In this episode of 'More Than Work', Rabiah, an IT professional and stand-up comedian, talks to guest Sean Arkless about his journey from low self-confidence and working in retail to becoming the co-founder of Sjark Limited and vocalist of the London based band, 'Hello Amnesia'. Sean shares his experiences as a freelancer and his decision to start his own music production company. He also discusses his ongoing Master's degree in Musical Theater, the role of mentors in his career development, the value of being assertive and possessing a 'learn and seek' mindset. Sean's advice is to 'live fearl ..read more

This week’s guest is Mark Nicholas, comedian, comedy workshop leader and tutor.  After getting his comedy start while on an extended trip to Vietnam, Mark has been working his way around the London comedy circuit. He created his show Laugh-Able to be an inclusive space for acts with disabilities. Being autistic himself and coming from a family of those serving or caring for others with disabilities, he is an advocate and activist in that space. Before all of this, Mark started work he continues today. During college, he was working in a bar and realized it wasn’t for him when he saw an ad ..read more

This week’s guest is Dr. Jeanne Retief, founder of FIGGI. FIGGI a community created out of career change and wanting to share with others and be a support system, and self-care products. Dr. Retief earned a PhD in Human Rights and Criminal Law. And ran a Human Rights consultancy in South Africa for 13 years. After moving to her current location in Portugal, things changed for her, in more ways than one, including a diagnosis with panic disorder and founding a new company. Having already earned a PhD, she even went back to school to learn about cosmetic chemistry!  In this chat we talk abo ..read more

his week’s guest is Elizabeth Mhangami, social entrepreneur. Lizz grew up in Zimbabwe and moved to the US when she was 19. After working in various jobs including at the Chicago Athletic Foundation, she also earned her bachelor’s degree at Loyola University. She then started the job that would define her career so far, working with young people from underserved communities.  Prior to moving to the states the first time, Lizz was part of the Rotary international as a youth. Her later work with Rotaract started her thinking more about youth communities, especially at home. She founded Vanav ..read more

This week’s guest is Christopher Kenna, founder and CEO North America at Brand Advance Group.  In this open and honest chat we get into Chris’s life growing up in Northern England in care homes, his time in the Army, working as a TV presenter and then founding his own company. Listen for details. The story is best told by him! In discussing the important work of Brand Advance Group which seeks to expand representation in advertising and companies’ reach to underrepresented communities, Chris is generous in talking about the reality of being a person of colour and an LGBTQ+ person both ins ..read more

This week’s guest is Maz Alexander, social worker, mental wellbeing coach, comedian and passionate entrepreneur. Maz started out working as a social worker in adult social care. A thread you’ll hear in here story, and one to keep in mind as you listen, is that she listened to the advice of others when it made sense to and listened to herself as well when she decided on what work to pursue. Before her time in social work, Maz got a degree in performance arts and gave acting a go. Coming out of that, she was always passionate about drama therapy and using performing arts to help people in recove ..read more

This week’s guest is Rich Wilson, stand up comedian and host of the podcast Insane in the Men Brain. Rich did everything before he became a stand up comic having wanted to be a chef and then a mechanic. Eventually, he was a barman at Up the Creek and after some encouragement, took the stage. After about 20 years, he hasn’t stopped yet. The story is more entertaining with told by Rich so listen for more! In fact, the entire episode is funnier and more poignant than I can make it in this write up. We chat about: Rich’s career in comedy Comedic influences Louis CK Insane in the Men Brain and men ..read more

This week’s guest is Stefania Licari, actor, comedian, producer and medical doctor. She attended drama school, became a doctor working in anaesthetics and intensive care, and went to clowning school in Paris. We get into all of this and how empathy towards her colleagues, patients and the audience really tie it all together. During the pandemic, Stefania has a unique experience both working in medicine and as an actor doing online performances. She got through it with a mindset shift that she shares which would be useful for anyone at any time, even outside lockdowns. We start with her reflect ..read more

This week’s guests are James Cameron and Joe James from True Strays. True Strays is an Americana band.  I spoke with the guys in December of 2022. So, when they talk about “next year”, they mean this year, 2023. They are going on tour so check them out in the UK! If you’re not in the UK, then listen to them online. The childhood friends were recording their debut album when the pandemic hit in 2020 and had to figure out how to move forward. They launched a Kickstarter campaign and found success there and that they already had some great fans in their corner. Both of the guys work ful ..read more

This week’s guest is Sharon Glassman, designer, songwriter and founder of Smile Songs.  The Colorado-based Smile Songs incorporates all of Sharon’s talents into a line of musical cards and gifts. In addition to containing original music by Sharon, Smile Songs products are unique because they use QR codes to deliver the sound which is better for the environment than traditional musical cards that utilize plastic parts for example. Though QR codes are common place after 2020, she started using them in 2013 and we chat about that. In college, Sharon majored in journalism school. She then got ..read more