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The Emma Guns Show
Caroline Hirons | How to leave the corporate world and create your own business.
Rock chicks of the world unite! Caroline and I met at a Mötley Crüe concert, which is why this show starts, not with a deep-dive into all things skincare, but a reverie of our favourite rock bands - and rock gods. We talk about the concerts we were both at in the 1980s, the rock stars that make us go weak at the knees and Caroline's incredible backstage experiences... Music aside, Caroline is famous in the beauty world for her no-nonsense approach to skincare - an objective approach earned from over thirty years in the industry. Her reviews have the ability to sell-out product - dubbed 'The Caroline Hirons Effect' - and leave the shelves of major beauty retailers completely bare. She has worked on the shop floor, has consulted for years with brands and has probably had something to do with the creation of many of the products living in your bathroom cabinet right now.
Because, who doesn't love an instagram story..?
Caroline is someone I've admired for a while, not least because she seems true to and at ease with herself. When she speaks people listen and I wanted to unpick when she realised her voice was one that was being heard by a huge audience, as well as by the upper echelons of the industry. As she says in the show, having spent years in corporate business, realising that her true voice was one that was influential felt great. It's a responsibility she doesn't take lightly and Caroline is a bit like your best friend and your mum - and perhaps that's why she's garnered such a massive global audience who really trust her. Her website www.carolinehirons.com is a portal reviews, advice and must-read 'cheat sheets' and you can follow her on instagram @carolinehirons and twitter @carolinehirons.
Pic credit: Dan Kennedy
Caroline launched her first ever skincare product this year - Pixi + Caroline Hirons Double Cleanse, £24, and I ask her whether we can expect more products and innovations with her name on it... We also chat about acne and her tips for how to handle it and why it's such an emotional issue. As a qualified facialist Caroline talks about intuition and about the times either putting her hands on someone's skin or seeing something she thought was suspicious has possibly saved lives.
Caroline also started the non-profit initiative Give & Makeup that aims to get everyday essentials into the hands of the women and children who need them. Whilst composing a blog post on beauty essentials Caroline started thinking about the people who have nothing, found this page on the Refuge website, scrapped the blog post and created the initiative. If you want to donate cosmetics, toiletries, clothes and childrens' clothes follow this link >> how to donate.
Finally, if you want Caroline to return for a second instalment of the show then email me at thebeautypodcast@gmail.com or tweet me @emmaguns using #EGpodcast. Enjoy! EG xx
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From the Vault | Ruby Wax on mental health journeys, finding the good in the world and why you should always be hopeful.
01:03:40This episode was first published in February 2022.My guest on this episode of the podcast is Ruby Wax. She is a writer, comedian, mental health campaigner and author and someone whose interviews over the years inspired me so it’s quite something to be interviewing her for this podcast…Ruby joins me in this episode to talk about her latest book And Now For The Good News - the much-needed tonic for our frazzled world.If you feel utterly distraught at the constant negative news cycle - the climate crisis, increasing costs of living, injustice, Covid and, as this episode goes live, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, then you may have stopped searching for the light of hope on the horizon.You may just assume that there’s only bad news out there in the world to be shared. Here’s the thing, if all we ever expect is bad news. If we assume that there is only bad news that chain reaction can make us feel hopeless, and helpless and fall into that space where we wake up in the morning and think ‘what’s the point?’ As someone whose particular shape and shade of depression took this form, a chronic apathy that eventually suffocated everything, I see this bad news cycle as something that can trigger the same feelings - even in the most hopeful of souls.Perhaps Ruby thought this too, which is why she went on a global search to find the good search. If you don’t know the light is there, you won’t know to see it. And so Ruby compiled all her findings into the book so we can all see there is hope and to equip us with a positive approach for a brighter world and, most importantly, for a better collective mental wellbeing.Ruby has been open about her own mental health issues over the years, something that was a source of great comfort to me at a time when I needed it, so during our conversation, I also quizzed her about how she emerged from her own struggles, the coping mechanisms she put in place and what she learned from a masters degree in cognitive-based therapy from Oxford University.I came away from the conversation feeling so inspired, not least because speaking to Ruby it was a reminder to always be curious about the world around you rather than scared of it, how vulnerability can immediately neutralise tension and how, though it might feel hard sometimes, it’s important to look for and follow the light, because it is there.To join the Facebook group for the podcast click here >> The Emma Guns Show Forum.To follow me on social media >> Twitter | Instagram.Watch clips from the podcast >> Youtube | The Emma Guns ShowSign up for my newsletter here >> Newsletter.Subscribe now.Johann Hari | What you REALLY need to know about Ozempic.
01:28:09Weight loss drugs are a hot topic, but are they a magic pill or is there a dark side to drugs such as Ozempic? Johann Hari has spent years investigating the genesis of the drug, how it works, as well as the benefits and the risks, plus he is also taking it. In this episode, we discuss how impactful these drugs could be on society, the risks that go hand-in-hand with taking them and why we've been conditioned to eat the kinds of food that could make us need these drugs in the first place.Johann's book Magic Pill is out now.To join the Facebook group for the podcast click here >> The Emma Guns Show Forum.To follow me on social media >> Twitter | Instagram.Watch clips from the podcast >> Youtube | The Emma Guns ShowSign up for my newsletter here >> Newsletter.Subscribe now.Trailer | Johann Hari -- the truth about Ozempic.
03:53You can't have failed to notice the conversation around weight loss drugs such as Ozempic but are they a wonder drug or should we approach them with extreme caution? Johann Hari joins me in an upcoming episode to talk about the years of extensive research he's done into this drug, as well as taking it himself, and what we need to know about this magic pill.To join the Facebook group for the podcast click here >> The Emma Guns Show Forum.To follow me on social media >> Twitter | Instagram.Watch clips from the podcast >> Youtube | The Emma Guns ShowSign up for my newsletter here >> Newsletter.Subscribe now.From the Vault | Sabrina Cohen-Hatton on Exceeding All Expectations
01:19:31This episode was originally published in March 2023.One of the great privileges of creating this podcast is getting to see the world through the lens of other people’s experiences. Seeing the world through Sabrina’s eyes was utterly enthralling.She experienced homelessness in her teens, now holds one of the most senior positions in the Fire Brigade and has multiple qualifications making her an expert leading international expert on risk-critical decision-making in crises.I ask all my guests, ‘What’s your relationship like with risk?’ and as someone whose day job involves dealing with something as unpredictable as fire, Sabrina’s answers are a perspective I hadn’t heard before. What an incredible guest, and now friend, whose primary mission in life is to pay it forward.Sabrina’s book The Gender Bias is available now.To join the Facebook group for the podcast click here >> The Emma Guns Show Forum.To follow me on social media >> Twitter | Instagram.Watch clips from the podcast >> Youtube | The Emma Guns ShowSign up for my newsletter here >> Newsletter.Subscribe now.Bullet Points | The Tortured Podcasters Department
18:19Who knew that #26habits, the year-long project we did together in 2018, wasn't just installing great lifestyle changes, it was also futureproofing my mental and emotional health...To join the Facebook group for the podcast click here >> The Emma Guns Show Forum.To follow me on social media >> Twitter | Instagram.Watch clips from the podcast >> Youtube | The Emma Guns ShowSign up for my newsletter here >> Newsletter.Subscribe now.From the Vault | Anna Mathur on how to overcome People Pleasing
01:11:22One thing about interviewing psychotherapists is how tempting it can be to open up about the things that I am personally struggling with, or have struggled with. It’s not something I intended to do but in navigating Anna Mathur’s life lessons we stumbled upon the territory of people pleasing and, well, that was it.Both of us have found ourselves crippled by the effects of people pleasing and these have shown up in Anna’s life in ways that have had a huge impact. I always open the show by asking my guests what their relationship with risk is like and it’s interesting that a big risk for Anna, and me, was to put ourselves first.If you’re afflicted with the disease to please then this episode is definitely for you.Anna’s books are available now.To join the Facebook group for the podcast click here >> The Emma Guns Show Forum.To follow me on social media >> Twitter | Instagram.Watch clips from the podcast >> Youtube | The Emma Guns ShowSign up for my newsletter here >> Newsletter.Subscribe now.Bullet Points | Are the gurus finally falling down?
19:20I've ranted about this before, but could the age of the guru finally be coming to an end?Jay Shetty by John McDermott in The GuardianDr Andrew Huberman in New York MagazineTo join the Facebook group for the podcast click here >> The Emma Guns Show Forum.To follow me on social media >> Twitter | Instagram.Watch clips from the podcast >> Youtube | The Emma Guns ShowSign up for my newsletter here >> Newsletter.Subscribe now.From the vault | Poppy Delbridge on how to transform your life.
01:09:50When it comes to alternative therapy I am, by nature and also from years of working as a journalist in the health, beauty and wellness space, a cynic. For years, I’d get drawn into to fads and trends by their razzle-dazzle and now, to avoid this, I like to see proof in the shape of data, clinical trials and evidence.So you may be surprised to see Poppy Delbridge, aka The Tapping Queen, as a guest on the show. Tapping is a form of therapy that involves tapping your face and upper body to release stress, minimise trauma and ‘raise your emotional baseline’. But, despite sounding ‘woo woo’ has a raft of evidence from neuroscience, and psychology that proves the claims around its benefits.This podcast is about learning from my guests' life lessons and given how integral tapping has been to Poppy, in times of trauma, change and flux, it was a fascinating insight into Poppy and how she has dealt with life’s challenges.Poppy’s book Tapping In is available now.To join the Facebook group for the podcast click here >> The Emma Guns Show Forum.To follow me on social media >> Twitter | Instagram.Watch clips from the podcast >> Youtube | The Emma Guns ShowSign up for my newsletter here >> Newsletter.Subscribe now.Bullet Points | How I swapped one addiction for another...
11:07It started with a wardrobe clearout but what it revealed was a lot more than a closet of clothes I didn't need...To join the Facebook group for the podcast click here >> The Emma Guns Show Forum.To follow me on social media >> Twitter | Instagram.Watch clips from the podcast >> Youtube | The Emma Guns ShowSign up for my newsletter here >> Newsletter.Subscribe now.