A Beginners Guide To Being A Grown Up

Sam Cooper-Gray is a strategist, storyteller, podcasters and fierce advocate for female-led business.
As founder of The Wisdom Studio, she helps purpose-driven SMEs grow with clarity, impact, and intention—drawing on 25+ years in global finance, including her role as HSBC’s Global Head of SME Strategy.
She is the creator and driving force behind Women Are Good Business, a national campaign that highlights and amplifies the economic power of female founders—showcasing the commercial, societal, and investment benefits of backing women.
Sam’s legacy includes launching HSBC’s $1bn Female Entrepreneur Fund and the UK’s £250m Women’s Business Growth Initiative, and she now chairs The Gender Index and leads the Conditions to Scale workstream for the UK Government’s Invest in Women Taskforce, shaping national policy to unlock growth for women in business. Whether she’s in the boardroom, behind the mic, or mentoring founders, Sam brings a rare mix of corporate rigour, creative empathy, and unapologetic purpose.
Listen to find out how Sam has found success in different aspects of her life, and what she would put in the guide...

This week, we’re joined by Roisin McKeon-Carter, an accomplished healthcare leader whose 40‑year career across the NHS spans clinical practice, strategic transformation, and executive‑level leadership.
Her work has shaped patient safety, workforce development, and the evolution of advanced practice roles across the UK.Roisin currently serves as Consultant Practice Development Lead in a major tertiary hospital, where she is driving the development of the Consultant Practice (Nurse/AHP) workforce in line with the NHSE long‑term plan.
She leads a group of 25 exceptional healthcare professionals who are quietly — and powerfully — shaping the future of patient care.Across her career, Roisin has delivered large‑scale service transformation, strengthened clinical governance, and led system‑level workforce strategies.
Her influence spans regional and national levels, contributing to policy workstreams and championing professional voice, compassionate leadership, and equitable care.
Listen to find out how Roisin has found success in different aspects of her life, and what she would put in the guide...

Sarah Bennett-Nash walked away from Wall Street to empower women to build not just wealth, but lives they love.
For 20 years, from the trading floors of New York and London, she saw the inner workings of global finance, but also what was missing- joy, purpose, humanity.
Now, Sarah is on a mission to teach ten million people how to create lasting wealth by doing work that matters, where success is measured in impact, freedom and fulfillment.
Sarah has completed the University of Oxford's Executive Leadership Programme, qualified as a coach, founded the Wealth BE-ing, Members Club and is passionate advocate for personal development.
Listen to find out how Sarah has found success in different aspects of her life, and what she would put in the guide...

Christine Brown-Quinn, The Female Capitalist®, is a Career Strategist, Best-Selling Author, a former Managing Director in International Finance & an avid cyclist. 
With a trailblazing journey spanning decades in International Business, Christine transitioned into a transformative role in 2010, embarking on a mission to dispel the notion that a thriving career must clash with a gratifying personal life. She offers guidance through her online & in-person workshops & training programmes as well as strategic career & business coaching to unravel the true essence of career advancement as well as holistic success within demanding corporate environments. As a published author of two books (“Step Aside Super Woman” & "Unlock Your Career Success, an Amazon #1 Best Seller), she provides empowering resources for women in business.
She holds a BA in Foreign Languages from Georgetown University and an MBA in International Business from The George Washington University.
She served on the GW School of Business Board for many years, is a former President of GW’s Alumni Association, founder of the GW Alumni Network in the UK & recipient of the esteemed GW Alumni Outstanding Service Award.  She currently services on GW’s President’s Council as well as on the board of the International Women’s Forum UK  & co-chairs its Communication & Engagement Committee.
Listen to find out how Christine has found success in different aspects of her life, and what she would put in the guide...

Emma Warren is a seasoned entrepreneur and intuitive leader whose 40‑year career has been defined not by hustle culture, but by purpose, curiosity, and a steadfast belief that work and life are meant to inform one another—not compete. Stepping into the world of work at 18, Emma built a career she loves while remaining deeply present in her family life, proving that you can have it all, just not all at once.
Guided by long‑term vision rather than short‑term noise, Emma plans in three‑year horizons, choosing focus over frenzy and intention over urgency. Her approach has often meant standing alone, moving ahead of the crowd, or pausing when others rush forward. But it’s this rhythm—this willingness to lead differently—that has shaped her into the grounded, thoughtful businesswoman she is today.
Emma champions success that endures, not success at any cost. She believes in leadership that is intuitive, human, and in tune with the shifting landscape of modern business. As the world begins to embrace a slower, more intentional way of working, she no longer feels like a fraud for rejecting hustle culture—she feels perfectly placed for this moment.
Substack has become her sanctum: a hearth to return to, a space to think, write, learn, and share her evolving understanding of work, life, and the spaces in between. Through her writing, Emma invites others to pause, breathe, and join her in exploring what it means to build a life—and a career—with depth, meaning, and intention.
Listen to find out how Emma has found success in different aspects of her life, and what she would put in the guide...