Gemma Hurlstone · AI strategist & business mentor
Too close to it?
Let’s look properly.
You’ve got a business to run. But the systems, the decisions and the things that only live in your head are getting tangled.
I’m Gemma. I look at the whole business, ask the awkward questions and help you work out what actually needs to change. Then we get on with making it happen.
Tell me what’s going on See how I think ↓
Inside a strategic project / A property business
The app was part of it.
The business came first.
Content, contacts, a shared inbox and a property portfolio. Here’s how we worked out what belonged together and what needed to stay separate.
Strategic project / In progressJoin up the information behind the property business
A property business
The question in the project review
“It’s just research. Is it going to start to clutter it up?”
Gemma, recorded review call, 13 October 2026.
The portfolio app needed a clear job. Every new idea had to earn its place.
The brief covered the inbox, contacts and property figures. As the app developed, more requests arrived. We needed to decide which belonged in the portfolio.
Keep the portfolio focused. Test sourcing separately and agree one home for original files, with the app linking to them.
A reviewed prototype, a developing app and clearer decisions about what belongs in it.
Ongoing project. Portfolio views are built. The agreed connections and further workflows still need implementation.
Follow the full case ↗Work with me
Good thinking.
Then we build.
Start with the business.
Agree the work. Make it happen.
The full strategic project · Around 12 weeks
The Best Is Yet To Come
For when the problem runs through the whole business. We find what's really going on, make the decisions and build the structure to support them.
Tell me about your projectStrategy and implementation.
A custom system built around your business.
A more focused build · Around six weeks
I Got You Babe
One part of the business needs sorting. Three sessions and Telegram support to build it together.
Think with me · One session
I Can See Clearly Now
You're too close to it. Let's find the real issue and decide what deserves your attention next.
All service prices are starting prices. Six and twelve weeks are guides. We agree your scope, final fee and timetable before booking.
Different businesses / The same attention
Look past the first request.
See what’s really needed.
A payroll business and a joiner. Two more examples of how the questions changed the work.
Strategy sessionHelp with social media and AI
A payroll consultant
The question I asked
“How much would I pay someone to do payroll as a job?”
Gemma, from the session transcript. Filler words removed.
The useful comparison was already in the business. We had to ask for it.
An in-house salary and an outsourced annual example put an £11k salary difference on the table. That gave the bureau something more concrete to explain to buyers.
Use the buyer’s alternatives to shape the message, then build the content and AI around it.
A clearer commercial argument, before building the AI.
£11k was the difference between the two annual figures discussed. Around £15k was then estimated after employer costs. It was an illustrative comparison, not an audited saving, a current quote or revenue earned.
Follow the full case ↗Delivered build / Recorded real useA joinery app for quotes, jobs and invoices
A joinery business
A question to think with
What does the person doing the work actually call each part of it?
An editorial prompt drawn from this case.
The app needed to make sense to the person using it.
The app was live, but the person using it found it confusing. We simplified the home screen around his own words for the work.
Quotes, jobs, customers and invoices became the main buttons and the bottom navigation.
A delivered app, changed in response to actual use.
Built for my husband’s business, unpaid by choice. A real invoice was sent through the app. No measured time or revenue result.
Follow the full case ↗
The person doing the thinking
I'm Gemma.
I see the connections.
The business. The humans. The tech. The thing nobody's said out loud yet.
Calm Back with Gem is the business behind me. I bring the judgement, the questions and the sleeves-rolled-up work of making it happen.
You bring a business you care about. We start there.
Get to know me ↗Your next move
Tell me what's
actually going on.
You don't need a polished brief. The messy version is fine.
Start the conversationA short enquiry. I read it myself. We work out the right next step.
