I’m so excited to be back here to share another party friend with you. meet laura stevens, a creative partner & coach who helps people unlock their creativity and build something real; whether that’s pursuing a creative dream they’ve been sitting on, breaking through the blocks keeping them stuck, or expressing who they are in a way that truly reflects them.
laura started her life of the party experience at a SUPER pivotal moment in her career — when we kicked off, she was planning to grow her own business alongside her corporate 9-5, but within the first few week of the program she took a voluntary redundancy. she immediately went ALLLL in on documenting the journey from corporate → full-time entrepreneur, becoming a long-form and serial content queeeen between substack, youtube, and her redundancy diaries series on instagram.
(she also co-owns an IRL event business that the LOTP work helped her access her confidence in! more on that below).
I was SOOOOO excited to feature her as a party friend because she is such an inspiring example of embodied leadership, truly living her message and creating content that documents the process as it unfolds in real-time.
the interview ↓
Q: you’ve been using your online platforms to document a really huge shift in your working life. can you share a bit about how it’s felt to navigate such a big career pivot publicly, and any tips or tools you’ve found helpful as you’ve opened yourself in this way?
A: In February I took voluntary redundancy, very unexpectedly, and by no means feeling ready. I’d been building my coaching business in the background but wasn’t earning enough from it yet and hadn’t even nailed my niche. But I’d always wanted to work for myself and build a life I actually loved, so I took the leap.
I started documenting my journey by launching a YouTube & Substack channel called The Rebuild, and later The Redundancy Diaries on Instagram and TikTok. And I’m so glad I did, because I captured that really unexpected moment of redundancy as it happened. Navigating it publicly for sure is scary, but I know it can only bring good things. I initially held a lot of fear: what if it doesn’t work out, what if I fail? But then I flipped it to: What if it DOES work out? That shift changes everything. The only way you truly fail is by not doing the thing at all. We are the only ones who stop ourselves. And if you try something and it doesn’t work? Great. What can you learn from it, and what can you build better based on it? Every redirection has got me closer to where I’m supposed to be.
My biggest tip for showing up online and sharing something so publicly is to be your authentic self. It sounds simple, but when you’re genuinely being yourself there’s no anxiety about how you’re perceived; you’re not a character, so there’s nothing to maintain. I’m the same on and offline. To get there, however, you must first do the work to accept yourself. It’s not easy. But the freedom you get from it is everything.
Q: how would you describe your unique approach to leadership and creativity, and what are the core perspectives that shaped it?
A: I’m a certified transformative coach, meaning I focus on the “who” beneath the barriers, not just the “what.” Real creative leadership, in my view, doesn’t start with strategy or execution. It starts with identity. Who you are determines what you’re willing to create, what you’re willing to say, and whether you’re willing to show up at all.
The blocks my clients face are rarely tactical. They’re about vision, confidence, and permission. Someone who hasn’t built the thing yet isn’t usually missing information, they’re missing a relationship with themselves that makes it feel possible. Once they have that, the rest follows naturally.
My three core points of view shape everything I do:
1. BUILDING YOURSELF:You become yourself through the choices you’re willing to make.
2. CHOOSING TO WORK DIFFERENTLY:The life you want isn’t waiting for you, it’s waiting to be built.
3. CREATIVITY IS A WAY OF LIFE:Creativity isn’t a hobby or a personality trait, it’s a way of life. Everyone gets the ideas. Most people don’t act on them. I think that’s actually where life starts.
I also think leadership, and creativity, should be fun. Not everything has to be serious or strategic. Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is step into your dream world and really feel what it is you’re building before you figure out how. Permission to play is part of the work.
Q: how did your experience at life of the party compliment or enhance the way you lead your community, online and beyond? was there a moment where you felt a significant shift to your approach, while moving through the program?
A: LOTP taught me that my opinion is valid and valuable. Before, I avoided expressing my point of view because I didn’t think people would want to hear it. The programme showed me that the real value is in what you’re actually saying.
The biggest shift came for me in MODULE 2: PRESENCE where we worked Content Themes and Owning Our Perspective. That was the moment everything clicked. I realised I’d been creating content with no backbone; it might have looked pretty, but I wasn’t delivering consistent value or building anything with substance. I was also really confused because I had so many thoughts that I didn’t know what to share. But all I needed to ask myself was: Laura, what do you actually care about? What could you talk about endlessly? What do you want to put into the world? This is where Xanthe helped me to get really specific.
Once I had my three content themes (Building Yourself, Choosing to Work Differently, and Creativity as a Way of Life) everything else followed. I stopped creating into the void and started creating with intention. The lifestyle visuals became a thread behind the message rather than the message itself. And suddenly showing up felt easy, because I knew exactly what I stood for. Pretty content without a point of view is just noise. Figure out what you actually believe, and the rest follows.
But the shift wasn’t just online. Content themes aren’t just about what you want to say, they’re about what your community needs to hear. Finding that intersection between what I care about and what resonates with the people I want to reach gave me permission to show up everywhere, not just on a screen. And with that came a bigger realisation: it was never really about me. The more I focused on what I could give to others by showing up and being open, the less scary it became. The events I run through Tired Oats Club (offline events centred around music x movement x connection) used to terrify me. But the moment I stopped making it about me and focused on what I could give to the people in the room, it became easier and more fun. Not everything is about you. Think about the bigger picture.
the content ↓
below, you can browse some of laura’s recent posts where she’s putting her life of the party perspectives + practices into action:
Check Your Screen Time. And Be Honest With Yourself.
“11 Years In Corporate. One Voluntary Redundancy.”
“The Thing About Pivoting Is That It Can Also Become A Form Of Procrastination”
That’s it for now.
