A New Way of Being

We live in a goal-centric society, and we are always striving for more and bigger and better – but what about when you reach your goals and achieve your dreams – and the satisfaction and fulfilment you are expecting isn’t there? Then what? In this clip Jonny Wilkinson starts by talking about his World Cup winning drop goal of 2003, during which he experienced a dissolution of self - or that sense...

Thomas ‘Hal’ Robson-Kanu is the footballer who scored probably Wales’ most famous goal of all time against Belgium in the quarter-finals of Euro 2016. The theme of this episode is the power of gratitude. And we are not just talking about being grateful for the good things that happen to you – but being grateful for every moment, irrespective of its content. From the sheer miracle of existence and...

We have a tendency to put people on pedestals – successful sportspeople, celebrities, businesspeople – and there’s no doubt that what some people are able to create can be phenomenal. But, it is a mistake to project Godlike status onto such people, as if they really are a superior species. They are fallible human beings like the rest of us. I call this ‘the illusion of mental hierarchies’, and see...

Hormones are the internal chemical messengers that have a powerful influence on our mental and physical wellbeing. When your hormone levels are balanced, you will tend to have stable moods and feel energetic, motivated, and mentally sharp. But - when hormone levels are out of whack, you may experience a range of symptoms that are also commonly associated with mental illness like depression. There...

The theme of this mini episode is all about creating opportunities for yourself. Sir Chris Hoy started in BMX before switching to track cycling, but a key moment in his career came when the cost of pursuing his passion was starting to bite while he was still a young lad. Rather than let that deter him, Chris got creative – and wrote letter after letter to people and companies he thought might be a...

This a bit of a different episode of Life Lessons - a career special to mark National Careers week. My guest is Helen Tupper – who co-hosts the Squiggly Careers podcast with Sarah Ellis. They have also written two best-selling books, ‘ the Squiggly Career ’... and their new book is called ‘ You Coach You ’. It’s about giving people the tools to become their own careers coach. Helen and Sarah are a...

This conversation is about recognising that the stories and narratives we tell ourselves about what should make us happy – high status, millions of social media followers, billions in the bank – are often inaccurate. Instead – we need to start paying attention to what does make us happy – for example, spending time with friends, connection, pro-social acts of kindness and altruism, playing sport,...

We are not our thoughts, we are aware of our thoughts. The more we can acknowledge this fact, the less emphasis we put on the need for 'high self-esteem' and 'positive self-talk'. To help me bust some myths is the best-selling author of the Confidence Gap and the Happiness Trap . And just a warning - if you stand in front of the mirror and do positive self-affirmations, this episode might get you...

What is a price worth paying for a gold medal? That's a question that Cath Bishop seeks to answer in her work. Cath is a former World Champion British rower who won silver at the Olympics. She was also a diplomat and is now a leadership speaker, writer and consultant. Her book 'The Long Win' challenged the narrative around 'winning at all costs'. After competing at three Olympics - a period of her...

"What you put in, you get out." Words that Wales and Lions captain Sam Warburton has lived by. It's about adopting and embracing an attitude of being you can be at everything that doesn't require talent - including effort and hard work. This is something anyone can adopt at any age - and Sam exhibited it even as a schoolboy. *** Follow me : on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/simonmundie/ on Tw...

We like to think we know what will happen, but we don't actually know what will happen an hour from now let alone in a years time. Stevie Ward burst onto the rugby league scene as a teenager, helping Leeds Rhinos win the challenge cup final in 2012. But, his career was blighted by injury. He had 10 operations – all before turning 27. He had just been made Leeds Rhinos Captain and was reaching the...

We live in a very goal-orientated society. So many of us are continually striving and thinking - 'what’s next?' We may believe that when we get promoted at work, move into a bigger house or finally get a six pack – THEN we will be happy. However, you may have noticed that the horizon we are striving for always seems to stay just out of reach. Once one goal is ticked off – we want another one, idea...

Alistair Brownlee is the only triathlete in history to successfully defend an Olympic gold medal – he won his first at London 2012 and backed it up by repeating the trick in Rio in 2016. He is also a two-time world champion, a four-time European champion and the 2014 Commonwealth champion Basically - Alistair's trophy cabinet is overflowing. The theme of this week’s conversation is – peak performa...

Aimee Fuller has a lot to say about fear. She is a former professional snowboarder who made history as the first woman to land a double backflip in competition and competed in two Winter Olympics. In this episode, we talk about her two Ps for dealing with fear, preparation and perspective, Aimee's ladder of excitement as well as flow, where we are totally immersed in the moment – among many other...

How to set goals properly, by focusing on what we can control and recognising what we can’t. Also – it’s about understanding the truth behind that famous Einstein quote about insanity, which he defined as ‘ doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result .’ We’re hearing from Olympic gold medal winning rower Ben Hunt Davis. He competed in three Olympic games and in the fi...

Max Lowe is a filmmaker whose father was Alex Lowe – the greatest mountain climber of his generation. Days before Max’s 11th birthday, his father Alex was killed in an avalanche while on expedition in the Tibetan Himalaya. Alex Lowe’s best friend and climbing partner Conrad Anker escape from the avalanche with his life – but was left wracked with survivor’s guilt. He headed back to the States, com...

Sir Clive Woodward's favourite mantra has to be 'TCUP'- Thinking Correctly Under Pressure. It's about thinking through potential hurdles so that when things do go awry - you are better equipped to be able to navigate them. Sir Clive's England showed the power of TCUP when winning the 2003 Rugby World Cup at the death. Clearly the possible unexpected scenarios that you could face are limitless - th...

Rates of anxiety were rising rapidly before the pandemic – and have shot up since the world changed in 2020. In 2021, 'anxiety' was chosen by children as their word of the year. It’s clearly a huge issue. One of the most powerful tools to counter anxiety is a counter-intuitive one – acceptance. So many of us distract ourselves from our feelings - not least with the help of our digital devices - bu...

Just how did Joe Wicks harness the power of social media to become the 'Nation's PE teacher'? It's all about authenticity, consistency - and ignoring the naysayers. When Joe started posting content in 2014, there was no master plan. He just loved doing it. His mates told him to give the videos a rest, but he ploughed on and eventually broke through. It's a story that is often repeated in seeming '...

"Intuition is a powerful thing. More powerful than intellect." - Steve Jobs "The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift." - Albert Einstein The power of intuition is a difficult thing to quantify, but numerous hugely 'successful' people have sworn by it. In this week's full length con...

How walking more will boost your brain, body and creativity with professor Shane O'Mara. Most of us do it - but almost all of us don’t walk enough. It's hardly news that we are, as a species, too sedentary, and that has only increased since the pandemic hit. The fact is that we were not designed to spend as much time as we do sitting - and by upping our step count, we can enjoy huge benefits for b...

Bradley Simmonds is one of the most in-demand fitness trainers in the UK. The list of well-known people whose physical and mental health he has helped improve includes John Terry, Louise Redknapp, Brendan Rodgers, Niall Horan, Olly Murs, Declan Rice and Maya Jama. Bradley says embracing consistency is the key to reaching your goals - don't rely on motivation as that will definitely wane. He also s...

We live in highly polarised times, where largely impenetrable tribes have formed around certain beliefs and world views – so having a guide to help us communicate effectively with people who don’t share our opinions is priceless. Tim Harkness does a great job at outlining how to navigate the difficult conversations that persistently have negative effects in our personal and professional lives. He’...

David Hamilton PHD is one of the world’s foremost experts on the scientific benefits of kindness, and author of the best selling book ‘the 5 side effects of kindness’. In this bitesized episode, we talk about how kindness positively effects the alarm system of the brain - the amygdala - as well as the prefrontal cortex which is associated with decision making, impulse control and attention. It's a...

Owen Eastwood is one of the world’s top performance coaches. He worked alongside Gareth Southgate as England prepared for this year's Euros, and Team GB ahead of this summer's Olympics. He's also worked with the Scotland rugby squad, the South African cricket team, as well as the royal ballet school and the command group of NATO. Owen set out the thinking behind his success in his excellent book B...