What if schools prepared young people not just to pass exams, but to live fulfilled, resilient, and happy lives?

In this inspiring conversation, I sit down with Max Marshall, a former teacher who left the classroom after 10 years to disrupt an outdated education system. Max now champions a vision for schools that prioritise emotional intelligence, resilience, and self-confidence over rote learning.

Together, we explore how redefining success for children could transform not just education, but the future mental health of our society. From Habits for Happiness to emotional tolerance, Max shares practical ideas for parents, teachers, and leaders and why teaching children to manage their emotions could ultimately save lives.

This is one of the most important and game-changing conversations I’ve had on the podcast to date.

00:00 Introduction – Fixing what schools miss

02:30 Max defines success: from popularity to fulfilment

07:00 The danger of external validation & social media

10:20 Teaching intrinsic success to children

15:00 Rethinking competition, failure & resilience

23:00 Why schools must change: outdated curriculum

27:30 The problem with SATs and measuring success

32:40 Emotional intelligence vs academic intelligence

40:00 What children really need to thrive in life

47:30 Pushback from schools & systemic barriers

55:00 Habits for Happiness – practical daily routines

1:05:00 Preparing children for secondary school & life

1:20:00 Choosing who you want to become

1:40:00 What success looks like for the next generation

1:52:00 Closing reflections & the Different Hats card

🎧 LISTEN TO MORE DIFFERENT HATS EPISODES:

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

🔗 Connect with Max Marshall

Website: https://lifeeducationcoaching.co.uk/

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

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/max-marshall-life-education/

Follow Max here 👉 https://linktr.ee/maxmarshall.life.education

💡 If this episode resonated with you, please like, share, and comment below. Your support helps us spread this important message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

SPONSORED BY:

Search Seven: www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove:  www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale: www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X https://www.plusxinnovation.com/

PRODUCED BY: H2 Productions: https://h2productions.co.uk/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

⚠️ Warning ⚠️ This episode contains content that may be alarming to some listeners. We do talk about suicide which we know can be distressing.

In this powerful episode, I sit down with Jon Kennett, agency director, family man, and someone who’s lived through the highs of ambition and the lows of loss.

Jon opens up about how his definition of success has shifted over the years from chasing houses, cars, and financial milestones, to focusing on happiness, health, and the relationships that matter most.

We dive deep into themes of presence, fulfilment, balance, and relationships from practical business lessons around leadership and networking, to raw, emotional conversations about mental health and suicide. Jon shares the heartbreaking stories of close friends he’s lost, the ripple effects on everyone left behind, and why breaking the stigma around these conversations is so important.

This episode is both deeply human and practical with lessons on leadership, resilience, and the everyday sparks of meaning that keep us going.

• Redefining what success really means
• Why fulfilment is about the journey, not the destination
• Building genuine relationships over transactions
• Lessons from Jon’s father and a childhood immersed in music & performance
• Mental health, suicide, and the ripple effect of loss
• Leadership, trust, and putting the right people in the right seats
• Family, presence, and the everyday sparks of meaning

00:00 – Opening & introductions

03:20 – Redefining success: from cars and houses to health, happiness, and family

12:15 – The pursuit vs. the destination: presence and fulfilment

20:40 – Networking done right: building relationships, not selling

31:00 – Growing up in music, confidence through performance, and lessons from his father

42:30 – Validation, highs & lows of the music industry

54:10 – Mental health, suicide, and losing a close friend

1:06:00 – The ripple effect: multiple friends lost to suicide and how it changed Jon’s outlook

1:24:00 – What needs to change: stigma, emotional education, and starting young

1:38:00 – Leadership lessons: building trust and putting the right people in the right seats

1:46:00 – Advice to a younger self

1:47:00 – Staying present as a father and leader

1:55:00 – Closing reflections: what sparks meaning in everyday life

🎧 LISTEN TO MORE DIFFERENT HATS EPISODES:

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

🔗 Connect with Jon Kennett

LinkedIn: Jon Kennett

💡 If this episode resonated with you, please like, share, and comment below. Your support helps us spread this important message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

SPONSORED BY:

Search Seven – www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove – www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale – www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X – https://www.plusxinnovation.com/

PRODUCED BY:

H2 Productions – https://h2productions.co.uk/

*If you’ve been affected by any of the topics in today’s episode, please reach out to local support services or find resources via Samaritans (UK) or equivalent helplines in your country.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At just 21, Oly Newton’s world was turned upside down. After surviving a severe mental health crisis and living for years with the daily challenges of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), he channelled his pain into purpose, becoming a speaker, advocate, and founder of LightsOnXP, a human-centred workplace wellbeing platform shaped by lived experience.

In this powerful conversation, Oly opens up about how OCD has shaped his life, how he learned to manage it, and why it doesn’t define him. We dive into his journey from rock bottom to leading meaningful change, the importance of being truly present, and why human connection remains the most powerful tool for wellbeing in the workplace.

This is an open, honest, and deeply human exploration of recovery, hope, resilience, and the courage to keep showing up, even when the lights feel off.

00:00 —  Introduction

04:12 — Oly’s early years and the experiences that shaped him

10:05 — Hitting rock bottom: a turning point in his mental health journey

17:46 — The power of speaking out and breaking stigma

23:30 — Founding LightsOnXP: building a wellbeing platform shaped by lived experience

31:18 — Redefining success: from surviving to thriving

37:54 — Why human connection is the cornerstone of mental health in the workplace

45:22 — Navigating balance and avoiding burnout

52:16 — Authenticity and showing up as your whole self

58:04 — The role of presence in recovery and leadership

1:05:48 — Finding fulfilment in purpose-led work

1:12:09 — Relationships, trust, and creating a support network

1:19:33 — Practical steps for organisations to support mental health

1:27:15 — Living with OCD: challenges and coping strategies

1:35:42 — Lessons learned from lived experience

1:43:58 — Advice for anyone struggling with mental health right now

1:51:25 — Future plans for LightsOnXP and personal growth

1:59:50 — Closing reflections & Oly’s definition of success today

🎧 LISTEN TO MORE DIFFERENT HATS EPISODES:

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

🔗 Connect with Oly Newton

Website: https://www.lightsonxp.com

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

💡 If this episode resonated with you, please like, share, and comment below. Your support helps us spread this important message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

SPONSORED BY:

Search Seven — www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove — www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale — www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X — https://www.plusxinnovation.com/

PRODUCED BY: H2 Productions — https://h2productions.co.uk/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

⚠️ Warning ⚠️ This episode contains content that may be alarming to some listeners. We do talk about suicide which we know can be distressing.

At 38, David Eakins was moments away from ending his life on a railway bridge. On the outside, everything looked perfect, a great career, loving family, and strong friendships. But inside, David was silently drowning.

In this deeply moving and honest conversation, David opens up about suicidal ideation, masculinity, shame, and his journey to healing. He reveals how a single question, “How are you, out of 10?” became the turning point that led him to therapy, vulnerability, and a new life of presence and purpose.

Now leading Talk Club Brighton & Hove, David is helping other men open up and find hope through connection and conversation.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone struggling with trauma, grief or depression, or anyone supporting someone who is, or anyone ready to redefine what strength really means.

⏱️ CHAPTERS

00:00 – “I climbed the railings of a bridge…” – David’s darkest moment

03:05 – The weight of suicidal ideation: “I didn’t want to end my life… I wanted to end the pain”

07:42 – The silent battle at work and feeling lost in plain sight

13:18 – Early life, childhood masking, and belief systems about manhood

19:50 – Marriage, family dynamics, and fear of being ‘found out’

27:05 – The life-changing impact of being asked: “How are you out of 10?”

34:40 – First steps into therapy and confronting buried trauma

41:12 – Creating safe spaces: the birth of Talk Club Brighton & Hove

48:30 – The power of community and emotional accountability

56:50 – Shame, masks, and the myth of the 'strong man'

1:05:15 – Male friendship, trust, and the art of showing up

1:13:42 – Parenting, presence, and breaking generational cycles

1:22:18 – When laughter is medicine: humour, humanity and healing

1:31:40 – Business, burnout and redefining leadership through empathy

1:40:55 – Mental health at work: what employers get wrong

1:49:30 – Living with intention and building a new definition of success

1:56:50 – David answers the 5 Pillars: Balance, Authenticity, Presence, Fulfilment, Relationships

2:04:00 – Final reflections: “Be brave enough to speak before it's too late”

🔗 Connect with David Eakins

Instagram: @davideakins

LinkedIn: David Eakins

Website: https://happysapien.co.uk/

🎧 LISTEN TO MORE DIFFERENT HATS EPISODES:

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

💬 If this episode resonated, please like, share, and leave a comment. Your support helps spread this vital message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

SPONSORED BY:

Search Seven – www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove – www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale – www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X – https://www.plusxinnovation.com

🎥 PRODUCED BY:

H2 Productions – https://h2productions.co.uk

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this heartfelt episode, I sit down with Abi Mellor, co-founder of award-winning creative agency MOREVER, for a raw and powerful conversation about success, leadership, loss, and living a values-led life.

Abi opens up about her journey through motherhood, miscarriage, burnout, and business, sharing how she navigates these deeply personal experiences while leading impactful storytelling campaigns for global changemakers. We explore how her childhood shaped her, what she believes is broken in our education system, and how success for her is measured by love, presence, and purpose, not just performance.

We also talk about creating emotionally literate families, leadership with vulnerability, the importance of slowing down, and why honest storytelling matters more than ever in a distracted, digital world.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re failing at the impossible juggle, or wondered how to hold purpose and pressure at the same time, this one’s for you.

⏱️ CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS

00:00 – Intro

02:48 – What does success mean to Abi today?

05:51 – Childhood, co-parenting & shaping values

11:30 – Creating MOREVER & purpose-led storytelling

18:44 – Miscarriage, motherhood & the emotional cost of ambition

26:20 – Vulnerability in leadership & business burnout

35:10 – Reframing failure & making space for slowness

40:22 – Phone addiction, presence & parenting in a digital world

47:38 – Changing the education system & raising emotionally intelligent kids

53:52 – Honest storytelling, holding space & creative leadership

58:46 – Being a working mum: guilt, balance & emotional weight

1:05:18 – Abi’s partner dynamic & redistributing roles at home

1:09:14 – The cost of burnout: body signals & seeking help

1:16:10 – Finding strength in slowing down & saying no

1:19:42 – Letting go of perfection & embracing emotional truth

1:24:00 – Navigating phone addiction and presence in parenting

1:29:32 – On grief, miscarriage and language that heals

1:35:20 – Changing the story: why emotional literacy matters

1:40:48 – Final thoughts on success, love, and the legacy we leave

🎧 LISTEN TO MORE DIFFERENT HATS EPISODES:

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

🔗 Connect with Abi Mellor

Website: https://www.morever.co.uk/

Instagram: @moreverfilms

LinkedIn: Abi Mellor

💡 If this episode resonated with you, please like, share, and comment below. Your support helps us spread this important message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

SPONSORED BY:

Search Seven – www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove – www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale – www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X – https://www.plusxinnovation.com/

🎬 PRODUCED BY: H2 Productions – https://h2productions.co.uk/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this powerful and deeply human conversation, Sam sits down with Ashley Usiskin, coach, speaker, and founder of The Gift of Help, to explore what true strength looks like in a world that often rewards silence and independence.

Ashley opens up about losing his mum at age five and how that loss hardwired him to become emotionally self-sufficient. But when a life-threatening cancer diagnosis forced him to accept support, he had to completely reframe what it meant to ask for help, and more importantly, receive it.

This episode is an invitation to rewrite outdated scripts around masculinity, vulnerability, and success. Ashley speaks openly about childhood grief, emotional suppression, the school system, and the profound impact of mentorship. Together, he and Sam reflect on the resilience of children, the need for emotional intelligence in education, and why helping others starts with giving them the chance to help you.

This isn’t just about healing. It’s about legacy. It’s about rewriting the rules so that future generations don’t have to unlearn them.

🎧 CHAPTERS & TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 | What Is Success?

00:39 | Childhood Trauma & Early Loss

01:16 | Cancer Diagnosis & The Gift of Help

04:33 | Redefining Success Through Connection

10:29 | Challenging Cultural Narratives

17:12 | Emotional Intelligence in Education

33:22 | Vulnerability and Masculinity

47:42 | Learning to Ask for Help

54:03 | Receiving Support with Gratitude

58:17 | Brotherhood and Shared Grief

1:05:03 | Facing Mortality: What Truly Matters

1:15:03 | Final Reflection: What Would You Tell Little You?

🎧 LISTEN TO MORE DIFFERENT HATS EPISODES:

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

🔗 Connect with Ashley Usiskin

Website: https://thegiftofhelp.org/

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

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

💡 If this episode resonated with you, please like, share, and comment below. Your support helps us spread this important message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

SPONSORED BY:

Search Seven www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X https://www.plusxinnovation.com/

PRODUCED BY:

H2 Productions: https://h2productions.co.uk/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Howie McConnell has lived many lives: club promoter, DJ, designer, car salesman, creative founder, and a man who faced the darkest moment of his life and found the courage to rebuild.

⚠️ Warning ⚠️ This episode contains content that may be alarming to some listeners. We do talk about suicide which we know can be distressing.

In this deeply honest and inspiring conversation, Howie opens up about his late ADHD diagnosis, his journey through a divorce, redundancy during COVID, and the moment he nearly took his life. But it's also a story of resilience, reinvention, and creativity. From running iconic Brighton clubs to founding 28th Street Media, Howie shares how creativity saved his life, how fatherhood fuels his purpose, and what it means to live authentically, with “peace in the chaos.”

Together we explore themes of masculinity, neurodiversity, emotional intelligence, and the power of being seen. This one’s not just for creatives or entrepreneurs, it’s for anyone navigating change, looking to heal, or wondering how to turn pain into purpose.

00:00 – From Darkness to Light: Howie’s rock bottom moment

03:04 – Defining Success: A triple-header view on peace, presence & parenthood

06:34 – Early Hustles, Millionaire Dreams & Fur-Covered Lighters

07:31 – School, Dyslexia & Creativity Suppressed

10:00 – What’s Broken in the Education System?

14:18 – Work Ethic, Essex Roots & Family Influence

16:20 – DJing, Honey Club & The Creative Scene

24:12 – The Origin of 28th Street Media

25:34 – Juggling Jobs, Redundancy & Survival

27:39 – COVID: The Worst and Best Time

31:24 – Health Wake-Up Call: From 20 Stone to Ultra-Marathons

33:05 – Midlife Awakening or ADHD Clarity?

39:46 – The Gift of Listening (Not Fixing)

43:52 – Late ADHD Diagnosis at 45

50:00 – Advice for Newly Diagnosed Adults

56:43 – Mental Health, Food Banks & The Knife Moment

58:48 – The Camera That Saved My Life

1:10:21 – Goal-Setting, Self-Motivation & Creative Grit

1:17:17 – Launching a Neurodivergent Clothing Line

1:21:15 – Being at Peace: Redefining Success through Contentment

Website: https://www.28thstreetmedia.co.uk

Instagram: @28thstreetmedia

LinkedIn: Howie McConnell

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

Your support helps us spread this important message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

Search Seven – www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove – www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale – www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X – https://www.plusxinnovation.com

H2 Productions – https://h2productions.co.uk

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In one of the most vulnerable, profound, and creatively powerful episodes of Different Hats to date, Sam sits down with illustrator, storyteller, and creative genius Asis Patel.

Asis opens up about his journey growing up without his biological father, the bold decision his mother made to leave an arranged marriage, and how that shaped his identity, masculinity, and artistic expression.

In a raw and heartfelt conversation, Asis shares the first time publicly about standing on the edge, literally and emotionally, contemplating suicide, and how that moment became a portal to transformation. We dive into themes of presence, purpose, emotional honesty, creativity, and how self-awareness, community, and storytelling saved his life.

This episode is a reminder that creativity isn’t just about art, it’s about survival, identity, and expression. Asis is living proof that our stories can be our salvation.

00:00 – The Spider-Man Within: A powerful definition of success

03:06 – Introducing Asis: Creative genius and storyteller

05:29 – Taking the Mask Off: Living in alignment with your truth

10:04 – Fulfilment through curiosity, creativity, and sensory living

13:28 – Childhood, creativity & searching for alternatives

17:36 – Asis opens up: Growing up without his biological father

25:17 – Shame, identity & the language we lack as children

28:46 – What Does It Mean to Be a Man?

30:04 – Dancing with the Feminine: Redefining masculinity

41:34 – The masculine and feminine in harmony

45:49 – Asis' stammer, bullying, and finding his voice

53:47 – From Stammering to Stand-up Comedy

1:03:40 – Finding peace with his biological father’s absence

1:17:34 – Creating a life beyond pain: Turning adversity into purpose

1:24:44 – Asis’ Mental Health Struggles: The moment everything changed

1:37:55 – Suicide did happen that day… but so did rebirth

1:47:32 – The Inner Child & Walt Disney dreams

1:48:52 – Final reflections & the gift of storytelling

🎧 LISTEN TO MORE DIFFERENT HATS EPISODES:

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

🔗 Connect with Asis Patel

Website: https://www.asispatel.com

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

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

💡 If this episode resonated with you, please like, share, and comment below. Your support helps us spread this important message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

SPONSORED BY:

Search Seven www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove  www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale  www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X https://www.plusxinnovation.com/

PRODUCED BY: H2 Productions: https://h2productions.co.uk/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

⚠️ Warning ⚠️ This episode contains content that may be alarming to some listeners. We do talk about suicide which we know can be distressing.

In this powerful episode, I sit down with transformational life coach and breathwork practitioner Sam Adams, whose remarkable journey from trauma to truth will leave you deeply moved and inspired.

Sam shares her raw, unfiltered story, growing up in a white, working-class area where being Black, gay, and female meant hiding her truth. From surviving childhood abuse, to the heartbreak of family rejection, a brain tumour diagnosis, and mental health struggles. Sam hit rock bottom and had planned to take her own life.

From a place of darkness, Sam turned to breathwork, discovering not just a tool for healing, but a lifeline. She now helps others shift from performance to presence, guiding them through deep emotional work that reconnects them with their truth.

This episode dives into the heart of what it means to redefine success, beyond status, wealth, or validation, and instead measure it through authenticity, emotional intelligence, and connection.

Whether you’ve felt lost, out of place, or like you’ve had to wear a mask just to survive, this conversation is for you.

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

Website: https://sam-adams.com

Instagram: @sam_adams_coach

LinkedIn: Sam Adams

💡 If this episode resonated with you, please like, share, and comment below. Your support helps us spread this important message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

Search Seven – www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove – www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale – www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X – https://www.plusxinnovation.com

🎧 H2 Productions – https://h2productions.co.uk

*If you have been affected by any of the content during this interview you can reach out to any of the below:

Samaritans - https://www.samaritans.org

My Black Dog - https://www.myblackdog.co/mental-health-charity

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

⚠️ Warning ⚠️ This episode contains content that may be alarming to some listeners. We do talk about suicide which we know can be distressing.

In this deeply moving episode of the Different Hats Podcast, I sit down with purpose-led mentor and scale-up strategist Simon Chuter for an unfiltered conversation about mental health, masculinity, and meaning.

Simon shares his journey through the extremes, what he describes as his personal Mariana Trench and Everest moments. From being diagnosed with bipolar disorder and surviving a suicide attempt, to mentoring startups and parenting with emotional presence, this is a conversation that doesn’t just inspire, it transforms.

This episode is a masterclass in emotional intelligence, the power of giving, and why redefining success is vital for our personal and collective wellbeing. Whether you're a founder, parent, educator, or simply a human navigating life's highs and lows, this one will stay with you.

🎧 Listen in for insights on:

• The danger of emotional suppression in boys
• Why autonomy, mastery & purpose matter more than money
• Healing fractured relationships
• Mentorship as a mental health lifeline
• How cricket, cuddles, and conversations keep us grounded

🎧 LISTEN TO MORE DIFFERENT HATS EPISODES:

👉 https://www.different-hats.co.uk/podcast

🔗 Connect with Simon Chuter

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

💡 If this episode resonated with you, please like, share, and comment below. Your support helps us spread this important message and change the narrative around success and mental health.

SPONSORED BY:

Search Seven www.searchseven.co.uk

Nostos Hove  www.nostos-hove.co.uk

Rivervale  www.rivervale.co.uk

Plus X https://www.plusxinnovation.com/

PRODUCED BY: H2 Productions: https://h2productions.co.uk/

*If you have been affected by any of the content during this interview you can reach out to any of the below:

Samaritans - https://www.samaritans.org

My Black Dog - https://www.myblackdog.co/mental-health-charity

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.