Now more than ever we need to arm ourselves with antidotes to fear, in order to stay as vital and healthy as possible, to not only help ourselves and others, but also to play our part in ultimately reducing the strain on the NHS. With everything that’s going on, it is a real comfort to know that we are all facing this challenge together, but I’m very aware that the current collective emotional state is one of overwhelm and fear; fear of getting sick, losing jobs/income, losing loved ones, and potentially overwhelming the NHS. Whilst fear is the natural response, it really doesn’t serve us to stay in that paralysing state, in fact chronic stress compromises our immune systems and predisposes

You may have seen an article in Forbes recently, discussing recent research from Harrison, Leitch & McAdam which drew the conclusion that not only do women-only networks not equal the playing field in assisting women start and grow businesses at the same rate as men, but in fact can sometimes make it worse. Being a female entrepreneur and someone who talks on a regular basis with hundreds of women facing barriers in their businesses, this conclusion intrigued me, even more so after having met Claire Leitch a few weeks ago at a Female Entrepreneurship conference which connected industry and academics. The research looked at a range of initiatives in Northern Ireland, and what jumped out im