The You Project

Russell Robertson played 228 games for the Melbourne Football Club, is one of four players in the club's history to have led the goalkicking in four or more seasons and was known for his spectacular marking. Robbo is a dad, musician, deep-thinker and hard worker who, thanks to the pandemic, in 2020 has found himself swapping the guitar and microphone for a shovel, hammer and wheelbarrow, working in construction. Robbo has a great attitude, is infectiously positive and I loved our chat. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“How have you been?” … “Busy” … “Me too”… “Crazy huh?” … “Yep, flat out” … “Soooo busy”. Ever been in the middle of one of those exchanges? We might just be the ‘busiest’, least happy, least fulfilled, most anxious generation ever. This time on TYP, our favourite deep-thinking, high-performing, calm-in-the-chaos loveable larrikin (Geoff Jowett) is back and we talk about the badge of honour that is ‘busy-ness’, along with the much-healthier proposition of effectiveness, interwoven with some regular stillness and a smattering of self-awareness. Enjoy.@geoffjowettSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I can’t tell you how much I loved this conversation with Ashok Gupta. ‘ is a Sanskrit term for a teacher, guide, expert or master and while Ashok wouldn’t call himself a Guru, in my experience with him (and based on those criteria), he ticks a lot of Guru boxes. Sometimes I can’t believe how fortunate I am to chat with the people I do. It’s a privilege. I feel like a broken record saying this (again) but this was an amazing conversation, with an amazing human. Enjoy.Guru’guptaprogram.comthemeaningoflife.tvthecoronaviruschallenge.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The other day I was on young Tiff’s Podcast (Roll with the Punches) and we somehow took a conversational left turn and went down a rabbit hole that neither of us planned or intended to. What eventuated was a deeply personal, raw and brave (on Tiff’s part) conversation that will resonate with many.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dave Hughes is an Aussie icon, best known for his work on the telly, radio and comedic stage. And while I love Hughesy the performer, the bloke I got to chat with in this episode is a fascinating, deep-thinking, philosophical, meditating (twice a day), self aware human who is finding his calm in the chaos. And yes, he's still silly and funny but we already knew that. Enjoy :)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

TYP fave Mick Hall is back unpacking more of his fascinating journey. In this episode, we talk about ‘time’ as a subjective experience (on the Mick scale, 6 months in prison ‘feels like’ 18 months on the outside), maintaining a level of empathy and humanity in prison (while not presenting as weak or vulnerable), dealing with constant pressure and threat, solving problems in complex situations, the mental health benefits of acceptance and letting go and the challenge of being a good person in toxic environment. We also talk about the prevalence of addiction switching; moving from one addiction to another. Enjoy. dayhab.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Like many people, Tracy Bartram spent a significant part of her high-profile life denying, deflecting, avoiding, role paying and ‘pretending’ her life was great. But it wasn’t. Behind the ‘Tracy Show’; the funny, charismatic, high-energy performer (stand-up comedy, television, radio), was a vulnerable human in all kinds of pain and dysfunction. The first half of this chat is great (typical, back and forth banter) but the second half literally brought me to tears. Like me (and I suspect, you), Tracy is a work in progress and I believe that conversations like this one are crucial, powerful and for some of us, therapeutic and transformational. Enjoy.facebook.com/tracy.bartramstartingoverdogrescue.org.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Michael Sugrue began his law enforcement career in the U.S. Air Force as a Security Forces Officer in 1998. He specialised in Law Enforcement, Global Force Protection, Anti-Terrorism, Nuclear Security, Foreign Air Field Assessments and Air Base Ground Defense. Michael served in a variety of assignments including: Flight Leader, Flight Commander, Senior Watch Officer, Chief of Command Post and Chief of Security Forces. Michael served all over the United States, Europe, the Middle East and South America. After the Air Force, Michael became a Police Officer, serving as a Patrol Officer, Driver Training Instructor, Field Training Officer, SIU Detective, Undercover CA DOJ Narcotic Task Force Agent, Public Information Officer and Patrol Sergeant. Michael was awarded a Distinguished Service Medal in 2014 for his heroic and life-saving actions during a Fatal Officer Involved Shooting in 2012. Michael ultimately medically retired in 2018. He is now a Peer Volunteer at the West Coast Post Trauma Retreat and an Ambassador for Save A Warrior. Michael is a dedicated advocate for awareness, prevention, education, training on Post Traumatic Stress Injury (PTSI) and First Responder Suicide Prevention. He speaks at law enforcement agencies all over the U.S. This is a fascinating chat. Enjoy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Off the back of my last podcast (Stop Wishing and Start Planning), a few people asked if I could expand on the concept and share something of a ‘how to’, when it comes to the process of creating a plan. So I did. Feel free to just listen (of course) but this episode lends itself to a little note-taking because I unpack a 15-step process. I do get a little pumped and sweary (shocking, I know), so if swearing bothers you, this one is not for you. At the very least, don’t listen with your kids. Unless they’re thirty.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Many people think they have a plan but they don’t. They have a story, an intention and some ideas about how they want things to ‘turn out’. What they don’t have, is a strategically designed plan (process, structure, accountability, KPIs, resources, timeline), which gets activated into behaviour, outcomes and transformation. And then, when they wind up in a ‘place’ (literally or metaphorically) that’s not where they want to be (and they will), they say things like “well, this wasn’t my plan”, when in reality, they had no practical, action-focused plan. What they did have, was a no-effort wish-list. A Dream. An aspiration. Like so many, great at talking the talk but so shit at doing the work to change their life.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.