Russ Murphy spent over a decade in senior exec roles across NSW government, building platforms and services used by millions - including the payments platform processing billions of dollars a year.
Then his role was carved up in the third restructure in three years, and a payments crisis put his team in the Sydney Morning Herald for weeks.
He turned down the role on offer and took the redundancy - a decision he'd been circling long before any of it hit the papers.
He says the moment he made the call, it felt like a gorilla climbed off his back.
This conversation is about what's on the other side of that decision - and why the capability leaders go looking for is usually already there, waiting to be released.
We cover:
- The gorilla-off-the-back moment: three restructures in three years, a payments crisis in the headlines, and why the decision to leave had nothing to do with either
- The stretch zone vs the terror zone - and reframing challenges as catalysts for growth instead of threats
- "Natural born coward": why calculated risk-taking is a learned skill, from packing up for Los Angeles in his twenties to walking away from a stable government career
- What people outside government don't get about how decisions are made - popularity contests, election cycles, and why all that bureaucracy exists
- Territorial "little kingdoms" in big organisations, and why changing what people care about beats changing what they do
- Coaching leaders through change vs running a transformation program - working down through behaviour and emotions to the beliefs underneath
- Why leaders should treat recovery like professional athletes do, and the "anti-retreat" Russ runs to reset burnt-out leaders
About Russ Murphy
Russ Murphy spent over a decade in senior executive roles in NSW government, including at Service NSW, where he ran digital platforms used by millions of Australians.
His approach to leadership was shaped by two years living in Los Angeles, training with Gallup and learning from thought leaders like Patrick Lencioni and Marcus Buckingham.
He now runs Lightning and Thunder, an executive coaching practice built on one idea: lightning doesn't create energy, it releases what was already charged.
Alongside 1:1 coaching he hosts the Executive Reset, an immersive "anti-retreat" in the Northern Rivers for leaders who want to reset how they operate rather than escape it.
He's proof that you don't have to be fearless to bet on yourself - taking calculated risks is a skill you can learn.
Connect with Russ:
👉 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/russell-murphy-3912046/
👉 Website: lightningandthunder.com.au
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👉 Website: amits.com.au
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