Welcome to the How It Is Podcast, where we tell you how it is!
Dive into the realities of building a business, navigating the auto finance industry, and mastering compliance. We share unfiltered conversations about the highs, the lows, and everything in between—offering insights, tips, and stories from the front lines.
Whether you're a business owner, a professional in motor finance, or simply curious about the challenges of a highly regulated industry, this podcast gives you the real deal.
No fluff, no filters—just how it is.
The Truth About Swim Coaching: Clubs Losing £4.8K a Month & How an Ex-Elite Swimmer's Fixing It
Joel Knight shares the reality of life from training alongside a world champion at Millfield to the career-changing knee injury that ended his swimming career, and the pressures of life as a head coach in UK swimming.
In Part Two, Joel discusses research showing that 64% of UK swimming coaches report symptoms of depression and 67% report anxiety. He describes the isolation of grassroots coaching and why the coaching community is stronger together.
The conversation also explores his transition from athlete to coach, why he founded Olympus Swim, a club development platform built to give swimming clubs financial visibility and time back, and how he balances a day job, coaching, a young family and a start-up without burning out.
What you'll learn:
Joel Knight's journey from elite swimmer to swimming coach
The mental health challenges facing UK swimming coaches
How a serious knee injury changed his swimming career
Why he created Olympus Swim and the problems it solves for swimming club
sHow to avoid burnout while juggling family, work and a business
What do you think?
Do swimming coaches get enough support for their mental health?
Find more from Joel Knight & Olympus Swim:
Instagram: www.instagram.com/olympus.swim
Website: https://olympus-swim.co.uk/
Email: Joel@olympus-swim.co.uk
🎧 Listen & Subscribe:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/14YEU0UkAOGpdWbazdZ19
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-it-is/id1783785566
Amazon: https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/e12b1c97-e5d0-4d11-8fcd-ca31a0ea12a1/how-it-is
21 Sept 2026
The Brutal Reality of Becoming an Elite Swimmer (Burnout, Boarding School & Sacrifice) - Joel Knight
Joel Knight shares the reality of life as an elite competitive swimmer, including the pressure of training inside a boarding school system, the hidden financial cost of chasing British and European honours, and the mental toll of pushing his body into overtraining.In this episode, Joel discusses breaking a British age group record and competing at the European Youth Olympics, what daily life was actually like as a swimmer at Millfield, and the moment his training stopped being about performance and started becoming a form of escape.The conversation also explores the tiny technical margins that separate elite swimmers, the lack of recognition and sponsorship compared to sports like Formula One, and how Joel made the transition from competitive athlete to coach and founder of Olympus Swim.What you'll learn:- Joel Knight's journey from a local swimming club to the European Youth Olympics- What training and daily life were really like inside a boarding school swim programme- The hidden financial cost of competing at an elite level, from kit to crowdfunded competitions- How overtraining and burnout crept into his career and changed his relationship with the sport- Why small technical margins not money or sponsorship decide success in swimming- How Joel transitioned from elite athlete to coach and founder of Olympus SwimWhat do you think?Do you think elite swimmers get the recognition and reward they deserve compared to athletes in higher-profile sports?Find more from Joel Knight:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/olympus.swim/Website: https://olympus-swim.co.uk/Email: Joel@olympus-swim.co.uk🎧 Listen & Subscribe:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/14YEU0UkAOGpdWbazdZ19WApple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-it-is/id1783785566Amazon: https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/e12b1c97-e5d0-4d11-8fcd-ca31a0ea12a1/how-it-is
31 Aug 2026
SAMAs Winning Musician Built a £1.5M Company Using AI - Carina Bruwer
How does a professional flautist with zero coding experience end up building a £1.5 million software platform using nothing but AI?
In this episode of How It Is, John Rex sits down with South African keynote speaker, entrepreneur and open-water swimmer Carina Bruwer to unpack one of the most unlikely career stories we've covered on the show.
Carina trained as a classical flautist from childhood, went on to win a SAMA (South African Music Award) with her instrumental crossover band Sterling EQ, and built a successful entertainment booking agency from scratch before rebuilding it from the ground up in just a few months using AI, without writing a single line of code herself. She talks candidly about missing out on her dream orchestra job, watching the 2008 economic crash gut her original software budget, and the fear of failure that still drives her today.
She also opens up about her next big challenge: Crossing Africa, a planned series of 30-35km open-water swims around the continent.
In this episode:
- How a childhood on the flute shaped Carina's discipline and work ethic
- Building a South African entertainment agency into a full-service business
- Rebuilding a £1.5m platform with AI
- Winning a SAMA award with all-female string quartet Sterling EQ
- Her next challenge: swimming 30km+ stretches around Africa
Find Out More About Carina Bruwer🌐- https://carinabruwer.com/Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/@CarinaBruwer/videosInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/carinabruwer
🎧 Listen & Subscribe Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/14YEU0UkAOGpdWbazdZ19W?si=QFJhoDO2Q7CrcYDHiMaMEA Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-it-is/id1783785566 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/e12b1c97-e5d0-4d11-8fcd-ca31a0ea12a1/how-it-is
Who has been a guest on How It Is
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
JAYNE BREWER
Jon Wilson
Matthew Westaway
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
64,771
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Spotify
5.0 / 5
1 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 61 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
81
Social presence
0
YouTube
72
Engagement
32
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Guest appearances
Books guests
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Questions about How It Is
Who hosts How It Is?
Jon and Nick host the show. Published by The Compliance Guys.
How often do new episodes come out?
The show publishes bi-weekly, based on its RSS feed.
Does How It Is take guests?
Yes. Guests have been identified in episode analyses.
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