My First Podcast Experience – Saying Yes, Even When It’s Scary

Back in June, I got a message on a Monday morning from a lovely lady called Sophie. We’d connected before at baby shows — she sells the most beautiful maternity and nursing clothes through her brand, The Mum Collective. Sophie had also set up a new baby and toddler event in Harrogate, planned for September 2025, where Baby Ellor had agreed to be a silver sponsor.

Her message that morning wasn’t about the event, though. She invited me to come down to York that Friday to take part in a brand-new podcast she was launching called Motherhood Uncorked — a space where mums could share their real-life experiences, including the ups and downs of juggling business and family life. Without even thinking, I replied “Yes!”The kids would be at nursery, so I was free, and it felt like an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.

It had been a busy week — I was still working as a teaching assistant at the time and juggling everything. Dan said to me, “Make sure you take notes with you.” I laughed: “You can’t take notes to a podcast!” Turns out… you absolutely can.

I prepared all the way down to York — a two-hour drive, just me, my thoughts, and what I wanted to say. And truthfully, I felt okay. Not too nervous. At least, not until I sat down.

The set-up looked incredible. Cameras, microphones, headphones — very professional. Then came the first question: “So, how did Baby Ellor come about?” And my mind just went blank. Out of my mouth came a story about conceiving Harris (which, to be fair, was part of the journey — two under two, wanting more freedom, needing a passion that worked with family life). Sophie raised an eyebrow and gave me a little smile, which was funny on reflection, but at the time I panicked: what do I say now?

Thankfully, my brain caught up, and I found my flow. From there, the conversation built naturally, and before I knew it, the podcast had finished. But walking away, I felt like I’d just done a job interview — replaying every question in my head, wishing I’d answered this one better or said that one differently.

I was also cautious with what I shared. At the time, I wasn’t sure whether I would leave my teaching assistant job, and I didn’t want to openly say, “I don’t want to work for anyone else.” That made telling my story a bit harder, because I felt like I couldn’t be as open as I wanted.

Of course, the minute the cameras stopped rolling and the microphones were off, I started speaking naturally. Typical!

The weeks after were honestly the hardest. The podcast launched straight away with two other guests before my episode went live, which meant I had to wait — and the wait played on my mind. When the reel promoting my episode finally came out, I pressed play, watched about three seconds, panicked, and turned it off. My episode had officially launched, but I thought, “If I can’t even watch the reel, how on earth am I going to listen to the full podcast?”

Dan told me, “You need to listen to it.” I resisted, thinking it was better not to know. But he was right. One morning while cleaning, I pressed play. And you know what? I was actually impressed. Yes, there were things I’d like to improve (like maybe not starting with the story of conceiving my second baby in Menorca! 😂), but overall, it was funny, warm, and very real.

I even received some lovely feedback from people who listened. It reminded me that while Baby Ellor is about toys and play, it’s also about me growing as a person too — saying yes to things that scare me, learning, and getting braver each time.

So if you fancy a listen, my episode of Motherhood Uncorked (Episode 3) is available on Apple, Spotify, and Amazon.

And if you take anything from this blog, I hope it’s this: say yes to opportunities, even when they make you nervous. Especially when they make you nervous. Because those are the moments that stretch you, surprise you, and help you grow in ways you don’t expect.