTeBn

🇬🇧 Amazon UK - https://bit.ly/46lj8Av 

For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email [email protected]

More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers:

📩 Download our free career tools: https://www.amazingif.com/toolkit/

🦞 Join the Learn Like a Lobster Sprint: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNQl9gsac8BXnWe2qoGuHkLKwsygjP_Ma&si=l7kODG3JpopH0Irz

📮 Get Squiggly Careers in Action in your inbox: https://bit.ly/SquigglyCareersInAction

📚 Read our books: The Squiggly Career and You Coach You: https://www.amazingif.com/books/

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