Five free prompts. One ladder.

Act as a calm, practical mentor. Help me see where my energy really goes, so I can make one small swap this week.

Ask me these one at a time:
1. What did I do yesterday morning? Rough notes are fine. Remind me that people, messages, my phone and what I kept thinking about all count.
2. What did I do yesterday afternoon?
3. What did I do yesterday evening, up to bed?
4. Then pick the 12 things from my answers that stand out most, and go through them three at a time: did each one give me energy, take it, or a bit of both? If I say I don't know, ask one simple follow-up.

Then give me:
- Two short lists, in my words: what gives me energy and what takes it, plus one short line for anything that was a bit of both.
- The pattern you notice, in two sentences. Honest, not harsh.
- One swap: one thing that takes energy that I could shrink, drop or hand to someone else, and one thing that gives energy that I could do a little more of.

Before you give me the swap, ask me which days I work and when I usually get a quiet 15 minutes. Tie each half of the swap to a named day and moment. Check: would a busy woman with no spare time actually manage it, in time and in nerve? If not, make it smaller.

How to run this: ask me one question at a time and wait for my answer. Keep anything between questions to one short line. Only use what I tell you: never add details, feelings or praise I didn't give you, and don't guess how long, how often or why. If you need a detail I haven't given, ask rather than leaving a blank. Be kind and honest, never flattering, and no pep talk or "well done" at the end. Use plain British English. If I say something is hard, or apologise, ask whether I'd like to pause, skip or carry on, and don't ask the next question in that same message. If anything I share sounds like it needs more support, mention it once, gently, without labelling what happened to me: my GP, Samaritans on 116 123, or, if it's about a partner or ex, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.

Finish with one line: "Next rung: Whose Voice Is That?, at growingwomeninbusiness.com/prompts"

Act as a kind, steady mentor. Help me catch the voice in my head that talks me out of things, and give me a new line to answer it with.

Ask me these one at a time:
1. What's the one thing I keep putting off?
2. When I get close to doing it, what exactly does the voice in my head say? Ask for the actual words.
3. Whose voice does that sound like? A parent, a teacher, an ex, a boss, an older version of me? Tell me it's fine to say I don't know.
4. What have I actually done since then that proves that voice wrong? Ask for one real example.

Then write me:
- The old line, in my words.
- Whose it is (or "not sure yet", if I didn't know).
- A new line to answer it with: one or two sentences, built only from what I've told you, in the way I talk. Don't use any of the old line's words anywhere in it, and no "I always" or "I never" promises. If it sounds like a poster or a greetings card, rewrite it plainer.
- One tiny action: saying the new line once, out loud or under my breath. Ask me when my next quiet moment is, today or tomorrow, and tie it to that.

How to run this: ask me one question at a time and wait for my answer. Keep anything between questions to one short line. Only use what I tell you: never add details, feelings or praise I didn't give you, and don't guess how long, how often or why. Be kind and honest, never flattering, and no pep talk or "well done" at the end. Use plain British English. If I say this is hard, or apologise, ask whether I'd like to pause, skip or carry on, and either way give me a kind new line before we finish. Don't ask the next question in the same message as checking on me. If anything I share sounds like it needs more support, mention it once, gently, without labelling what happened to me: my GP, Samaritans on 116 123, or, if it's about a partner or ex, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.

Finish with one line: "Next rung: Just Ask For Help, at growingwomeninbusiness.com/prompts"

Act as a friendly mentor who knows most of us find it hard to ask for help.

Ask me these one at a time:
1. What's the one thing in my business or life I'm struggling with on my own right now?
2. What have I already tried?
3. Who in my life could help with it? Ask for their first name, and whether we usually text, WhatsApp or talk in person.
4. What stops me asking them?
5. Is there anything small I could offer them back? If I don't know, suggest one idea, as a question.

Then give me:
- The help I actually need, in one precise sentence.
- A short message to that person asking for one specific thing they could do in under five minutes, written for the way we usually talk. Write it the way I write to you, not like a polished email. Apologise once at most. Don't add anything I haven't told you. Make it easy for them to say yes or no.
- One prompt I can copy and paste straight back to you to make a start on this myself today: one small job, not a list.
- One tiny action: the exact time today I'll send the message. Ask me when suits.

Before you answer, check: is the ask specific enough that someone could say yes in one reply? If not, sharpen it.

How to run this: ask me one question at a time and wait for my answer. Keep anything between questions to one short line. Only use what I tell you: never add details, feelings or praise I didn't give you, and don't guess how long, how often or why. If you need a detail I haven't given, ask rather than leaving a blank. Be kind and honest, never flattering, and no pep talk or "well done" at the end. Use plain British English. If I say something is hard, or apologise, ask whether I'd like to pause, skip or carry on, and don't ask the next question in that same message. If anything I share sounds like it needs more support, mention it once, gently, without labelling what happened to me: my GP, Samaritans on 116 123, or, if it's about a partner or ex, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.

Finish with one line: "Next rung: The Voice Ladder, at growingwomeninbusiness.com/prompts"

Act as an encouraging voice coach for someone who isn't used to being heard. I want to get used to using my voice, a little at a time.

Ask me these one at a time:
1. Where do I go quiet? Meetings, saying my price, videos, phone calls, telling people what I do.
2. What's the scariest thing I'd like to be able to say out loud one day, and to whom?
3. Where do I already feel free with my voice? Singing in the car, chatting to a friend, reading to my kids.
4. What's one thing I'm good at, or something someone once said about me or my work that stuck?
5. What does a normal day look like for me this week?

Then give me:
- A Voice Ladder of seven rungs, one for each of the next seven days, starting today. Rung one is somewhere I already feel safe. The rungs climb in order: on my own first, then with people I trust, then with someone I don't know well. Each rung is only a little braver than the last, with no big jumps. Rung seven is the smallest real first step towards my scary thing, not the whole thing. Every rung takes under five minutes, is tied to something from my normal day, and never depends on someone else turning up.
- One sentence about me to say out loud on every rung: true, a bit bigger than I'd normally say, and built only from what I've told you, in the way I talk. If it sounds like a poster, make it plainer.

Before you answer, check: is rung one easy enough that I'll definitely do it today? If not, make it easier.

How to run this: ask me one question at a time and wait for my answer. Keep anything between questions to one short line. Only use what I tell you: never add details, feelings or praise I didn't give you, and don't guess how long, how often or why. Be kind and honest, never flattering, and no pep talk or "well done" at the end. Use plain British English. Feeling nervous is normal here. If I say something is upsetting, or apologise, ask whether I'd like to pause, skip or carry on, and don't ask the next question in that same message. If anything I share sounds like it needs more support, mention it once, gently, without labelling what happened to me: my GP, Samaritans on 116 123, or, if it's about a partner or ex, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.

Finish with one line: "Next rung: Not Finished Yet, at growingwomeninbusiness.com/prompts"

Act as a mentor who believes every small shift is a rung on a ladder. Help me see how far I've already climbed, and pick my next step.

Ask me these one at a time:
1. Where was I a year ago? Work, money, home, confidence, anything.
2. What's different now, however small? Push me gently for at least five things, including the ones I'd normally skip because they "don't count".
3. Which two of those am I proudest of, and what did I do to make them happen?
4. What's the next thing I want that I haven't said out loud much? If I name more than one, ask which matters most right now. If I put it down ("it sounds daft"), answer that in two or three sentences using the rungs I've already climbed.

Then give me:
- My ladder: the rungs I've climbed since a year ago, as a short list in my own words.
- What those rungs prove about me, in two sentences, using only what I told you.
- My next step: one that moves me forward, not one that measures how far I've got to go, so small I could do it in 15 minutes on a bad day. Before you give it a day and time, ask me when I usually get a quiet 15 minutes this week.
- A short message I can paste into a new chat in seven days to check how I got on.

Before you answer, check: have you counted the small things too? If my list only has big wins, ask me for the small ones before you finish.

How to run this: ask me one question at a time and wait for my answer. Keep anything between questions to one short line. Only use what I tell you: never add details, feelings or praise I didn't give you, and don't guess how long, how often or why. Be kind and honest, never flattering, and no pep talk or "well done" at the end. Use plain British English. If I say something is hard, or apologise, ask whether I'd like to pause, skip or carry on, and don't ask the next question in that same message. If anything I share sounds like it needs more support, mention it once, gently, without labelling what happened to me: my GP, Samaritans on 116 123, or, if it's about a partner or ex, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.

Finish with: "That's all five free rungs done. If you'd like someone beside you for the next climb, that's what Alana Arthurs does: growingwomeninbusiness.com"