11: Lead Well Live Well with Dee Blick - Episode 1111: Lead Well Live Well with Dee Blick - Episode 11
UK Health Radio Podcast
Business owner and mortgage adviser Kate Fuller talks with host Dee Blick about leadership, founding a women’s support network, and choosing life without alcohol. The conversation highlights how sobriety, community and a sense of fun can reshape both career and personal life.
41:36•25 Apr 2026
Leadership, Sobriety and Finding Your Tribe with Kate Fuller
Episode Overview
- A career can grow from an accidental start when values like trust and authenticity are honoured.
- Leading from the front, staying honest about mistakes, and adapting to each person builds team loyalty.
- Removing alcohol can free up energy, mental space and clarity, while eliminating ‘beer fear’.
- Creating a women-only professional community can offer vital, non-judgemental support around work and life.
- Success can be measured by how much fun and fulfilment you’re having, not just by financial targets or awards.
“Measure your success based on how much fun you’re having.”
What drives someone to seek a life without alcohol while still running a high-pressure business and leading a team? This conversation between host Dee Blick and multi award-winning mortgage adviser Kate Fuller gives a very real look at exactly that. You’ll hear how Kate “fell into” mortgages after a brief and frustrating stint in estate agency, and turned it into a 21-year career where clients come back decades later as their lives evolve.
She talks honestly about the tough exam slog, the steep learning curve of advising on someone’s “biggest asset”, and the decision to grow from solo adviser to team leader when there were simply too many clients for one person.
Leadership fans will enjoy Kate’s description of her style: “I definitely lead from the front… in the trenches a lot with my team.” She shares how daily check-ins, collaborative problem-solving and admitting mistakes help build trust, while a business partner and long-standing assistant keep the operation running smoothly. For anyone questioning their drinking, Kate’s frank share about being 12 months alcohol-free stands out.
She explains how giving up alcohol created “space and capacity and clarity” in her life, boosted her energy and removed the dreaded “beer fear” of worrying what she’d said the night before. Dee relates with her own experience of sobriety and the sharper decision-making it brought. Kate also talks about founding Women in Mortgages UK, a 2,000-strong support group born from a bad experience at a male-dominated industry event.
The group has become a kind, non-judgemental space where women can talk shop, stress, menopause, family life and everything in between. Her favourite quote, “Measure your success based on how much fun you’re having,” neatly sums up the episode’s message: success isn’t just about numbers; it’s about enjoying the journey too. Who’s in your corner making the hard stuff feel lighter?
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