Notes From The Not There Yet – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Technical and general information from the podcast's RSS feed.

Notes From The Not There Yet

Bethany Wright

Society & Culture

Frequency: 1 episode/11d. Total Eps: 28

Notes from the Not There Yet is the podcast for anyone navigating life’s messy middle - not lost, not arrived, just not there yet. Hosted by Bethany Wright, founder of The Not There Yet Project, this show brings you honest conversations, unpolished stories, and practical tools for finding meaning, belonging, and growth in your 30s, 40s, and beyond. Each episode dives into the real journeys of creatives, solopreneurs, leaders and seekers from Manchester, across the UK, and globally - people balancing work and wellbeing, chasing joy, and rewriting success on their own terms. From overcoming imposter syndrome and anxiety, to rebuilding after loss, pivoting careers, or launching side hustles, our guests share the truths behind their transitions and the courage it takes to keep going. Expect raw reflections, resilient voices, and relatable insights on purpose, identity, business, self-development, and wellbeing. Whether you’re sat in a Manchester café, commuting through London, or tuning in from anywhere in the world, this podcast is your reminder that you don’t need to have it all figured out to create a life that feels real. Because growth lives here - in the in-between. Life transitions, 30s podcast, 40s podcast, Manchester voices, UK podcast, imposter syndrome, side hustles, purpose, resilience, creativity, self-development, entrepreneurship, belonging, messy middle, personal growth podcast, health & fitness.

Recent rankings

Latest chart positions across Apple Podcasts and Spotify rankings.

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

No recent rankings available

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Links found in episode descriptions and other podcasts that share them.

See all

https://notthereyetproject.co.uk/
6 shares
https://www.zevabellel.com/
2 shares
https://fourriversretreat.com/
2 shares

https://www.instagram.com/notthereyetproject

RSS feed quality and score

Technical evaluation of the podcast's RSS feed quality and structure.

See all

RSS feed quality

To improve

Score global : 38%

Publication history

Monthly episode publishing history over the past years.

Year

Latest published episodes

Recent episodes with titles, durations, and descriptions.

See all

"The Woman Behind Door #2": Zeva Bellel on Trusting the Life You Can't Fully Explain

Season 1 · Episode 27

Tuesday, September 1, 2026 • Duration 01:53:51

Episode description

Zeva Bellel has spent her adult life following the same pull more than once: toward a truer version of herself, even when it meant leaving what was stable and secure. First it was a one-way flight from Brooklyn to Paris at twenty-five. Then it was walking away from a decade in journalism to build her own blog from scratch. Then, after ten years at Yelp building a marketing team from nothing, she was made redundant in one of the company's most brutal rounds of layoffs - and instead of going back into marketing and community, she retrained as a certified career and leadership coach.

In this conversation, Zeva talks about the pull toward France that started with a French TV programme in a Brooklyn classroom, what it actually felt like to be jobless on a friend's couch in Paris at twenty-five with no plan, the manager who taught her everything about how not to lead, and the single phone call that ended her time at Yelp for good. She also explains why she coaches women specifically, why "transformation" is almost never the lightning bolt it looks like from the outside, and what she's learned writing her first book.

Show notes

Zeva Bellel built a career across three countries and three completely different industries - journalism, tech marketing, and now coaching. Twice, she chose an uncertain, truer path over a stable one. The third time, the choice was taken out of her hands entirely - and what she did next is really the heart of this conversation.

This episode moves from a Brooklyn childhood shaped by a French TV programme, through a semester abroad that didn't go to plan, a one-way move to Paris at twenty-five, a decade building a career in magazines and blogging, ten years at Yelp that ended in a single phone call, and into the coaching practice, podcast and forthcoming book she's built since - instead of going back to marketing.

Themes:

Chasing an inexplicable pull toward another life, and trusting it anyway
What a toxic manager teaches you about the leader you want to be
Building something of your own from nothing, twice
"We're not a family" - what a mass redundancy teaches you about work
Choosing to coach women, and why self-trust is the real subject

Key Takeaways

Transformation is almost never a lightning bolt - it's a long, messy, doubt-filled process, and the myth that it should feel instant does real damage.
A company can be brilliant and still not be a family - you can love your colleagues completely and still recognise the difference.
A door closing on you without your permission doesn't mean you have no say in what happens next.
Watching a bad manager up close can teach you as much about leadership as a good one.
Coaching is fundamentally about helping someone trust that they already know what they want.

If this one landed, send it to a woman who's ever had a pull toward a different life she couldn't quite explain. Leave a review, or send us a message and tell us what stuck with you. And if you're new here, hit follow - Notes from the Not There Yet is out every two weeks.

Find the The Not There Yet Project:

Read moreCollapse

"You Don't Deserve to Know the Real Me": MAFS Holly Ditchfield on What the Cameras Didn't Show

Season 1 · Episode 26

Tuesday, August 18, 2026 • Duration 01:31:56

Episode description

Holly Louise Ditchfield found out she was pregnant at thirty-seven weeks. Not a missed period, not a hunch - thirty-seven weeks, with three left to go, after she'd poured water on the test hoping it would lie for her too.

Eight years later she built a business, Lash Lounge, from her bedroom, fitting clients around school pick-ups. And in 2024, at twenty-nine, she went on Married at First Sight and became the woman a lot of the country remembers for remembering who she was as she wrote 'Leave'.

In this conversation, Holly talks about what was really happening behind that decision, what the show didn't show, and the six months between filming ending and it airing, when no one around her knew where she'd been.

Holly also shares something she's never spoken about publicly before - a loss, and what happened on the exact same day one year later.

Now engaged to Aaron, training to be a midwife, and expecting twins, Holly talks about the difference between chasing fame and choosing yourself.

Show notes

Holly Ditchfield became a mum at sixteen with no warning at all, built a beauty business from her bedroom as a young single mother, and later became known nationally through Married at First Sight - a process she says she'd never repeat.

This conversation moves from a Greater Manchester and Yorkshire childhood through the relationship she left at twenty-one, the years spent building Lash Lounge from nothing, the reality of what happens once the cameras stop rolling, and a loss she's never spoken about publicly before - up to where she is now, expecting twins and training to become a midwife.

Themes:

Becoming a mother with no run-up, and what it costs to grow up in public
Building a business alone, and the "mum guilt" nobody warns you about
What reality TV is actually like once the cameras are off

"The Ultimate Ice Queen": Faye Roddy on What It Cost to Hold It All Together

Season 1 · Episode 25

Monday, August 3, 2026 • Duration 02:00:07

Episode description

Faye Roddy is a strategic business coach who built one of the UK's biggest cleaning franchises from nothing and sold it in a single thirty-minute meeting. But the version of Faye people see today didn't start in a boardroom. It started on market stalls in Salford, counting pennies for her mum at ten years old.

In this conversation, we go back to the decision that shaped everything, leaving school at fifteen, and the year that nearly broke her: becoming a mum at twenty-two, a medical emergency with her baby son that changed how she saw the world, and walking away from her marriage with £10,000 and nothing else. We talk about the fourteen years she spent building a flagship franchise business while quietly carrying a cancer diagnosis she kept from her own children. And we talk about the "ice queen" mask - what it costs to be the strong one, and what happens when you finally put yourself on the list.

Faye Roddy went from waiting tables in her mum's café at eight years old to building one of the UK's largest franchise businesses - and then walking away from it, twice: once when it was sold out from under her, and once by choice, on her own terms. This conversation moves from a Salford childhood built on graft and independence, through single motherhood and a secret cancer diagnosis, to the moment she handed her life's work to her team in a thirty-minute meeting - and what she's building now, for herself and for other women.

Themes:

Growing up "old-headed" - independence as both a gift and an armour
Becoming a mother, and nearly losing a child, at twenty-two
Rebuilding a life from a £10,000 car sale and nothing else
Building a flagship business while carrying a cancer diagnosis in secret
The "ice queen" mask, and what it costs to always be the strong one
Choosing to sell, choosing to develop others, and choosing freedom

"A Confusing Ethnic Concoction": Gemma Lees on Art, Identity, and Not Looking the Part

Season 1 · Episode 24

Monday, July 20, 2026 • Duration 01:08:53

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Gemma Lees is a performance poet, journalist, facilitator and fine art installationist from Bury - and a proud Romani gypsy. In this episode, she talks about growing up in a creative, self-employed Romani family, multiple breakdowns and period of homelessness in her early twenties, being diagnosed as dyslexic and dyspraxic at 21 and autistic at 41, and living with fibromyalgia after years of being dismissed by doctors. We talk about what people get wrong about Romani and Traveller identity, why she turns insults into material rather than shame, and how creativity - protest art, poetry, performance - became both her advocacy and her survival. She wants her work to make people "laugh till they cry, and cry till they act."

SHOW NOTES

Gemma Lees is a performance poet, journalist and installation artist who has spent her career turning her own story - Romani identity, late diagnoses of autism and fibromyalgia, a breakdown and homelessness in her early twenties - into work that dispels myths and refuses to be quiet about it. This conversation moves from an oral storytelling childhood through a difficult chapter at university, to the funeral that brought her back to creativity, to the advocacy and installation work she's building now.

Themes:

Romani and Traveller identity, and the myths that surround it
Late diagnosis (autism at 41, fibromyalgia after years of being dismissed)
Creativity as both advocacy and catharsis
Rebuilding after a breakdown, one decision at a time
Turning insults and stereotypes into material, not shame

Key Takeaways

You don't have to look like what people expect your identity to be for it to be real.
Creativity isn't a luxury - for Gemma, it's advocacy, protest, and catharsis all at once.

"That's Such a Cheap Shot": Jenny Marshall on the Crisis She Didn't See Coming

Season 1 · Episode 23

Monday, July 6, 2026 • Duration 01:50:58

Episode Summary

Jenny Marshall has spent close to twenty years in mental health and seven years in private practice, working with people at every point on what she calls "the spectrum" - from quiet, low-level dissatisfaction to something far more serious when it's left unheard.

In this episode, Jenny takes us back to the school reports that called her a "classic underachiever," through the acute eating disorders unit she walked into at 23 with no idea what she was signing up for, to the traumatic birth that made her, for the first time in her career, the person in crisis instead of the one holding it together.

We talk about the marriage, the senior NHS role and the M&S-stocked fridge that looked like having it all and felt like nothing at all, and why she walked away from all three at once. Jen also takes apart the stereotype of the older man with a notepad and a couch, and makes the case that you don't have to be falling apart to deserve a space to talk.

Show notes

Integrative counsellor Jenny Marshall spent her career being the calm one in other people's crises until a traumatic birth put her on the other side of the bed and forced her to look at why "coping" had always come so easily.

This conversation moves from an underachieving childhood to an inpatient eating disorders unit at 23, through a marriage and NHS career that looked right on paper, to the moment Jen chose herself instead. Along the way, she and Beth take apart what people get wrong about therapists, and why "not there yet" isn't a crisis point - it's a spectrum.

Themes

Being "great in a crisis" as a learned response, not a personality trait
The gap between a life that looks right on paper and one that feels right underneath
Why therapy doesn't require a crisis to be valid
The stereotypes that keep people from asking for help
Choosing yourself as an act of showing your children something, not just yourself

If this one lands, send it to the friend who's always the calm one in a crisis. Leave a review, or send us a message and tell us what stuck with you. And if you're new here, hit follow - Notes from the Not There Yet is out every other Tuesday.

The Golden Buddha, the Avalanche, and Starting Over at 60

Season 1 · Episode 22

Monday, June 22, 2026 • Duration 01:29:40

Episode description
Janine Isaacs spent decades as a high-level medical negligence lawyer and property developer. Then at 60, she staged a revolution. She walked away from a 23-year emotionally damaging relationship, retrained as a transformative life coach, and decided to find out who she actually was underneath the decades of clay she'd built around herself.

In this conversation, we talk about the Golden Buddha - and why we spend half our lives covering ourselves in clay just to survive. We talk about the avalanche, and how to tell which way is up when your world is shifting beneath your feet. We talk about age being a myth, and why 60 is actually a brilliant time to be a newbie. And we talk about the grip of the messy middle, and how you can find your way back to yourself just by breathing.

This episode is for anyone who has ever lost themselves slowly, without knowing when it happened - and wondered whether it's too late to find out who they actually are.

Show notes:

In this episode, Bethany sits down with Janine Isaacs - transformative life coach, former medical negligence lawyer, and someone who made the most radical decision of her life at 60 - to explore what it really means to start over. Janine's story is not about a dramatic single moment of collapse. It's about the slow, process of losing yourself, and the equally slow, deeply intentional process of finding your way back.

Themes explored:

The golden Buddha - why we build layers of clay around ourselves and how to strip them back
Fear as the driver - how people-pleasing and avoidance lead to self-erasure
The night everything changed - and what it means when the walls close in
The avalanche - navigating complete chaos without knowing which way is up
Finding stillness - why doing is the wrong response when life falls apart
Age as a myth - starting a business and a new life at 60

Mulberry Gate, Postnatal Depression and Selling My Way Out of £40k Debt with Tracey Longbottom

Season 1 · Episode 21

Monday, June 8, 2026 • Duration 01:20:57

Episode Description

We often look at tech founders as polished, unflappable architects of success. But before Tracey Longbottom co-founded Forsyte, disrupting the legal sector with her high-growth AI firm, she was a self-described childhood troublemaker kicked out of her home at 15. Facing £40,000 of university debt, Tracey backed herself, built a staggering sales career, and eventually built a powerhouse company. Yet behind the commercial metrics lies a raw, unfiltered story of massive personal trade-offs.

In this deeply honest conversation, Bethany and Tracey unpack "Mulberry Gate" - the exact moment a luxury handbag purchase triggered a divorce two months after marriage - alongside the reality of the domestic power dynamics that shift when a woman makes more money. Tracey shares her raw experience with severe postnatal depression, the claustrophobia of feeling like a "vessel" during pregnancy, and why she proudly put her daughter into childcare at three months old to reclaim her mind and her career. We also dive into what it means to be a direct, ambitious woman in a male-dominated tech space, and why true success requires accepting that you simply cannot have it all.

This conversation is a supportive, un-sanitised hug for any woman who has ever worried that her fierce ambition makes her a bad version of what society expects a woman to be.

Show Notes

Bethany is joined by Tracey Longbottom, co-founder of Forsyte, to tear down the sanitised myth of the "perfect female founder". Moving from her working-class roots in Bradford to high-stakes legal tech boardrooms, Tracey reflects on how early family rebellion prepared her to break corporate rules, how financial independence shifts relationship dynamics, and the immense mental load of balancing a scaling business with motherhood.

Themes Explored

The Roots of Rebellion: Growing up as the anti-authoritarian "black sheep" in a traditional police officer’s household.

19 Stories Later: What the Messy Middle of Adulthood Actually Is

Season 1 · Episode 18

Tuesday, May 26, 2026 • Duration 37:36

Episode Description

To celebrate our landmark 20th episode, host Bethany Wright delivers the ultimate guide to the messy middle of adulthood, synthesising everything learned over the first seven months of powerful, honest conversations. Moving past the multi-millionaire overnight success stories that feel entirely out of reach, this special solo episode explores the real, day-to-day psychological transitions we all face when life looks great on paper but feels disconnected underneath.

We walk through the six distinct themes defining modern adulthood - from breaking made-up societal timelines and overriding our biological fear of uncertainty, to managing identity shifts and choosing human presence over digital validation. Bethany frames this phase not as a midlife crisis, but as a midlife awakening. This episode is for anyone who has ever done well on paper but found themselves asking: Is this really the life I want?

Episode Summary

In this special 20th milestone episode, Bethany reflects on the first seven months of Notes from the Not There Yet Project. Sharing the raw story of her own emotional breakdown in Scotland that catalysed this platform, she maps out the collective wisdom gathered from 19 past conversations. This solo episode reframes the messy middle as an ongoing, evolving journey through adulthood, offering a strategic toolkit to help you navigate pivots with clarity and intention.

Themes Explored

Theme 1: Timelines & The Rules We Break – Recognising that traditional milestones are utterly made up and that it is never too late to retrain or start over.
Theme 2: Tearing Up the Script – Understanding the neuroscience behind our fear of uncertainty and entering the highly creative "Neutral Zone".
Theme 3: Identity - The Loss and Rebirth – Moving past identity foreclosure and utilising the "portfolio approach" to diversify self-worth across values and interests.

The Mirror in the Sky | Lou Desborough: Astrology, Identity & The Midlife Pivot

Season 1 · Episode 19

Monday, May 11, 2026 • Duration 01:51:13

In this episode, we talk to Lou Desborough, founder of Cosmic Kinship, about her transition from a 25-year career in design to becoming a professional astrologer. Lou shares the raw reality of navigating the "messy middle" - balancing the grief of losing a parent with the demands of motherhood and the internal "chatter" that tells us we aren't good enough to pivot.

We explore astrology as "The Mirror in the Sky" - a language for self-understanding that helps us navigate identity shifts and understand the "default settings" of those we love.

This episode is for you if:

You feel like your life looks "perfect on paper" but feels unsettled underneath.
You are navigating a career pivot or a "beginner" phase in midlife.
You are curious about how ancient tools can provide modern clarity.

Episode Show Notes

Lou Desborough joins Bethany to discuss the "slow eroding" of her identity in her early 40s and how astrology provided the language she needed to rebuild. From the grit of the design industry to the depth of birth charts, Lou explores how we can use our "blueprint" to find balance and grace in the juggle of adulthood.

Themes Explored:

The "Sliding Doors" of Career: Navigating the path from Art School to professional astrology.

Grief as a Catalyst: How the vulnerability of a parent's illness puts professional "deadlines" into perspective.

The Perfectionism Trap: Moving from "1000% effort" to the mantra of "done is better than perfect".

Parenting without a Manual: Using astrology to recognize the innate nature of our children rather than trying to change them.

Finding Your 'Positive Mindful Attitude' with Carla Bentele

Season 1 · Episode 18

Monday, April 27, 2026 • Duration 01:17:57

Episode Summary

Carla Bentele, designer and founder of All About Me, shares her journey from navigating redundancy in the London fashion world to reclaiming her creativity in the North. We explore the reality of losing a professional identity you loved, the "deathbed" perspective that helped her take a leap, and how she built a brand rooted in mindfulness and community.

Show Notes: An honest conversation about ambition, creativity, and learning to build a life that actually fits who you are.

Themes Explored:

Redundancy and Identity: What happens when the job you built your life around disappears.
The "Deathbed" Perspective: Using a long-term view to make brave short-term decisions.
Starting Again: The reality of launching a business while navigating motherhood and a new area.
Manifestation: How vision boards and belief can guide your next chapter.

If this conversation resonates, share it with someone navigating their own messy middle.

Notes From The Not There Yet – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Notes From The Not There Yet – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Other43

Instagram12

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Other43

Instagram12

LinkedIn9