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S4 Opening Special Edition: The Paths We Take · Sukany4: The Walk and Talk Podcast

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_07: What was your first big leap?
• 0:02
  SPEAKER_07: You know, the one that made your stomach turn a little, had you questioning everything, but somehow you went ahead and did it anyway.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_07: Or maybe you're still standing on the edge wondering if now's the time.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_07: Hello, and welcome to Zakania the Walk and Talk Podcast.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_07: I'm Zakania, and today we're doing something a little bit different.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_07: At our season three launch party in October 2025, I handed the microphone over to people who'd come along to celebrate with us.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_07: I gave them three simple prompts.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_07: My first big leap, the path I'm on now, and one thing I've learned from my journey.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_07: And then I left them to it.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_07: What came back was this wonderful collection of stories about starting again, changing direction, finding community, and discovering things about ourselves along the way.
• 1:01
  SPEAKER_07: We've got people taking chances, making unexpected discoveries, finding purpose and figuring things out as they go.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_07: And these weren't perfect scripted studio recordings.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_07: There are a few false starts, a bit of nervous laughter, and some wonderfully spontaneous moments.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_07: Which frankly is all part of the charm.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_07: So as we celebrate two years of Circanya the Walk and Talk podcast and get ready to head into season four, I thought this would be a lovely way to remind ourselves why we started sharing the stories in the first place.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_07: You never really know what someone's journey has looked like until you ask.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_07: And today, the microphone belongs to the community.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_07: Let's start with those big leaps.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_07: The moments we decide to do something different, even when we're not entirely sure where it'll take us, some are life-changing, and others are things we never expected.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_07: As our first contributor reminds us, there's absolutely no age limit on starting something new.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_07: Here's Nikki.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_05: Hi, I'm Nikki Edwards.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_05: I'm starting again, sorry about that.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_05: I am the founder and director of Water for Wellbeing CIC.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_05: We run open water dips and cold water immersion in the natural environment in the Lake District to help people improve their mental health and well-being.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_05: I'm going to talk about one thing I've learned from my journey so far, and that thing is you are never too old, at the ripe old age of 62, of actually going into a new venture that you feel really passionate about and you want to give something back in a positive way.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_05: And as a sidekick from that, I think it's great to learn, and I've maybe learned this late in my life, is that asking for help to become part of a kind of a community of professional women who support each other is one of the best ways to reach out and get that success because you find out that you're not alone and that you can empower one another with focused skills, knowledge, and your motivation.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_11: And now it's that's recording.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_01: So my first big leap was deciding at the age of 23 to pack up everything and move from Detroit, Michigan, where I was born and raised, and that was all I knew, and move to Los Angeles, California to pursue an acting career.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_01: Um and it was scary, but also really fun.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_01: And it was just like the beginning of my life really opening up.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_01: And I did do some acting.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_01: I was on some television shows, so that was quite cool.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but uh, you know, it it it was the beginning of me really getting to know myself and be the type of person that I really wanted to be, um, and yeah, have a whole bunch of adventures.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_11: So hi, my name's Shanid, and I'm a business analyst.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_11: Uh my first big leap was probably a couple of years ago when I left um a big corporate company that I'd been used to working for for 20 years and went to start as a consultant in a small startup company.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_11: I was the only fourth member of staff and the first female, um, which was really out of my comfort zone, um, but actually really um enjoyed it.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_11: The only thing is I realised um that it was quite isolated.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_11: I was used to being um surrounded by people and that um I got my energy um from being my people uh and this job involved working remotely, bottom night at the time, and that just didn't really suit um me, but it took me to do that to realise that, and I'm now back on a path um working for uh a larger company, um but I've really learned a lot for myself from that doing.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_10: And my name is Neil, I work for anti racist Cumbria.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_10: I've got a background and I in youth and community work, and I've loved working with communities all different kinds for many years.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_10: Um my first big leap, I don't know why I picked that now, now I think about it, because I haven't thought that through.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_10: I guess my first big leap was going into community working when I w decided to take a job working with an organisation that was right space for people with learning disabilities.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_10: Um it was uh something completely out of my comfort zone, but completely transformed a career path if I've got such a thing.
• 6:05
  SPEAKER_10: Um taking me away from the corporate sector into working with communities and also looking at how people who are somewhat marginalized and voices are not heard in communities, how they can actually raise their voices if we listen to them.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_10: I think my first big link also became uh a career pathway that I'm still on now and passionate about.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_13: Um and I just wanted to give a little offering.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_13: Um The prompts are complex in that that um I'm not sure quite which thing to talk about.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_13: So I thought I would talk about the last three years of doing the green screen climate conscious cinema.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_13: Um my first big leap was um the opportunity to show a film with some panelists talking about the film afterwards, um, just after a big environmental activism march in London three years ago.
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_13: And since then we've shown films almost every month, um, a variety of different topics, fiction and documentary, across a whole range of topics, including uh farming, uh regenerative farming, uh the cloth the the problems with fast fashion, the degradation of the environment, the plastic in the ocean.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_13: And it's been an amazing journey because one of the things that I learned was that people are really interested in talking about their specialist topic, and what I need to do is to continue to try and be brave in just asking for help.
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_13: Um, so we've had yeah, amazing authors, directors, actors, all sorts of people who have spoken at the and as well as well as local community leaders and local activists.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_13: So it's been great, and as I say, the one thing I learned was to be brave and just take a punt because you never know what might happen.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_13: And that's it.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_07: It's funny, isn't it?
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_07: We spend so much time thinking about taking that first big leap, but what happens afterwards?
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_07: Because making the decision is one thing, figuring out where you're going, whether it still feels right, and occasionally changing your mind altogether, that's a whole other adventure.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_07: So let's hear from a few people about the paths they're now on.
• 9:06
  SPEAKER_14: Okay, hi.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_14: So the path I'm on now is um embracing being self-employed.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_14: It's the first year I've gone fully self-employed, um, which is terrifying and also really exciting.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_14: Um, yeah, lots of of interesting thoughts have come up with this journey.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_14: I and I feel like I just I'm wanting to trust my trust the process and um grow and be more authentic and trust that my passions and things that I'm passionate about is gonna come come to something um and see see where that goes.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_14: And it's Lauren.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_14: Okay, bye.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_08: Hi so Kenya.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_08: This is Claire Steele from Low Creative Studio.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_08: Just want to say congratulations on season three of the podcast.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_08: Um really looking forward to listening to all the episodes and hearing all the local voices.
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_08: Uh just want to say thank you so much for the opportunity to design your website.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_08: It's been a real pleasure working with you and helping you to develop a space that gives local voices the chance to be heard.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_08: Um I am founder and creative director at Low Creative Studio.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_08: We're a certified B Corporation on a mission to help businesses and organizations make a real difference for people on the planet.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_08: We're a full-service design studio providing a range of services from brand identities, print marketing and communications to websites and digital experiences.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_08: Our expertise also extends to life-scale graphics, interpretation, and event displays.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_08: Um you've asked us to reflect on one of your questions, and for me it's about the path I'm on.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_08: Although I wouldn't really call it a path, it feels much more like an ongoing journey with no clear end.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_08: Last year, my business became a certified B corporation, which was absolutely amazing.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_08: And it meant I could fully align my work with my personal values.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_08: Uh in practice, this means we consider the social environmental impact of everything we do.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_08: So, from the way everything runs in the studio to the effect every client project has on people and planet.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_08: Uh so, for example, in a website design work, we use a green hosting company and we also optimize every site to use less energy and to reduce fewer emissions.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_08: We also assess the carbon footprint of every website we create.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_08: We can compare it either to the global average or if a client had a previous site, then we can see how much our redesign has reduced the digital footprint.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_08: When it comes to printed projects, we prioritise working with printers who share our sustainability values.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_08: We also use a six-point checklist to make sure every printed product we produce is as responsible and low impact as possible.
• 11:42
  SPEAKER_08: As I said at the beginning, this is a path, well, a journey with no clear end.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_08: When I first started out, I wanted definitive answers, I wanted fixed solutions I could repeat for every client, for every project.
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_08: But I have realized that just simply not going to be possible ever.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_08: Everything's always changing.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_08: I'm constantly learning new things, I'm always adapting, technology is always evolving.
• 12:05
  SPEAKER_08: Um it just feels like this path will go on forever.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_08: Um, but it's the path of chosen, and I love it.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_08: I love making a difference for people and for planets, what keeps me going.
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_08: And I'm just so happy, Sir Kenya, that you have been able to share part of that journey with me.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_08: Anyway, I just want to say congratulations again, and I really look forward to watching Sir Kenya the podcast grow.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_08: Okay, bye.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_10: That is that is for using now.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_02: So, my name is Michelle Russell.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_02: I'm an illustrator and author and publisher based in Carlisle.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_02: The uh companies that I co-founded with Richard O'Neill is called Trails of Tales, where we help um schools, individuals, businesses share their voice through books.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_02: The path that I'm on now is um it's a bit like a hobby in a sense because it's not my proper job.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so I'm really passionate about community and supporting the community to celebrate um what happens in the community.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_02: So September we celebrated World Funfair Month, and it was amazing, all the businesses that came together, organisations.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_02: Um so the path is to build on that.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_02: Um the challenge that I'm hoping that Sakania will actually accept is linked to a life-changing experience that I had um having an emergency surgery for Cordraquina.
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_02: My mobility is very restricted, and um I have two mobility scooters, and I'm welcoming Sakania to have a go on my um spare mobility scooter and not necessarily join me for a walk but a ride around Carlisle.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_02: Hope you'll take the challenge up, Sakanya.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_02: Bye for now.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_02: He's nice, um Neil.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_10: And I very much support Michelle's challenge to get Sakany into the podcast world using wheels as well as walking.
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_10: And look forward to hearing about that in season four.
• 14:27
  SPEAKER_00: So uh yeah, here we are at your launch of your third series.
• 14:30
  SPEAKER_00: It's brilliant to see you doing so well, and and it's a real honor to have been part of your first series.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I'm Neil, by the way.
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_00: Um uh my my the path I'm now on, or the thing that I've learned from my journey, maybe it's a bit of both.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um I'm actually about to retire from my day job in April next year.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um I've just been talking to uh Simon here about what I'm doing next.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so I'm Chair of Trustees at Ford Park in Elverston.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_00: We've actually been fortunate enough just to get some some money to build a new community room.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: So the thing I'm going to be doing now is contracting to build the new community room and actually hopefully using a lot of the skills um and uh that I've learned during my working life and applying them to um the charity and the community.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_00: And um, maybe we'll see you there.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_00: Come to Ford Park.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you very much.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_07: One thing I'm learning from all these conversations is that nobody really has it all figured out.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_07: And thank goodness for that, because I certainly haven't.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_07: But every experience teaches us something.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_07: Sometimes about ourselves, sometimes about the people around us, and occasionally about what we really don't want to do again.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_07: So, what have we learnt along the way?
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_12: Hello, my name is Lynn, and I help people make sense of food, and I help them find their way back to simple, real, good foods.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_12: And one thing that I've learned from my journey over the last seven years is that before we can make changes, the most important questions I ask is what story do you tell yourself?
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_12: So that goes back to who we are as a person and what kind of relationship we have with food and also what makes us choose the way that we eat and basically fuel our system and help us to be the person that we are.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_12: And finding your way back to good simple foods is usually one of the most valuable life skills that can be learned along the way.
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_12: So that's me.
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_09: Hi, I'm Simon.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_09: Um I work in project management, which isn't as dull as it sounds.
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_09: Um I guess let me see.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_09: So one one thing I've learned from my journey, which actually I'm I'm learning now, so I'm 47, and um it's amazing how much stuff you still can learn when you're this old.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_09: Um and actually the main thing I'm learning is that um actually change is really possible, and it's all about a mindset, it's all about sort of looking for ways and help and encouragement and actually just kind of considering that everything is possible and actually looking for the brighter things in life and um and yeah, looking forward to like just doing things differently and spontaneity and stuff by that, whether it's at home or whether it's at work, you know, the the world is full of possibilities.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_09: Bright horizons.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_03: I think this is version number three.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_03: So um, yeah, so my name is Kerry Howarth, and I am a primary art and design specialist.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_03: I run a little business called Primary Art Schools where I work with teachers and schools um across the Northwest and further afield, um upskilling them and helping, supporting them to teach really high quality and brilliant art and design in their primary schools.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_03: Art and design is such an important subject um to help children to um express themselves and um to develop lots of transferable skills um um and to explore their own creativity.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_03: So, you know, my one thing I've learned, one thing I'm learning um is not to be quite so um to be quite such a perfectionist, although that's not boarding well.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_03: I think since this is my third attempt um at famous podcast, but um, you know, onward and upward.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_04: Hello, this is Alison McGee Barker here from I think it's gonna be the one thing I've learned from my journey.
• 19:07
  SPEAKER_04: There's many things I've learned from my journey, but the one thing that I've learned from my journey is surround yourself with the most important people in your life to help and keep you going when things get really tough.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 19:22
  SPEAKER_04: But the top five people you surround yourself with is who you become.
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_04: And for me, that is the most important is surrounding yourself with a great community, which you've done, and I'm mega grateful for having you in my community as well, and being in yours.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_04: And and I'm so blessed because for me, having having amazing people surrounding yourself with you, you become a better person than you find yourself.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_04: So thank you.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_06: Hi, my name is Karen G, and I run Cycles Brock, the family cycling website.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_06: And one thing I've learned from my journey is that when it starts to feel really, really difficult and hard and scary, that's usually when some great change is about to happen, and you need to just persevere through it, be brave, and you'll come out the other side stronger, um more positive, and with something great happening.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_07: Well, what a lovely collection of voices.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_07: A huge thank you to everyone who picked up that dictaphone and shared a little piece of themselves.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_07: Listening back, it occurred to me that we spend so much time looking at where people have ended up, whether that's their jobs, their businesses, the things they've achieved.
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_07: But how often do we stop and ask about the journey that got them there?
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_07: The decisions that didn't quite work out, the people who helped them along the way, the moments they surprised themselves, and the times that they had to start again.
• 21:04
  SPEAKER_07: There's something rather lovely about those three little prompts, isn't there?
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_07: And actually, they connect beautifully with the themes that have emerged from season four.
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_07: Finding your voice and identity, courage, change, and growing into ourselves, and community and what comes next.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_07: 16 guests and walks, and a whole lot of new conversations ready to be shared.
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_07: Our first walk drops on the 29th of October with the wonderful Mina Princeade.
• 21:40
  SPEAKER_07: And for the first time, you'll be able to watch the walks as well as listen.
• 21:46
  SPEAKER_07: But before we head off on that adventure, I've got three questions for you.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_07: What's the leap you've taken that you're quietly proud of?
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_07: Are you on a path that feels right for you?
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_07: Or one you've simply become used to?
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_07: And what's something you've learned about yourself that you wish you'd known a little sooner?
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_07: I'd love to hear your answers.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_07: So come and find me on social media and join the conversation.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_07: And if you've enjoyed these stories, please follow the podcast, leave a rating or review, and share this episode with someone who might appreciate a little encouragement.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_07: Those small acts of sport really do make a difference to an independent podcast like mine.
• 22:31
  SPEAKER_07: And a huge thank you to a band called Persimmon for the music and to every single person who's been part of this wonderful community over the past two years.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_07: Here's to the next chapter.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_07: Until next time, keep walking, keep talking, keep moving, keep making space for stories.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_07: Because your story might be exactly what someone needs to hear today.