People Soup

By Ross McIntoshBusiness Science Social Sciences Health & Fitness Mental Health Management

People Soup episodes

June 17Powering Workplace Proactivity with Dr Joanne Gray
What happens when success no longer feels quite right?
In this episode of People Soup, Ross speaks with organisational psychologist, consultant and author Dr Joanne Gray.
Joe shares the story of a major career transition that took her from a senior corporate leadership role into the world of business psychology and consulting. Along the way, she reflects on the warning signs she experienced, the role of values in shaping career decisions, and the moment she realised something had to change.
The conversation then explores Joe's work on workplace proactivity – what it really means, why organisations often struggle to create the conditions for it, and how leaders can unintentionally shut it down.
You'll also hear a simple and practical framework that can help us think about taking action when something matters.
In this episode
Joanne's journey from corporate leadership to organisational psychology
Recognising the signs of exhaustion and burnout
What happens when workplace culture no longer aligns with your values
Why proactivity is more than simply being helpful
The difference between reactive and proactive work
Why proactivity can sometimes become another workplace demand
The Can Do, Reason To, Energised To framework
Leadership, psychological safety and fairness
Joanne's walk-on music choice

A question to reflect on
When you're considering a change, taking initiative or speaking up, ask yourself:
Can I do it?
Do I have a reason to do it?
Do I have the energy to do it?

Walk-on Music
Everybody's Free (To Feel Good) – Rozalla
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Find Joe on Instagram
The Progress Lab | We’re on a mission to make workplaces work better, helping people & organisations unleash their potential.
Connect with Joe on LinkedIn
Joe's Book - Powering Workplace Proactivity

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
28 min
June 15Quick Spoon: Pressure reveals what's running us
Pressure has a way of revealing patterns we'd rather not see.
Defensiveness.
Control.
Avoidance.
Reactivity.

But these experiences aren't signs that we've failed.
They're opportunities to notice what's driving our behaviour.
In this Quick Spoon, Ross explores one of the central ideas behind psychological flexibility: once we notice what's running us, we create the possibility of choosing differently.
And that's where leadership begins.
Key Quote
"Pressure doesn't reveal who we are. Pressure reveals what's running us."
Reflection Questions
The next time you feel pressure building:
What is driving me right now?
And what matters here?
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Why good leaders go off track - A People Soup special #1 - People Soup
Leadership beyond autopilot - The McIntosh ACT Leadership Framework

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
1 min
June 12Quick Spoon: Let your light shine
Starting a new role, joining a new team or entering a different culture can be unsettling.
The expectations feel different.
The responses you receive aren't what you expected.
And sometimes, without realising it, you start holding back.
In this Quick Spoon, Ross explores a common misunderstanding about adaptability. It's not about becoming smaller or suppressing what matters to you. It's about finding a way to express what matters in a way that fits the context.
Reflection Questions
Where are you currently holding back more than you'd like?
What's one small way you could contribute more visibly this week?
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Why good leaders go off track - A People Soup special #1 - People Soup
Leadership beyond autopilot - The McIntosh ACT Leadership Framework

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
1 min
June 10Quick Spoon: Avoidance rarely feels like avoidance
Avoidance Rarely Feels Like Avoidance
Most workplace avoidance isn't dramatic.
It's the difficult conversation that gets pushed into next week.
And then the week after.
In this Quick Spoon, Ross explores one of the most common patterns he sees in leadership and the workplace: avoiding discomfort while convincing ourselves we're waiting for the right moment, more information or greater certainty.
The challenge?
Discomfort often grows when left unattended.
Reflection Question
What's one conversation you've been postponing?
And what's the smallest possible step you could take today?
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Why good leaders go off track - A People Soup special #1 - People Soup
Leadership beyond autopilot - The McIntosh ACT Leadership Framework

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
2 min
June 08Quick Spoon: When we avoid disappointing others
Success doesn't always feel like success.
In this Quick Spoon, Ross reflects on a coaching conversation with someone who appeared to have everything going for them: successful, respected and on track for a remarkable career.
Yet something wasn't right.
As they explored what mattered most, a powerful pattern emerged. Many of their decisions weren't moving them towards what they valued. Instead, they were helping them avoid disappointing other people.
It's a trap that many of us fall into, especially when we're caring, conscientious and ambitious.
Reflection Question
Think about a decision you're currently wrestling with.
Are you moving towards something important, or away from someone else's disappointment?
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Why good leaders go off track - A People Soup special #1 - People Soup
Leadership beyond autopilot - The McIntosh ACT Leadership Framework

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
2 min
June 05Quick Spoon: Awareness often begins with a metaphorical itch
You can't lead beyond what you notice and awareness often begins with a metaphorical itch.
A feeling that something isn't quite right. Something isn't fitting. Something needs attention.
In this Quick Spoon, Ross reflects on a question that changed what he started paying attention to and explores why awareness can be uncomfortable, but essential for growth and leadership.
Reflection Question - What have you been noticing recently that you've been tempted to brush aside?
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Leadership beyond autopilot - The McIntosh ACT Leadership Framework

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
2 min
June 03Quick Spoon: The leadership skill that's going out of fashion
We're encouraged to be quick, responsive and always on.
But what happens when urgency becomes identity, reaction becomes leadership and speed becomes a virtue?
In this Quick Spoon, Ross reflects on why he believes the pause is becoming an unfashionable leadership skill—and why that might be a problem.
Discover why the pause sits at the heart of Ross's leadership framework and a simple practice to help create more choice in moments that matter.
Reflection Question
Pause for 5 seconds and as yourself - what's needed here?
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Leadership beyond autopilot - The McIntosh ACT Leadership Framework

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
2 min
June 01Why good leaders go off track - A People Soup special #1
Why do good people do things they later regret?
It's a question that's fascinated me for years.
Before I became a coach, studied organisational psychology, or discovered Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), I spent years in HR leadership. One of my roles was leading the Conduct and Discipline Team in a large government department in the UK Civil Service. In that job I became increasingly curious about what really drives human behaviour.
In this special solo episode, I share my working hypothesis about leadership:
Under pressure, leaders often default to behaviours designed to reduce discomfort rather than create impact.
I explore six common patterns of psychologically inflexible leadership and introduce my leadership framework, built around three core skills topped and tailed by the Pause and the Review Loop:
Pause
Awareness
Authentic Action
Adaptability
and the Review Loop.

Along the way, I share stories from my own leadership journey, including:
What I learned from conduct and discipline cases
A memorable disagreement with a tech startup founder about the value of pausing
The conversation with my husband that changed what I paid attention to
Lessons from coaching senior leaders through moments of challenge and transition
Why authenticity became such an important part of my leadership philosophy

This episode is both a reflection on leadership and an invitation to consider what might be running you when pressure shows up.
In this episode
Why leaders are not exempt from being human
Six common ways leaders can drift off course
Why the pause is a leadership superpower
The importance of awareness and noticing what matters
Values, authenticity and courageous action
Adapting without abandoning yourself
Why reflection turns experience into wisdom
What ACT has taught me about leadership and human behaviour

Key quote
"Pressure doesn't reveal who we are. Pressure reveals what's running us."
Reflection question
When pressure rises, what patterns show up most often for you?
Resources
You can find an illustration of my ACT-based Leadership Framework in the show notes.
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Leadership beyond autopilot - The McIntosh ACT Leadership Framework

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
14 min
May 29Quick Spoon: Leadership starts feeling difficult
In this Quick Spoon, Ross explores the fourth skill in the McIntosh Leadership Framework: Adaptability.
Inspired by a candid reflection from Gabriella Braun, this episode explores what happens when leadership becomes uncertain, messy, political, and deeply human.
So many leadership books promise certainty, control, and easy answers.
But real leadership often starts feeling difficult at exactly the moment complexity arrives.
Ross reflects on what leaders can do when pressure rises, certainty disappears, and their usual ways of coping stop working.
And he shares one practical question that can help turn pressure into purposeful action.
In this Quick Spoon
🥄 Why leadership becomes harder under uncertainty
🥄 What happens when leaders grip tighter under pressure
🥄 The hidden link between rigidity and reduced impact
🥄 A practical reflection question to try this week
Key reflection
“Who do I want to be in this moment?”
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Leadership beyond autopilot - The McIntosh ACT Leadership Framework

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
2 min
May 27Quick Spoon: What's love got to do with it?
In this Quick Spoon, Ross explores the third skill in the McIntosh Leadership Framework: Authentic Action.
Inspired by a powerful insight from Gabriella Braun, this episode looks at the tension leaders face between acting from fear… or acting from what matters most.
Gabriella describes how every workplace contains both constructive and destructive forces — and how leadership often involves helping people move towards the constructive side.
Ross reflects on what this can mean in practice during difficult conversations, moments of tension, and everyday leadership decisions.
Because authentic leadership isn’t about avoiding discomfort.
It’s about acting with clarity, courage, and humanity.
In this Quick Spoon
🥄 Why leadership is more than decision-making
🥄 The difference between acting from fear and acting from values
🥄 Why love and courage belong in leadership conversations
🥄 A practical reflection to try before your next difficult conversation
Key reflection
“What would love and courage look like here?”
People Soup: Real conversations about work, leadership, and being human — grounded in behavioural science, with practical ideas you can actually use.
If this episode resonated with you, please consider following People Soup, leaving a rating or review, or sharing it with someone who might find it useful.
Every recommendation helps more people discover practical, evidence-based conversations about work, leadership and being human.
Leadership beyond autopilot - The McIntosh ACT Leadership Framework

Here's the People Soup Website.
And you can subscribe to the People Soup YouTube Channel here.
Visit Ross' Website.
Connect with Ross on LinkedIn
People Soup on Instagram which also features plenty of Ross' photos of the Andalusian life.
2 min