This edition of Working Hard was originally sent on 28/07/26
Hello!! Hope you’re having a good start to your week.
We’re in the final approval stages before I head off on maternity leave and the planning document is currently sitting at 30 pages long. THIRTY. I keep opening it thinking, surely we’re nearly there now, and somehow another section has appeared. So if this email finds me sounding ever so slightly unhinged... that’s why.
To add to the week’s entertainment, I’ve noticed a flower growing out of my brand new skirting board. On one hand, lovely. Very whimsical. Cottagecore. On the other... why is there a flower growing through my house? Where are you coming from?
At this point I have accepted that someone, somewhere, has a voodoo doll of me. If that’s you, could you please brush its hair while you’re at it? Thanks.
Thankfully, my husband came home from work with flowers (the much more welcome kind), and it completely changed my day. It sounds like such a small thing, but it reminded me how much the right person can soften a difficult week without even really trying.
Which is actually what made me want to record this week’s podcast.
I know it might sound slightly insufferable to do an episode called How to Marry Well, but I get asked all the time about dating and finding the person you want to spend your life with. And whilst there’s definitely an element of luck to any meeting, looking back, there were some really important things I had to learn, and just as importantly, unlearn, before I met him.
So this week’s podcast episode is everything I wish someone had told me about dating, choosing a partner and building a relationship that genuinely makes your life easier, not harder.
Anyway, I hope your week has involved fewer mysterious flowers growing through your floor than mine has.
If you loved this week’s episode and want to dive deeper into the psychology behind healthy relationships, these are the books that informed so much of the conversation. They cover everything from attachment styles and relationship science, to why we make the choices we do, and what actually makes partnerships last.
Happy reading 🤍
Attached by Amir Levine & Rachel Heller
Wired for Love by Stan Tatkin
The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work by John Gottman
The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz
If you haven’t watched the full episode yet, I’ve dropped it below.
I honestly think making friends in your twenties is way harder than anyone prepares you for, especially after a move. At uni you’re surrounded by people your age every day, then suddenly you’re expected to magically have this amazing social life without any of that built in. So firstly, don’t take it as a reflection of you. I think way more people in London feel like this than you’d ever realise.
The thing that changed my perspective was realising you don’t actually need to go looking for friends, you need to go looking for places where you’ll see the same people every week.
That’s how adult friendships happen. Join something you’d genuinely enjoy, become a regular, and don’t be afraid to make the first move. Honestly, most people are just waiting for someone else to suggest the coffee afterwards. It feels awkward for about 30 seconds, but it could genuinely change your life.
If you’re seeing this before the 8th of August, I need you to do one specific exercise. I come back to it every single year, and I don’t say this lightly, but I genuinely think it’s changed my life.
I’ll go into more detail next week…
I hope you have a wonderful week & I’ll see you very soon,
