Explore every episode of the podcast Beyond Leading

with Alec Pearson and Jude Jennison.

What does a horse know about leadership? Quite a lot, as it turns out.

Jude Jennison works with senior leaders and executive teams using a herd of horses to expose something that's much harder to see in the meeting room: our default patterns of behaviour.

A horse doesn't care about your job title, experience or intentions. It responds to what you're actually communicating: your confidence, clarity, energy, emotions and behaviour. And when it doesn't want to follow you, the feedback is immediate. There is no carefully worded performance review. The horse simply says no..

In this episode of Beyond Leading, Alec talks with Jude about what happens when experienced leaders are taken outside their comfort zone and can no longer rely on the behaviours that have always worked for them.

They explore:

• why horses reveal leadership blind spots so quickly
• what control, self-doubt and lack of clarity look like under pressure
• why stronger relationships don't mean avoiding challenge or conflict
• what happens when teams work harder but aren't genuinely aligned
• why effective leadership starts with paying attention to yourself and the people around you

Jude also shares some remarkable examples from her work, including an exhausted leadership team whose fatigue was exposed when the horses simply lay down.

Ultimately, this is a conversation about what horses can reveal that the boardroom often cannot: the hidden patterns, blind spots and behaviours that shape how we really lead.

Jude Jennison is the Founder of Leaders by Nature. A former IBM leader, she has developed more than 5,000 leaders, written three books and works with organisations to change how leaders and teams behave under pressure, uncertainty and change.

Find out more about Jude and Leaders by Nature:

• Website: https://www.leadersbynature.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judejennison/

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with Alec Pearson and Claire Ryan.

A business can be successful and still reach a point where the way it has always worked is no longer enough.

The systems may be creaking. Too much may still depend on the owner. Different parts of the business may be working in isolation. And now AI is adding another layer of pressure — and another set of decisions.

So how do you know when the business needs to change? And how do you avoid reaching for new technology before you really understand the problem you are trying to solve?

In this episode Alec Pearson is joined by Claire Ryan, a business transformation specialist who works with successful business owners at exactly this kind of turning point.

Claire helps businesses step back, look at how they are really operating, and work out what needs to change if they are going to remain relevant, competitive and ready for what comes next.

In this episode:

• Why successful businesses can outgrow the systems, processes and ways of working that got them this far.
• What AI is exposing about technology, data, governance and decision-making inside organisations.
• The leadership challenge of changing a business when people, including sometimes the founder or MD, may not be ready to move.

This is a conversation about business transformation, but also about judgement. About knowing when something that once worked no longer does. And about recognising when the next stage of growth requires more than simply doing more of the same.

To connect with Claire Ryan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claire-ryan-mba/

Email: claire@fusioneconsulting.co.uk

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with Alec Pearson.

What happens when everyone follows the process, does exactly what they are supposed to do, and the problem still isn’t solved?

That is where ownership gets interesting.

In this episode Alec Pearson explores what happens when responsibility is spread across teams, functions and organisations, but nobody is truly accountable for the outcome.

A recent experience with a serious mechanical failure brought the issue into sharp focus. Everyone involved appeared to have a role. Everyone had a process. Everyone could explain what they had done.

And yet one question remained: Who actually owned the outcome?

It is a pattern that appears inside many organisations more often than we might like to admit. Problems are handed over, escalated, logged and passed on. Everyone can point to their part of the process.

But the problem itself can remain unresolved.

In this episode, I explore:

• The difference between responsibility and genuine accountability
• Why following the process is not the same as owning the outcome
• When judgement and leadership need to take over from process
• What leaders should ask about ownership across their organisation

Because organisations can become very good at processing problems.

The real test of leadership is what happens when somebody recognises that the process is no longer enough.

And if everybody owns a piece of the process, there is always a risk that nobody owns the problem.

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with Alec Pearson.

What happens when everyone around the leadership table has a perfectly reasonable case and the business still can’t move?

Sales wants growth. Finance wants to protect cash. Operations is already stretched. HR is looking at capability. Risk wants stronger controls.

Nobody is obviously wrong, but that is precisely the problem.

Alec explores one of the harder realities of senior leadership: the decisions where there is no clean answer, no obvious villain and no neat framework to hide behind.

As planning season begins, the challenge is not always deciding what matters.

Sometimes it is deciding what matters more.

In this episode:

• Why good leadership teams can still get stuck even when everyone around the table has a reasonable case
• What changes when senior leaders stop defending their function and start thinking about the whole enterprise
• Why some of the hardest leadership decisions are not between right and wrong, but between competing versions of right

If your leadership team is busy, capable and working hard, but the organisation still feels harder to move than it should, this episode is worth your time.

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with Alec Pearson, Joseph McGuire.

Joseph McGuire has spent a career learning to read people — three decades as a therapist before moving into executive communication, behavioural profiling and leadership development. Through his company, Clearsight Communications, he now helps leaders understand human behaviour, build trust, and hear what's really being said.

We tend to think communication is about how well we speak. Joseph thinks it's the other way round. The leaders who truly understand a room usually aren't the ones doing the talking — they're the ones who can hear what isn't being said.

In this episode, Alec Pearson sits down with Joseph to explore listening as a leadership skill almost nobody is actually taught. Not the "active listening" box-tick — but hearing tone, hesitation, the gaps, and everything a person's body says while their words say something else. As Joseph puts it, communication begins before a word is spoken. For senior leaders, and anyone building toward that seat, it may be the most underrated skill you own.

In this conversation:

• Why the higher you rise, the more your listening can quietly slip
• The one simple question that pulled a struggling company back from the brink
• What an ancient way of reading people reveals about the skill we keep getting wrong
• Why the sharpest leaders treat a hire almost like an interrogation — and the failure rate that proves the point
• How to catch the exact moment someone's words and their body stop agreeing
• The kind of presence that commands a room without ever raising a voice

If you've ever walked out of a conversation certain you missed something, this one's for you.

You can connect with Joseph McGuire and Clearsight Communications on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/joseph-mcguire-face-facts/

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with Alec Pearson and Dr Calvin Lightbody.

In Part 1, Alec and Calvin took apart the comfortable version of wellbeing - the fruit bowls, the tick-box initiatives - and named the warning signs leaders are so good at driving past.

This time it gets personal. Because there's a harder question sitting underneath all of it: what's really happening to the high achiever who keeps pushing long after the tank is empty?

When we feel stuck, the instinct is to work harder. Calvin has watched where that leads - in senior clinicians, in managers, in himself.

There's a concept from healthcare that explains it better than any wellbeing survey ever could: the slow, repeated wear that cracks even the strongest people, one small pressure at a time, until something gives. It has a name most leaders have never heard, and once you understand it, you start seeing it everywhere. Including in yourself.

We explore:

• When you feel stuck, why is working harder so often the wrong move, and what's really hiding underneath it?
• What quietly gets worse the higher you climb, not better, and why does no one at the top talk about it?
• There's a kind of damage that builds up one small knock at a time. What is it, and why isn't it just a healthcare problem?
• If you've recognised yourself in any of this, what's the one thing to do tomorrow morning?

If you've been holding it together for longer than you'd care to admit, this one is worth your time.

To submit an anonymous question for discussion in part 3, visit: Beyond Leading: Ask Calvin & Alec – Fill in form

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with Alec Pearson and Dr Calvin Lightbody.

Every organisation says it takes wellbeing seriously. The fruit bowl, the yoga session, the mindfulness app someone signed everyone up to. And yet the people carrying the most keep quietly running on empty. Not because the perks aren't pleasant, but because almost none of it touches the thing that's actually wearing them down.

What if most of what your organisation calls wellbeing isn't wellbeing at all? There's a difference between wellness and wellbeing that most leaders have never stopped to notice, and once you see it, you can't unsee how much of the well-meaning stuff misses the point.

Calvin has watched it play out on the front line of an emergency department, and what he's learned there lands in every high-stakes workplace. Including yours.

We explore:

• What's the difference between wellness and wellbeing, and why does mixing them up cost you more than you think?
• Could your wellbeing initiatives actually be making things worse rather than better?
• Why do the strongest, most capable people so often drive straight past their own warning signs?
• What's the one question Calvin believes every leader should ask themselves on Monday morning, that almost none of them do?

If you lead people, and you care whether they thrive or just survive, this one is worth your time.

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with Alec Pearson.

After 19 honest conversations with leaders, founders and coaches working in very different worlds, the same themes kept appearing.

Questions about identity, energy, trust, change and what really happens when leadership becomes personal.

Why do some leaders know exactly what needs to change, yet still do nothing about it?

And what are the questions that leadership keeps asking, regardless of role, sector or experience?

In this 20th episode, Alec Pearson looks back across the first six months of Beyond Leading to explore the recurring themes that have shaped the podcast so far, what those conversations have reinforced for him personally, and why knowing what to do is rarely the same as being ready to do it.

We explore:

• Why does leadership become more personal the further up you go?
• What happens when reflection is constantly squeezed out by the diary?
• Why can knowing the right thing still fail to change our behaviour?
• How do energy, trust and self-awareness affect the way we lead?
• What have 19 very different conversations revealed about the reality of leadership?

If you lead people, carry responsibility or find yourself knowing what needs to change but still not acting on it, this episode is worth your time.

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with Alec Pearson, Tiffany David and Graham Da Costa

Change is no longer a one-off event, it's the constant backdrop of working life. New technology, shifting client expectations, the rise of AI. And yet most change programmes still fail. Not because the strategy was wrong, but because of something far more human.

What if the real problem is that your people don't think there's a problem at all? You can't sell a solution to someone who doesn't believe anything is broken, and that one insight, borrowed from the world of addiction psychology, might explain more failed change programmes than any strategy document ever will.

We explore:

• Why do so many change programmes fail before they've even started?
• What's the one question Graham put to leaders that stopped most of them in their tracks?
• When your team asks "what's in it for me?" - do you actually have an answer?
• Could your people already be ready for more change than you think?

If you lead a team through change, and every leader does, this one is worth your time.

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with Nick Sellers, Tiffany Barnard and Ellen Putz.

In this episode of Beyond Leading, Nick Sellers takes the host's chair and is joined by Tiffany Barnard and Ellen Putz.

The topic: team leadership.

And the conversation goes a lot further than the textbook version.

Because the way teams are led has changed. The old hierarchical, fear-based, command-and-control playbook is being replaced by something very different, and not every leader is keeping up.

We explore:

• what really sits at the heart of every effective team, and what most leaders still get wrong
• the line between leading and managing, and why it matters more than people think
• the trap most people fall into when they go from doer to leader
• why people don't leave bad jobs, they leave bad leaders

If you lead a team, or you want to, this is a conversation worth sitting with.

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with Alec Pearson and Lucy Nicholson, Registered Somatic Movement Educator and Movement Analyst.

In this episode of Beyond Leading, we explore an approach to leadership that most people have never come across, and once you hear it, you will not be able to unsee it.

Somatic leadership.

Most leadership development focuses on what we think, what we say and how we behave. Very little focuses on what our body is doing, and what it is telling us, in the moments that matter most.

Lucy Nicholson brings a fascinating and genuinely different perspective to this conversation, rooted in years of working with leaders, communities and organisations on the power of bodily awareness.

We explore:

• what somatic leadership actually is, and why most leaders have never considered it
• what the connection between mind and body has to do with how you lead
• why the pressure leaders carry shows up in the body, and what to do about it
• what happens when you give yourself permission to pause, ground and reset
• how something as simple as the way you carry yourself can change how others respond to you
• the role of stillness and silence as leadership tools, not indulgences
• and what one leader discovered when she stopped trying to be heard and started leading differently

If you have ever felt the weight of leadership in your body without knowing what to do with it, this episode will give you a completely new way of thinking about it.

To find out more about Lucy's work visit www.in-movement.co.uk or find her on LinkedIn.

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with Alec Pearson, Nick Sellers and Tiffany Barnard.

In this episode of Beyond Leading, we tackle something every leader, manager and professional quietly struggles with, but rarely talks about honestly - Procrastination.

This conversation challenges some of the most common assumptions people make about why they put things off. It is not about laziness. It is not about poor time management. And it is not always a bad thing.

We explore:

• what procrastination really is, and what it is not
• where the line is between putting something off and genuinely thinking it through
• the role perfectionism and self-doubt play and why most people never make the connection
• why some leaders actually need stress to get things done, and whether that is a good thing
• the practical approaches that help, and why some popular advice misses the mark
• what procrastination reveals about how leaders ask for help

If you have ever found yourself doing everything except the one thing you actually need to do - this episode is for you.

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with Alec Pearson and Rich Carter, Chief Growth Officer and President of Advanced Programs at Albers Aerospace.

In this episode of Beyond Leading, we sit down with a leader who operates at the sharp end of one of the most fast-moving, high-stakes industries in the world: aerospace and defence.

The world leaders are operating in right now is faster, more complex and more unpredictable than anything most leadership textbooks prepared us for.

So what does it actually take to lead well in that environment?

We explore:

• why speed has become the defining leadership challenge of our time
• how to lead from the front when the plan changes before the day has even started
• why banning the word "I" might be one of the most powerful cultural shifts a leader can make
• the frozen middle and how to thaw it
• whether the old leadership playbook needs throwing out or simply evolving
• how to think about AI as a tool, not a threat, and what that means for your people
• generational differences, reverse mentoring and why diverse teams move faster
• and what to say to the leader who is tired, overwhelmed and wondering where to start

This is a practical, honest conversation from someone who has done it, and is still doing it.

About Rich Carter

Rich Carter is Chief Growth Officer and President of Advanced Programs at Albers Aerospace. With over 20 years of executive leadership experience, he drives revenue generation, business development, and customer relationships serving the U.S. Intelligence Community, the Pentagon, international partners, and commercial entities. Previously, Rich held executive roles at MAG Aerospace, Lockheed Martin, and Sierra Nevada Corporation. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Bucknell University and a Master of Science from Stony Brook University.

About Albers Aerospace

Albers Aerospace is a proud company built by Warfighters and committed teammates who share a deep passion for serving the Nation. For the past decade, the company has delivered exceptional value across its Industrials, Defense, and Advanced Programs sectors — operating with a People First, Mission Always mindset.

Through its Industrials division, Albers provides vertically integrated, full-spectrum manufacturing capabilities that strengthen the aerospace and defense industrial base. In Defense, the company delivers products and services within complex, multi-security environments — ensuring readiness, reliability, and mission success. Through Advanced Programs, Albers solves emerging challenges with agility, innovation, and technical precision.

Albers Aerospace exists to make a difference — for the country, for the men and women who serve it, and for the future of aerospace and defense. The team brings operational insight, engineering excellence, and an unwavering commitment to quality in everything they do.

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with Alec Pearson, Tiffany David and Graham Da Costa.

Emotional intelligence. Two words that have been talked about, trained, workshopped and plastered on LinkedIn until they mean almost nothing.

So why are we talking about it?

Because most of what you've heard about EQ only scratches the surface.

It isn't a personality type. And it definitely isn't something you either have or you don't.

In this episode of Beyond Leading, we get underneath it, the real, unfiltered version of emotional intelligence that shows up in how you lead, how you connect, and how you read the room when it actually matters.

We explore:

• why 85% of us are less self-aware than we think we are — and what that's costing us
• how your triggers, your energy and your values are shaping every relationship you have, whether you know it or not
• why face-to-face connection does something Zoom never will
• the assumptions quietly destroying your team relationships
• and whether the next generation of leaders are arriving in the workplace with an EQ gap nobody is talking about

This isn't another definition of emotional intelligence.

It's a challenge to how you think about it.

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with Alec Pearson, Tiffany Barnard and Nick Sellers.

In this episode of Beyond Leading, we explore a question that sits at the heart of leadership, growth and change:

Can we gain from pain?

When does discomfort lead to progress, and when does it simply wear us down?

How much of what we call “pain” is really fear, stretch, uncertainty or anticipation?

And what happens when the very thing we are avoiding may be the thing that helps us grow?

We explore:

• the difference between positive stretch and toxic pressure
• why growth so often feels uncomfortable
• how leaders, coaches and individuals can think more carefully about what challenge is useful - and what challenge is too much.
• fear, self-labelling, resilience, public speaking, personal growth, team development
• the role of coaching in helping people move beyond the beliefs and experiences that keep them stuck.

If you are navigating change, supporting others through growth, or trying to understand the difference between discomfort that develops you and pressure that drains you, this episode will give you plenty to reflect on.

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with Alec Pearson, Nick Sellers and Gemma Dawe.

When you hear “starting a business during Covid”, it’s easy to assume it was a brave leap.

But sometimes it isn’t a leap at all, it’s being kicked off a cliff and choosing to build on the way down.

In this episode Alec and Nick speak to Gemma, a business owner who launched a specialist relocation and buying-agent service in September 2020, right in the middle of uncertainty, restrictions, and a property market behaving in ways nobody could predict.

What follows is a conversation about how credibility is really built. Not through polish, shortcuts, or having the perfect plan, but through consistency, trust, and staying in your lane when distractions start shouting.

We discuss:

• Redundancy as a trigger and what it takes to act before you feel “ready”

• The buyer’s perspective, and the psychology behind major decisions

• Building credibility through consistency, opinion, and trust

• Staying in your lane: opportunity vs distraction

• Time, boundaries, and networking as a long game

Follow Beyond Leading on LinkedIn for episode clips and updates: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-leading-podcast

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with Alec Pearson.

In this solo episode, Alec reflects on something many leaders are quietly feeling but struggling to name - why leadership feels heavier, even when nothing is technically “wrong”.

Drawing on his recent Aftershock Era series on The Strategic Leader on Substack, Alec explores how accumulated pressure, rather than dramatic crisis, is shaping decision-making, energy and strategic clarity across organisations.

In this conversation Alec explores:

• Why leadership can feel heavier even in the absence of visible crisis
• The difference between tired teams and thinning teams - and why it matters
• How soft burnout quietly affects judgement, not just wellbeing
• Why organisations can be busy yet feel like nothing is really moving
• The subtle shift from strategic growth to cultural caution
• How external fragmentation and AI acceleration are thinning the signal leaders rely on
• The difference between decisions made from clarity and decisions driven by pressure
• A simple discipline to restore focus, capacity and momentum when drift sets in

If you’re a CEO, founder, partner or senior leader sensing that something feels slightly off - not broken, just heavier - this episode offers language, structure and reflection to help you regain orientation.

For the deeper thinking behind this episode, explore the full Aftershock series on The Strategic Leader on Substack: https://thestrategicleader.substack.com

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with Alec Pearson, Tiffany David and Graham Da Costa.

When pressure hits, most of us think we’re responding logically.

But often, something else is running the show.

In this episode Alec is joined for the first time by R Tiffany David and Graham Da Costa to explore what happens internally when stress builds, decisions feel heavier, and that familiar inner voice starts to comment on everything we do.

Using the framework of Positive Intelligence (PQ), the conversation looks beneath behaviour and performance to the inner patterns that shape how leaders think, react and show up - especially in demanding moments.

Rather than treating PQ as a label or a trend, this episode explores it as a practical lens for understanding self-sabotage, emotional reactions and the quieter choices available to us under pressure.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• What really happens in our minds when stress takes over
• The inner voices that undermine confidence, focus and judgement
• Why good intentions don’t always translate into good outcomes
• How awareness creates choice — even in difficult moments
• The link between mental fitness, leadership presence and trust
• Why this inner work matters for teams, relationships and wellbeing

This episode isn’t about positive thinking or fixing yourself.

It’s about understanding what’s driving your reactions and how leaders can respond with more clarity, calm and intention when it matters most.

Follow Beyond Leading on LinkedIn for episode clips and updates: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-leading-podcast

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with Alec Pearson, Tiffany Barnard and Nick Sellers.

Relevance is a question many people don’t ask until something shifts.

A role changes.

Technology accelerates.

Expectations move, quietly at first, and suddenly what once felt solid doesn’t anymore.

In this episode Alec, Nick and Tiffany have a candid conversation about relevance, not as a buzzword, but as a lived experience in today’s workplace and beyond.

Rather than focusing on age or technology alone, the discussion explores what sits underneath: awareness, resistance, communication and the choices we make, or avoid, as the world around us changes.

In this conversation, we explore:

1. What relevance really means and who gets to define it
2. Why age is often blamed, and what might actually be going on
3. How communication shapes connection across generations
4. The quiet impact of comfort, resistance and standing still
5. Why self-awareness keeps resurfacing in leadership conversations
6. What gets missed when reflection and boundaries slip

This episode isn’t about keeping up with everything.

It’s about noticing what’s changing - in the world, in work, and in ourselves - and deciding how we want to respond.

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with Alec Pearson, Lizzie Cousins and Chelsea Dickinson.

In this episode, Alec Pearson speaks to Lizzie Cousins and Chelsea Dickinson from C&D Debt Recovery to uncover how a moment that could have stopped their careers instead sparked a bold new chapter.

After finding themselves redundant, Lizzie and Chelsea took a leap many think about but few commit to — building a business of their own. What follows is a grounded conversation about resilience, partnership and the practical realities of starting again.

In this conversation we explore:

1. How redundancy became the catalyst for launching C&D Debt Recovery
2. The early decisions, preparation and homework that set them up for success
3. Why communication and shared values are the backbone of their partnership
4. The leadership qualities they lean on most — honesty, integrity and confidence
5. The balance between working in the business and building on it
6. Strategy, growth and the importance of taking steady, sustainable steps
7. What they’ve learned — and what they want others to know before making the leap

Whether you're considering a business of your own, navigating uncertainty or simply curious about the realities behind a start-up story, this episode offers encouragement, insight and practical takeaways.

You can find out more about C&D Debt Recovery at: https://candddebtrecovery.co.uk/

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with Alec Pearson, Ellen Putz and Nick Sellers.

In this episode, Alec is joined by Nick Sellers and owner of EP Talent Search and Executive Coach Ellen Putz, from the Netherlands, to explore the real and often hidden pressures of leading from the top.

In this conversation we explore:

1. Why imposter syndrome shows up even when you wear the CEO title
2. How leaders handle the pressure to appear confident and certain when they’re not
3. What vulnerability looks like in senior roles — and whether it strengthens or weakens leadership
4. The delicate line between being liked and being respected
5. How CEOs balance communication across investors, boards and their own teams
6. Why delegation can feel harder the higher up you go
7. The surprising loneliness of leadership — and how leaders cope with it
8. Where senior leaders find support, space and perspective when the stakes are high

Whether you're already in a senior role, preparing for one, or simply curious about what happens behind closed boardroom doors, this episode lifts the curtain and sparks reflection on what leadership really demands.

Follow Beyond Leading on LinkedIn for episode clips and updates: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-leading-podcast

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with Alec Pearson, Nick Sellers and Tiffany Barnard.

In this episode, we explore why patience — something we’re taught to value — can sometimes get in the way of progress. We look at the moments where waiting becomes hesitation, where caution becomes procrastination, and where leaders unintentionally stall their own momentum.

In this conversation, we explore:

1. The fine line between patience and procrastination — and why they’re not the same thing.
2. How fear, perfectionism and lack of confidence shape timing in ways we don’t always recognise.
3. Why leaders often wait for the “perfect moment” — and why that moment rarely arrives.
4. When patience fuels sustainable progress and when it becomes a subtle form of avoidance.
5. How passion, purpose and process influence our ability to act with clarity and conviction.
6. Simple practices to judge timing more effectively so you don’t miss out on opportunities that matter.

If you’ve ever found yourself waiting… and not quite sure why, this conversation will help you see patience in a new light — not as a fixed virtue, but as something we need to use deliberately, not automatically.

Follow Beyond Leading on LinkedIn for episode clips and updates: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-leading-podcast

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with Alec Pearson.

As we step into 2026, many leaders aren’t lacking ambition — they’re carrying sustained pressure.

Motivation has dipped. Clarity feels harder to access. And simply pushing harder no longer works.

In this short solo episode, Alec Pearson invites you to pause before you plan. Not to retreat — but to reset how you lead.

Drawing on recent conversations with senior leaders and his own experience of stepping back to think clearly again, Alec explores why motivation returns through clarity, not force — and how small, deliberate shifts can restore energy, judgement, and direction.

This episode reflects on:

1. Why many leaders feel tired and demotivated, even after a break
2. The strategic power of pausing in a high-pressure environment
3. How clarity changes team ownership, trust, and accountability
4. Why progress often comes from doing the basics properly
5. Rethinking strategy and innovation for 2026 through experimentation, not acceleration

If you’re entering the new year feeling the weight of responsibility, and wondering how to lead with more purpose, focus, and sustainability, this episode is for you.

Follow Beyond Leading on LinkedIn for episode clips and updates: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-leading-podcast

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with Alec Pearson, Harrison Ward and Nick Sellers.

In this episode, Alec and Nick are joined by Harrison Ward — known to many as Fell Foodie — whose journey from addiction and depression to hiking, outdoor cooking and public advocacy has inspired thousands.

We delve into the real story behind his transformation: the hidden struggles, the turning point that changed everything, and the steady, intentional steps that led him back to purpose and health. Harrison’s journey stands as a true inspiration for all of us.

We discuss:

1. What change looks like from the inside not the polished version, but the slow, uncertain, deeply human one.
2. Why rock bottom isn’t a single moment and how Harrison rebuilt himself one decision at a time.
3. The role of honesty, support and accountability when you’re trying to break old patterns.
4. How journaling, reflection and small wins shaped his recovery and fuelled the creation of Fell Foodie.
5. The power of authenticity and what happens when you finally stop wearing a mask.
6. What Harrison's journey teaches us about workplace stress, stagnation and the fear of changing direction.

If you’ve ever felt stuck, overwhelmed or unsure where to begin, Harrison’s story is a reminder that progress rarely arrives all at once, it grows from small steps taken consistently.

Follow Beyond Leading on LinkedIn for episode clips and updates: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-leading-podcast

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with Alec Pearson, Tiffany Barnard and Nick Sellers.

In this episode, we explore three foundations that shape how you show up at work: your identity, your values, and the reputation others form around you.

Many people move through their careers without ever stopping to ask who they really are — or whether their values still match the environment they’re in. And reputation? That’s created entirely in other people’s minds, often based on behaviour we’re barely aware of.

Alec, Tiffany and Nick unpack how identity forms, why values quietly drive so many of our decisions, and how reputation is shaped through perception, consistency and context.

We also touch on what happens when these three elements fall out of sync — especially during promotions or major career transitions.

In this conversation, we explore:

1. Why identity evolves over time
2. How values influence what energises or drains us
3. What really shapes reputation
4. The tension between how we see ourselves and how others see us
5. Why stepping into leadership often requires letting go of old habits

If you’ve ever felt misaligned in a role, unsure how others perceive you, or curious about how your values shape your impact, this episode offers a thoughtful starting point.

Follow Beyond Leading on LinkedIn for episode clips and updates: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-leading-podcast

Follow/subscribe to Beyond Leading for new episodes - wherever you listen.

with Alec Pearson, Tiffany Barnard & Nick Sellers.

Soft burnout doesn’t look dramatic — which is why so many leaders miss it. You’re still performing, still meeting deadlines, still showing up… but inside, something feels heavier. Flatter. As if you’re dragging yourself through the day and slowly disconnecting from the things that once gave you energy.

In this conversation, Alec, Tiffany and Nick explore:

• what soft burnout actually is (and why it’s often invisible)

• why high performers and perfectionists are especially vulnerable

• how stress creates “fog” that narrows your perspective

• the role of boundaries, overcommitment and fear of judgement

• why people often make the wrong life changes when burnout hits

• how to notice the early signs in yourself and in your team

This episode blends personal insight, psychological clarity and lived experience. Whether you’re feeling a little off, running on fumes, or leading people who may be struggling quietly, this conversation will help you recognise what’s happening beneath the surface — and what small shifts can start to make a difference.

Follow Beyond Leading on LinkedIn for episode clips and updates: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-leading-podcast

Follow/subscribe to Beyond Leading for new episodes - wherever you listen.

with Alec Pearson, Tiffany Barnard and Nick Sellers.

Good work doesn’t always get noticed, especially in fast-paced, high-pressure environments.

This episode explores the visibility gap: the space between the value you create and what people actually know about it.

We unpack why high performers often stay quiet, how this affects progression, and how to advocate for yourself without feeling like you’re bragging.

In this conversation:

1. Why visibility isn’t arrogance
2. How to talk about your impact with clarity and confidence
3. What to do when others take credit for your work
4. The mindset shifts that make visibility easier
5. Practical habits for making your contribution visible

Follow Beyond Leading on LinkedIn for episode clips and updates: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-leading-podcast

Follow/subscribe to Beyond Leading for new episodes - wherever you listen.

Welcome to Beyond Leading — a podcast about leadership as it really happens.

Across solo episodes and conversations with guests, Beyond Leading explores leadership across self, teams, organisations and the boardroom, especially when the answers are not obvious.

The podcast looks beneath the surface of leadership, strategy, accountability, decision-making, team performance, organisational culture, business growth, governance, change and the pressures that come with leading in uncertain environments.

There are no easy formulas here.

Beyond Leading is about the decisions, behaviours, tensions and questions that rarely fit neatly into a framework, and the realities leaders face when judgement matters more than a textbook answer.

Leadership • Teams • Work • Life — and everything in between.

Hosted by Alec Pearson, Executive Coach, Non-Executive Director and Board Advisor.

Follow or subscribe to Beyond Leading wherever you listen.