Leading 4 Life "Stories"

My guest this week is Professor Richard Sullivan, the Professor of Cancer and Global Health at King's College London (KCL) & Guy's Comprehensive Cancer Centre.  Richard has been a doctor since the early 1990s during which time he has increasingly focused on cancer as a specialism such that he is now globally renowned, and it was a real privilege to speak to him at length for this episode.

As well as his own leadership journey, we discuss in some detail the health system in the UK, as well as cancer diagnosis and treatment more generally.  Richard's depth and breadth of knowledge of his subject made this a fascinating conversation from which there is much for all of us to learn. 

In addition to his very busy role within the UK National Health Service, Richard is extremely active internationally, having also founded the Centre for Conflict and Health Research at KCL, which focuses on improving health outcomes across the world, especially in low and middle income countries.  That work has taken him to the majority of the conflict areas on the globe and we spend a fair amount of time discussing not only what Richard does on these trips, but also the broader experience he gains from visiting parts of the world that most of us only see on our TV screens or in our newspapers.

I have been blessed with many great guests on this show but this conversation was one that I certainly won't forget.  It was absolutely fascinating as well as extremely enjoyable, and I very much hope you find it as informative as I did.

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What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

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If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

LinkedIn:
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Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

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In this instalment of my personal stories, I continue to recount my time in command of Royal Air Force Coningsby and, this time, I focus on flying the Typhoon.  

This was an incredibly special time in my career as being charged with bringing a completely new RAF capability into service was an enormous privilege.  

It was also quite daunting as, having spent all my previous flying tours in the nuclear strike, ground attack or reconnaissance roles, switching to air defence, and getting into a brand new aeroplane type for what was inevitably going to me my final flying tour, offered a completely new set of challenges.

The Typhoon is an amazing aircraft and, even at the very start of its life in the RAF, it showcased incredible capability and brought a huge smile to the faces of every pilot that flew it - most definitely including me!  I hope that some of my joy and enthusiasm comes across as you listen to this episode!

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What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”

If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

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

Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

X:
https://x.com/JudsonBob

Given that this episode will be first published on Remembrance Sunday 2024, my guest this week could not be more appropriate.   Vice Admiral Paul Bennett had a stellar Royal Navy career, with multiple warship commands, culminating in a 3* role in NATO's Allied Command Transformation HQ in the USA.

As the title makes clear, Paul is now the National President of the Royal British Legion and, in that capacity, he has a key role in the annual remembrance commemorations both in the Royal Albert Hall and at the Cenotaph in Whitehall.  

Given Paul's tremendous leadership experience, there is much to discuss on the leadership front and he offers a plethora of thoughts and advice based on his own journey.  

We also talk at some length about NATO given the geopolitical challenges facing the world and the alliance in particular.  Unsurprisingly, we also focus in on the Royal British Legion and remembrance in general.

This was another great conversation and I really hope you find it both interesting and valuable.
 

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What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”

If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

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

Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

X:
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My guest this week is John Cordle, a former US Naval Captain who still works closely with the US Navy as a Human Factors Engineer and is based in the eastern United States.

I met John through episode 43 of the podcast when I interviewed Keith Green and we discussed his book, "Black Officer, White Navy".  As you will hear in the episode, John became friendly with Keith following the Black Lives Matter protests in the US, and we had a great discussion about "colour blindness" particularly amongst white people who have never had to experience the challenges often faced by other races.

Another big topic of our conversation is the importance of sleep and the impact that results from not having enough of it.  John is an absolute expert in this area and I am absolutely sure that his comments will make you think about your own habits and behaviour when it comes to ensuring you get enough sleep.

All told, this was a great discussion and I learned a lot from it so I hope you do too!  

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What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”

If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

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

Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

X:
https://x.com/JudsonBob

My guest this week is Hardeep Dhanjal, a professional international speaker and mindset coach based in Copenhagen, Denmark.

I first met Hardeep when he was engaged as the motivational speaker to kick off a workshop session that I was subsequently facilitating for Deloitte Denmark.  I was hugely impressed by his inspirational story and I'm delighted that he accepted my invitation to come on the podcast. 

I'm equally delighted that my initial reaction to bring him on as a guest was fully justified, as this is a really terrific interview that I very much hope you find it as useful, inspiring and enjoyable as I did when we were making the recording. 

Hardeep gives a deeply personal account of his own journey from a challenging childhood to the highly successful married father of two that he is today.  It is a powerful narrative and there are absolutely tons of great leadership thoughts that come through and which I am sure you will find both interesting and helpful.

Lastly, if you are looking for a great motivational speaker, Hardeep should definitely be on your short list - he's outstanding!

You can find Hardeep here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hardeepdhanjal/
Website: https://hardeepdhanjal.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HardeepsCorner
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hardeepdhanjal_speaker
X: https://x.com/hardeepscorner
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/HardeepsCorner
Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/hardeepscorner 

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What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”

If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

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

Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

X:
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One of the greatest privileges of my RAF career was being able to fly as a fighter pilot on the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF) for the 2005/2006 display seasons whilst I was in command of RAF Coningsby.

This was a truly unique opportunity and one that I will always cherish because it was simply so special to be able to fly these wonderfully iconic aircraft, and get a bit more appreciation for what the WW2 generation of pilots went through as they operated them in the most extreme conditions possible.

In this episode I seek to give you the listener something of a feel for the way the BBMF is structured and organized but, more importantly, I aim to give you a bit of an insight into what it was actually like to fly these fabulous machines.  I hope I succeed on both counts but I suspect I will need to make the time for another episode that really drills into the detail at some point!!  Let me know if that's what you would like to happen!

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What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”

If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

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

Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

X:
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My guest this week is Steve Fletcher, the Founder and CEO of The Leaders' Club (www.theleadersclub.org).

I first met Steve almost exactly 10 years ago when I was transitioning out of the Royal Air Force and another colleague suggested I join The Leaders' Club.  I joined immediately and, since then, Steve and I have become good friends and, more recently, colleagues since I am now a Director and the Deputy CEO of the Club myself.

As Steve explains in the interview, he founded The Leaders' Club back in 2008 on the back of some very personally challenging times for him professionally as the "credit crunch" hit his business extremely hard.  Over the years he has had a fascinating career journey mostly in the world of IT training, and he was also a Justice of Peace on the Wirral Bench for 33 years. 

We had a great conversation and Steve speaks very frankly about what he always describes as "the banana skins of life", which he has encountered plenty of along the way.

The Leaders' Club is essentially a members only networking group that meets most weeks (via Zoom with the occasional face-to-face event) for presentations from a very wide range of fascinating external speakers.  If you are interested in what the Club offers, please visit www.theleadersclub.org to find out more, and to join if you wish to become a member.  Although I am obviously biased, I find it a fascinating organisation and for a very modest fee you will get great value from the amazing presentations we are lucky enough to receive.

You can find Steve here:

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

I really hope you enjoy this episode and, if you do, please consider supporting the show via the link below.  You can also leave a review on your podcast provider's platform and / or send me some direct feedback.  I would be very grateful for your help with this as it all helps to enable the show to continue as it is.

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What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”

If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

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

Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

X:
https://x.com/JudsonBob

Continuing the story of my time in command of Royal Air Force Coningsby, this episode focuses on aspects of the buildup of the Typhoon Force.  

In the 20 years since I was privileged to command this great base, it is amazing to see how much the Typhoon has progressed not only as an individual military aircraft, but also as an immensely capable force within the overall RAF structure.  

I am immensely proud of the work that my team did in those early days to make great strides in capability development that certainly set the path up well for the future.  

I really hope you enjoy this episode.  If you do, please let me have your feedback, and subscribe to get the earliest notification of future episodes.

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What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”

If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

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

Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

X:
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In this second part of the story of my time in command of Royal Air Force Coningsby, I focus on some of the specific leadership dynamics and organizational structures of the base.

The episode builds on Episode 59 and sets up a series of further episodes that will cover, inter alia: the build of of the RAF's Typhoon Force; flying the Typhoon; flying the Jaguar; flying the Spitfires and Hurricanes of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight; UK Quick Reaction Alert; and a few other specific aspects such as my most memorable moments from the tour.

There are plenty of top tips in here for those on their way up the leadership ladder and I very much you enjoy the episode.  If you do, please leave me a review on your preferred podcast platform, subscribe for future episodes and, if you have time, please send me some direct feedback - I always really appreciate it.

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Support the show

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”

If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

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

Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

X:
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My guest this week is Simon Reid, the Head Teacher of Christ's Hospital, a 900 bed independent boarding school, near Horsham in West Sussex, UK.

Previously the Head Teacher at another famous independent school, Gordonstoun in Scotland, Simon has been at Christ's Hospital for the past 8 years and will step down at the end of the Sumer Term in 2025.  Having spent all his adult life in education, this was a fascinating conversation as we discuss Simon's personal leadership journey and a wide range of broader issues surrounding the importance and changing nature of education more generally.  

The episode is a particularly significant one for me since I went to Christ's Hospital myself and, without any doubt, what I gained from my education there has shaped my entire life!  It is a very special place that provides more than 3 times the level of bursary support than its next nearest competitor and genuinely does change the lives of those lucky enough to go there.

I really hope you enjoy the discussion.  Please let me have your feedback and don't forget to subscribe and review the podcast on your chosen platform - it really helps!

In this episode we cover the following topics (starting time in brackets):

• Simon's career journey (00.02.34)
• Early motivations (00.06.56)
• Christ's Hospital School (00.09.57)
• The contrast and similarity with Gordonstoun School (00.18.44)
• Changes to leadership style (00.26.05)
• Educating the young people of today - how has it changed? (00.31.08)
• The value of non-executive governors / directors (00.36.51)
• Role models & influencers (00.41.51)
• Advice to a school age Simon! (00.47.26)
• Career highs and lows (00.50.03)
• Most important achievement (00.54.24)
• Work : life balance! (00.56.23)
• The future of education (00.58.03)
• The prospects for South Africa (01.05.03)
• Most difficult question! (01.07.26)

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What stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.

If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.

SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”

If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:
https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ 

Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.

CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSON

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

Website:
https://leading4life.co.uk/

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4Life

X:
https://x.com/JudsonBob