111 Mark Spall - The Arc of Us

This episode is a little different to most others on The Coaching Life Podcast. Over a somewhat extended period of time, you get to witness a beautiful conversation with my dear friend, Mark Spall. Mark and I met on our very first day as apprentices in September 1984. Here we are sitting together in Bali, recording a conversation that has been unfolding for over four decades. Rather than a structured coaching conversation or a clearly defined theme, this is a slow, reflective, wide-ranging dialogue between two friends who have known each other their entire adult lives. You’ll get to witness two men remembering, wondering, circling back, and allowing meaning to surface in its own time. In this conversation we explore: • Growing up without a clear sense of direction, and how much of life is shaped by chance, encouragement, and small moments of being seen • Early work, apprenticeships, and the quiet impact of teachers, mentors, and off-hand comments • Self-doubt, belonging, and the long-carried sense of “not quite fitting in.” • Intelligence, effort, neurodivergence, and the different ways people learn and thrive. • Programming, technology, creativity, and the joy of being absorbed in something for its own sake. • Leadership, validation, and the deep human desire to matter. • Spiritual curiosity, psychology, meaning, and the slow evolution of identity over time. • Friendship itself, how relationships drift, reconnect, and quietly shape who we become There is wisdom here, and its not delivered as advice. It emerges through memory, honesty, laughter, and reflection. Looking deeper, there’s something very honest about friendship here, about becoming, evolving and belonging, and the beautiful privilege of still being in conversation after all these years. We have created this episode together because I simply wanted to share with you someone who has been a part of my entire adult life. Just a side note - the audio quality is not of a standard I would prefer, but we did what we could with what was available to us at the time here in Bali, without postponing creating the recording… You’ll hear Bali in the background, in the form of motorcycles and other noises… And I’m a big advocate for imperfect action trumping inaction… I hope you enjoy listening in.