What happens when the version of success you’ve spent decades chasing suddenly disappears, and you’re forced to rethink who you are, what matters and how you live?

In this episode of Mad Influence, Helen Saul is joined by Roderick Jefferson, a former corporate executive, speaker and author whose life and career were fundamentally reshaped after surviving a near-fatal stroke.

Before his stroke, Roderick had built what many would recognise as a conventional success story: senior leadership roles, constant travel and the external markers of achievement that come with high-pressure corporate life. But the experience forced an abrupt pause - and a reckoning. His recovery became the starting point for a deeper re-evaluation of identity, ambition and the personal cost of success.

As Roderick puts it: “I did corporate life way too much and way too well - to the point where it almost killed me.”

This conversation explores what happens when achievement is stripped back to its foundations. Helen and Roderick discuss identity after trauma, the addictive pull of status and validation, and the moment when work begins to crowd out family, health and joy. They talk about redefining success, the importance of slowing down before your body forces you to, and why influence is often found not in titles or reach, but in presence, kindness and everyday human connection.

Music written by Joseph McDade

Follow Roderick Jefferson:

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/roderickjefferson/

Website: www.roderickjefferson.com

Instagram:www.instagram.com/roderick_j_associates/

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@roderickjeffersonassociates

Follow Helen Saul:

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/helensaul/

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YouTube: www.youtube.com/@madinfluencepod

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