Leading 4 Life "Stories"

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/QAauQiXyl0Y One of the most fascinating (and frequent) things I was privileged to do whilst I was the Assistant Chief of Defence Staff (Operations) was to work in the UK Government's Crisis Centre, colloquially known as COBRA. COBRA...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/fbdkM56Wn6s Season 4 of Leading 4 Life "Stories" kicks off in style with an interview with Andrew Dyckhoff, the Founder and CEO of Energising Leaders.   Andrew has a fascinating career and very diverse career history with a rang...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/2FxAZyM0hHQ In this final episode of Season 3, I provide a review of Leading 4 Life "Stories" across the year of 2025.  It is a season that includes 15 personal story episodes, 11 thematic episodes covering a wide range of theme...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/gu9CR1eAvyc Emma Henderson is now a highly successful motivational speaker and a published author, but this episode focuses mostly on her back story which is an amazing and very impressive one! Married to a Royal Air Force pilot soon afte...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/gOpH-qjGW8c Having a purpose in life is fundamental to your health, well being and personal happiness, and yet, when asked the question "why do you do what you do?", many people struggle to be able to actually articulate their r...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/TTlGEKnM2kQ Having just returned from a week long work trip to Saudi Arabia, it felt entirely appropriate to produce a short thematic episode on the importance of cultural understanding to leaders. Culture is often talked about in busines...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/ipkhmzY_oFM Gary Deakin had a highly successful career in the British Army, rising to the rank of Major General, before embarking on what has now become a diverse and equally successful portfolio career outside the military.   Along the w...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/BLCPo2h6nCU It was a great privilege to host Martin Shaw for this week's episode of Leading 4 Life "Stories".  Martin has had an incredible 60 year career in acting and, over that time, has featured in numerous, stage produ...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/qfN8fkZujZs My tour as Assistant Chief of Defence Staff (Operations) was always incredibly busy but was also punctuated by some amazingly memorable events.   The London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games, and working in the Government Em...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/0l9PXJzJCRI This episode will be published on Remembrance Sunday (9 November 2025) in the UK and so I thought a short thematic piece on remembrance would be very appropriate.  These are very much my personal thoughts and perspectives, but...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/TfiK-iBRp2k Jon Geldart is the Director General of the Institute of Directors, an organisation with a main focus on improving the quality of directors, and which represents business at the most senior levels of the UK government.   Prior...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/YUdCx-58zkQ Tammy Barlette has had an amazing career both in the USAF and subsequently with her work as a keynote speaker, mindset coach and trainer.  Her flying background is incredibly diverse; she started out as a first assignment inst...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/MIQoHdtZQUU Lord George Robertson is a man with a justifiably extremely impressive reputation.  Formerly Secretary of State for Defence in the UK, and subsequently, Secretary General of NATO, George is the only man (so far at least) to ha...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/qBZWcS8rmA8 Sally Orange is an extraordinary lady and, as you will discover in this episode, she has had to overcome a number of major challenges in her life.  Those challenges continue as, at the time of recording, she is undergoing chem...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/jy8hNj4vbEE I have had the privilege of knowing Lord Kim Darroch for a number of years and he has had a remarkable career in the UK Foreign Service.  As he explains in this episode, he came into the diplomatic world via a very non-traditi...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/_7UEm53Q68Y I first met Peter Sorgenfrei through LinkedIn and rapidly realised that we had a lot in common and would have a great conversation.  So it proved to be, and this episode is packed with leadership thoughts and advice that I thi...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/liwjPI9bdF8 One of my most enduring and vivid memories of my time in uniform was our participation in the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.   The military were only ever expected to be in the background of this nationally importan...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/UMB3ac2V2iE Jeff Nielsen has a fascinating aviation career history.  A former United States Air Force C141 transport pilot, then an instructor pilot on the T37 trainer, Jeff subsequently had a 35 year career in Delta Airlines, rising to b...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/dSrc0y8GXZQ I've been intending to talk about leadership traits and authentic leadership in particular for some while now, but my work at Deloitte University this week provided a perfect catalyst for this episode.  Authenticity in th...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/NLGG5OAMCNo Mark Cheshire is a fantastic man with an amazing career track record behind him.  Starting with a 30 year career in Lloyds Banking Group that saw him rise to be the CEO of the Lloyds UK Private Bank, in more recent times he ha...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/Nx1yfjz0POU Hetti Barkworth-Nanton is a remarkable individual.  She is the CEO of Ploughshare, Chair of Refuge UK, Co-Founder and Patron of The Joanna Simpson Foundation, but those are just the formal positions she holds.  Listening to he...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/7vYdDL4e1k0 Greg Bagwell and Sean Bell have been colleagues and friends of mine for many years now.  Both are former fast-jet pilots but we all went down different aircraft paths at the end of flying training.  Whilst I went to the Jaguar...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/BsCKsGCDXOg At the conclusion of my tour at the Chief of Defence Staff's Liaison Officer in The Pentagon, I was fortunate enough to be promoted once again, this time to be an Air Vice-Marshal, which was to be my final rank in the Roy...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/FnN6o5eSScI Having known him for almost 20 years, I was delighted that Tom Tugendhat agreed to join me as a guest on Leading 4 Life "Stories".  Tom is the Conservative Member of Parliament for Tonbridge, a constituency in the So...

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/U7exNBCMO5M I have worked with Tabi Haller-Jorden a number of times whilst facilitating at Deloitte University, and I realised a while ago that she would be an outstanding guest to have on Leading 4 Life "Stories".  Tabi has an...