Episodes
1 / Cambridge Jones on the power of not always blending in
Cambridge Jones is a British Celebrity photographer, entrepreneur, actor and movie producer. He shares his hugely varied personal and career journey; being kidnapped as a two year old, his talent for connecting people and ideas, being rebellious to survive, and his knack for making extraordinary things "happen" to him; from acting on The Bill to a #1 chart hit, to photographing Tony Blair, Desmond Tutu, and P. Diddy.
2 / Hannah Chappatte, on fixing the student rental market
In this episode, we chat with Hannah Chappatte. At a young age, and frustrated by the toxic rental market for students, Hannah conceived and founded Hybr, a student accommodation platform that connects students and landlords, of which she is now founder and CEO. Since then, Hybr has raised significant funding, built a large presence in the market and goes from strength to strength. Hannah was also named in The Times' inaugural Young Power list (25 under 30), alongside Bukayo Saka and Amelia Dimoldenberg.
3 / David Lough on listening to the ideas that get hold of you
David Lough is the founder of the UK's first wealth manager and, now an acclaimed historical author. Bringing insights from working in Japan, David built a successful career in the City, before following an idea that "got hold" of him to start Heartwood, the UK's first wealth manager in 1988. Some 25 years later, David found himself once again feeling a strong pull, this time towards writing, going on to become a respected author of biographies exploring Churchill through his letters and through his money.
4 / Tom Shone on what happens if you let the walls come down
Tom Shone is a film critic, author, and thinker. He shares his incredible life and career; his early struggles to accept his self-expression and creativity, his years as the Sunday Times film critic, his many books on a variety of subjects from Tarantino to Nolan, the power of admitting what you want, the difference between Spielberg and Scorsese, how sometimes you need to let the walls come down, and the importance of thinking back to what you LOVED as a kid.
5 / Alan Rousso on seizing the opportunities that feel uncomfortable
Alan Rousso is an executive coach whose three decades leading teams gives him a clear understanding of how to build a career of agency and meaning. His career in international development took him from the Carnegie Moscow Centre to 20 years at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (or EBRD) in the UK. With a self-awareness and understanding of leadership he shares his views on carving your own path, humility, seizing the uncomfortable opportunities, creating a legacy and transformative, empowering coaching.
6 / Meredith Pierce Hunter on life being too short not to do what you love
Meredith is on the Executive Board of Kew Gardens, and heads up the Kew Foundation. We hear Meredith's fascinating and impressive journey from the Bible Belt in the USA in Perry, Georgia, to senior fundraising roles at Harvard and London Business School, a Trusteeship at Bernardo's, and her personal reflections on life, dealing with tragedy, being a great leader, and taking risks.
7 / Dan Kieran on using fear as the compass of where you need to go next
Dan Kieran is an author and entrepreneur described as a "true disruptor" by Richard Branson. His inspiring journey took him from crippling agoraphobia to editing The Idler, founding Unbound and writing 14 diverse and acclaimed books. In this rich conversation Dan shares his insights on flow states and creativity, the lost art of the journey, fear as the compass for what we need, the journey as a founder and the value in creating a pause - or Caesura - in our lives.
8 / John Spencer Williams on breaking free to do what feels most right
John Spencer Williams is a visionary, author and coach, best known for his three amazing books "Screw Work, Let's Play", "Screw Work, Break Free", and "F*** Work, Let's Play". He is a standing judge at The Business Book Awards, and Founder of The Ideas Lab, where he has worked with and inspired thousands of entrepreneurs. In this brilliant conversation John shares why life is 'empty and meaningless'.. and why that's not necessarily bad, what a 'scanner' is, what it really means to 'Play', how to defeat perfectionism, and how the most important thing is always simply to start.
9 / Tom Adeyoola on achieving the clarity to know the right decision
Tom is an entrepreneur, advisor, and investor, at his heart driven by a curiosity and energy to create and grow. His early career took him on a steep learning curve through digital media and gaming to found the fashion tech business Metail which he led for 11 years, raising over $32m before exiting in 2019. Tom now has a seat on >10 boards, has founded an Angel Fund, is a key advisor to the Shadow Chancellor on the Labour Party Start-up review, and most recently is also a Trustee at Channel 4.
10 / Anna Anderson on finding the mission that drives you forward every day
Anna has entrepreneurship running in the family, being the daughter of Chris Anderson, Head of Ted Talks. But what drives her day to day is the mission to make the world a better place, spreading more joy and connection. Her mission began with social work, and a terrible tragedy in the family, and now manifests in running Kindred, the social oasis that she founded in the heart of London. She takes us through her story, and explains the pleasure she takes every time a new connection is formed because of what she created. A very special episode with a beautiful soul.
11 / Kate Maxwell on the journey to realise a childhood dream
From the age of 8 Kate dreamt of becoming a novelist. Yet she embarked on a successful career which took her to J Walter Thompson, Conde Naste, Soho House and Facebook, via a start-up in New York before realising her dream in her 40s with the the publication of her debut novel Hush, shortlisted for the Bridport Prize First Novel award. She shares how despite a successful career, the instinct to become an author remained, and now that it has been realised, she's doing what she was always meant to do.
12 / Ian Nathan on how doing the practical things well is essential to creative success
From filling in for the entertainment column at his student newspaper, to just a few years later becoming Empire magazine's youngest ever Editor, and now a successful bestselling author and TV regular, Ian Nathan - one of Britain's best known film writers - has always had a knack for knowing the right move, and the courage to take it. He leads us through his brilliant life, explaining how it truly began when he found the thing he loves from a relatively young age, and refused to let go of it once he did.
13 / Svante on the internal battle to find his true path as an artist
Discovering an early passion for art, Svante's life took a different turn as he shifted his creative talents towards business. Success came quickly, but it was soul destroying and through a challenging process of self-discovery, Svante found his way back to art. Now establishing himself as a respected artist, Svante's first major exhibition runs in London on October 4th-5th. This is a conversation about doing what you're meant to do, and the difficult journey to express your truest self.
14 / James Scroggs on innovating the world of work and education
After discovering Prince in his younger years opened his eyes to the world, we hear both James' own odyssey through the world of work - from Marketing Director at MTV, to re-establishing workwear brand M.C. Overalls, and music entrepreneur - through to his drive now to reinvent that world, as creator of education venture The New Working Class. Now also the Chair of CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), and Chairman of One Question, James is one of the UK's cultural leaders, and this is an episode not to be missed.
15 / Sandra Schembri on the power of being perpetually curious
As the daughter of immigrants, Sandra inherited a fierce work ethic which has been one of the superpowers propelling her inspiring career journey. From a TV runner through to Bloomberg and Ronnie Scotts, hard work and an unrelenting desire to learn and grow led her to become the CEO of Soho members club (with a social impact twist) House of St Barnabas, and now CEO of Nordoff & Robbins, the UK’s largest music therapy charity. With her boundless energy and curiosity she enjoys "creating order out of chaos", inspiring and evolving organisations from within. From this invigorating conversation we get to see this generous, open person in full flow.
16 / Frances Madden on how every magic moment begins with a leap of faith
Described by the Australian Institute of Music as "one of Australia's most talented young singer/songwriters and piano players", we hear about Frances's journey from a six year old who became obsessed with piano, to eventually playing live in front of tens of thousands of people. She tells us about the challenges of truly putting yourself out there, the journey of pursuing a career in music, and how when the magic moments do happen, it makes everything worthwhile. This is a conversation about fulfilling your destiny, whatever it takes.
17 / Stephen Page OBE on the opportunities you see out of the corner of your eye
Starting his working life in a bookshop he soon realised he wanted to be "nearer to the story", and found his way into his first role in publishing. Cutting his teeth in sales and marketing, Stephen's relentless, enterprising approach brought him success wherever he landed, finally arriving as CEO of Faber, where he steered the business for 20 years. Now Chair of Faber he is establishing himself as a leadership coach, whilst on the Board of Creative Access, a member of the Creative Industries Council and lecturing on publishing and creative writing. A stimulating conversation with an exceptional man.
18 / Hanne Kristiansen on how you need to create the dots before you connect the dots
From riding horses at 4 years old, to fixing the farm roof soon after, and wilfully not reading out loud until she was older than 10, Hanne has always done things her own way, and proudly so. Her journey took her from being the daughter of hippy parents in provincial Denmark to eventually taking significant corporate roles in the UK including the Head of Innovation at Kellogg's. She then started her own consultancy and has worked with academics over many years to develop an innovative framework for creativity that she now shares with the world. Hanne is incredibly talented, a true force of nature, and an example to us all.
19 / Irene Graham OBE on how the road to career fulfilment begins with being true to yourself
In this shorter form episode, Andrew has a one on one chat with the brilliant Irene Graham OBE. Irene was identified as a leader from a young age, with her "can do" mindset and collaborative approach being the cornerstones of a senior career with Standard Chartered, where she harnessed her entrepreneurial spirit to create and lead a range of global projects and businesses, eventually resulting in her being an architect of the UK "open banking" revolution. Irene now sits on the Board of Creative UK, and as founder and CEO of the ScaleUp Institute, has supported for the last 10 years the UK's growing businesses and start-up economy. A truly impressive and inspiring guest.
20 / Laura Tenison MBE on how true success lies in doing good as well as doing well
Like many born entrepreneurs, Laura's entrepreneurial tendencies were there for all to see from her tender years when she would make a few pennies selling cold drinks and cakes behind her house. 45 years later, JoJo Maman Bébé, the company she founded, was making £70m in annual revenue and employing 1,000 people, on the way to becoming one of Britain's best loved brands. A joy to listen to and share a room with, and Welsh business royalty, Laura is a generational talent, and an inspiration to us all.
