The You Project

Imagine being the CEO of numerous famous sporting clubs while silently (and secretly) dealing with ongoing depression. Well, that was Cam Schwab’s reality for decades. At 24, Cam became the youngest ever CEO of a VFL/AFL club when he took the helm of Richmond for six years. He would later go on to fill the same role (CEO) at both the Fremantle and Melbourne Football Clubs. Every time Cam and I get together, we get lost down the conversational and philosophical rabbit hole but have fun doing it. This was no exception. Enjoy. designceo.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is it so bad to be normal? Typical? Average? Common? Do we all have to be inherently amazing, gifted and special? Do we have to keep tell our kids that they’re amazing and special every five minutes? If so, why? And for how long? Is mediocrity so terrible? If it is, I’m in trouble because my genetics are mediocre AF. As is my intellect. And creative ability. And academic prowess. And sporting ability. And don’t even ask me about technology or doing ‘man things’; like anything involving a tool. But maybe in the middle of it all, we can find a way to make uncommon decisions, do uncommon things, create uncommon results and live uncommon, amazing and rewarding lives? Or maybe better still, we can find a way to be happy, calm and fulfilled, despite our not-very-special existence? This is a chat about that. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Sunday October 21, 2018 16 year-old Alex Noble was doing what he loved best - playing rugby. A freak accident resulted in him breaking his neck and severely damaging his spinal cord. Alex’s parents were told he would never walk again and to prepare for him being a quadriplegic with paralysis from his arms down. Alex endured 9 days in the ICU, 22 days in the spinal unit and 239 days in rehab. Alex’s recovery journey is still in full swing but nonetheless, he’s studying full-time (Business-Law), working in his mum’s business, tutoring year 12 students, rehabbing daily, speaking to teams and groups, doing a deep dive into philosophy and stoicism (in his spare time) and dropping in on the odd podcasts with the likes of me! I loved him and so will you.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This (specific) conversation wasn’t planned. Tiff and I sat down to chat about a certain topic but before we kicked off on our pre-planned theme, we banged on (as we always do) for a few minutes and about random stuff. At the end of those ‘few minutes’, we had been talking for nearly an hour without actually having the intended conversation. Oh well. We ended up going deep on the profound ‘learning moments’ we’ve both had away from the (traditional) classroom. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. John Tickell is an Australian doctor, businessman, author, former athlete (played footy with Hawthorn) and speaker. I’ve known John for a long time and in many ways, he has been ahead of the (health) curve for years in terms of his thinking, writing, researching and his approach to treatment, recovery and clinical management. I will warn you, there are a few dad-jokes in this chat, a little background noise (for about ten minutes) and possibly a little, er.. direct-ness but at 77, the good Doc is still working, writing, researching, inspiring and educating the masses. His new book is called ‘Your Best Immunity’ (Wilkinson Publishing). Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We briefly opened the ‘seed oils door’ once before with David but this time we walk through the door, slam it shut and deadbolt it. In this fascinating and mildly terrifying chat, David (author of ‘Toxic Oil’) tells us what oils to avoid, which ones get the tick and why. He also discusses the science that some companies don’t want us to know about. I honestly believe that this is a really important (albeit, not sexy) conversation that everyone needs to hear. Enjoy.  davidgillespie.orgSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Silvia Damiano is a scientist, educator, author, speaker, coach, entrepreneur, award-winning leadership specialist and filmmaker. Silvia's scientific background and curiosity about the human brain led her to a decade long journey of research into optimal brain functioning and the application of neuroscience in leadership and daily life. Her past and current roles have uniquely prepared her for the current undertaking, that of leadership activist & change agent. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ron Gauci is a ripper and I loved our chat. He’s a regular bloke with lots of skills, insights and experience, who spends much of his life working with teams (he was the CEO of Melbourne Storm), organisations and individuals helping them solve problems, create opportunities, improve efficiency, change culture, make better decisions and of course, improve outcomes. Enjoy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

My experience tells me that a strong relationship exists between (1) my ability to solve problems (2) my ability to navigate the inevitable peaks and troughs of life and (3) my ability to create an internal state somewhere in the vicinity of calm, contentment and happiness. Since I was the fat fourteen year-old who hated his body, I’ve been solving problems with my health, career, business, finances, relationships, habits, behaviours and outcomes. Acknowledging the problem (not languishing in it) but being all about the solution. Even this show (TYP) has been ongoing learning experience of creativity, trial and error and problem solving. And I guess it’s no surprise that I landed in a career that, in many ways, is about helping people solve their problems. Enjoy the chat.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Jeremy Howick is a Canadian-born, British residing clinical epidemiologist and philosopher of science. He is known for his research on evidence-based medicine and the philosophy of medicine, including the use of placebos in clinical practice and clinical trials. He is the author of over 100 peer-reviewed papers, as well as two books, The Philosophy of Evidence-Based Medicine in 2011 and Doctor You in 2017. As you can imagine, I looooved this topic and the Doc was great. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.