Shows
Man Up / Man DownMan Up / Man Down LIVEThis is the live recording of our event in London on the 24th of October 2024.Marc Convey and Rose Rowkins joined David Pawsey and Volker Ballueder on Stage to discuss 'Overcoming Adversity' and 'Suicide Prevention'.You find a video recording on YouTube. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2024-11-071h 20
Man Up / Man DownMindset, Mood, MovementIn this episode of "Man Up / Man Down," hosts Volker and David are joined by Sal Jeffries, a coach specialising in helping founders over 40 redefine their purpose, increase performance, and cultivate a peaceful mind through psychology, emotional regulation, and body intelligence.Sal begins by explaining his work with clients, focusing on the inner game—how individuals think, feel, and act. He shares his personal journey, being a midlife man himself at 52, and how he transitioned from a stressed career in photography to becoming a coach and yoga teacher. This shift was driven by his desire to ma...
2024-10-2445 min
Man Up / Man DownAging Parents and the Dilemma of Assisted SuicideIn the latest episode of "Man Up, Man Down," hosts Volker Ballueder and David Pawsey engage with Justin Campbell, co-founder of Sales Source and host of the Future Fast Digital Marketing podcast. The discussion orbits around the challenges of ailing parents, with a potential exploration into the delicate topic of assisted suicide, depending on the direction of the conversation.Justin introduces his personal and professional background, emphasising his extensive experience in B2B sales and digital marketing. He shares his recent accomplishment of completing the London Marathon and delves into his life as a Brit residing...
2024-07-1148 min
Man Up / Man DownPodcasting, Midlife and Health ScaresIn this "Man Up / Man Down" podcast, hosts David Pawsey and Volker Ballueder are joined by James Marriott, who works in radio and media and edits the podcast. This episode dives into the experiences and insights from James's life, especially focusing on his journey around mindfulness, alcohol use, and personal growth.James shares his recent decision to buy a house and the financial commitments that come with it, joking about the economic climate's impact on his lifestyle. He also touches on his passion for Eurovision, revealing plans to travel there, blending his interest in cultural celebrations with...
2024-06-2050 min
Man Up / Man DownMan vs. Fat FootballIn the latest episode of "Man Up / Man Down," hosts David Pawsey and Volker Ballueder interview Richard Crick, the head of Man V Fat Football, a programme that supports men in their weight loss and health goals through football. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the initiative, which combines the love of the sport with a structured weight loss program.Richard shares insights into the origins of Man V Fat Football, conceived when the founder, Andrew Shanahan, noticed a lack of weight loss programs catering specifically to men’s needs. The program has grown significantly, now bo...
2024-05-3044 min
Man Up / Man DownA Band of BrothersIn this episode of "Man Up, Man Down," David and Volker talk to Berny Auton from A Band of Brothers. A Band of Brothers is an organisation that mentors young men involved with or at risk of involvement in the criminal justice system. We discuss the organisation's aim to support these young men in finding a purposeful and responsible life path. Founded in 2009, the organisation assists those who've faced trauma, substance abuse, or homelessness, often resulting from early family breakdowns or care system experiences.Berny highlights the prevalence of undiagnosed mental health and nuerodiversity issues among...
2024-05-0947 min
Man Up / Man DownThe coach with the Spider TattooIn this episode of the "Man Up / Man Down” podcast, hosted by Volker Ballueder and David Pawsey, guest Jerry Colonna, a leading executive coach, and CEO of Reboot, shares profound insights into midlife, personal growth, and finding purpose. Jerry, known for his experience as a venture capitalist turned coach, discusses his journey through midlife, emphasising the importance of confronting inner turmoil to achieve a more conscious life.Jerry's story includes a symbolic encounter with a spider during a soul-searching retreat, which led him to realise that worrying excessively about the future, especially about his children, was hi...
2024-04-111h 00
Man Up / Man DownSolo - Duo - EpisodeThis solo/duo episode of Man up / Man down starts with a light-hearted banter between David and Volker, touching on personal anecdotes about local egg deliveries, dietary preferences, and their affinity for supporting local businesses. The chat meanders through personal histories, including living arrangements in London, reflections on commuting experiences, and transitions to more rural living for family and mental health benefits.David and Volker explore their work-life balance, the shift towards online work, and the importance of local community engagement. They delve into endurance sports and personal challenges, highlighting the mental and physical aspects of preparing...
2024-04-0441 min
Man Up / Man DownTaking the stress out of sleepJames Wilson AKA The Sleep Geek is the host of the podcast taking the stress out of sleep. He founded his company kipmate, to help people understand their sleep better, and understand which tips and tools to try to get the best kip possible. He work with organisations, sports teams and individuals delivering seminars, drop in sessions and kipmate has sort your kip, its digital tool. He has worked with the likes of M&S, AB Worked Food’s, Ernst & Young and West Ham United, contributing to their triumph in the Europa Conference League last season.He...
2024-03-071h 06
Man Up / Man DownFinding yourself, the real meIan Sanders runs his storytelling, coaching and creativity/ work life design business. He’s the author of five books on working life including his latest, 365 Ways To Have a Good Day. Ian is resolutely independent, curious, open-minded, and rebel-spirited, and that’s led to a pretty unconventional career. It’s also given him a unique perspective on what makes people and organisations tick.His current gigs range from training leadership teams at global organisations in the art of storytelling, to being an instructor for Simon Sinek’s Optimism Company, where he runs his Redesign Your Work Day clas...
2024-01-1845 min
Man Up / Man DownA life with ADHDCaroline Williams is a medical journalist, who has written for a range of mainstream publications and medical journals, including The Atlantic, the BBC, The Boston Globe, The Guardian, New Scientist and The New York Times.She is also author of Move!: The New Science of Body Over Mind.However, David discovered Caroline after reading her article for the New Scientist, What’s behind the recent explosion in ADHD?. Not only was it very well written, but David was able to relate to the story behind the article – where Caroline had been diagnosed as havi...
2024-01-1147 min
Man Up / Man DownChristmas special: LIVE recording part oneChristmas special: LIVE recording part one – a roundtable discussion on what it means to be a man in 2023/24This special episode is the first part of our live recording, which took place in Brighton at the end of November.Our panel included Louise Chunn, CEO of our sponsor Welldoing, Stewart Cumming, head of operations at Dad La Soul and Mick Rigby, CEO of Yodel Mobile (who recorded a great episode with us in the first season, discussing his dyslexia and ADHD diagnosis in his 50s.During Louise’s keynote address, she disc...
2023-12-1442 min
Man Up / Man DownTeenage kids and family rantsThis is a topic that David and Volker have discussed quite a bit in private, so felt it was finally time to record a conversation for the podcast. We discussed how you deal with your “babies” becoming young adults.David’s youngest child starts secondary school in September, so he’s busy checking out local schools. It’s a stark indicator that the children are growing up fast. Volker’s sons are now at secondary school.We discussed how once your children start high school, they are exposed to a whole range...
2023-10-2644 min
Man Up / Man DownJohn-Paul Davies – Psychotherapy, middle aged men, burnout, and life crisisJohn-Paul Davies is an experienced therapist running a full-time private practice from his home in Cobham, Surrey. However, he made this change having worked as a solicitor in the City of London for the first half of his career. While working in the legal profession, John-Paul began experiencing severe anxiety, so decided to seek therapy. Discovering the positive effect it had on him, John-Paul decided to train in psychotherapy and leave his law career behind. John-Paul explained that there is greater awareness of mental health, and the symptoms associated with it, wh...
2023-10-1946 min
Man Up / Man DownTalkclubThis was a special episode as it was the very first time David and Volker had recorded an episode in the same room. But we also had four guests.With us were Nathan and Gavin who run Talkclub in Haywards Heath. Talkclub is a about getting men together to talk and listen. This is an organisation that was set up (by another Gavin) after one of their friends committed suicide. Often, suicide can be prevented by simply talking. Of course, there are bigger issues and more underlying issues that play a role, but if men just...
2023-10-1256 min
Man Up / Man DownRuth Devlin - Men....let's talk menopauseRuth Devlin's career in the health and wellbeing sector started over 30 years ago as a registered nurse, training in Edinburgh. She is passionate about taking a holistic approach to health, which is reflected during talks or when giving treatments as a reflexologist. She founded Let’s Talk Menopause in 2012 and works across all sectors providing informative talks. She is the author of a book entitled Men…Let’s Talk Menopause and regularly contributes on a variety of platforms, including radio & various podcasts. Menopause is when women stop having their menstrual period, and technica...
2023-09-2844 min
Man Up / Man DownAlbertina Fisher - Sex in Middle AgeAlbertina Fisher is the co-founder of Revive Sex and Relationship Therapy. Albertina specialises in psychosexual and relationship therapy, working with people from all backgrounds, sexual and gender orientations, relationship types, and disabilities. She helps individuals and couples with sexual concerns and relationship issues. Albertina has particular skills in working with sexual problems, including: Relationships where sex has stopped. Where there are differences in levels of desire. Conflicting sexual interests. Problems relating to sexual functioning, such as vaginal pain or erectile difficulties. These issues often arise due to life changes, such as pregnancy, birth, be...
2023-07-1348 min
Man Up / Man DownMatt Pattison, Mindful Eating and Slowing DownWe met Matt Pattison when he put a post out about a course on mindful eating on Leapers. Matt is the founder of TEN - The Experience Network / Anatomy HCD & MeetingProof. He describes himself as: A Mentor/Consultant to many - mid-tier Managers to Vice Presidents/Board members. Primarily on matters of Design, Strategy and Entrepreneurship. A Chartered Human Factors specialist. A Presenter and Documentary film maker. An accomplished speaker for audiences of 50-2000 and stuff like that. David and Volker went through his programme to slow down their eating. The course, Slow the Fork Down, can b...
2023-07-0646 min
Man Up / Man DownWork Life Balance - Ollie HendersonWe welcome experienced founder and CEO, Ollie Henderson, who pivoted his career while juggling the pleasures and pressures of raising a young family. Living in North London with his 3 kids and family, he used to run a digital agency. That’s how Volker and Ollie got to know each other. Finding he needed a change, he exited the business in 2020. Not knowing what he wanted to do, he started writing about what his life should look like. Having had several burn-outs, he decided that his life needed to be more balanced. But that was easier sa...
2023-06-2247 min
Man Up / Man DownMen's Shed - Charlie BethelCharlie Bethel is Chief Officer of the UK Men's Sheds Association, an organisation that supports community spaces across the UK for men to 'Do Stuff'. What does ‘Do Stuff’ mean? Woodwork, metal work, electronics... basically making, fixing, upcycling. What does this achieve? 96% reduction in loneliness 75% reduction in anxiety 89% reduction in depression With over 1,000 “Sheds” in the UK, the movement helps challenge loneliness for men and women across the UK. Although many of the meeting spaces aren’t actually sheds - with venues varying from disused morgues, to...
2023-06-1543 min
Man Up / Man DownMick Rigby - Dyslexia and Neurodiversity at 54Mick is the founder and CEO of Yodel Mobile, one of the world's leading app marketing agencies. Despite founding several successful businesses and winning industry awards, Mick was diagnosed with Dyslexia and ADHD at the age of 54, back in March 2022. Back when he was in school in the 1980s, he was tested for behavioural ‘problems’ by the local authority, but didn’t receive a diagnosis other than ‘just having problems’. Mick always had challenges with spelling and writing from an early age but just accepted it and tried to work around them. When his son was...
2023-05-2544 min
Man Up / Man DownMental Health Awareness Week - Louise Chunn from Welldoing.orgThis week’s episode was a special one for a number of reasons. Mainly because we welcomed Louise Chunn, the founder of our sponsor Welldoing. Secondly, we wanted to mark the fact that it’s Mental Health Awareness Week. And obviously we talk about mental health on here A LOT! Thirdly, David was in Portugal for a stag do, so was living the digital native dream. Recording from Home 2, the nicest co-working space David has ever used. He even had a soundproof booth to record from. Although this only helped amplify the squeaky plastic stool he was...
2023-05-1843 min
Man Up / Man DownDad Coach - Joe HortonIn this episode we welcomed Joe Horton from Guild of Dads. Joe set up the Guild of Dads podcast and brotherhood for dads in 2020 after he went through a period of great personal change and upheaval in his own life after his dads’ passing. He now coaches and mentors other professional men and dads who are at the midway point of life - to navigate this tricky time with greater balance, purpose, and thriving relationships. He also organised a monthly dads’ hike on the Ashdown Forest in Sussex aptly called The Guild of Dads Hike. Joe l...
2023-05-0447 min
Man Up / Man DownFixing it with your father - Steve CoreThis episode was recorded back in February, the day before David and his family visited David’s dad. Sadly it was the last time David’s wife and children saw him. However, on that day, which was the last opportunity for David to have a coherent conversation with his Dad, following some suggestions from Steve, David got to know a few things about his father’s childhood, which helped strengthen their bond. In short, David feels that he didn’t have any unresolved issues, despite a complicated relationship with his Dad. So David will always be grateful for reco...
2023-04-2744 min
Man Up / Man DownAndy Delderfield- Alcohol Free RunnersThis week we were joined by Andy Delderfield, the founder of Alcohol Free Runners. Although Andy and David only met a little over a year ago through one of the co-founders of Oner Year No Beer, they immediately hit it off and made a firm friendship. Andy’s story is that having travelled and finally settled in Spain, he began to enjoy the ex-pat lifestyle a little bit too much - spending the weekends drinking solidly and feeling like crap for the rest of the week. As a result he was overweight and depressed and his r...
2023-04-2047 min
Man Up / Man DownRipped at 50 - Jason SmithJason is a former CMO of a multi billion dollar global media business who decided to completely change his life as he approached his 50th birthday. Fed up with his lacklustre energy and lifestyle Jason embraced health & fitness. In a remarkable personal transformation, Jason lost 20kg in weight, while self correcting several ailments and gaining a lust for life he hadn’t experienced since his teens. As a fully qualified Coach and Personal Trainer, Jason now helps tens of thousands of middle aged men to live a better, healthier life through his fast growing social media fans and...
2023-04-0643 min
Man Up / Man DownErectile Dysfunction and Penis ImplantsThis episode was definitely a sensitive subject to touch on but one that our guest, Andy Barham, dealt with, with grace and humour. When we started the podcast, the goal was to raise awareness of topics that men are embarrassed to speak about. Erectile Dysfunction is definitely one of those topics. Andy Barham was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Thankfully he caught it early and beat it after having his prostate removed. However one of the side effects of the operation was erectile dysfunction. While this is a common side effect in the early s...
2023-03-0942 min
Man Up / Man DownBody Dysmorphia and Eating Disorders - Beau MarksohnBeau Marksohn joined us for an episode on body dysmorphia and eating disorders. He was born and raised in NYC and grew up in a household of severe abuse and neglect. As a result of this he struggled from the age of five from feeling insecure in his body. He was always scared as a kid growing up, never felt safe, never felt any sense of consistency and never felt loved. As a result of all of this he started using food to comfort him from a very young age, which then progressed to drugs and booze b...
2023-03-0246 min
Man Up / Man DownBeing always on - Social Media and whether Middle Aged Men can keep up :-)We are all over social media, and feel like we have to be. FOMO, the fear of missing out, we are constantly connected and compare ourselves with others. Volker had been on a social media detox for a few weeks at time of recording. However, he went back to ‘stalking’ others and finds it rather boring now to scroll other people’s images and show offs, if deliberate or not. At time of recording he said he might never go back on social media the way he used to. Scrolling Tiktok mindlessly, wasting time watching reels on Facebo...
2023-02-2344 min
Man Up / Man DownAlcohol Explained - William PorterIn this episode we spoke to William Porter who is the author of Alcohol Explained and other books on addiction. We recorded this episode just before Christmas, when you couldn’t avoid the advertising and association of alcohol to fun and celebration. Similar to Volker, William started drinking and smoking when he was 14 years old which escalated during his military and law career. But why would you give up drinking if it’s the last vice to hang on to, Volker wondered. However, after reading William’s book, Volker has started to question why would you continue drinki...
2023-02-1648 minMan Up / Man DownSleep - we all need it but are we getting enough?In this episode we speak about sleep. For David, sleep has always been an issue. We are both light sleepers, and if we didn’t have a good night sleep, we could be quite grumpy. Volker loves getting up at 5 am. It’s quiet and he has a morning routine which includes exercises and meditation. But he has to be in bed between 9 and 10 pm, in order to get a good 7 hours of sleep. Plus, he loves a 10-20 minutes nap at lunch time. Particularly when he had a busy morning, the nap resets his brain and he f...
2023-02-0944 min
Man Up / Man DownMindfulness for Middle Age - Fiona McKinnonWe welcomed Fiona McKinnon on the podcast, who is the CEO and Co-Founder of the Moment Company. Originally from the North East of Scotland, Fiona lives close to where David and I live, in Sussex. She has over 22 years’ experience in the advertising, media & AdTech industry. From building start-ups to working in large organisations, she has worked and partied hard like many people in the media industry. However, in 2014, she suffered severe physical and mental burnout. She had no wellbeing practice beyond extreme exercise and dirty martinis. She did not believe that meditation and therapy we...
2023-01-2648 minMan Up / Man DownMindfulness in or beyond MidlifeThis week’s topic is Volker’s expert topic. He started meditating over 15 years ago and after noticing so many benefits in his life, he wanted to pass it on. He now teaches the benefits of mindfulness to organisations. Without his mindfulness practice, Volker thinks he has been able to better cope with challenges throughout his life, such as multiple redundancies. The difference between mindfulness and meditation is simple. Mindfulness is about being present in the moment. Buddhism principles are split in gratitude, self-awareness, compassion and mindfulness. Those are expressed through selflessness, generosity, moral conduct, patie...
2023-01-1943 min
Man Up / Man DownNutrition and Health for Middle Aged Men - Lurata Lyon Our first female guest, and the first guest of 2023, is Lurata Lyon.. Many of us start the new year, with the goal of getting healthier and fitter. So we invited Lurata along to talk about nutrition and give us hands on tips. However she also gave us a lesson in resilience, gratitude and strength of human spirit. As a survivor of civil war in the former Yugoslavia, Lurata endured the trauma of being held captive, starved, tortured and abused. Eventually escaping to the United Kingdom, she had to retrain herself to eat properly. S...
2023-01-0553 min
Man Up / Man DownMerry Christmas from Man Up / Man DownNot a lot of notes, just a big thank you for your support. Have a great Christmas and holiday season, and a Happy New Year! David and Volker Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2022-12-2233 minMan Up / Man DownWork Life and the Future of WorkThis week’s podcast follows on from our discussion with Matthew Knight, discussing the future of work and how things are changing. David and Volker thought it would be good to discuss this topic as a ‘special’, looking at the changing world of work. Particularly for freelancers, people with mental health and middle aged men. Poor mental health costs the British Economy £118bn a year, according to LSE. And the Financial Times is warning that we’re heading for a Mental Health Recession, with support phonelines, provided by employers in the private sector, being swamped. However, a...
2022-12-1543 min
Man Up / Man DownMatthew Knight - Mental Health, Freelancing and LeapersOur first guest, Matthew Knight, joined us on this episode to talk about his journey as a freelancer, his mental health challenges and the Leapers network, which he created. Leapers is a community for freelancers to support each other and Volker has been a member for many years. The support is for anything from mental health to tax questions, IR35 and technology. A community that understands the challenges all freelancers have, they ‘just get it’. It’s sometimes a bit like a virtual water cooler where you can meet and discuss almost anything. With the pandem...
2022-12-0146 minMan Up / Man DownNeurodiversity and Middle AgeThis was a true revelation for Volker to listen to David and his challenges with adult autism, ADHD (attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder) and neurodiversity. There seems to be a “trend” of more people being diagnosed with ADHD and autism, and unfortunately the NHS is too overwhelmed to actually give everyone the attention they need. They list the top signs of adult ADHD on their website. There are superpowers we all know from the 1980ies movie Rainman, from sketching a building after only seeing it for seconds, to counting toothpicks on the floor (Rainman) - not everyone with autism can do t...
2022-11-1740 minMan Up / Man DownPuppy Love - a man's best friendThis episode might not sound obvious for a podcast, however, in our social circles dog ownership seems to have been a major trend. Both David and Volker have become dog owners over the last 18 months. And we’re not alone. In 2010/11, 22% of UK households were dog owners, which remained stable until 2020/21, when it jumped to 33%. Similar levels of increase were seen in the dog population – since 2010 it's increased from 7.6m to 12.5m today. The share of households owning a pet in the UK remained relatively stable between 2011/12 and 2019/20, hovering around 45%; however, this changed significantly during the p...
2022-11-0343 minMan Up / Man DownFitness for real and weight lossMost of us, particularly in our age, have piled on some pounds over the years. Covid didn’t help, lockdowns and less exercise, binge eating and drinking (see episode 3), would have contributed to weight gain. Not to mention the binge eating at McDonalds or the cheeky kebab on the way home. A six pack is made in the kitchen, not in the gym. Volker lost 10kg a few years ago, partly through exercise but mainly through eating less calories than he took in and watching what he eats. He repeated this again recently and lost about 7kg. Bu...
2022-10-2041 minMan Up / Man DownLet's talk about Alcohol and middle aged menThis week’s episode is all about alcohol. Many of us focus on various aspects of our mental and physical health but gloss over our relationship with alcohol. Most of us like a drink, and sometimes we have a bit more than we should. And as we get older, we gain weight, and a lot is down to alcohol. Alcohol has 7 calories per gram, almost the same as fat which has 9 calories per gram. And after a few drinks we then turn to snacks and junk food, we wouldn’t normally drink. And as we get older, our...
2022-10-1341 minMan Up / Man DownMid Life Crisis - what does it actually mean?This episode is all about identifying what the term midlife crisis actually means. What’s the actual age of a midlife crisis? Are we all destined to have one, regardless of what we have achieved in life? Is it just a natural part of human development or “growing up”? This is how Wikipedia, defines it: A midlife crisis is a transition of identity and self-confidence that can occur in middle-aged individuals, typically 45 to 65 years old. The phenomenon is described as a psychological crisis brought about by events that highlight a person's growing age, inevitable mortality, and po...
2022-10-0342 minMan Up / Man DownEpisode One - Intro to our podcast Man Up / Man DownDavid and Volker were introduced by a mutual colleague and really hit it off. Despite working on an unrelated project, they spent a lot of time discussing how much life had changed during the pandemic and how it had exacerbated and accelerated many of life’s challenges. David felt like he was going through, what he could only describe as, “a post-pandemic slump”. However, he had also noticed off-hand comments from friends and colleagues which suggested they were going through a similar experience. Maybe not full-blown breakdowns but there just seemed an undercurrent of exhaustion and low...
2022-09-1946 min
Stories of Success PodcastFarewell, not goodbye. End to Season 5This is the end of season 5 episode. You might think it's earlier than anticipated, but there is a reason. There is always a reason. I say thank you. Please stay in touch and add me on Linkedin or subscribe to my newsletter. Volker is a sales, strategy and leadership consultant working as an interim CRO. Find out more on his website or subscribe to his newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2022-09-1508 minStories of Success PodcastTom Glason - Creating value for interim and fractional revenue leadersToday's episode is with Tom Glason. Tom is the co-founder and CEO of Scalewise which helps ambitious B2B tech scale-ups accelerate growth by providing unique and flexible access to a community of world-class Scale Experts. He's also the founding member and Chair of the London chapter of Pavilion - a private community for high-growth revenue leaders. I am a big fan of Scalewise, the Sales Impact Academy and I recently joined Pavillion. Tom definitely created a lot of value for people like myself, but also for companies in the start- and scale-up world. Topics we discussed, and unfortunately, we ran o...
2022-09-0832 minStories of Success PodcastStorytelling & Positioning - Martyn BakerMartyn Baker and I got introduced back in the days when he left Twitter and I started my consulting career. We have since worked together on projects under his brand Gardn. He looks back at a corporate career, working with big clients like adidas, Twitter, Telefonica and Microsoft. That wealth of experience lead him to found Gardn as a company helping businesses to position themselves, get their storytelling right and make sure every company he works with operates at its most efficiency. I invited him to speak about how he can help freelancers and interim and fractional professionals to tell...
2022-08-2532 minStories of Success PodcastFuture Work/Life - Ollie HendersonOn this episode I welcome Ollie Henderson. It's another expert talk episode, where Ollie and I talk about the future or the state of work. Ollie creates insights and systems for first-time founders and CEOs who want to attract clients and the best talent by sharing their ideas with the world. As a former start-up founder and CEO, he understands what it takes to grow a business while operating under pressure and time constraints. He is doing all that whilst having a family with 3 kids! In May 2020, he launched "Future Work/Life" as a newsletter to document the fast-evolving relationship be...
2022-08-1137 minStories of Success PodcastSimon Severino - Strategy SprintsI learned about Simon and his business when listening to another podcast, and loved his business idea: coaching and consulting businesses on the back of successful blueprints. So I bought his book 'Strategy Sprints' and I reached out to him. We hit it off, and I thought it would be great for him to share his journey and his programme for solo entrepreneurs. In my series about fractional and interim leadership, Simon can help us to explore what individuals have to do in order to stand out and get more business. Things we talked about: Doubling revenue in 90 days thanks to...
2022-07-2833 minStories of Success PodcastInterim, Fractional, Positioning, Content, Social - David PawseyThis podcast is with copywriter and content strategist David Pawsey. He helps freelancers, interim and fractional leaders, and companies to position themselves. He actually helped me with my positioning and my website content. David is a former journalist, so he is naturally inquisitive and creative. He also works for himself, so can look at the space from an expert and contract perspective. Topics we discussed: Being a wordsmith Getting your story across How to position yourself and tell your unique story Juggling work and life, particularly as a freelancer and stay at home dad Content is king Direct response and sa...
2022-07-1431 minStories of Success PodcastJonathan Younger - The great (freelance) awakeningI am honoured to welcome Jonathan Younger on my podcast. Jon and I met when I reached out to him on Linkedin about some of the articles he has written about the new way of working on Forbes. He is an HR thought leader, author, teacher and early stage investor. He writes about the freelance revolution and the future of work. Jon's books include HR From the Outside In, HR Transformation, and Agile Talent. We discussed: Him learning from an early age about productivity and freelancing, bettering processes in a factory How he defines freelancing and a portfolio career The v...
2022-06-3034 minStories of Success PodcastBen Legg - Portfolio ProfessionalsThis is a very exciting episode with Ben Legg. Ben was the former COO of Google Europe and turned to being a successful portfolio professional. I actually met Ben a few years ago in Cannes, talking digital marketing. In his portfolio career, Ben focuses on supporting founders and investors in the startup and scale-up ecosystem. He is also CEO and co-founder of The Portfolio Collective, a global community of thousands of portfolio professionals, which is why I asked him to join me as an expert on the topic of interim and fractional leadership. So in this podcast we will learn...
2022-06-1633 minStories of Success PodcastSelling a proportion of your brain - Adrian CockleToday's episode is with Adrian Cockle. Adrian and I met through Leapers which is a community and support group for freelancers. With our own slack channel we have a great community spirit and I encourage anyone going on their own to join! Adrian is a freelance digital strategy consultant and fractional head of digital - an interim and fractional CDO. Freelance on and off since 2016, previously spent 9 years as head of digital for WWF-UK and WWF International. He has been doing digital in various forms since working in the UK’s second Internet cafe back in 1995! Currently working with a tec...
2022-06-0132 minStories of Success PodcastBe Confident with Uncertainty - Lena Andican - Fractional CMOToday I welcome Lena Andican who is one of the partners at Kurve - Kurve being the performance marketing agency my guest Oren Greenberg founded. Additionally, similar to Oren, she works as an interim and fractional CMO, advising companies on all things marketing. Things we discussed: Working with scale-ups B2B marketing and sales Positioning, marketing strategy and execution Transition from in-house to interim The need and want for flexibility and variety Confidence needed to be interim and leaping into a business venture Learning curve Advantages for companies to hire interim due to experience and time it takes to get th...
2022-04-2126 minStories of Success PodcastMichel Quazza - Be Ready to Learn Something New!Michel Quazza and I met a few months ago discussing investment and collaboration on projects. He is a seasoned international CEO and has worked as much in Silicon Valley as he has worked across Europe. Michel is scaling his interim work through advisory service, packaging up C-Levels under the ‘Corporate Development as a Service’. Things we talked about: Difference in portfolio, consulting and ‘Corporate Development as a Service’ companies Scaling interim and fractional work Engineering, CPO and CEO Michel’s experience in Silicon Valley, the influence from the US on Europe Different cultures and their impact on businesses Covid accelerating the need an...
2022-03-3135 minStories of Success PodcastStephen Morris - Fractional and Interim CTOThis episode is with Stephen Morris. Steve is a fractional CTO with a passion for software development and cyber security. He directs IT strategies, advises on product and technology and helps other CTOs to go to market too. Things we discussed: Companies not needing or being able to afford a full time CTO Helping aspiring CTOs Interim and fractional being a career progression from a full time engagement How he got bored when doing only one job, and the challenges were the same year on year The need for companies to have a CTO Bailey & Associates - a company that he...
2022-03-1730 minStories of Success PodcastPaul Edwards - Interim CRO: 'Importance of Networking'I welcome Paul Edwards today who is an interim Chief Revenue Officer. With many years experience in the IT and Telecoms sector, he empowers organisations and teams to win complex high value sales within competitive markets. He is also a mentor to businesses for exit. Paul and I discussed the following: Moving from a corporate career to a portfolio/interim/fractional career Experience in the IT/Cloud/Telecoms sectors Co-founding a business How to build a healthy pipeline and sales business Building a start-up to a functional company Importance of networking How consultants provide sales and marketing strategies whilst taking o...
2022-03-0329 minStories of Success PodcastExperience as an asset - Oren GreenbergOren is the founder of Kurve, a London based, growth marketing consultancy working with corporates and scale-ups for the past 20 years. As an interim and fractional leader, Oren’s digital strategy and commercial expertise are instrumental in the growth of SaaS & Fintech brands. Brands he worked with include Lenovo, Canon, Investec Bank, Wonga, Peakon & Nutmeg. Things we discussed: Part time and interim scalability and positioning Pricing and how you best price your work (very interesting insights!) Kurve and how this fits in with fractional and interim work The Kurve model Opportunities for outsource positions Networking and why it is important How...
2022-02-1733 minStories of Success PodcastVictoria Rusnac - 'CMO on demand'My new season, season 5, is all about Stories of Success in interim and fractional CxO roles. I am excited to bring you top CxOs in the field discussing their style, pricing, approach and how they started off in their current role. A learning curve for me, but also a learning for anyone aspiring to become a freelance consultant, start a portfolio career or build a business as an interim or fractional leader. Episode one and season starter is with Victoria Rusnac! She is an interim Chief Marketing Officer. Her speciality is in startup growth marketing strategies, including branding, performance and pr...
2022-01-2031 minStories of Success PodcastReflecting on 3.5 years of podcasting - taking a breakHi all, After 3.5 years of podcast recording, I am taking a break until at least the end of 2021. Feel free to reach out to me or connect with me on Linkedin. I am happy to help anyone, support you in your journey as a coach or consultant, and I am open for new ideas for 2022 - for the podcast or otherwise. Thanks for all your support, Volker Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2021-08-0527 minStories of Success PodcastMixed Mental ArtsOn this final episode of season 4, all my theories come together by speaking to Dr. Matt , Mateusz Grzesiak. Dr. Matt is a lecturer, therapist, and consultant. He holds several masters degrees, including in psychology and law, as well as degrees in management. On the one hand he advises businesses and on the other hand he trains and runs therapeutic sessions. For him it is about helping others to achieve the intended personal and professional results and solving emotional and behavioural problems. His vision is to create a conscious human being. His mission is for education to be understood as a co...
2021-07-151h 05Stories of Success PodcastHow to survive the crisis!This episode was recorded back in January with Paul Rowlett. A British entrepreneur who thought he would lose his multi-million pound business, when we all went into the first lockdown in 2020. Paul is the CEO and founder of corporate gifts company Everything Branded which was relying heavily on the hospitality sector - obviously this was hit hard under Covid. Things we discussed: How he started in his bedroom Loosing 97% of orders in lockdown 1.0 Pivoting the business to PPE Opening a business in the USA What to do with too much real estate after downsizing Innovating in a crisis How important lu...
2021-06-2459 minStories of Success PodcastMindfulness in the workplace - a chat of two enthusiastsI got introduced to Andy Lee through Cheryl from Xerox who has been on my podcast previously. When we spoke for the first time, we hit it off on the topic of mindfulness and stress reduction. Andy is a mindfulness consultant and teacher with a background in talent management and organisational psychology. He is committed to helping companies and their employees thrive by embedding mindfulness in their culture and people processes. Topics we discussed: Mindfulness and Stress reduction Heidger Marx at SAP - a podcast episode Regular meditation practise His burnout experience which was due to him being ‘unmindfulness’ about his li...
2021-06-031h 01Stories of Success PodcastWhat all you can do with content! And what life taught us!Case Lane is a global writer, entrepreneur, podcaster, blogger, and the founder of Ready Entrepreneur, a business that prepares aspiring entrepreneurs to start an online business. She has been a former diplomat, consultant and corporate executive. Case has been educated in communications, political science, business, law and economics, and has lived, studied or worked in eleven different countries, and has visited over 100 others. The Ready Entrepreneur approach to lifestyle freedom is based on her education, experience, observations and interactions with entrepreneurs all over the world. We had a great laugh recording this episode and here are the topics we discussed: How Las...
2021-05-131h 02Stories of Success PodcastFinding your niche!Chala Dincoy, founder of Repositioning Expert and author of Gentle Marketing and How To Win Friends The Way Apple Wins Customers had been an award-winning marketer with a number of Fortune 500 companies including Pepsi, Frito-Lay, and Playtex, before moving on to found Repositioning Expert. Currently, she helps professional service providers to get past their competitors and reach corporate decision-makers more quickly and reliably, generating consistent leads that drive growth and propel them onto a larger stage. She also appears regularly as a guest expert on Fox, NBC, CBS, and ABC. She will share some practical tips on reaching corporate decision-makers, differentiating...
2021-04-221h 01Stories of Success PodcastProviding Psychological Safety for schools and in the workplaceMichael Brennan co-founded tootoot in 2013 with a core mission of supporting the psychological safety and wellbeing of individuals by making it easier for individuals to talk about anything that was making them feel unhappy or unsafe. His idea for the app came after spending years being bullied but struggling to find a safe and trusted way to speak up. He wanted to create a simple app that would reduce the barriers children and young people face when trying to speak about their concerns. Following tootoot’s success in the education sector, this year Michael launched Stribe a new employee voice software...
2021-04-011h 04Stories of Success PodcastLeadership Development from a Brand PerspectiveIn this week’s episode I welcome Cheryl Smith to my podcast. Cheryl leads talent management for Xerox, a public company with over 25,000 employees globally. She is a seasoned talent professional with over 25 years of success in talent assessment, succession planning, leadership development, employee engagement, organisational surveys and change programs for world-class, global organisations including Gartner, Legrand, Diageo, MetLife and AIG. Cheryl has a Ph.D. in Industrial / Organizational Psychology from New York University and a B.A. in Psychology from Yale. She lives in Fairfield County, CT with her three daughters. She had to move around the house, avoiding the c...
2021-02-1856 minStories of Success PodcastA chat about leadershipFor 20 years, Tim Spiker, founder of The Aperio and author of The Only Leaders Worth Following has been helping individuals and organisations lead better, and find better leaders. He delivers keynote speeches and creates customised learning experiences to change the way people look at leadership, and he guides long-term developmental journeys as well. There is a lot more to his profile, and I encourage you to check out his website. What we discussed was: Leadership and how the Aperio programme works How to achieve success How Tim got into the space, doing loads of research He brings content and ideas into l...
2021-01-281h 07Stories of Success PodcastLet's talk uncommon senseIn this first episode of 2021, it took me a while to understand what Csaba Toth was talking about. However, once I understood his ‘Uncommon Sense’ approach, I was sold! It makes so much sense! Csaba has a similar journey to myself, and we live very close to each other too; so we have met again, deepened my understanding and see what we can do to educate the world on uncommon sense. Since recording the episode, I already did the test, read part of the book and got some valuable insights. Thanks, Csaba! And when I talked abou...
2021-01-071h 04Stories of Success PodcastLife is about Impact, not likes.This week's guest is Simon Squibb: a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, mentor, podcast host, founder and Chief Purpose Officer at the Purposeful Project. He retired at 40 but is now back. We recorded this episode a while back, with some friendly dogs barking in the background. He has started 17 businesses, invested in 66 and has mentored hundreds of founders. Having sold his award-winning insight-driven branding and digital agency, Fluid, to PwC, Simon now focuses on inspiring, motivating and guiding both budding and experienced entrepreneurs by sharing his personal experiences, insights, ideas and tips. He is also a...
2020-12-031h 07Stories of Success PodcastThursday, 9 am and October are all the same thing nowI am very honoured to have Pascal Finette back for a second round. Pascal and I got introduced when I first launched my podcast in early 2018, and we recorded an episode then, which has been downloaded almost 300 times. He since has launched more things, became more famous, and I feel honoured he took some time to answer more of my questions. We ended up with an amazing chat over Zoom, and we jump straight into the episode, not worrying about the intro. A great conversation which I truly enjoyed, and lots of takeaways for my listeners.
2020-11-121h 28Stories of Success PodcastThe story of a professional speaker in times of Covid19.For the last but not least episode of season 3 of my podcast, I welcome Lisa Ryan who is the Chief Appreciation Strategist at Grategy. As a Certified Speaking Professional, a Certified Virtual Speaker and the best-selling author of ten books including “The Upside of Down Times: Discovering the Power of Gratitude”, she shares a lot of information on how to become a professional speaker and what gratitude means in day to day life. Lisa also co-stars in two inspirational films with other personal development experts including Jack Canfield of “Chicken Soup for the Soul” and John Gray of “Men are From Mars/Wom...
2020-07-1649 minStories of Success PodcastSuccess and Happiness - it's down to listeningThis week I welcome Chris Hyland to my podcast. Chris is a tech entrepreneur that believes technology can be used for good and can dramatically impact the world in a positive way. He is lucky enough that his personal vision matches up with his company's vision at The Happiness Index. The reason I asked Chris to be on the podcast is to discuss happiness. What does happiness mean? Now in times of Covid19 and beyond? Does happiness equal success? Their vision is #FreedomToBeHuman - organisations that succeed will enable their people to feel like a human ... not a number! His purp...
2020-07-0252 minStories of Success PodcastUnderstanding who you are is a difficult journey!This week’s podcast is with Lizzy Hodcroft. She is an inspiration to talk to, on how to overcome mental health issues and becoming successful, selling a business and now launching a new business called Myndr. Lizzy has been a winner of North East Entrepreneur for two years in a row. Her honestly about her struggles with mental health and how entrepreneurship aided in her recovery is a breath of fresh air within a competitive and at times, draining business environment. In this podcast episode Lizzy speaks about the struggle to find investment with a mental health history, and her story...
2020-06-1849 minStories of Success PodcastStress Management & Burnout PreventionThis week’s podcast is with a fellow German coach Stephanie Schaffner. After a corporate career in sales and business development, she changed direction to become a trainer for stress management and a coach for burnout prevention. The reason for that was because that she was suffering from stress herself, was close to a burnout, and a few of her colleagues had burnouts at work. Recorded during the lockdown, we talk about stress, and what burnout actually means. How is it defined? I actually realised that I myself would have been on my way to a burnout a few years ago...
2020-06-0441 minStories of Success PodcastChasing Black Unicorns - Doing Business in AfricaOn this episode I welcome Marek Zmysłowski. Marek is a Polish-born entrepreneur and executive, focused on online businesses in Frontier and Emerging Markets. At time of recording we are both in lockdown due to Covid-19. He is in Barcelona and I am in the UK. We discuss the impact Covid-19 might have on Africa as well. Marek is the author of a bestselling book called “Chasing Black Unicorns. How building the Amazon of Africa put me on Interpol Most Wanted list.” A story we will be diving into. He co-founded Jumia Travel – Africa’s Biggest Hotel Booking Portal listed on NYSE as pa...
2020-05-211h 01Stories of Success PodcastSuccess is being happy and content along the journeyI enjoyed meeting Gian Power ACA on my podcast who set up his first business aged 13 and later worked at Deutsche Bank and PwC and witnessed first-hand some of the wellbeing & inclusion issues that need to be tackled in the corporate world. In 2015, an unexpected family tragedy changed Gian’s life forever, when his dad was murdered on a trip to India. When returning back to work, Gian saw the power of being able to share his emotions and being his full self at work. We are discussing the working culture in the finance sector, yet his experience wasn’t too ba...
2020-04-2339 minStories of Success PodcastLeadership in unprecedented timesMy podcast this week is with a former colleague and friend Luis Esteban (LinkedIn). Not often do I ask colleagues to be on the podcast, but after meeting Luis Esteban last year, we just hit it off and have so many things in common. Luis is now CEO of Initiative Spain, and I moved on too. His Twitter handle is @lesteban In wake of the Corona Virus, we actually recorded this episode only last week. It hangs over us, yet we are focusing on leadership in unprecedented times as well as his mantra, ‘be a warrior’. His bio reads like a dream p...
2020-03-1943 minStories of Success PodcastRetaining TalentWhen recording this amazing episode with Wasim Benharch I was buzzing - and it wasn't only because of the caffeine I had that day. Meeting Wasim opened my eyes to Learning and Development in organisations and the role it plays for retaining the right talent. Wasim introduced an onboarding programme at Methods Business and Digital Technology that has seen attrition reduced from almost 30% to single digits in the space of 12 months! So that’s clearly a success, and a story I wanted to hear from him. He didn’t always work in L&D but gives us a good overview how he...
2020-03-0556 minStories of Success PodcastTrust your gut or not - all about executive decision makingIn this week’s episode I welcome Dr. Gleb Tsipursky. We recorded it on a Friday night without having had a chance to talk about his topic in great detail before. What attracted me to Gleb's profile is that he is on a mission to protect leaders from dangerous judgement errors - widely known as cognitive biases. So his expertise is around decision making and gut instinct, and actually not relying on your gut instinct. An interesting episode where Gleb speaks about his life and how he came to the US from Moldovia as a child, a country which seems to...
2020-02-2049 minStories of Success PodcastStart Being Yourself - Turn fear into confidenceThis episode of my podcast was another “cold interview". I enjoy those conversations, where you meet someone for the first time and record the conversation. This one is with Barbara Vercruysse. Apologies for some audio glimpses which are due to connectivity issues. Barbara is a coach, spiritual mentor, thought leader and public speaker. After facing several challenges in life and surviving stage 4 skin cancer at the age of 32, she decided to live her second life at the fullest. In this episode she shares her story of success. She also wrote a book, founded an online school, gives talks and inspires people to d...
2020-02-0645 minStories of Success PodcastLet go of that fear of letting goI interviewed Sidar Ok, an executive coach and renowned independent management consultant in IT strategy, and founder of IQoach. His clients are Fortune 500 companies. However, despite his success, he had to evacuate his family home to record the podcast from a car, because he couldn’t risk waking up his two young children. So throughout the podcast we were worried he might be picked up by the police ;-) His journey is amazing; fleeing Turkey to avoid going to war and likely to die, working for Microsoft, working in the US, then Dublin and settling in Belgium. His motto is ’strug...
2020-01-091h 05Stories of Success PodcastHow to win clients on LinkedIn as a coachI hardly laughed as much as with Catherine B. Roy in my latest episode of Stories of Success. She is just so much fun, I think I need to have her back for another chat sometime very soon. So we started with a great laugh (literally, if you tune in). We start the conversation around her IQ which is over 156, and she is a MENSA member; I actually did a test on the back of it. My result was less, still within the top 9% of people. She is a personal growth and business growth coach and developed a system for em...
2019-11-1449 minStories of Success PodcastIf you can’t fully recover, you cannot fully adapt.Claire Higgins joined me over the summer for a discussion on coaching and consulting, and looking at her work on positive psychology as well as martial arts. At time of recording, she was studying for a Masters in Exercise and Sport Psychology. She was raised in the UAE and worked across the Middle East in the humanitarian sector for 12 years, focusing on the protection of people affected by armed conflict. Influenced by Jean Claude Van Damme, watching his videos as a 12-year old in the 80's, she took up karate and twenty five years later, started teaching self-defence. Concerning for her and me is th...
2019-10-1758 minStories of Success PodcastFind your why in life, and laugh along the way!I have known James Briscoe for many years, and I am delighted he joined me for this episode. We recorded this episode at the height of summer, and it turned into an amazing fun chat with a friend; which I am certain brings value and joy to you as you listen along. At time of recording, James is sitting in a cafe at the seaside, so apologies for the occasional dog bark and some wind noises. He manages to split his time between London and Dorset with focus on work or the family respectively. After studying tropical medicine, he ended u...
2019-10-031h 01Stories of Success PodcastLife is change - change is constant - growth is optionalIn this week’s episode I welcome Karin Volo. She is known as a chief joy bringer and CEO and is the founder of Evoloshen. Based in Stockholm Sweden she helps companies transforming cultures and delivering high performance. Karin has been recognised as a global leader and employee engagement expert on the Engagement 101 list and recently named in the Top 30 HR Influencers and the 15 Most Influential Women in HR lists. She talks about her three words: Inspiration, Joy and Evolution - she recommends the listener to find out their three words too. Her definition of success is a ‘personal question’ - moments of joy...
2019-09-1959 minStories of Success PodcastBe Fair - Be Firm. Another story of success.We made it through another season. From September 2019, we launch season 3, which will focus more on personal development than before. Of course, we still have some adtech and digital stars lined up, but with Ballueder Partners focus shifting towards more coaching work, things will change ever so slightly. Stay tuned and please subscribe on any major podcast outlet, and please rate me 5 stars :-) That is, if you like it of course. On our last show before the summer break, amazingly episode 40 overall, I welcome Martin Vinter who I met when we both freelanced and w...
2019-07-111h 04Stories of Success PodcastTake it from a coach: Success and living in the here and now!This podcast came about after I was listening to Richard MacKinnon’s podcast ‘My Pocket Psych’ which resonates 100% with me. We met and discussed coaching and how one wants to live one’s life passion. He set up his own company 5 years ago, Worklifepsych and hasn't looked back. I am setting up my own coaching and consulting business, Ballueder Partners, as my main occupation. Being a coach based on 15+ years experience gives you credibility in terms of what you do, and we further discuss, how this helps others to become successful and achieve their dreams. That's what life is all about. I wa...
2019-06-2753 minStories of Success PodcastBecome a successful paid speakerI don’t believe this was the first podcast Chris Baldwin recorded. I feel honoured. A successful TED Speaker, entrepreneur and digital agency owner. He made millions, gave loads of money away, lives minimalistically and just launched a new venture called 10x speaker which helps others to be successful as a speaker. We hopefully bring that concept to London soon, so stay tuned! We had so much to talk about and spend a good deal on how to become a great speaker, earn money as a speaker and he is the proof: the fastest growing speaker in 2018 and number 1 top 10 spea...
2019-06-061h 09Stories of Success PodcastThe first time I understood that I work with humansInterviewing Dr. Heidger Marx from SAP was just awesome and eye opening! He is a mindfulness trainer at SAP. I first came across his profile, when Daniel Rieber interviewed him on his German podcast Im Hier und Jetzt, and I just had to speak to him. Actually, we didn’t start speaking about success for the first half of the podcast, but more about the ‘fluffy stuff’ which is meditation in a German Software Company. Heidger is a scientist, photographer become mindfulness trainer, and the conversation was absolutely eye opening. The benefits mindfulness practise brings to oneself and organisations is immense...
2019-05-2354 minStories of Success PodcastSuccessful with DataAna Milicevic is originally from Serbia but describes herself as a European New Yorker. She has been named by Business Insider as one of top 23 people who fix advertising and runs her own consultancy with her sister in the data space called Sparrow Advisers! Ana is an entrepreneur, media executive and digital data innovator. She and her team of strategic consultants work with companies across adtech, martech, ecommerce, and media on strategy, product, go-to-market positioning, new market launches, innovation, services and global field enablement. Earlier in her career she has held key leadership roles across product, strategy, technology, and services in...
2019-05-0956 minStories of Success PodcastSpend time to focusA fantastic conversation this week with Paul Frampton Calero, an industry friend I have known for many years; we speak about career choices and how he ended up at disruptive technology start-up Tink Labs now hi Inc and how he is building a successful culture there. Success and his business are both about improving people’s life, creating a success culture. The life/life balance which is important, and how one should find her/his ‘Why’ and purpose in life. But we also speak about leadership, women in business and how we still measure performance based on time and not on output...
2019-04-231h 05Stories of Success PodcastAvoiding Burnout - Davida GinterMy episode this week is a conversation with Davida Ginter, who I met on a LinkedIn Group about personal development. We recorded the podcast early mornings after my exercise routine and before I was heading to work. She is based in Israel, lived in Sweden and has a keen interest to support others in preventing burnout. Her mantra is based on Jane Goodall: Everyday we make a difference and it is up to us, what kind of difference we want to make. One of her take aways she posted shortly after on LinkedIn, was that ‘even if it will take much lon...
2019-04-0454 minStories of Success Podcast340 marathons blind - and countingI met Paul Watts when running my first marathon last November. He is an inspiration. He is blind and has run 340 marathons when we recorded the podcast end of last year. He also carried the Olympic torch in 2012. So this is a story of personal success. It is for runners and anyone interested in running or is looking for an inspiration and motivation to run a bit more than you currently do. For most of the population a marathon is a stretch, and Paul has done 340 being blind. What an amazing achievement. We speak about our running experience, share a...
2019-03-2150 minStories of Success PodcastOnly Action Counts - Entrepreneur Lara MorganThis is so far my the most energetic podcast of 2019. I interviewed Lara Morgan last year, and her motto is ‘only actions count’ - I love jumping into these ‘cold’ conversation and see how those go. And this one was just purely amazing. At the end of the podcast I found out that Lara had actually written a book about her experience, something that I hadn’t been aware of. I now have a copy (thank you again) and her story of building a multi million business from scratch with hard work is utterly mind bobbling. For her success is all about choic...
2019-02-2847 minStories of Success PodcastDigital Nomad living a simplified life - Conni BiesalskiThis week’s guest is Connie Biesalki who at time of recording was just launching her new website and brand Conni.me It was before I ran my marathon last year too. We both left Germany some time ago, and she also left a ‘conventional way of living’, but we both are still connected to Germany somehow, discussing the greater German unconsciousness; so besides us exploring the meaning of success, happiness and a simplified life, we are also drifting a bit in some interesting chats. I loved recording this episode! For her, success is all about helping others and improving other peop...
2019-02-1453 minStories of Success PodcastHow to successfully scale businesses to 9 figures!Shane Spiers is a coach, mentor, consultant and facilitator. We have a fantastic chat about all things business this week. His career track record is dominated by leading and scaling 7, 8 & 9-figure rapid growth companies. He definitely knows a thing or two about success! We speak about growing companies from the start-up to the grown up stage and discuss leadership styles, giving back and goal setting. The latter leads us into productivity habits we discover we both have. GTD, goal setting, helicopter view and licenses as well as entrepreneurship and productivity. These days Shane’s thing is “Summit SCALE®: The 7 to 8-Figure...
2019-01-3152 minStories of Success PodcastLeaders are Readers! Career Advice for 2019 and beyond!The first episode of the year is with a career coach and executive search consultant or recruiter Andrew MacAskill. Since I went through redundancy and career choices last year, I thought it would be great to kick off 2019 with some advice on career and job hunts. Given it is January, some of the listeners might consider a change in career this year, and this might just give you the right pointers where to start. If you are not looking, this is still relevant, as we discuss how the job market has changed, and how executive careers are different to where t...
2019-01-1755 minStories of Success PodcastStories of Success with Pascal FinetteThis week’s episode features Pascal Finette. A heretic (http://theheretic.org), a productivityist (https://gyshido.com) and the founder of the Singularity University (https://su.org) or you can find out more about him on www.finette.com. In our first meeting we discussed a wide range of topics. How failure leaves dark spots on your mind, yet might increase your chances of success. About entrepreneurship, global culture and how habits (also see Volker’s book: www.volkerballueder.com/bebetter) help you to improve your performance. We touch on global culture and how we should all take ourselves a bit le...
2018-02-0841 minStories of Success PodcastStories Of Success with Brian FitzpatrickIn this inaugural episode Volker Ballueder welcomes Brian Fitzpatrick. They have known each other for many years and discuss Brian’s Story Of Success. Originally from Ireland, Brian is known as a veteran of the adtech industry who talks about mentoring and martial arts. They also speak about the differences of success and work life balance as perceived in different countries, as well as the importance of family and happiness as part of success. For anyone who wants to reach out to Brian, please look him up on LinkedIn. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informatio
2018-01-1947 minStories of Success PodcastIntroduction to Stories of SuccessIn this podcast episode, Volker Ballueder will introduce both the podcast of 'Stories Of Success' as well as himself. It will be a short intro an helps the listener to understand the motivation behind the podcast and whether this is something s/he finds relevant moving forward. The first episode with guests being interviewed will be published in due course. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2018-01-1022 min