Leanne on Demand Daily with Leanne Hughes

Hey from the Brisbane Airport car park! Today’s episode is a little... rogue. I flew to Newcastle and back this morning — not for a keynote, not for a holiday, but for something frequent flyers call a status run . If you’ve never heard of it, I walk you through exactly what it is, why I did it, and how I used a mix of AI, points-chasing logic, and productive downtime to make it totally worth it. ✈...

Today’s episode is inspired by a night out under the stars at Brisbane’s Riverstage, where I saw Train live (highly recommend, by the way!). It got me thinking — not just about great music, but about mashups. Remixes. Genre-bending. And how we can apply that same creativity to our work. From acoustic sets to DJ teases, to a live mashup of KT Tunstall and Razorlight (unexpected and excellent), this...

Happy Monday! Today I’m riffing on a recent episode of Greg Isenberg’s Startup Ideas podcast that had my brain buzzing. I love how freely Greg and his guests share what they’re experimenting with—this time, it was all about using AI agents to automate “vibe marketing.” Basically, it’s like this: You prompt an agent to research top-performing content, write posts in your voice (as a conversion copy...

On today's Weekend Rewind, I'm joined by good friend, psychologist and self-leadership expert, Dr. Maike Neuhaus. Maike and I always go deep when we chat (usually over long lunches), so this episode feels like a peek behind the scenes of one of those meaty convos—except this time, you get to join us! Maike specialises in helping people flourish—not just “fixing what’s broken,” but creating a life...

Hey! Thanks for tuning in to this weekend’s rewind. This conversation was recorded a few years ago, but wow—has it aged well. Today’s guest is the brilliant Stephen Shapiro , an innovation expert who's spent decades helping organisations grow by asking better questions and solving the right problems. Stephen shares how he went from optimising processes (aka, shrinking companies) at Accenture to bu...

Hey, thanks for tuning in today! I'm still here in Sydney, fresh off a multi-day event. I obviously can’t reveal the client or all the details, but I can share a powerful takeaway from the experience—especially for those of you tuning in daily. Today’s topic? Precision in speech. Which, if you've been listening to Leanne on Demand , might sound like the opposite of how I usually roll! 😅 Most epis...

Hey friends — coming at you from Sydney, where I’ve spent way too much time indoors today. Seriously, it was 4:30 PM before I even saw daylight. Not ideal. My Oura Ring told me my readiness score was 52 — yikes — but I rallied, stretched, ran a webinar for a great cause (the St. Vinnies CEO Sleepout!), and then hit record on this episode. Today’s chat is a mixed bag of reflections, rants, and reve...

This episode is a bit of a pulse check. With all the disruption flying at us—AI, tech, changing markets—I’m keeping my head up, scanning the horizon, and thinking about what actually matters as we look ahead (but not too far ahead). Forget five-year plans. I’m talking 12-month windows. That’s as far out as I go with clients right now, because everything is moving that fast. But even in the chaos,...

In today’s episode, I’m recapping my experience speaking at the Queensland Association of Collaborative Practice’s annual conference. It was an absolute honour to be the only non-lawyer on stage. But also, it gave me a chance to bring a fresh perspective to a room of highly skilled professionals. I kick things off by explaining what collaborative practice actually is—because honestly, I only found...

I'm recording this episode ahead of a big week—I'm heading to Sydney for a mix of events and workshops, but before all that, I’m hosting something a little different. On Wednesday morning , I’m running a live webinar on May 21st , where I’ll be sharing behind-the-scenes, never-before-shared ideas from my workshops. DONATE TO ACCESS THIS MASTERCLASS. Think of this session as the extended director’s...

This weekend rewind is a special one. I'm celebrating the two-year anniversary of my first real book — The 2-Hour Workshop Blueprint . (Yes, I did write a netball coaching manual back in the day, 😄). To mark the occasion, I’m replaying a juicy interview I did with Jessica Mudditt on her podcast. Jessica’s the founder of Hembury Books and an all-round publishing legend — if you're thinking of writ...

I decided to re-release this conversation because earlier this week, I joined Ryan So Fly's YouTube creator community (only $5/month — well worth it), and it reminded me just how brilliant this chat was. Ryan So Fly is one of my favourite travel YouTubers. He’s funny, honest, insightful, and has a killer eye for capturing raw, real travel experiences — from flight reviews to Aussie pub meals in re...

Today I’m taking you behind the scenes of my Everest Base Camp (and peak!) training journey — the real stuff. Injuries, gadgets, gear, and the surprising power of voice notes. In this episode, I share: Why I enlisted coach Kyle Mooney from Experience Not Felt Possible How we’re using the Final Surge app + voice note coaching to build momentum What it’s like walking with a weighted vest for the fir...

I’ve got a couple of dogs—Quincey and Milo—and while I don’t talk about them enough on the pod, they’re a huge part of my life. Quincey is 14 now, and recently we’ve been getting some tests done because, well… he’s showing signs of ageing. Because when I requested health reports from the vet, I was like… what does any of this even mean?! So I turned to ChatGPT uploaded the documents, and asked it...

Today’s episode is inspired by a magical, unexpected post-speech conversation I had with a woman named Susan. Susan is originally from Ghana, and before I even got up to speak at the Mother’s Day event, she walked right up to me and said: "I feel like I need to be here." Then she gave me a message: Allow and accept. Be the water. Now, I’m not always on the woo-woo train—but still....! In today’s e...

In today’s episode, I’m sharing the live speech I gave at a high school Mother’s Day event, in front of 300 daughters and mums sipping tea and passing cupcakes. It starts with me at ten years old, ashamed to be picked up in our brown, overheated Holden Camira… until my mum did something that completely changed my view of her — and, honestly, my view of life. You’ll hear about: Why there are thousa...

In today’s quick hit, I’m responding to a very interesting question I got from a friend-client on LinkedIn: “If AI can simulate different stakeholder perspectives, do we still need to engage them?” Here’s my take: Yes, use AI for speed, but not as a substitute for relationships. You can ask ChatGPT to pretend it’s your procurement manager and offer advice—but here’s what that misses... AI gives yo...

Hey, welcome to the Weekend Rewind My guest is Mike Knapp , and this chat was actually born from an unrecorded conversation we had where I said mid-way, “Wait—why aren’t we capturing this?!” Mike is a strategy advisor, coach, mural template wizard and meditation teacher (yep, all those things). In this episode, he shares how he went from IT specialist to a sought-after facilitator for complex digi...

I'm re-sharing my second chat with the world's leading body language expert, Mark Bowden . This was originally recorded during peak Zoom-fatigue era, when facilitators (myself included) were scrambling to figure out how the heck to connect, engage, and energise through a webcam. Why am I bringing this back now? Two reasons: I just quoted this episode in a webinar, and it landed hard. His tips STIL...

Hey, thanks for jumping in today. I’m sharing some reflections from my 9-year wedding anniversary weekend—and how a random cookie run led me into one of Australia’s biggest copyright controversies. What happens when a viral baker is accused of copying recipes from a best-selling cookbook author? And what does this mean for those of us who share ideas for a living? What I cover in this episode: A s...

You know that line, “You teach what you most need to learn” ? Well, that hit me—hard—during a session I ran last week. This episode is about how I ran a workshop on observation skills … and completely failed to observe the most obvious thing in front of me that very morning. I tell the story of how I showed up early (classic me), spent half an hour meticulously setting up a room—only to realise… i...

In this episode, I’m reflecting on a phrase that popped into my head while driving here: How do you become a One Take Wonder? You know, the kind of person who can just hit record and go — no second takes, no overthinking, just clarity, energy, and good-enough delivery. Here’s what I unpack: Why being a little messy on video is actually your advantage in an AI-perfect world What a Hong Kong partici...

Last week I ran two virtual workshops for a global client—one at a beautiful 1:00 PM time slot (bless), and the second... at 5:00 AM. Yep. Coffee was very involved. In this episode, I’m sharing the behind-the-scenes of how I prepped and delivered these sessions—specifically when you're working across time zones, with translators, in hybrid tech ecosystems (read: Zoom vs Teams drama), and with supe...

I usually steer clear of politics on the pod, but after the Australian federal election over the weekend… I had to say something . Because honestly? It was a total non-event. No vision. No leadership. No spark. Just some tit-for-tat promises and reheated policies that felt like they were scraped from the bottom of the idea barrel. In this solo riff, I talk about: Why I felt uninspired (and maybe a...

In this episode, I chat with the absolutely brilliant Maria McDonald, a Learning + Development Manager at Geocaching HQ. Maria’s story is one of those that starts in social work, pivots into office management, and then—thanks to the power of facilitation—lands in a dream career in L&D. 💥 We explore how facilitation is way more than running a workshop—it’s a mindset and a life skill. Maria sha...