Turning 30 Podcast

If you've been doing all the inner work- the journaling, the therapy, the mindset shifts- and still feel like you're spinning in the same old patterns, this episode is for you. It's all about how sometimes the missing piece is changing your environment. So much can happen and shift when you switch up where you are and who you surround yourself with. I'm joined by my incredibly wise friend Jelena, who has been on the podcast so many times we've lost count, and honestly, our conversations never get old. We recently reunited in Thailand and I knew after our time together it was time to record another episode. The topic we're diving into today is one that I think is genuinely underrated in the personal development world: your environment. We talk a lot about doing the internal work, but what happens when that work isn't landing because everything around you is still keeping you stuck? Jelena spent 15 years in corporate banking in London before her life completely turned upside down at the end of her twenties. Her thirties have been a radical journey of self-discovery, moving countries, changing her entire social world, and stepping into her calling as a somatic coach and breathwork facilitator. We met on a trip to Costa Rica when both of us were in moments of real transition — and that trip itself is actually a perfect example of what this episode is all about. In this episode we cover: Why doing the inner work alone isn't always enough — and what the missing piece so often is Jelena's fish-in-dirty-water analogy that will genuinely change how you think about personal growth The nervous system piece: why your body keeps dragging you back to old patterns even when your mind knows better How both of us have used new environments as a catalyst for massive life change Why retreats are such a powerful incubator — and what makes a transformational coaching retreat different from a regular wellness trip The magic of being in a room with women who are walking the same path as you Jelena's experience co-hosting the Align Retreat with me in 2023 — and why the friendships formed there are still going strong Following your breadcrumbs and trusting the nudges that lead you somewhere new ✨ Ready to change your environment? The Turning Retreat is your invitation. Everything we talked about in this episode: the power of new environments, the incubator effect of retreats, the transformation that happens when you're surrounded by women doing this work , that is exactly what I've designed the Turning Retreat to be. October 4–10, 2026 | Koh Samui, Thailand A week inside one of the most stunning wellness resorts on the island, nestled in the jungle and minutes from where I actually live. We're going to go deep - somatic work, a transformational coaching program written by me, a cacao ceremony, a floating sound bath, and breathwork and energy healing with our incredible guest facilitator Kady Gummerson We have a beautiful group of women already booked in, and there are still spots left. If something in this episode is pulling you toward it, that's not an accident. It's divine timing! For more information: see the retreat details ⁠https://www.turning30coach.com/turningretreat2026⁠ Book a retreat consult call with me: https://calendar.app.google/TZ2xSbfuqoaBDr6k7 Connect with Jelena: Find her previous episodes linked below: including the very first one we recorded together that broke my download records. And if you're a facilitator, spaceholder, yoga teacher, or therapist, go check out her Step Up programme and her breathwork teacher training (next in-person cohort in Ibiza, September). https://www.andalso.space/breathworkteachertraining

Introducing my brand new free workshop, Quit Dating: How to Find Love in Your 30s by Quitting Dating. 🎥 Watch it here for free before July 2nd. If dating apps have started to feel sticky, draining, or like they're just not working no matter how much effort you put in, this episode (and the workshop) will explain why "trying harder" is rarely the answer, and what to do instead. In this episode: Why I believe dating isn't actually a numbers game — and why cookie-cutter 2026 dating advice misses the point The Kabbalah concept behind why effort alone doesn't bring love closer The real story of quitting the apps the week before my 35th birthday — and meeting my husband three months later An invitation to stop forcing what's depleting you and start refilling your own cup instead ☀️ Join the Summer of You challenge inside Turning — starting July 6th. Eight weeks of daily journal prompts, weekly pep talks from me, and a 24/7 community of women doing the work alongside you. You'll declare your skill to master, your experience to have, your connection to focus on, your boundary to set, and your daily habit to stick to. Doors close again July 6th.

THE TURNING RETREAT 2026: KOH SAMUI, THAILAND If this episode resonates with you, I want you to know about something very special... This October, I'm hosting a 7-day immersive coaching and wellness retreat for women in their 30s at Absolute Sanctuary in Koh Samui, Thailand. October 4-10. Daily coaching, breathwork, yoga, a floating sound bath ceremony, Thai cooking, and a closing beach ceremony at sunset. All meals, accommodation, and airport transfers included. This is the kind of portal-opening, soul-level work we talk about in this episode, but in person, surrounded by 16 incredible women. 5 spots are already filled. Early bird pricing ends soon - these are the final days to book at the special rate. Only 11 spots remaining. Book your spot now: https://www.turning30coach.com/turningretreat2026 ABOUT THE EPISODE: I recorded this episode while on a solo trip in Vietnam. I was cycling through the rice paddy fields in Hoi An when it hit me: how did this moment become available to me? How did I create a life where this was even possible? And that's what I want to talk about today. The portal of possibility, and how to open it so you can stop living the life you were taught to want and start living the life you actually desire. What we cover: Why most of us are manifesting from the wrong place. We're manifesting from inside a small box of social conditioning, timelines, and expectations that were never ours to begin with. The portal of possibility. What it is, how I first opened it in my own life, and how you can too. The difference between what you want and what you've been taught to want. This is deeper than it sounds, and it's often the reason manifestation doesn't work. Why it doesn't need to make logical sense. Your soul didn't come here to live out the path laid out by those who came before you. The vessel concept from Kabbalah. When your vessel is shaped by fear and conditioning, you attract experiences that match that, not what you actually want. How to know what you really want. It starts with asking: when do you feel most like yourself? What lights you up? When was the last time things felt in flow? Following the breadcrumbs. Your future self is constantly pulling you in the direction you're meant to go. The nudges aren't random. Listen to them. This episode is for you if... You're in the messy middle and not sure what you want next The path laid out for you feels boring, uninspiring, or just... not right There are things you want but you're afraid you can't have them You've been feeling stuck, funky, or like things aren't flowing You're ready to make a bold decision but need a nudge CONNECT WITH EMMA Instagram: @turning30coach Join the Turning Community waitlist Book the Turning Retreat: https://www.turning30coach.com/turningretreat2026

🌴 THE TURNING RETREAT 2026 — KOH SAMUI, THAILAND Before we dive in, I have something exciting to share. This October, I'm hosting a 7-day immersive coaching and wellness retreat for women in their 30s at Absolute Sanctuary in Koh Samui, Thailand. From October 4-10, 16 women will gather for daily coaching workshops, breathwork, yoga, a floating sound bath ceremony, Thai cooking, and a closing beach ceremony at sunset. All meals, accommodation, and airport transfers are included. This is not a passive holiday. It's a dedicated week to get clear, get grounded, and come home genuinely changed. Join at a very special early bird rate (ends June 2nd). Only 16 spots. Book your spot: https://www.turning30coach.com/turningretreat2026 This week I'm doing something a little different. I was a guest on Lucy's podcast, and we had such an honest conversation that I wanted to share it here too. Lucy is a therapeutic coach for women who excel at everything except relationships. After nine years on the trading floor, she found herself privately spiralling over situationships, emotional breadcrumbs, and relationships that never quite became what they promised. Work was easy to master. Intimacy was not. We talked about what it really felt like to be the single friend in our late 20s and early 30s, attending 13 weddings in one year, feeling like a spectator in other people's successes, and that hollow feeling of coming home after celebrating everyone else's milestones. What we cover: The birthday hole. That existential dread that hits on milestone birthdays and what it really meant for both of us turning 30. Being a spectator in other people's lives. The emotional rollercoaster of genuinely being happy for your friends while privately wondering when your life would start. The single friend identity. How being "the single one" becomes a protective armour that actually blocks us from love. Desire versus availability. Why wanting a relationship so badly doesn't mean you're actually open to receiving one. The transition nobody talks about. What it was really like going from thriving single woman to being in a relationship and having a baby in quick succession. The grief, the identity crisis, the feeling of betraying my previous self. Emotional childhood versus emotional adulthood. What it means to become emotionally mature and why your 30s are often when this shift happens. Why single women need single friends. Just like mums are encouraged to find their "mum crew," single women deserve the same permission to build community with people walking the same path. Retraining your brain to see good men. How our algorithms, both on social media and in our minds, can keep us stuck in the belief that there are no good men left. ABOUT LUCY Since 2021, Lucy has worked with high-performing women from organisations including BlackRock, J.P. Morgan, and Citigroup. Her work blends deep lived experience with world-class training from Layla Martin and Dr. Gabor Maté. CONNECT WITH EMMA Instagram: @turning30coach Join the Turning Community: https://www.turning30coach.com/turning-lp Book the Turning Retreat: https://www.turning30coach.com/turningretreat2026 If this episode resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share it with a friend who needs to hear it.

Have you ever wondered if love could actually find you somewhere you weren't even looking? This week I'm joined by Lauren Josephine: dating author, relationship coach, and someone who went on over 200 dates before meeting her husband... on Reddit. Lauren spent 10 years navigating the apps, the love bombing, the ghosting, and the heartbreak that so many of us know too well. In this episode, she shares honestly about what finally shifted for her, and why the answer wasn't another app or another strategy, but learning to trust herself. We get into so much in this conversation: How Lauren met her husband through a Reddit post about "the oversharing phenomenon" (yes, really) Why effort doesn't always equal results in dating, and the frustration that comes with that The moment she hit rock bottom and what changed because of it Shifting from external advice to internal guidance - and what that actually looks like day to day The honest conversation about men, emotional intelligence, and whether things are actually changing Why Lauren takes a middle-of-the-road approach to dating apps (and when she thinks it's okay to quit them) What the early stages of her relationship actually felt like, and why "calm" scared her at first The avoidant chapter nobody talks about when you finally meet someone good Why the work you do in your single chapter doesn't disappear when love arrives This is one of those conversations that will stay with you. Whether you're deep in your single chapter right now or just starting to think about getting back out there, Lauren's story is a reminder that love can happen in the most unexpected ways, and that your timeline is working for you, even when it doesn't feel like it. Connect with Lauren: 📖 Book — Looking for Something Serious: https://www.amazon.com/Looking-Something-Serious-Stories-Lessons/dp/B0CLZ3XS9R 📱 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lookingforsomethingserious/ 🌐 Website: https://lauren-josephine.com/ Want to work on your single chapter alongside 100+ women who get it? The Turning community is where we do exactly this together. Learn more: https://www.turning30coach.com/turning-lp The Turning 30 Podcast is hosted by Life Coach Emma Wilson.