Make It Count

3 years ago to the day the Make It Count Podcast was birthed, and 156 episodes later it is time for a break.  Thanks for being with us these past few years and contributing to the many and varied conversations we've enjoyed. We're looking forward to many more fascinating conversations in the future, but for now they'll be in person, and likely round a table.  It's been a blast,...

As an epilogue to the August series "Being Real in an Artificial World" we're discussing a counter point David read about, someone was arguing that our online self is our most authentic self because it reveals our ideal self.  Jump on into this conversation and let us know what you think! Send us a Message via "Fan Mail" (What is there to lose?) Watch the latest episodes o...

Welcome to the final episode of our Summer Series: Being Real in an Artificial World.  This week we focus on the irreplaceable value of face-to-face interactions and the emotional benefits of maintaining strong personal relationships in an increasingly digital world. Some further reading: The Human Touch: Why social media can’t replace real human connection The Human Touch in a Digital World: Bala...

Welcome to our Summer Series: Being Real in an Artificial World. This week we delve into the impact of social media and digital communication on friendships and touch on how to foster genuine connections in a world of superficial interactions. Technology can be both a bridge and a barrier to real interactions, how can we best use the tools at hand to facilitate healthy and meaningful  connections?...

Welcome to the Make it Count Podcast, our August Summer Series: Being Real in an Artificial World. This week we're continuing with the 2nd episode in the series and we're aiming our sights at authenticity in a world filled with filters: Can We Be Authentic If We’re Always Putting Our Best Side Forward? Here's a couple articles you might find interesting: Can anyone be honest online?...

Welcome to the Make it Count Podcast, for our August Summer Series: Being Real in an Artificial World.  This week we're kicking off with the 1st of 4 episodes in the series and we're looking at Discernment in a DeepFake World - Can we even trust our own eyes now? Remember when people used to say “I’ll believe it when I see it”? That kinda seems like a quaint notion now. Here's a cou...

This week we're going off script (not that we ever actually have a script), and looking at the theme of story once again, but from the perspective of Worldview. It's not a question of whether or not we have a Worldview (or story we believe about the world), but rather, what it is, and where it comes from. Have we thought carefully and with intention about what we believe about the world?...

We're back with another book review, this week: A Non-Anxious Presence by Mark Sayers. Find out more about the book here . Send us a Message via "Fan Mail" (What is there to lose?) Watch the latest episodes on YouTube . ________________________________________________________________ Join us as we move from the daily drift to positive purpose. We love hearing from you and your ideas...

This week we're going to classroom of Mr Taylor, to hear what he's learned about learning on his journey to becoming a qualified maths teacher. (For those who have maths anxiety, don't worry, maths doesn't really feature much in this episode!)  Send us a Message via "Fan Mail" (What is there to lose?) Watch the latest episodes on YouTube . ____________________________...

Following on from our episode last week about the benefits of reading fiction, David felt it important that we give a balanced view, and so this episode was born! Welcome to episode 148 where we delve into the value of reading non-fiction, and you may not be surprised that we do end up talking about habits. Listen in as we talk about some of the books that have impacted our lives and we also discu...

It is no secret that we love reading here at the Make It Count Podcast, you may have seen our book reviews (Check them out on Spotify or YouTube ) for example. But we tend to stick to Non-fiction books and some of you may be wondering what our thoughts on fiction are. In fact, Matt was wondering what his thoughts were too, and so did some research. By reading about reading of course!  Listen along...

This week we're back with a book review! David's been reading a short book by Katharine Hill and he can't remember much about it, or he forgot what he was supposed to remember, or he remembered not to forget everything...? Oh forget it!  Here's what the book is supposedly about: Married life is full of trials and blessings, no matter what season of marriage you are in. One day...

We’ve all heard phrases like “Time is money” and “Life is too short for…”  but how do you actually value your time? On the one hand we know that time is something we cannot buy back once it has passed, but on the other hand the passing of time feels slow. One moment feels very much like the next, one day seems no different from the previous.  We can easily be lulled into the sense that there’s alw...

When you are going on a journey and you have a destination you're aiming for it's important to first know where you are. Likewise, life is a journey and  we're all going somewhere. We are strong believers in the value of, well... values! They have an large impact on the decisions we make and the way we live our lives, so it is important to be aware of what they are.  This week we&ap...

We’re all about living with purpose and intentionality wherever you are and in every area of life. “Join us as we move from the daily drift to positive purpose.” is our common invitation, which often means facing up to the reality of our situation and not avoiding the challenges.  So we can often come across as being pretty down on escaping our lives into media and entertainment, which is why Matt...

We’re constantly bombarded with messages from marketers and influencers about instantaneous and meteoric growth, endless shortcuts to success, and various life hacks. Yet, the reality is that growth often isn’t constantly “up and to the right”, long term change often isn’t exponential.  Last year David was given a flower… an orchid, to be specific, and in his process of becoming an expert gardener...

This week we're continuing the theme of "Too busy to..." Now whilst many people don't have a choice over when they can take a break, even those of us who do have that agency can easily fall into thinking we've just got too much to do to take a break. It turns out that thinking is flawed, and taking a break (or several) can help us to get more done, be more creative and fee...

"Many of us are just too busy to live emotionally healthy and spiritually rich and vibrant lives." - John Mark Comer If you're anything like us, this resonates as true. It can be as simple as spending more time doom scrolling on our phones when you've had a busy and tiring day, or as complex a trying to juggle the ever pervading demands of work, multiple schedules and attemptin...

Questions are powerful, often they can be the first step on a journey of discovery, whether that's scientific, or philosophical, or a simple invitation to get to know someone over lunch. But not all questions are created equal, some questions may actually hinder us from the very start. This week we're discussing an idea from Julie Gurner ( an executive performance coach) on the importanc...

We live in what some have called “an age of anger” or “rage culture” and this seems to be spurred on by a myriad of factors, from always being connected to algorithms which favour inciting content to get more engagement. This week we’re discussing some of the consequences of speaking in haste when we’re angry and some modern advice which is a new spin on some ancient wisdom from James* “My dear br...

"There's too much to do and not enough time to do it!" This resonates for many of us and it seems to be just a reality of life.  This week we're asking:  What can we do about to overcome the feeling of perpetual overwhelm?   Is it just about better time management skills and habits? How could better management of our energy help? This week's episode was inspired by the fol...

We've likely all been there, you’re stuck in a meeting you didn’t want to be in, it’s been going far too long with no end in sight and you’re asking yourself “What is the point of this meeting? Why am I even here?” (and perhaps letting your mind wander to planning the rest of your day..).  This week we’re taking a look at Michael Hyatt’s book: No Fail meetings - 5 Steps to Orchestrate Product...

Has beauty always been in the eye of the beholder? And what is beauty anyway? Along with pondering the merits of such heady philosophical questions this week we're also discussing the fact that in our current cultural climate there seems an ever increasing pressure to be beautiful. How can we cope with such a pressure when all we see is our own imperfections? This episode was inspired by some...

Some problems are really difficult, maybe even impossible to solve. This week looking at how a simple shift in perspective can help us. Perhaps we could adapt the phrase "Go big or go home" to "Go big or go small..." This week's episode was inspired by this from  James Clear: "If you're stuck on a problem, try solving it at a different level. Problems that seem i...

Surprise, surprise! Once again we're back with a book review! How original... This week's book is the rather intriguing "The Unoriginal Guide To Originality: How to be Authentic in an over influenced world " by Zach Ramelan. Tune in as we discuss:  Is it possible to be truly original? Or are we all just idea thieves? The importance of intentionally choosing your influences Why...