Roll With The Punches

This one wasn’t planned… I woke up ready to record with Stephen Jenkinson… only to realise I’d stuffed the days. So instead of wasting a perfectly fired-up brain, I jumped on the mic and went for a wander through something that’s been quietly running the show in the background… the rules we make for ourselves.

The sneaky ones. The unconscious ones. The ones that sound like logic but feel like pressure.

I unpacked my own weird little rules around money, time, productivity, networking, and even fun… and how quickly I default back to outcome-chasing, even when I know that’s not where the magic lives.

There’s a bit in here about the podcast, the pandemic, accidentally building something incredible by not trying to force it… and why some of the best things in my life have come from following energy, not strategy.

It’s messy. It’s honest. It might poke you a bit.

But if you’ve ever felt like you’re doing all the “right” things and still feel a bit off… this might be worth a listen.

 

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: testartfamilylawyers.com.au

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an episode with Don Gillies I recorded for the Conversations With Code 9 Podcast which I, of course, love to share with you legends on this show too. 

We kicked off chatting about his time in Victoria Police initially followed by 37 years as a paramedic… and the reality of what that kind of life actually does to you. Not just mentally, but physically too.

PTSD, yeah… but also years of chronic pain that he just pushed through like most first responders do. Shoulder gone. Neck issues. Constant pain sitting at a low hum every single day… until one day it wasn’t a hum anymore, it was a full system crash on the side of the road. A moment that changed everything.

Don talks about the impact of chronic pain and it's relationship with mental health... He's just had FIVE surgeries in a short window. Neck fusion. Knee replacement. Eyes done. Thumb rebuilt. Basically, a full body overhaul… a process that was done with his psychiatric team in his corner every step of the way. 

And surprise, surprise… when the body started to feel better, so did everything else. A pretty powerful reminder that we can’t separate our physical health from our mental health… no matter how much we try.

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: testartfamilylawyers.com.au

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kate spent 24 years as a NSW police officer, right in the thick of trauma, chaos, and humanity at its messiest. And instead of hardening into someone cold or shut down… she made a conscious decision to stay kind. 

We got into trauma, coping, why so many people in high stress roles lose themselves, and what actually helped her not just survive it, but come out the other side still intact. Kate talks about creativity literally switches off anxiety in the brain… and what avenues she uses to practice it. 

We also explored the not-so-comfortable stuff. The people we struggle to forgive. The tension between gratitude and resentment. The reality that sometimes you don’t get closure… you just choose who you’re going to be anyway.

This one’s about doing the work. Owning your reactions. And choosing kindness, even when it would be way easier not to.

Oh, and 'Hey Siri... thanks for the intro' (that'll make sense when you tune in!)

 

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: testartfamilylawyers.com.au

KATE BAKER

Website: thekindrebellion.com/

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I met Ali at the Global Speakers Summit this year… within about five minutes I knew we were going to get along like a house on fire (mainly because he called me ‘jacked’… instant favourite human).

But then he started sharing what life was actually like growing up as a refugee… and I knew straight away this was a conversation I wanted to bring to the show.

We got into identity, belonging, loneliness, purpose… and why knowing where you’re going might be the only thing that stops you getting swallowed by everything around you.

This one's about moving forward when there’s no map, no certainty, and no permission.

Enjoy. I did.

 

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: testartfamilylawyers.com.au

ALI AHMADI

Website: aliahmadi.com.au/

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Steven Bouris grew up 'different'. He grew up with a visible birthmark covering a large part of his face and head. And get this… no one really talked about it. Not strangers, not family, not even him. For over 40 years.

So, what happens when the thing everyone can see becomes the thing no one speaks about? You get a bloke walking around in full defensive mode… overthinking every interaction, managing everyone else’s comfort, while quietly carrying a lifetime of unspoken stuff.

Today we banter about what it took for Steven to shift all that... The confronting conversations, the identity rebuild, the moment you realise you’ve been living from a 4-year-old’s fear in a 40-year-old body.

At the end of the day, like much of the stuff in our lives that sneaks up and gets us, it's about much more than a birthmark...

It’s about what we don’t say... What we assume... And what we carry.

 

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: testartfamilylawyers.com.au

STEVEN BOURIS

Website: stevenbouris.com.au/

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Well, as an athlete (especially a boxer) this one sure hits a bit close to home… and I don’t just mean physically.

I sat down with Professor Alan Pearce and we got right into the stuff most athletes don’t really want to look at too closely. Concussion, CTE, brain health, and what actually happens when you spend years copping hits… whether you realise it or not.

We talked about the difference between getting knocked out and the thousands of smaller hits that quietly stack up over time. The stuff no one tracks, no one remembers, and honestly… sometimes no one wants to know.

There were moments where I found myself thinking, 'Yeah… I’ve definitely ignored that.' And I reckon a lot of athletes will feel the same. This isn't a doom and gloom chat though... It's real, insightful, honest and with one of Australia's leading CTE & concussion experts, it sits at the leading edge of what we know and where we are headed with brain research.

Join us for a chat about risk, responsibility, and the tension between loving a sport and facing what it might cost you.

If you’ve ever played contact sport… or you love someone who has… this is one of those conversations that might make you pause for a second.

 

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: testartfamilylawyers.com.au

PROFESSOR ALAN PEARCE

Website: https://neuropearce.com

Website: brainbank.org.au

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I might start calling him 'No-Bullsh*t LeBusque'... Mark's back for a chat and we went straight into the messy middle of self-awareness. Where you realise you’re actually part of the problem. You know, the moment where you sit there reading your own behaviour back at yourself and go… “well, sh*t.”

We got into why most of us only become self-aware when something breaks… why we’re wired to justify our behaviour… and why curiosity might just be the most underrated skill in the game.

Mark also shared some of his latest insights about burnout, doing the hard internal audit on where he was placing his worth, and the brutal honesty it takes to actually change something instead of just talking about it. No shortcuts and quick fixes. Just small, uncomfortable shifts over time.

There were moments that landed. Moments that made me laugh. And moments where I got called out in real time… which, turns out, is exactly the point, aye!

 

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: testartfamilylawyers.com.au

MARK LEBUSQUE

Website: Human Manager Experience

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I went in thinking we’d have a cheeky yarn about policy (yep, a very un-Tiff-like topic, I know)… and instead got my brain flipped inside out.

Salli (The Policy Pig... and what a cracking title that is) dragged policy out of the dusty, boring corner we all shove it in… and made it personal. Like, everything you do, everything you experience, every system you bump into… that’s policy at play.

We got into kids on the street, homelessness, violence, government decisions, and the uncomfortable truth that most of us are living inside systems we don’t understand… but are absolutely shaped by.

There were moments that made me laugh, moments that made me go quiet, and moments that genuinely pissed me off and drop a few f-bombs!

And underneath it all was this simple but confronting idea… if we actually gave a sh*t, if we actually paid attention… things might look very different.

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: www.testartfamilylawyers.com.au 

SALLI COHEN

Website: thepolicyroom.com/

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sometimes within seconds of 'meeting' someone on the show I realise I'm going to have an absolute ball for the next hour or so... Mick Marshall sure was one of those humans!

This bloke fell 120 metres inside a wind turbine, had his legs absolutely wrecked, got rescued by mates who’d barely trained for it… and that was just the warm-up act. What followed was years of pain, identity loss, medication overload, and some properly dark moments.

In this chat we got stuck into trauma, labels, addiction, hope, comparison, and the messy business of figuring out who the hell you are when everything you knew gets ripped away. There’s something beautifully simple about his message too… no fluff, no rah-rah… just do the work, know yourself, and stop waiting for permission to live your life.

Also… if anyone ever tells you that you can’t do something… Mick’s probably the bloke you want in your ear!

Ripper dude, ripper episode... Enjoy!

 

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: www.testartfamilylawyers.com.au 

MICK MARSHALL

Website: mickmarshall.com.au/

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ohmigoodness, this one got me. I sat down with the absolute legend that is Leah Ashton, founder of Hand in Hand Ballarat, and what started as a chat about her incredible foundation (and a laugh about my inevitable wardrobe malfunctions and high-heel dramas at the recent gala ball we met at) turned into one of the most raw and brave conversations I sure didn't expect to be having today...

Leah runs under the Sebastian Foundation banner, funding programs in local schools, giving kids from kinder through to year 12 the tools, the language, and the awareness to navigate the hard stuff before crisis hits. But then... amidst all this she shared something that stopped me in my tracks. Her own son... A 1am phone call... A car accident that was not an accident.... And the moment she realised she knew nothing about mental health at all. 

This episode is everything. It is brave, it is honest, it is heartbreaking in parts and full of hope in others, and it landed with me at the timeliest of moments (as I share in the conversation). Leah is doing the most important work and she is doing it with her whole heart.

Go listen and then go give Hand in Hand Ballarat a follow because these guys are a pack of legends!

 

SPONSORED BY TESTART FAMILY LAWYERS

Website: www.testartfamilylawyers.com.au 

LEAH ASHTON

Website: handinhandballarat.com.au/

TIFFANEE COOK

Linktree:  linktr.ee/rollwiththepunches

Website: tiffcook.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.