Hi. Hello. Welcome to Hurdling.
This is the newsletter that looks at how we manage to get over all the obstacles that stand in our way. These hurdles might be in work, love, friendship, families, life admin, bad luck, good luck, self-inflicted self-sabotage, people being dicks or just in the small moments of simply trying to get by (like when you're hungover and they’ve run out of salt and vinegar hula hoops at the corner shop, ffs).
This newsletter exists to dig deeper beyond the fact that we only ever seem to really talk about what happens after we’ve cleared our hurdles – glossing over the blood, sweat and tears that actually got you over it in the first place. By subscribing, you’ll get interviews with brilliant people, articles, essays, inspiration for getting away from it all and Vibe Checks to get you through the week.
This is a place to peek behind the scenes of the highlights reel we all produce for our lives. It’s a place to reflect on the messy bits, the things gone wrong, the lessons we’ve learned and share real stories, honest thoughts and unfiltered reflections.
I hope it becomes a place that can help you to navigate through the tough, and feel better equipped, less alone and ready for what comes next. You’re free to share your own personal hurdles, stories, thoughts, confessions, hopes, dreams, feelings, realisations, frustrations in the comments sections – or anything else you need to get out.
So welcome to Hurdling, hurdler. I hope you stick around. There’s lots more to come, and I can’t wait to share it with you.
By subscribing, you can expect regular(ish) doses of:
GET OVER IT: essays and articles with honest thoughts and unfiltered reflections on getting over life's hurdles – big and small.
INTERVIEWS: real stories from real people with confessions of things gone wrong, stories of the messy bits and lessons learned along the way.
VIBE CHECKS: a dose of joy and motivation to get you through the week, with quick roundups of good things to read, listen to, watch or shop.
GO AWAY: a celebration of stepping away from the screens and exploring new scenes, plus travel inspiration for how to use up your precious holiday days.
WRITER’S BLOCK: thoughts and advice on all things writing, creativity, advertising and the world of brands.
Plus as a paying member, you’ll get access to:
the full archive of posts
competitions + giveaways
Q+As
Who is Emily Ash Powell, anyway?
Emily Ash Powell is a Welsh writer who finds it a lot easier to write bios like this one in third person. Emily has worked with some of the UK's fastest-growing DTC startups + scaleups – and especially loves the ones with big missions and great personalities. She's worked with people who change the world of pet food (tails.com), skincare (Skin + Me), home decoration (Lick) and flowers (Freddie’s Flowers).
Emily also likes big brands (and she cannot lie). She’s written words and had ideas for brilliant brands like IKEA, Virgin Voyages, Disney, John Lewis, Marvel, Virgin Holidays, ASDA, P&G, Bacardi, Volkswagen and more.
She’s also written for Refinery29, Huffpost, Stylist, Cosmopolitan, Metro, Campaign Magazine on the topics of work, love, women, dogs and life.
She cares deeply about company culture, and believes that the best brands are the ones that truly live and breathe the values that they project out into the world.
You can read more about who she is and why she set this newsletter up in this free article here.
