The last few years haven't been easy. Balancing elderly care responsibilities and the inevitable aftermath alongside running a business left Kath, frankly, a bit broken. So she and her husband made a decision: to take some time away and visit family on the other side of the world.

What started as a couple of weeks unwinding in Indonesia led on to two months in Australia catching up with family and friends, and then home via Mauritius for an AIESEC wedding. And throughout all of it — Kath was working. Not on holiday. Working. From a small portable office that fits in a backpack.

Here's what she actually learned:

The kit that makes remote working possible

For anyone considering working from away — whether that's abroad, on the move, or simply away from your usual setup — these are the things that made the real difference:

A lightweight second screen was a game changer for running training sessions remotely. A noise-cancelling headset is non-negotiable when you're sharing spaces. A global charger and fast-charge cable along with a power brick belong in every bag. A travelling router that connects via your home network is simpler than it sounds. And VPNs are far easier to set up than they used to be — don't let anyone put you off.

What nobody tells you

It can be far from glamorous.

Yes, there were genuinely beautiful workspaces — looking out over the ocean, sitting in a garden in the sunshine. But there was also hunching over a laptop in seating not designed for it, working from a bed when there was no desk, perching on a park bench beside a lake, and dealing with wifi so unreliable that time-zone juggling and connectivity anxiety arrived at the same time.

Time zones are manageable — until they're not. A bad signal when you're already at risk of running late for a UK call brings its own particular stress. And of course, people get ill when they're away. There's no immunity from a cold just because you're somewhere beautiful.

The lessons that keep coming back

These feel relevant well beyond working from away — they're things that come up with clients at South West Growth Service too.

Manage your time with intention, not optimism. Working UK hours from Australia means early mornings and late nights. Being deliberate about when you're available — and when you're not — matters more than any piece of kit. It's something Kath didn't manage well enough on this trip, and something she'll work harder on next time.

Loving your work is a privilege worth protecting. Four months confirmed that she loves what she does. It also confirmed she'll never want to work fully remotely — the in-person time matters too.

AI can be a game changer. From planning the trip itself with AI assistance to reflecting on how the business world is shifting, Kath returned with a strong sense that we're in a period of real change — and that there's a positive role for AI in navigating it. More on that soon.

Kath is a founder of South West Growth Service, a consultancy which supports businesses and leaders across the South West with management development, change and organisational growth.

Care leaders, innovators and changemakers from across the South West met at Dartington Hall last week to discuss and learn from inspiring speakers and share in a group discussion regarding the future of health and social care in the region and how we can shape it together today.

The event sponsored by Triodos Bank  and hosted by South West Growth Service (SWGS) discussed the changing and future health and care landscape, the resourcing, funding and leadership aspects to navigate the path ahead.

The restructuring of the NHS and commissioning in England post pandemic has added additional uncertainty and reluctance from clinical leaders and organisations to commit to change, yet the event reaffirmed the passion for clearer long-term strategies to effect meaningful progress nationally.

Cathryn Edwards offered a compelling overview of the healthcare landscape with key messages to support change

• Funding approaches should follow clinical strategy, rather than dictating it
• The interface between health and social care demands innovation across sectors, disciplines, and diseases, moving away from single disease-based models of service provision
• Preventative healthcare strategies need to be partnered with rehabilitation medicine initiatives
• High standards of palliative and end of life care will support a ‘whole community approach’ and can be part of the solution for public health challenges such as dementia care in our region
• The system’s capacity - ie workforce and infrastructure (beds) were identified as a key derailers to the implementation of change and increased productivity
• We need a longer term and apolitical approach to health and social care strategy

Rowcroft Hospice was singled out as one innovative example of how future focussed health care which integrates frailty, dementia, and palliative /end of life care​, in the context of a sustainable community setting could be achieved.

John Bryant of Wellspring Consultancy provided insights on the leadership traits required across healthcare (the 6 Cs) and also emphasised the way forward was for:

• A new ‘leadership and commissioning partnership’ where the commissioned must also be actively involved as commissioners
• Systemic and systematic collaboration and share values across all parts of the care system
• Multi-team systems with a focus on benefits
• Emerging opportunities including funding are a way forward
• A regional approach to assessing the unmet health and social care needs in the South West.

SWGS will progress and convene further action to define and understand:

• the top unmet health and social care needs in our communities.
• How to support the business and charity sectors to engage with local and national funding of these priorities.

SWGS plans to host a follow-on meeting in Spring /Summer 2026 to update on the regional progress of the above initiative. Please keep in touch with us and let us know if you’d like to be in the room next time.

The first in a series of webinars looking at building your organisation for future resilience will be held online on Thursday October 9^th with the support of one of our Associates, Paul Dalton.

In today’s rapidly changing environment, business owners face unprecedented challenges, from market volatility and shifting customer demands to the disruptive potential of AI. Planning for the future has never been more important. The most resilient, valuable businesses are those built with the end in mind. Companies that can thrive independently of their founders, adapt to new opportunities, and be ready for succession, sale, or scaling at the right time.

One of the tools he uses is the Exit Readiness Diagnostic which is available on this page.

Try it and book your time with him direct or find out more and book your seat for his webinar here:  https://events.humanitix.com/exit-ready-every-day