Garry Lace – Why every day really is a school day

The power of stories and learning have always been a key passion for my guest this week. The colourful, creative and occasionally controversial Garry Lace, former CEO of some of London’s biggest advertising agencies and now a founder at Storians, speaks candidly about his own personal journey. 

 We talk about what he has learnt through his leadership experiences and career resets and why ‘staying tethered’ is now so important to him.  We explore how to inspire leaders to tell their own stories, show real vulnerability and to recognise that their most important assets in business are their people. I hope that this frank and open conversation will inspire you to open up about your own well-being journey and take time to listen to someone else on #TimetoTalk Day, 2nd February 2023.   

By providing your people with a safe space to share their own stories you might just make a real difference to someone’s life.

Elizabeth Gooch, MBE – The spirit of a multi-million pound entrepreneur

This week I am talking to the incredible Elizabeth Gooch, MBE, CEO of eg solutions and a powerhouse entrepreneur. We discuss her path to founding a successful UK tech company and pioneering a new and emerging technology market that is worth over $3bn. Showing that hard work and determination really does pay off.

I love how Elizabeth has been successful by not sticking to the system. Her strength and creativity were used to adopt her own approach, resetting and choosing to take the ‘unconventional’ path. 

We reflect on the leaders and founders we have met along our entrepreneurial pathways and the positive and negative traits they showed to us.  We analyse just how important people are to a company and Elizabeth reminds us all that the way you treat people will come back and not only amplify your brand but your own reputation. A poignant reminder to always be kinder than kind and to continue putting your people first. 

Kate Delaney – Finding peace in the present

Welcome to my first podcast of 2023. I hope you had time to reset over the break. Today I am talking to one of our coaches,  Dr Kate Delaney, Mindfulness expert and Clinical Hypnotherapist. Kate studied at the University of Southampton followed by a doctorate on Environmental Sciences, in Central America.

Kate’s life drastically changed when she was 24. In a matter of months, she contracted a mystery illness which left her bedbound for 5 years. In this week’s episode Kate talks us through those unimaginable years, her diagnosis with Lyme disease and how she made her incredible recovery with the support of her family and friends and how now she helps herself and others to find peace in the present.

Ben Slater, Beamery – Exploring the future of talent

On this week’s Reset the podcast, we have Ben Slater, Senior Vice President Marketing, at Beamery, a talent lifecycle management platform.

In this episode we cover different ways of working post COVID, the best ways to recognise and retain your talent and how to address the strategic issue of an emerging skills crisis. 

Ben and I discuss how best to manage your people following on from such an unusual and difficult few years. He shares how important he feels it is to acknowledge your people have different wants from work and requirements in the environment of which they work and that this is okay. Jobs are not a binary box and it is clear the future of talent has a really new look.

Jo Pratt, Chef – What do you do when you are in the mood for food

For any food lovers, my guest this week is particularly special. Jo Pratt is an award-winning food writer, cook, food stylist and presenter.  We discuss what ignited her passion for food, how she creates her recipes and how she finds balance in life as she has built her own brand.    

Jo shares with me how she struggles with feeling guilty when she takes ‘me time’ – a common theme for many entrepreneurs.  

We discuss just how tricky and isolating Christmas can be for those struggling with their mental wellbeing, eating disorders or people who are just feeling lonely. Jo provides great advice on ways to avoid the temptation of excessive consumption and how to treasure the mouthfuls and lovely moments you have.  

Marcella Collins – Creating a safe space to talk

For many having a baby is one of the most powerful and natural things to do in the world, but for others it’s a huge challenge that takes determination, courage and a lot of patience. In this week’s RESET the podcast I talk to Marcella Collins, Founder and Managing Director of Prompt Marketing. She shares openly the journey she and her wife, Maggie Alphonsi MBE, have gone through to have baby Artie and now Marcella’s current pregnancy.

Marcella talks about the joy of their first child carried by Maggie, and then the despair she felt when she was unable conceive herself. The challenge of rounds of IVF & the loneliness, she experienced following on from her miscarriage.

She also openly discusses what it was like to be a gay professional rugby player and the transition for her into being a successful entrepreneur.

In this episode Marcella and I hope to normalize conversations around miscarriage, loss and motherhood. She is an inspiration as a mother, a gay woman, wife, entrepreneur and most importantly a wonderful human being.

If you are struggling with any of these topics or want to see professional help, please see the resources below…

Kit Krugman, co: collective – The power of creativity and curiosity

This week on Reset the podcast I am talking to the energetic and insightful Kit Krugman, Managing Director, co: collective. Having a creative outlet is a key part of our own wellbeing and so I love Kit talking through all things creativity, career paths and kindness.

Together we discuss the essence of what makes a great modern leader. Kit believes in creating a clarity of vision and focus, excellent communication skills, authenticity and how to be authoritative as a woman

We also reflect on the importance of leaders recognising when it is time to reaffirm or a time to change their company’s core values. Kit says that whilst it is important that these values endure, they should also evolve. What might have worked for 5 people won’t work for 500. As the behaviours, culture and ways of working within the company change and grow, their values should too, and leaders have a duty to support this growth.

If you are currently challenged with growing a business through this time of economic disruption, this conversation will be both thought provoking as well as inspiring.

Christina Flach, Pretty Girl Makeup – Without the darkness you cannot shine

I love makeup and female entrepreneurs and Christina Flach, President and CEO of ‘Pretty Girl Makeup’ embodies the best in both.

In this week’s Reset the podcast Christina shares with me how she first got into the makeup industry after seeing how makeup helped her friends and family to feel better about themselves, She talks about the journey her brand has been on and how her experience as a makeup artist allows her to find innovative ways to be creative with her brand.

The sudden and heartbreaking loss of her husband Ken Flach gave Christina and her family a huge unwanted and unplanned reset. She shares how she found the inner strength when the world was pulled out from under her feet and explains how being disciplined with herself, taking time to help others and making sure she is always kind to herself as well as those around her, helps her to now live her life to the full.

Christina’s positive attitude to life is contagious and I love her poignant message that when you have to overcome the darkness, the light will be so much brighter.

Tony Miller, WW – To be your best self, you have to be your authentic self

Tony Miller, CMO, VP Growth and Performance Marketing, WW, Weight Watchers is one of the most open and inclusive people I know, and he wears his heart on his sleeve, which makes him an inspiring leader.

Tony shares with me how it’s important to provide people with support as well as information to enable them to make a positive change to their physical wellbeing and in doing so, their mental wellbeing.

We talk about his journey in becoming the dynamic leader and wonderful person he is today. As a younger boy, he didn’t embrace his sexuality and felt unable to articulate this. He began to understand himself better by his 20s but he feared rejection, being a disappointment and his relationship with family and friends.  He came out when he was 35. Everyone’s journey is different, and Tony remains proud and confident with his own.

I am reminded in this conversation to celebrate everyone’s difference – every body can be a healthy body and everyone can feel their authentic, energetic, best self in and out of work when they are encouraged to.

Sarah Harbon, benefit – We are only human

Sarah Harbon is the General Manager, benefit, UK and Ireland, where she has worked for over 15 years. Sarah and I discuss how important it is as leaders to create a culture of kindness in a business. She shares how she tries to build her team at Benefit with a focus on the people within it. They encourage colleagues, customers and all others to be unapologetically themselves.

Creating a strong team of kindness with colleagues who support each other, she argues, can enable them to be more commercial and resilient to change. And as we are all only human, everybody has moments of weakness, and everybody makes mistakes, it’s how you deal with that in a business environment that makes all the difference.  

This week we discover a little of the essence of one of our high street’s best loved beauty brands and some of the passion of the leader behind it.

Thanks again for listening.