The English with Kirsty podcast

The English with Kirsty podcast

I’ve been podcasting for around five and a half years now. Originally the podcast was very specifically for English learners, but I found that my listeners wanted more than that, and I was getting bored of producing this fairly narrowly-focussed type of content in an already saturated podcasting space.

What I wanted was to help people to really communicate well. To learn to be themselves in another language or their main language. To get across their thoughts and ideas in a way that makes sense and facilitates real connections between people. That’s about more than just where does the verb go in your sentence and which adjective comes first. These things are important of course, and getting them right will help your texts and speech to flow better, but they aren’t the only things that you need in order to get your message across.

So as the podcast grew, it changed. I started to draw more on my previous work in communications, and not only my experience as a language teacher.

I have a large percentage of listeners who are learning English, and I want to continue to help them to do that. But I also have other listeners who are interested in language in general, presentation skills tips, communicating effectively at work, and working across multiple languages or cultures.

What can you expect on the podcast?

To give you an idea of some of the topics I cover, I’ve embedded two episodes here. Both of these are interviews, although I do post solo episodes too.

Episode 182 – bicultural communication

You can listen to episode 182 here:

Today I’m bringing you an interview with Janina Neumann, a bilingual business owner and graphic designer whom I met recently through business networking.

Janina is a bilingual graphic designer, intercultural management trainer, and business owner of Janina Neumann Design. JND is a bilingual design company, helping clients create a social impact in the UK and abroad. Working with social enterprises, charities and councils, Janina helps clients communicate their message equally effectively across different languages and cultures. Janina speaks English and German fluently and has a keen interest in learning new languages, including French and Farsi.

Here are some of the points that we explore in our conversation:

  • Janina’s experience of differences in communication across cultures.
  • The balance between showing an interest and getting things done.
  • Tips for anyone planning to move from Germany to the UK.
  • How learning other languages can help you to understand more about those that you already speak.
  • Staying in touch with customers and colleagues as our working environments change.

You can find out more about Janina here:

  • Janina’s Facebook page
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Janina’s YouTube channel
  • Episode 181 – communicating well to create a good first impression with customers

    You can listen to episode 181 here:

    Today I’m bringing you an interview with my friend and business mentor, Lor Bradley.

    Lor Bradley is one of the UK’s leading business strategists. Think of Lor as the epitome of understated brilliance. No fanfare. Just results. She has owned, started, scaled and sold global businesses for herself and her clients for almost 30 years. Lor is an introvert entrepreneur, prefers an easy life and is a cheerleader for building social equity. Lor is an online business mentor + trained consultant, not a business coach, so unlike most coaches, Lauryn has the practical experience and geek-ery to show you how to grow your business to 7 figures and beyond.

    Here are some of the points that we explore in our conversation:

    • Good communication as a way to build relationships
    • Communicating well to make a good first impression
    • Responding to and learning from negative feedback
    • Making sure that auto-responders and those who work for you are following your brand’s communication style
    • Lor’s resources to support women business owners.

    This is my affiliate link to Lor’s membership programme for “women and non-binary business owners who aspire to run a thriving business, build a consistent income and hang out with others who ‘get it’!”

    Also, you can find out more about Lor here: