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Meet Leah: From Freelance Support to Walking Partner?
You may have heard me mention Leah when I talk about my freelancer, but I thought it was about time you got to know her properly.
Because Leah is much more than someone who helps me with the odd bit of work. She is a friend, a sounding board, a brilliant writer, a video editor, an adventure lover, a new mum, and one of those people who somehow makes a long walk, a work chat, and a pub lunch feel like the most natural combination in the world.
We met while working in marketing, stayed really good friends, and when I started my own business, Leah was one of the people I knew I could trust. At first, she helped here and there when I needed an extra pair of hands. This year, that has become much more regular, and honestly, I’m very glad it has.
So, here she is. Meet Leah, the person behind some of the support, ideas, edits, and soon, possibly even blogs, happening behind the scenes.
From working together to working alongside each other
Leah and I first met through work, back when we were both in marketing. You know when you meet someone and realise quite quickly that you just get on? That was us.
We worked together, chatted a lot, shared ideas, and stayed close even after our paths changed. When I started my own business, I was doing what a lot of business owners do at the beginning. I was juggling everything.
The client work.
The planning.
The filming.
The editing.
The admin.
The ideas that arrive at the worst possible time.
The “can I just run this past you?” voice notes.
At some point, I knew I needed help, even if it was only now and again. And because Leah already understood how I worked, how my brain jumps from one thing to the next, and how I like things to feel, it made sense to ask her.
At first, it was bits and pieces. A little support here, a bit of checking there. Over time, it has grown into something far more useful.
Leah now freelances for me much more regularly. She helps with video editing, checks my ideas, listens to my ideas, and generally gets dragged into whatever thought process I am having that day.
And yes, listening to my ideas is absolutely part of the service.
Sometimes that means helping me tidy something up. Sometimes it means saying, “Yes, that makes sense.” Other times, it means gently pointing out that I am trying to squeeze too many things into one piece of content.
Leah has found her way back to writing
One of the loveliest things about working with Leah more regularly this year is seeing her get back into something she genuinely loves, which is writing.
More recently, she has started writing blogs for clients’ websites. We have not officially offered this as a service yet, so I probably shouldn’t say too much too soon, but there is definitely more to come.
And it makes complete sense.
Leah has always been good with words. She can take a rough idea and turn it into something that sounds clear, natural, and easy to read. That is not as simple as people think. Good writing is not about stuffing a page with impressive words. It is about making the message feel effortless.
That is especially true for blog writing. A strong blog needs to do a few things at once:
Explain something clearly
Sound like the business it belongs to
Keep people reading
Answer the questions people are actually asking
Feel useful rather than forced
Leah is good at that balance. She listens properly before she writes, which makes such a difference. She looks for the point of the piece, not just the word count. She cares about whether something sounds human.
The adventure side of Leah
Outside of work, Leah loves being out in nature. Not in a “go for one gentle walk and call it a hobby” kind of way. Leah completed JOGLE, the walk from John o’ Groats to Land’s End, which follows the length of the UK.
That is a huge achievement.
She documented the whole journey on her YouTube channel and social media, sharing the miles, the views, the harder moments, and the people she met along the way. If you have ever followed a long-distance walk, you will know it is never just about the route. It is about problem-solving, resilience, weather, tired legs, unexpected kindness, and the constant question of where you are going to sleep that night.
During that journey, I ended up becoming a bit of a PR team member for Leah. I helped her secure places to stay, camp, and rest. I contacted people, looked for options, and tried to support from wherever I was while she was out doing the hard miles.
At one point, her internet went down and I ended up looking at maps for her.
That still makes me laugh, because it sums us up quite well. Leah somewhere out on an epic adventure, me at home trying to work out where she was and where she needed to go next.
Some of you reading this may even have been part of that journey. When Leah was in this neck of the woods, people helped her out, put her up, gave her places to rest, or pointed her in the right direction.
So, if that was you, thank you again.
Those acts of kindness matter more than people realise. On a long walk, a safe place to sleep or a friendly face can completely change the day. It becomes part of the story.
Life changed, and walking changed with it
After Leah completed her big adventure, life moved into a very different chapter. She had a baby.
And as anyone who has had a baby, supported someone with a baby, or even watched someone try to leave the house with a baby will know, getting back into old routines is not always simple.
For Leah, getting back into walking has happened more slowly than she would have liked. That is completely understandable, but it can still feel frustrating when something that once felt so much a part of you becomes harder to fit in.
Walking long distances asks for time, energy, freedom, and planning. Having a baby changes all of those things.
So, rather than waiting for the perfect moment, we started with what was possible.
Together, we began the Greater Manchester Trail, and yesterday we walked from Manchester city centre to Sale.
It felt like the right kind of reset. Not a huge expedition. Not a giant challenge with weeks of planning. Just one section, one day, one walk, and a chance to get moving again.
That is often how getting back into something works. You do not need to return at the exact level you left. You just need to begin.
And we did.
Manchester city centre to Sale, with 22,000 steps and a pub stop
Yesterday’s walk took us from Manchester city centre to Sale as part of the Greater Manchester Trail. By the end, we had done around 22,000 steps.
There was walking, chatting, filming, catching up, and the usual mix of “this is lovely” and “how much further?” that comes with a proper day out on foot.
What I loved most was how naturally work and life blended together. We talked about the business. We talked about ideas. We talked about future plans... like my wedding! We filmed parts of the walk for Leah’s YouTube channel. We also just enjoyed being outside.
That is one of the reasons walking is so good for conversations. It takes the pressure off. You are not sitting opposite someone trying to force ideas out. You are moving, looking around, noticing things, and letting the conversation find its own pace.
By the time we reached Sale, we had earned our stop at the pub. Lunch, a sit down, and a chance to plan the next walk felt very necessary.
And yes, we are already planning the next one.
Follow Leah’s walking journey
If you would like to follow Leah, you can find her on social media as LeahinWanderlust and leahinwanderlust.
She has documented her JOGLE journey, shares walking content, and will be sharing more from the Greater Manchester Trail as we continue it. We filmed yesterday’s walk too, so that will be going up on her YouTube channel at some point.
You can follow along and subscribe here: watch Leah in Wanderlust on YouTube.
It is lovely to see Leah stepping back into this side of herself, one walk at a time. It is also lovely to have her more involved in the business, bringing her creativity, honesty, and calm support into the work we do.
So now, when I mention Leah, you will know who I mean.
She is my freelancer, yes. But she is also my friend, my idea-checker, my walking partner, my occasional map emergency contact, and someone I am very excited for you to get to know better.
