Self Centred with Roann

“Here I am about to die and I’ve done nothing. Nothing that’s been really joyful, nothing which has been really kind, nothing which has been full of love, nothing which has actually made any difference at all. Other than that I know a lot of facts and I’ve looked at a lot of spreadsheets, and I haven’t really fully come alive, and I’m about to die. I really don’t want it to end before I get a chance to get on with what I’m actually meant to do.”

This week, I talk to Buddhist nun Emma Slade, someone whose epiphany moment is perhaps one of the most incredible of all.

Taken hostage at gunpoint during a business trip in Jakarta, Emma - then working in finance for HSBC -  was faced with staring down the last three seconds of her life, and considering what that life had been. And, in that moment, she found her life wanting.

On returning to London, both changed by the experience and inspired by the overwhelming compassion she felt for her attacker, she left finance and took up yoga and travel, eventually finding her way to Bhutan and Buddhism. She has since written a book on her transformative life, presented a Ted talk and runs a charity in Bhutan as well as supporting people through coaching and workshops.

“The capacity to be a kind person is always there,” she says. “Even if you can’t see it.”

In this fascinating interview, we talk about how compassion and kindness can be profound drivers for change, and how we need our epiphany moments to help us get to the truth of our lives.

Emma also talks about purpose being a path, and how in our lives everything that we do has a place - a sort of ‘gathering of talents’ which we bring to our mission when we eventually find it.

For Emma, a mission is about identifying that one place where you know that you can make a difference, something she says is possible for everyone to find.

What drives a man to walk into a war zone again and again? What keeps a man going after surviving death not once, not twice but five times?Purpose.

He and his partner Marie Colvin went to some of the most dangerous war zones to tell the stories that others couldn't or wouldn't, often focusing on the human stories - the suffering of the women and children, the kind of stories that regularly are glossed over in regular news.

Self-Centred Podcast is presented by Roann Ghosh and Epiphany Social Innovation.

"I don’t have to be a YouTube entrepreneur.  I just need to lean into the fact that this is a problem that needs to be fixed, we will do our best to try and contribute to fixing it."

Alison Darcy is the founder of Woebot, an app that offers cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).

She says: 'We're on a mission to make mental health radically accessible' which is important as more than half of the world’s population still doesn’t have access to basic health care, let alone mental health care.

She saw the problem first hand through her clinical work at Stamford, but instead of being content just to research and run trials she embarked on finding a practical solution that was available and accessible to all.

She wasn’t scared to follow her passion. Whatever it took, that’s where she went.

If you are struggling to find your purpose, this conversation is for you. For Alison, purpose meant giving herself the permission to go for it, to ‘get in the ring’ as she puts it.

And she explains what it means to be in that place: the good and the bad of following your passion in a very open and honest way.

Whatever is driving you, whatever stepping off the conveyor belt means to you - you can give yourself permission to be that authentic version of yourself and work from that place.

Woebot: https://woebot.io/

[Interviews and lectures referenced during this podcast:

Marc Andreessen on his investment philosophy and what he looks for when investing Stanford lecture: https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/marc-andreessen-take-ego-out-ideas

The First Principles Method Explained by Elon Musk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NV3sBlRgzTI&feature=youtu.be

“The best way to complain is to make something.” James Murphy, lead singer of LCD Soundsystem during Shut Up And Play The Hits Documentary, 2012: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8FAA17DAB61EC754

“A lot of cheap seats in the arena are filled with people who never venture onto the floor.” (Brené Brown, Rising Strong: The Reckoning, The Rumble, The Revolution)

“By 2020, depression will be the second leading cause of world disability” (‘Dare to care: Stop exclusion’, WHO, 2001): https://www.who.int/world-health-day/previous/2001/files/whd2001_dare_to_care_en.pdf]

Self-Centred Podcast is presented by Roann Ghosh and Epiphany Social Innovation.

“There is that calling that comes to us at some point - is this it? Some of us go with it and others get stuck. It’s never too late to act on it”.

This conversation is with Andy Ramage, the founder of the wellness platforms One Year No Beer and Seneca Performance.

Andy is a retired footballer,  a successful oil trader and now an author and entrepreneur helping people to live fuller, energised and more authentic lives.

A lot of things can get in the way of us following our passions. A lot of them are self inflicted. Alcohol dependency is a common hindrance for many, and something that Andy found was holding him back during his days in the corporate world.

He was able to transform his life by quitting alcohol using a method first described in his book ‘The 28 Day Alcohol-Free Challenge” and then made available to all through the One Year No Beer platform.

By giving up the dependencies he was able to find the authentic version of himself and career autonomy. He also found that he was able to sleep better, boost Energy and beat anxiety through this practical approach.

He is now someone who loves journalling, is a voracious reader and podcasts listener, plant-based and rises at 4am every morning to do daily walks in the forest near where he lives.

He has gone from daily grind to reshaping his entire life: in this conversation he outlines his blueprint for you to do the same, including some practical things you can do right now and a reminder that it’s never too late - we are all just warming up!

[Books referenced during this podcast:

Andy Ramage: Let’s Do This: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lets-Do-This-motivational-psychology/dp/1783253282

Will MacAskill: Effective Altruism: https://www.effectivealtruism.org/people/will-macaskill/

Daniel Kahneman: Thinking Fast Thinking Slow: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thinking-Fast-Slow-Daniel-Kahneman/dp/0141033576

The Transtheoretical or Stages of Change Model

Johann Hari: The Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression - And the Unexpected Solutions: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lost-Connections-Uncovering-Depression-Unexpected/dp/163286830X

AltMBA and Seth Godin: https://altmba.com/

On the Shortness of Life by ancient Roman philosopher Seneca: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/97412.On_the_Shortness_of_Life

Henry David Thoreau: Walden: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walden

Cal Newport: Deep Work: https://www.calnewport.com/books/deep-work/]

Self-Centred Podcast is presented by Roann Ghosh and Epiphany Social Innovation.

Why Passion And Purpose Matter

Let me give you permission. The permission to question. The permission to turn off your autopilot and examine exactly who you are, what you do and most importantly, why you do it.

Identifying and aligning your version of success, with the way you think, live and work means acting from an authentic place of purpose.

By sharing my own experiences and speaking to others that have been brave enough to follow their passions, I hope to be able to give you the skills, tactics and permission you need to follow your passions.

Self-Centred Podcast is presented by Roann Ghosh and Epiphany Social Innovation.

Roann is challenging us all to live by our true passion and purpose. Here's why...