Leading 4 Life "Stories" – Détails, épisodes et analyse

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This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube channel here:

https://youtu.be/TTlGEKnM2kQ

Having just returned from a week long work trip to Saudi Arabia, it felt entirely appropriate to produce a short thematic episode on the importance of cultural understanding to leaders.

Culture is often talked about in business discussions and training events but, in my view, rather too often the discussion is somewhat narrowly defined and focuses on the fairly obvious behavioural aspects of cultural difference.  Essentially the emphasis is often on what not to do to avoid offence etc, rather than taking a broader look at the aspects of leadership that culture affects more widely.

This episode seeks to put out some broader ideas about why it is important to be culturally aware as a leader.  It briefly touches on trust, decision making, communication, motivation, conflict, reputation and operational effectiveness, and I hope the ideas will resonate with you as you watch.

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Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

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Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message

This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here:

https://youtu.be/ipkhmzY_oFM

Gary Deakin had a highly successful career in the British Army, rising to the rank of Major General, before embarking on what has now become a diverse and equally successful portfolio career outside the military.  

Along the way, Gary has had a series of ups and downs, including a very challenging time whilst he was the MD of GardaWorld UK.  He talks candidly about all these issues and has a lot of terrific thoughts about leadership that he shares in this episode.

I really hope you enjoy what was a fascinating and fun conversation; it you do, please do all the usual things to highlight the episode more broadly and also send me some feedback.  I really appreciate it when I receive feedback from listeners as it helps a lot to build and develop the podcast so please do let me know what you think.

You can find Gary here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-deakin/

Website: https://kingfisherconsulting.uk

Support the show

Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

X: https://x.com/JudsonBob

Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message

This episode is also available as a video podcast on my YouTube Channel here:

https://youtu.be/_7UEm53Q68Y

I first met Peter Sorgenfrei through LinkedIn and rapidly realised that we had a lot in common and would have a great conversation.  So it proved to be, and this episode is packed with leadership thoughts and advice that I think you will find extremely interesting and hopefully very useful.

Peter was a serial entrepreneur and founder before a period of stress related burnout forced him to completely rethink his career.  He now focuses on helping founders and leaders to navigate the tricky path to success and, as you will see, we both have very similar thoughts on a lot of issues, despite having very different backgrounds. 

Peter and I really enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too; please let me know what you think and, if you haven't already done so, please subscribe to this channel to get early notification of future episodes. 

You can find Peter here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sorgenfrei/

Website: https://www.petersorgenfrei.com/

X: https://x.com/psorgenfrei

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sorgenfrei_co/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100094743968571

Support the show

Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

X: https://x.com/JudsonBob

Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message

With this first episode of Season 2 of the podcast, I return to the personal stories and give an account of my time on an exchange posting flying the RF4E Phantom with the German Air Force, the Luftwaffe.  

It was a fascinating time not least because of the political changes that occurred during my 2 1/4 years with the Germans.  In that time, the Berlin Wall fell, German reunification became a reality, and the Cold War ended.  As a direct consequence, the tour was punctuated with a wide range of fascinating experiences as well as serious challenges.  

I do my best to give a short summary of what was a really busy couple of years and so I apologise if it feels like I touch too lightly on the issues but, if there is appetite for me to do so, I would be delighted to add more detail in later episodes so please keep the feedback coming.

Support the show

Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

X: https://x.com/JudsonBob

Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message

Given that I strongly suspect you will have better things to do than listen to me on New Year's Eve when this podcast becomes available, I have made it a reasonably short episode and  focused on providing a review of 2023 and this first season of Leading 4 Life "Stories".

The episode provides a short summary of the episodes so far as well as my own thoughts on the high points and plans for the future.  If you are new to the podcast, it will give you a decent overview of what the previous episodes contain and signpost a few of my personal highlights that you might wish to dip into if you haven't already.

Season 2 of the podcast will launch at the start of 2024 and I would really welcome your thoughts and input as to what you would like to see as I develop the podcast further into next year and beyond.

Whether or not you are a regular listener, I am extremely grateful for you giving up some of your valuable time to listen to what I have to say and I am even more grateful if you have subscribed, reviewed and / or provided me with direct feedback.  Please keep that coming as it means the world to me and I read it all!

Support the show

Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

X: https://x.com/JudsonBob

Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message

As this episode goes live on Christmas Eve 2023, I thought I would keep it very short and to the point.

I have had a good deal of time to personally reflect over the past couple of weeks and that thinking time has allowed me to focus on some things that are hugely important at this time of year.  Speaking for myself, I know that I should say "thank you" a great deal more and that I should also make much more time to keep in touch and "check in" with my circle of friends.  

Far too often, we all take things for granted and don't fully appreciate those that  support us or help us along the way.   Equally, most of us make optimistic statements such as "we must get together soon" without ever actually following through and actually keeping in touch properly.  

This podcast is very much a stream of consciousness but, if nothing else, I hope it gives you pause for thought, and is the catalyst for you not only to thank those that you should, but also to check in on some of those friends and colleagues who you've left on the "to do list" for far too long.  

Support the show

Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

X: https://x.com/JudsonBob

Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message

This week's guest is General Sir Richard Barrons, the former Commander of Joint Forces Command (one of the 6 UK Chiefs of Staff) and now the Co-Chairman of Universal Defence & Security Solutions, alongside a portfolio of other private sector roles.

Richard commanded at every level in the British Army and saw a huge amount of operational service in just about everything from the Cold War to Afghanistan.  He has a huge amount of leadership and historical knowledge, and some strongly held views about today's geopolitics and the prospects for the future.  

A regular commentator on both TV and radio, Richard's views are thought provoking and sobering, and this is one episode you really don't want to miss.

I really hope you enjoy listening to this fascinating interview - it really was great to be on the other side of the microphone for this one!  


In this interview we cover the following subjects (starting time in brackets):

• Richard's career journey (00.02.22)
• Early motivations (00.07.25)
• Thoughts on career transition timing (00.11.40)
• Adjustments to leadership style (00.16.55)
• Role models (00.29.29)
• Leadership traits and values (00.35.03)
• Advice to a school age Richard! (00.43.24)
• What would Richard have done differently? (00.46.51)
• Most important achievement (00.58.15)
• Career low point (01.01.12)
• Work / life balance (01.07.14)
• Thoughts on current conflicts and geopolitics (01.11.33)
• Perspectives on the USA (01.22.02)
• Most memorable events (01.26.30)
• Most difficult question (01.28.17)

Support the show

Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

X: https://x.com/JudsonBob

Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message

This might just be the most important episode of this podcast I have released to date because it tackles the vitally important topic of "work / life balance".  In my experience this is something that is very regularly talked about, especially by very busy people but also much too often either ignored or given too little priority, often by those same very busy people.

In this episode I make no secret of my own personal challenge with handling this, but I also share some personal experiences and some reasons why you really should focus more on getting the balance right,  not only for your own health and wellbeing, but also for the benefit of those that you lead.

As we approach a major holiday period, it is the perfect time for you to really try and delegate well, ensure you do prioritise life over work, and to give yourself a proper opportunity to recharge your batteries.  However, uncomfortable it may feel, stretch yourself and step back from the work coalface just for a while and see how much more efficient and capable it makes you when you return!

I really hope you find this useful.  As always, I would love your thoughts and feedback so please do let me know what you think.

Support the show

Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

X: https://x.com/JudsonBob

Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message

At the conclusion of a short first operational flying tour at RAF Brüggen in Germany, this episode discusses my move to RAF Laarbruch, another Germany base, and my transition to the reconnaissance role.  

As a now "experienced" Jaguar pilot, this was a pivotal point in my career since reconnaissance was a role that would dominate a significant proportion of my remaining time in the cockpit.  I aim to give the listener a sense of the challenge, complexity, but also fun we all had flying the Jaguar in this role.  It was without doubt demanding but we thrived on the competition and absolutely loved the fact that we got to be seriously good at what we did.  

Towards the end of the tour (and this podcast) I outline some of the challenges that occurred not only as we transitioned the squadron to flying the Tornado, but also for me personally as I faced a tricky choice that would have a significant impact on the next direction of my flying career.

I really appreciate you listening and especially providing me feedback.  If you enjoy this, please share it widely as I'd love more people to have the chance to listen.

Support the show

Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

X: https://x.com/JudsonBob

Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

I'd love to hear from you; feel free to send me a Text Message

My guest this week is Komeil Alibai, founder and CEO of MYKA Holdings, a private equity and venture capital business focusing on clients from a variety of industries.

Komeil has a fascinating personal and business background and shares some terrific insights during the interview.  He and I first met during our coaching qualification training with The Coaching Academy.  I subsequently had the pleasure of coaching Komeil, and he is kind enough to allow us to discuss the value of that coaching during the session.

It was lovely to catch up with Komeil again for such an in depth conversation, and I really hope you enjoy listening as much as we enjoyed recording the podcast.


You can find Komeil on LinkedIn here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/komeil-alibai-572356b/


In this inteview we cover the following subjects (starting time in brackets):

• Komeil's career journey (00.02.00)
• Early motivations (00.06.03)
• Thoughts on Komeil's career transition journey (00.14.19)
• Adjustments to leadership style (00.23.29)
• Advice to a school age Komeil! (00.39.24)
• The importance of role models, purpose, and faith (00.46.19)
• What would Komeil have done differently? (00.48.34)
• Most important achievement (00.51.12)
• Career low point (00.57.49)
• The value of coaching (01.02.43)
• Advice to others considering getting a coach (01.14.56)
• Most memorable event (01.17.06)
• Most difficult question (01.25.13)

Support the show

Thank you for listening!  If you value the content I produce, please consider supporting the show financially by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ or clicking the "Support the Show" link above.

You will have the choice of becoming a Supporter, a Champion or a Patron of the show and any contribution you feel able to make will be hugely appreciated.

You can find more about me here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/

X: https://x.com/JudsonBob

Website: https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life