If you’re going through redundancy, job searching, or career uncertainty, you might have noticed your brain doing something unhelpful-but-understandable: reaching for a fantasy that makes everything feel instantly safe.

This episode explores comfort fantasies after redundancy and how they can help you cope, until they quietly become a way of avoiding the present. I share a real example of how quickly “this is stressful” can turn into “it’ll be fine when X happens,” and why that mindset can keep you stuck in waiting mode.

You’ll learn how to spot the difference between enjoying vs waiting, what your comfort fantasy is actually trying to protect you from, and three practical steps to regain a sense of control without forcing yourself into relentless productivity.

If you’ve been feeling anxious, stuck, or like you’re buffering through life, this one’s for you.

Small talk is meant to be harmless. Weather chat. Mild nodding. A quick “busy week?” and everyone carries on with their life.

But in redundancy it can feel like a contact sport. Because one minute you’re making conversation at “the things” (kids clubs, dog walks, community stuff, awkward queues) and the next someone drops the trapped question:

'So… what do you do?'

In this episode I unpack the unspoken social contract of small talk and why redundancy makes the usual script feel loaded. We’ll cover:

• Why 'what do you do?' can feel like a landmine and the three ways people answer it (ghost job, honest answer, humour smoke bomb)

• Forced optimism (often genuine, sometimes… not what you need in that moment)

• Oversharing, and why 'how are you?' is basically code for 'please say fine'

Then I share a simple redundancy specific tactic: pre building one sentence you’re comfortable with, plus a few practical small talk tips you can use anywhere — including the days you’d rather throw a social smoke bomb and ninja roll your way to the biscuits.

And if you’re asking yourself now what, you’re in the right place.

Disappointed by a job rejection, a “thanks but no thanks” email, or life generally pressing the nope button? Same.

In this episode of Now What: Life After Redundancy, I talk through how I handle disappointment in real time from the job hunt trenches. Over the festive break I spotted a role that felt like a perfect fit, tailored my CV and cover letter like my future depended on it… and got rejected the next day. Which felt less like “careful consideration” and more like I’d been politely denied by an AI screening robot.

This isn’t a definitive guide to emotions (I am not the Jedi Council), it’s a “here’s what helps me” framework you can try when rejection stings and you still need to keep moving. I share a practical set of steps to process disappointment, separate facts from the spirally story in your head, take the lesson without turning it into self punishment, and do the next small thing even when your motivation is buffering like 90s dial up.

In this episode:

• How to process disappointment without pretending you’re fine

• Coping with job rejection and application ghosting

• A simple mindset shift: facts vs the story your brain invents

• Turning rejection into useful data (not a personal verdict)

• The “next tiny step” method to get back on the application horse

If you’ve been disappointed recently, leave a comment with what happened and what helped or just type a single word like blomonge and I’ll know you were here.

If you’re asking yourself now what… you’re in the right place

New year’s resolutions are meant to feel hopeful but somehow they often land like a performance review you did not ask for. In this episode I unpack why we love a fresh start, why January pressure is so loud and what a healthy resolution actually looks like when real life is tired, messy and occasionally held together by snack based optimism.

We talk about the difference between gentle intention and unnecessary self punishment, why most resolutions fail because they rely on motivation not systems and how this all hits differently when you are going through redundancy and trying to rebuild confidence without turning January into a second job.

You will leave with practical ways to set resolutions that support you, not ones that judge you, plus a few geeky pop culture detours because it would not be my podcast without them.

If you would like to support the show and help keep it going you can join us on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/cw/lifeafterredundancy

If you find yourself asking “now what?” you are in the right place.

'Tell us about a time you failed.'

It’s one of the most uncomfortable interview questions — and it hits even harder when you’re already navigating redundancy, uncertainty and too much thinking time.

In this episode, recorded in the strange Christmas in-between days, I talk about preparing for interviews while juggling festive chaos, worst-case scenarios, and the quiet pressure to have everything figured out. We unpack what interviewers are actually listening for when they ask about failure, why this question matters more during redundancy, and how to talk about mistakes without freezing, deflecting, or spiralling.

Along the way, Bradley joins me to break down the GROW coaching framework, a simple way to bring structure to reflection, rebuild confidence, and turn experience into something you can clearly articulate.

We also touch on the silent struggles people carry, especially at this time of year, and why checking in on those who seem 'fine' matters more than we realise.

Practical, reflective and quietly reassuring, this one’s for anyone asking themselves “now what?” after a career shake-up.

If you’d like to support the show and help keep it going, you can find us over on Patreon. It’s where I share a bit more of the thinking behind the episodes, some extra content and generally keep the lights on.

In today’s episode, we’re tackling the wild world of advice — the good, the bad, and the “did you really just tell me to manifest a new job?” variety.

Being made redundant seems to unlock a hidden level where everyone becomes a life coach, whether you’ve asked for it or not. So this episode breaks down how to figure out which advice is genuinely helpful… and which belongs in the recycling.

We’ll walk through a simple five-question filter you can use whenever someone lobs guidance your way:

• Is it relevant?
• Is it knowledgeable?
• Is it empathy or ego?
• Is it aligning with your values?
• Is it creating clarity or pressure?

If you can run advice through that little checklist, you’re already miles ahead — or at least less likely to end up making a vision board of things you absolutely do not want.

We’ve also got a contribution from Bradley, who’s sharing amazing wisdom nuggets that somehow manage to be insightful, comforting and ice hockey flavoured all at once. Standard Bradley behaviour.

And as always, if you’d like to support the show, help it keep going, or unlock the After Party episodes where I talk a bit more freely (sometimes too freely), you can hop over to Patreon .

Grab a brew, get comfy, and let’s untangle the difference between good advice, bad advice, and that mysterious advice someone once gave you that you’re still thinking about for all the wrong reasons.

Feeling stuck? Buying things you absolutely don’t need? Wondering why Amazon drivers now greet you by name?
Same.
In this episode, I dive into the very real (and very sneaky) world of dopamine chasing — the quick hits, the impulsive spending, the “this will fix me” purchases we all make when life feels uncertain, especially after redundancy.

We’re talking:
🎯 Self-soothing by shopping
🔄 The Amazon Prime shame cycle we pretend we’re not trapped in
🧠 The blurry line between comfort and coping
🎮 My completely unnecessary Nintendo Switch 2 upgrade
💭 And how nostalgia can tempt you into buying things that don’t actually help

This isn’t a lecture from someone who’s nailed it — this is me admitting I get this wrong a lot and have to remind myself why the dopamine hit never actually solves the bigger “now what?” feeling that redundancy leaves behind.

If the show has helped you, made you laugh, or just reminded you you’re not losing your mind… you can support it on Patreon.
I run everything myself, and your support genuinely makes it easier to keep the podcast going (and keeps me from panic-buying more tech I don’t need).
You can join here: patreon.com/cw/lifeafterredundancyIf you’re navigating job loss, low days, money worries, or just the overwhelming urge to buy something shiny to feel okay for five minutes… this one’s for you.

And if you’re asking yourself now what?
You’re in the right place.

Ever wondered how people manage to hold down two full-time jobs at the same time? Is it the rise of remote work? Witchcraft? A very understanding boss? Or just the modern equivalent of trying to dual-wield lightsabres without cutting off your own arm?

In this episode, I dive into the world of overemployment — the surprisingly common practice of running more than one full-time job simultaneously. The financial temptation is real (two salaries? Yes please), but the reality… well, it gets messy faster than a child changing their Christmas list after the Amazon cut-off.

I talk through:
✨ What overemployment actually is
✨ Why people do it (spoiler: money)
✨ And why I, personally, would crumble under the pressure like a poorly iced Yule log

If you’re navigating redundancy, curious about overemployment, or simply wondering what other people are doing to survive the modern job market — this one’s for you.