Appreciation is the theme of this week's episode. That's because it's Write A Letter Of Appreciation week. This appealed to TeeJay for a few reasons. Appreciation feels good when you give it and you receive it. How often do we tell people we appreciate them? And also who writes actual letters anymore?

Have you ever had "one of those days" where everything is a bit weird or things happen that don't normally happen? TeeJay has recently. It all began early in the morning, I mean early - 06.30am. And she can't get in to her car. It simply won't let her in, but the boot opens... She gets in eventually (you'll have to listen to find out how...) but oh no there are roadworks which means she's going to be late for her coaching call. Then there's another car moment, followed by a happy dance and a...

Please be aware this episode contains a frank conversation about suicide and thoughts of suicide. If you are struggling you can find details of organisations who can help you at the bottom of this page. This week TeeJay is talking to J Grange a 19 year old rap artist and songwriter. He's been through a few challenges in his time and in this episode he talks about his experiences at school which made him feel isolated, getting caught up in the wrong crowd outside of school and his mental...

Before we start you need to make sure you have tissues ready for this episode. There shouldn't be any tears, but there is a danger of snot... This week we're talking about something very important. Breathing. Yes of course you need to breathe to stay alive but how there's more to it than that. We often take breathing for granted because it's so automatic. Purposeful breathing has lots of benefits - it can bring you a sense of calm take you to a place of focus and ignite your energies...

With so many routines out of the window during lockdown sleep is becoming an issue. And of course the stresses and anxieties of the pandemic aren't helping either. So today TeeJay is looking at sleep. As a teenager (or adult...) you should be responsible for your own sleep patterns. You might be a night owl or an early bird. And there's no right or wrong type to be. A lack of sleep though is not good. It impacts on your physical and mental health.

Last week TeeJay talked about meditation. If you've been giving it a go don't worry if your thoughts keep popping in to your head while you're meditating. It happens to everybody - even TeeJay. This week the focus is on mindfulness. Mindfulness is all about being aware of the present moment, the right now and everything that you can experience in the moment. By doing this it will help distract you from all those other thoughts (all 60 thousand of them every day) that can take us off in a...

Mindfulness and meditation are two powerful tools in building resilience in children, teenagers and adults. Mindfulness is about noticing the moment, without judgement. It's just now. Meditation is emptying the mind of thoughts, doing and action. Instead of noticing what's going on it's about focusing on just one thing or thought. Mindfulness is more a way of living every day, meditation is more a thing you need to set a time to do. This week TeeJay focuses on meditation - the benefits,...

We're looking at resilience again this week because 2021 is demanding we are resilient. In particular we're exploring how to recognise what you can and what you can't control. So you can be responsible for the world you create inside you and around you. There are two types of people - reactive and proactive people. Reactive people feel out of control, things always happen to them and it's never their fault. Proactive people take responsibility for what they feel, how they show up and what...

It’s two years since The Spark To Your Success Podcast was born! Can you believe TeeJay has never missed a week (even in a pandemic) and has never run out of things to say either! TeeJay’s been looking back to see what she was talking about in January 2019. And it turns out it was resilience! How topical is that? We all need to keep our resilience in check and make sure we’re practicing the art of bouncebackability! It’s a very uncertain time right now but building resilience will help you...

Can you believe in the blink of an eye Christmas has passed and we’re now on the brink of 2021. TeeJay is taking a look back at 2020 but you won’t be hearing any negativity. There’ll be no moaning about covid and the pandemic. Not because it hasn’t been a tough year, but because by focusing on the bad stuff you run the risk of missing the magic that did happen in 2020. And TeeJay’s on a mission to prove there was a lot of magic. You’ll want something to make notes and your 2020 calendar,...

IT’S CHRISTMAS! And yes it’s not the Christmas anybody expected at the beginning of the year but it’s still Christmas. It will probably be a much quieter time so why not make the most of this time and create some time for you. TeeJay reckons 2020 has been a lot like a garden hose. No I’m not joking, she thinks it’s been like a garden hose. If you want to know why you’ll have to listen. So treat yourself to a bit of you time today!

Are you ready for Christmas, the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021? Well don’t worry TeeJay is here to help you with a few specials over the next couple of weeks. In today’s episode she’ll take you through letting go. No, there’s no Disney singing but you will hear how you can leave 2020 (and everything else) behind once and for all. And what better time of year is there to do this than now? So if you are ready to stop looking backwards and start moving forward this is the episode...

Welcome to a very special episode of Spark To Your Success! It’s the 100th episode! So what do you do for a celebration for a century of podcasts? Well TeeJay’s been reflecting a bit on the year. It’s been a challenging one for so many people. And whilst it’s been hard there has been so much goodness, kindness and thoughtfulness that maybe it’s not been all bad. Remember doing nice things for other people makes us feel good too. And the opposite is equally true. All this reflecting and...

Are you listening? I mean really listening. Not doing one, two or maybe three or four other things while listening to this podcast, audiobook or people talking to you? Sometimes it’s hard not to listen, especially when you’re not supposed to be listening! RIGHT! TeeJay’s talking listening in this episode because it’s a skill not everybody has. What about you? Are you always listening on the inside as well as listening on the outside?

When somebody begins a sentence “Can I be honest with you?” What’s your reaction? Surely everybody says yes? Right? Is the absence of honesty dishonesty? What’s the difference between being honest and perfectly honest? Is being honest about saying something uncomfortable to somebody. And in which case does that mean it’s ok to tell a little white lie? This episode is all about honesty and what it means and how telling a lie affects you mentally and physically!

It's all about bringing some balance to your life today. Yep, you've no doubt heard the phrases - "work life balance" "I feel off balance" "life is a balancing act" TeeJay looks at what balancing really means for us and whether balancing really is all an act!

What is the difference between what you value, the value you bring and your values Isn’t it the same thing?  In today’s episode TeeJay is celebrating her birthday by examining the things and people we value, the value we put on ourselves and our values. Why is it so important to know and understand the things we care about, the gifts we bring and the rules we make for ourselves? TeeJay explains how you can find your values and how understanding them will make getting along with yourself and...

There’s a new lockdown in England and it’s bringing out the gloom squad. TeeJay though does not want to join them. Instead she wants to be part of the Positive Squad And she wants you to join her and her friend Bob - remember him? He’s key to understanding how you are in control of how you react to situations, even if you don’t have control of the situations. You can read about him in this blog...

There's a lot around to dull your sparkle right now. In the UK the clocks have gone back which signals the start of winter, darker mornings and darker nights. More regions are going in to lockdown. And TeeJay fell out with a friend. Oh boy. But it's time bring some sparkle to the world. It doesn't matter where you are you can bring some sparkle. TeeJay explains how she is making a big effort to celebrate all the little and big things. And how you can too. It involves everything from a...

This week TeeJay is talking to Joe Yates. Joe is 19 and runs a business called Unknown Marketing with his business partner. The business has 6 staff and 37 regular clients. In this episode TeeJay finds out how he started the business, what he’s learned and special project called Safe Social. Safe Social is a project to help children understand the potential dangers of social media by training them how to use it better.  If you want to find out more about Safe Social visit the website...

So exactly what does a session with TeeJay look like? If you’ve ever wondered what it is that TeeJay does, how she works and if a session with her is right for you - this is the episode for you. Would it surprise you to find out she’s not a counsellor or a therapist. There’s nothing wrong with either of those but it’s not what TeeJay does. She’s a coach. Not a life coach but an empowerment coach! In fact she’s a master neuro strategist. That’s a posh way of saying she’s an expert in...

The 10th of October is World Mental Health Day. A day to take care of your mental health and build up some mental wealth. TeeJay thinks we should be doing that every day, not just saving it for once a year. But even TeeJay can have moments where she feels blah - including this morning on the drive to work in the dark and rain. So how can TeeJay feel good on the inside when the outside world is dark and grey? It’s all about noticing and acknowledging how you feel, then deciding if that’s what...

This is the fifth in Teejay’s mini series about body image. You’ll be making lots of notes in this episode because we’re adding self respect and self care to our self love list.

It's part 4 of our mini series about body image and self esteem. Today TeeJay looks at some of the ways you can work on improving how you feel about yourself and how you see yourself. The big focus is on self love - why it's essential and 11 ways you can start to like and even love yourself! You can get hold of the The Spark To Your Success book from Amazon (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Spark-Your-Success-Helping-Resilience/dp/178452915X) email [email protected] or via the website...

CONTENT WARNINGThis episode discusses eating disorders and self harm. If this is something affecting you please talk to somebody. You can get in touch with BEAT via their website https://www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk/support-services (https://www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk/support-services ) In today's episode TeeJay continues her mini series about body image. You'll hear from Chloe. She's 23 and as a teenager had serious issues with her body image. In fact she developed an eating...