Hello my lovely: you’ve arrived. Let’s step into that charged space between what’s working and what’s calling: where the next idea is already beginning to take shape.

Kindling is a community for curious, ambitious women eager to pursue the professional dream that feels equal parts nerve-wracking and exciting. Women who want to create work that lives in that delicate balance between challenge and overwhelm: who are brilliant at what they do, and ready for more.

If you’re craving growth that feels energising, creative and true, you’re in the right place.

Love, Laura x

I’m Laura Oldfield: coach, teacher, professional soprano, Squarespace expert and mum of 3. I help creative, capable women turn clarity into momentum and ambition into work that actually feels good to make.

My coaching and writing sit where intellect meets intuition, helping you navigate that space between challenge and ease with integrity, courage and imagination.

You’ll find me in many places: in the classroom, coaching from my laptop or in person, in a recording studio or a cold church, in the kitchen making meals my children may or may not eat, on the football side or in a recital hall.

You’ll also find me in a Surrey café with a flat white in hand (or London if I’ve snuck off to do a recording session in town), wandering a National Trust garden, cocooned in a blanket on my sofa, or giving a lovely, bosomy hug to a friend.

I believe in starting before you’re ready, in creative sparks showing up where you least expect them, in rambling conversations, good decaf coffee and dark chocolate. I believe family matters as much as work — and that work still matters deeply. I believe work-life balance is mostly a myth, because when we love what we do, it weaves through everything, bringing joy, purpose and connection.

I’m here for the multi-passionates on a quest to be multi-disciplinarians, for those unapologetically passionate about their craft, for the busy minds (who also know how to relax), and those are exploring all of this whilst navigating homework, endless laundry cycles and a list of jobs that is never fully ticked off.

I’m a work in progress…

This Substack is free, and will be until I work out how I might wish to charge for it. Right now it just doesn’t make sense to me, so I’ll continue to show up freely here. If I’m honest with myself, I’m keen to create a private group here, much like the Facebook groups of old, so I’m musing on how that might work.

My business is also a work in progress. For context, I used to have a thriving coaching and mentoring business, a podcast with 6 episodes and 5000 downloads (noice, as the nine year old and I say to each other), a highly profitable group programme, multiple 121 clients…

…and then 18 months ago (March 2024) I shut it all down. Why? Well, I started a new part-time job in a school and was doing so much singing, and I had three kids under nine (including a one and a half year old)…

But I know me. That’s not why I burned it down.

I burned it down because the fire in my business had gone out. Because I was helping wonderful women whilst thinking “I know I’m helping you but I’m not sure I 100% trust in this any more.” I burned it down because I was getting bored, and I knew I was evolving in a way that meant I needed to stop.

And now? Why Kindling?

Kindling is the bit before the blaze.

It’s the gathering phase. The twigs, the paper, the tiny sparks. Nothing dramatic yet. It doesn’t look like much. You’re not sharing it on your Instagram stories with #burnbrightlybabe (please never use that hashtag…) But this is where the fire gathers its strength.

Kindling is:

• the spark I feel in my chest when something wants my attention
• the tiny choices that feel nourishing rather than performative
• the subtle turning of my energy toward something true and genuinely mine
• the steady re-emergence of desire, direction and that grounded, hunger-for-more ambition

This is the phase I’m in, and it’s also the phase I’m brilliant at guiding others through.

I want to work with women who already know how to blaze. They’ve built careers, families, reputations, expertise. I want to work with women who don’t have to prove they’re capable. It’s already obvious. Success has been their baseline, not their pinnacle. The question now isn’t:

“can I?”. It’s “what do I actually want to pour myself into next?”

Kindling is not preparation for the real work. It is the real work.

And I know this because I am practicing it myself: tending what matters, honouring my pace, choosing my right next fire.

I don’t need to burn everything down. I’m building the fire differently this time.

Stay with me here as the fire grows? (there’s some treats coming…)

Laura x