Hello! Welcome to The Navigation 🧭
It’s lovely to have you here.
Grab a cuppa and join me to explore musings on, meanderings through, and methods for, navigating modern life as a millennial woman.
This is the perspective I write from, but the community I’ve found here has shown that experiences often cross the generational divide, and there is a lot we can learn from each other.
In regular Sunday morning essays I write on a wide range of topics related to culture, lifestyle, politics, work-life and travel. As I navigate life’s trials, tribulations and titillations, I intend for my writing to be embedded in the themes of exploring who we are and how we want to live - and invite you to think through these along with me.
Who is Lauren Powell? 🙋🏻♀️
After many years of wanting to “be a writer”, in February 2023 I finally plucked up the courage to carve out this space to actually give it a go.
A Welsh native now based in London (though will always be a Valleys girl at heart), I currently work in education publishing, but have a background in public policy events, and international development.
I studied Politics, am a proud feminist, with a Taurus Sun and Scorpio Rising (though still trying to figure out exactly what that means). A fan of coffee shop lounging, brunching with the gals, and the more-than-occasional glass of prosecco, I fit a myriad of female millennial stereotypes. But I’m also a deep-thinking, socialist-leaning, would-be writer with an underlying sense of wanderlust, so also fit the mould of the guys from the beat generation.
I read a lot, watch little TV, try to squeeze in some Yoga with Adriene several times a week, and am a sucker for a long walk accompanied by a podcast.
My words have been published in a few other places, perhaps most notably with Lazy Women, and you can check out some of those articles here.
In 2024 I also published an essay with
, exploring how we engage with reading and writing on Substack, and had a narrative non-fiction vignette published in an anthology curated by , The Rejection Palace.
What to expect and when 🧾
From February 2025, on alternating Sundays at 9am sharp, ready for your morning coffee, you will receive:
A feature essay from me, sharing my musings/meanderings/methods to offer helpful reflections for your navigation of life
Part-diary-part-directory, a monthly dive into my Little Black Book with mindful recommendations for how we spend our time and money
The back catalogue is also filled with 22 issues of Cultural Compass, which ran from February 2023 to November 2024. Each issue includes a round-up of recently consumed culture that influenced, or made me contemplate, how I’m navigating life, and therefore how it might help you too.
Plus there’s 12 issues of Career Compass to dive into, an interview series that ran from February 2024 to January 2025, exploring the career paths of other millennial women, through their own musings, meanderings and methods.
You might also see the occasional post about bookswapping or podcasting.
For a bit more background info and to learn more about how I got here, head over to my inaugural post, Welcome to The Navigation.
Oh, and you might also want to check out The Navigation Bookshop, where you can find all the fiction and non-fiction reads featured here. For any books bought through links on this site, I may earn a small commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops - those local gems we all know and love.
What next? 🌟
If this sounds like something you might be into, whether you’ll be an avid reader or dip in and out occasionally, then hit that subscribe button and settle on in. The comments are always open, and the chat there can be great. Tell your friends.
All work shared here is currently free, as I seek to spread these words far and wide, finding like-minded souls and offering thought-provoking nuggets of insight that offer value as you navigate your own path.
In becoming a paid subscriber, for the cost of a coffee a month (or less if you choose the annual option!) you will be supporting the sustainability of this publication, enabling me to bring you more of what you enjoy here.
You will also be championing the notion that creators deserve to be paid for the words or other art we share, especially as we seek financial fulfilment outside of typical structures.
A few words from fellow readers of
…💙 A beautiful reminder that everyone is dealing with something, often something invisible. 🫶 -
💙 A beautiful piece from Lauren Powell on pushing through, matrescence and feeling heard. I relate so much to what Lauren has written here ❤️ -
💙 One of my favourite Substackers of 2024 continuing into 2025 - Lauren Powell -
💙 “Little Black Book” posts bring me particular joy and unlimited inspiration. -
💙 I look forward to your pieces landing at 9am every other Sunday, can’t wait to see what comes next! -
Thanks for reading, and happy navigating! 🧭
