Send us Fan Mail

A life can look ordinary from the outside, right up until you hear the moments that quietly changed everything. I’m joined by Sue Garrett, a retired nurse, mother, grandmother, baker, music lover, and devoted wife, for a Legacy Life Reflections conversation that moves between laughter and real, lived tenderness. We start where Sue feels most clear headed: her garden near Leeds Castle, a personal “clearing” filled with books, soundtracks, and the kind of busyness that soothes rather than drains.

Sue traces how sailing arrived as an unexpected rescue after a painful divorce, sparked by driving her son to a YMCA club and being asked to update their medical certification. From there we widen into the people and patterns that shape a life: strict, loving parents; a powerful bond with her brother; and the long aftershocks of betrayal when the past remains close by at family events. Along the way, we pick up vivid details that make Sue’s story feel tangible: the “gaggle” of grandchildren, international babysitting, the joy of planning celebration cakes, and even a tightly run local gin club.

At the heart of our chat is rare dementia caregiving. Sue speaks with unvarnished honesty about Andy’s frontotemporal dementia, what it means to love someone when so much changes, and how she keeps showing up with music, coffee, chocolate, and presence. We end with the values Sue wants to leave behind and her determination to support rare dementia research so other families do not have to walk the same path in the dark. If Sue’s story resonates, please subscribe, share with someone who needs it, and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts.

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening! 

Send us Fan Mail

In this special Legacy Life Reflections episode, Chris Grimes welcomes John Morrison — with his family gathered in the room to bear witness. From the terrace of Henbury Golf Club, his "clearing" of 38 years, John traces a full and generous life: a strict, loving mother who called her children "the jewels in her crown of life"; a working life that ran from PE teacher to trusted financial adviser across 42 years; and the firm he built and has since passed to his sons, Dave and Andrew.

He pays a moving tribute to his brother Bobby, who lived with Down's syndrome and, in John's words, was "a totally fulfilled human being." He celebrates a lifetime of music — from Elton John and George Michael to a deep love of Lindisfarne — and reflects, with real emotion, on a family that sticks together in the face of loss. Warm, funny and deeply human.

In this episode:

- 38 years at Henbury Golf Club, captaincy in 2015, and life as a category-one golfer
- His mother, the matriarch who steered him into teaching — and "the jewels in her crown of life"
- A 42-year working life: seven and a half years as a PE teacher, then 35 in financial advice
- Teaching in Watford, a few doors from a young George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley
- An honorary degree, decades on, from the University of Gloucestershire (the old St Paul's College)
- A heartfelt tribute to his brother Bobby
- A life in music: Elton John, George Michael, 10cc and Lindisfarne
- Love and loss in the family, and the daughters-in-law who "make their own luck"
- The sales lesson that became a life motto: "Until you ask the question, the answer is always no"
- How he'd most like to be remembered — the poem "Afterglow"

Chapters:

00:00 – Welcome to The Good Listening To Show
00:55 – A special Legacy Life Reflections, with John's family in the room
01:25 – 38 years at Henbury Golf Club, and a category-one golfer
03:01 – Meet the family: Carol, Dave, Andrew and grandson Rory
11:55 – Shaper one: his mother, "the jewels in her crown of life"
17:00 – From PE teacher to financial adviser — a 42-year working life
17:44 – St Paul's College, and an honorary degree decades later
24:00 – Learning golf aged 12 on the Isle of Cumbrae
26:40 – Teaching in Watford, near a young George Michael
28:26 – Childhood sweethearts: 46 years married to Carol
31:37 – The move back to Bristol and a leap into financial advice
36:40 – Inspiration one: his brother Bobby
41:42 – Inspiration two: a life in music
50:35 – Inspiration three: family, and love in the face of loss
55:00 – The squirrels: the sea, and sport of every kind
58:35 – The unusual fact: saving a life on a banana boat in Crete
63:30 – Alchemy & Gold: at his happiest in Spain
65:40 – The cake: his mother's Victoria sponge
66:10 – The cherry: John Lydgate, and asking for what you want
69:55 – Heydays, and passing the baton to Chris Hughes
71:20 – How he'd like to be remembered: "Afterglow"

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening! 

Send us Fan Mail

When Andy Gotts was 18, a stranger in Norfolk asked him why he didn't look happy. That single question and the Photography Teacher it quietly led him to, set in motion a 36 year path from a college darkroom in King's Lynn to Hollywood's most idiosyncratic black-and-white portraits.

In this Stories of Distinction & Genius episode, Chris Grimes welcomes Andy "One Shot" Gotts into The Clearing to trace the whole arc: From the 300 letters with not a single reply, the 1 yes from Joss Ackland at his son's wedding in Clovelly, and the line "what do you do and who shagged who?!" that finally gave the wish list its theme. 

Andy talks about the 150 Actors he set out to photograph in 1995, the long, patient pursuit of Gary Oldman that ended this year through Big Mo and a young actress sliding into his DMs, and how Paul Newman himself christened him "One Shot Gotts" after a 4 minute shoot in Connecticut.

The conversation moves through the people who shaped him: His milkman father leaving for work at 3:00 every morning, his devoted mother, Dr Tony Leach who taught him Photography on Saturdays in Holt, Stephen Fry whose 90 second portrait at a college Q&A genuinely started his career, and Sir John Hurt, born on the very same day as Andy's dad. Andy shares the afternoon in East Runton when John told him over a pint of red wine that he had cancer and months to live, and asked Andy back the following weekend to direct him. What followed - John in his late father's priest's robes, speaking 'Imagine' as a parable in a single take - became John Hurt's last ever recording.

There are also the secret Monty Python reunion shoots at Duke's at 3:00 in the morning; LS Lowry, Hitchcock and Sidney Poitier's story about Tony Curtis and The Defiant Ones; Bob Ross's happy little clouds taking over lockdown; three years spent funding a degree as a Norfolk Nightclub Bouncer; an unwavering refusal to retouch a single line on a face; and the epitaph Ringo Starr gave him, "the Ansel Adams of faces."

A warm, story-rich hour and a half about tenacity, taste, and what it really means to "stay on the bus!"

🌐 andygotts.com
🌐 thegoodlisteningtoshow.com

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening! 

Send us Fan Mail

Only a tiny proportion of Professional Speakers are able to land the best stages again-and-again-and-again - and it is not always the celebrities. I’m joined by Maria Franzoni, Speakers' Advocate, Speaker Coach and former Speaker Bureau Owner, to dig into what actually drives paid Speaking engagements, repeat bookings, and higher Keynote Speaker fees. If you’ve ever wondered why brilliant talks still struggle to sell, Maria brings the Agent’s-eye view that cuts through noise and gives you practical clarity. 

We start with the story behind the strategist: growing up British Italian, learning to navigate culture and language, and inheriting a serious work ethic from parents who built stability through sheer persistence. That personal foundation matters, because the stage is never only about slides and scripts. We also talk openly about gender assumptions, what it means to choose a childfree life, and how those experiences shape confidence, boundaries, and message. 

Then we get into the heart of it: Maria’s "Bookability Formula" and what the top 1% of bookable Speakers do. We break down the four pillars the market rewards most: being relevant to a paying market, being known for one clear thing, being memorable to audiences and bookers, and being easy to find and easy to work with. We also explore the multiplier of value (ROI, outcomes, change) and the role of ego, which can help you step on stage but can also undermine trust if it grows too big. 

If you want a sharper speaker positioning, a more commercial topic, and a clearer route to getting booked more often, this conversation gives you a grounded framework to act on. Subscribe, share this with a speaker friend, and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts.

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening! 

Send us Fan Mail

He helped raise £225 million, worked punishing weeks, and then walked away from it all. Jon Kaye joins me in The Clearing to unpack the moment he stopped chasing the obvious definition of success and started rebuilding a life around creativity, community, and better questions.

We talk through Jon’s founder story in private equity: the risk of resigning with a pregnant wife, a new house, and no salary, and the life-changing power of one credible person saying “yes”. From there, the conversation turns to burnout, the decision not to launch “fund two”, and the radical reset of taking three young children out of school to travel the world for a year. If you’re thinking about career change, work life balance, or designing a second act, John’s honesty lands hard.

From his basement music studio packed with modular synthesisers and miles of cables, Jon explains why friction matters and why making things harder can lead to more original work, especially in a world flooded with AI content. We dig into his Unmastered newsletter ethos of thinking clearly, living deliberately, and creating without chasing, plus the community-first mission behind DO Radio, a live station you can’t pause or download by design.

If this conversation sparks something in you, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs a reset, and leave a review. What would you stop chasing first if you could redesign your life this week?

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening! 

Send us Fan Mail

You can hear a whole philosophy of change hidden inside one simple move: Put the bike where you can see it. That is the kind of practical, human behaviour design we get into with Mike Coulter, a lifelong Creative who’s worked across advertising, helped shape projects at the DO Lectures, and now teaches tools for building 'Tiny Habits' that actually stick.

We start with the stories that made Mike: Growing up in Yorkshire, learning his dad’s rule for a good job, cutting his teeth at a local newspaper, then spotting the world of advertising and chasing it hard. Along the way we talk about the craft behind great creative work, why the best ideas often arrive away from the desk, and how places like Cornwall’s Camel Trail and the Atlantic can become thinking environments that support focus, calm, and better decisions.

Then we go deep on BJ Fogg, Stanford, the Tiny Habits Method, and what changed for Mike when he stopped trying to “motivate himself” and started making behaviours easier to do. We explore behaviour matching, prompts, ability, and the ethics of influence, plus why so many products win by serving people who already want the outcome. If you care about habit formation, productivity, mental health, marketing psychology, or simply building a healthier routine without burnout, you’ll leave with clear takeaways you can test immediately.

Find more of Mike’s work at https://www.habitualise.com, and if you enjoy the conversation, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find the show. What’s the tiniest habit you’re willing to start today?

Tune in next week for more stories from the clearing, and don't forget to subscribe and review wherever you get your podcast.

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening! 

Send us Fan Mail

A Dorset walk to a walled garden. Light dancing on water. A motto whispered at crossroads: onwards and upwards. Linda Jacob invites us into a life built on fairness, quiet courage, and the everyday craft of choosing our response when events feel out of hand. We talk about here roots in Buckinghamshire, a grandmother named Florence who taught kindness without gossip, and the determined climb from leaving school early to earning skills through night classes and long bus rides. One formative moment—watching a senior leader belittle a colleague—sparked a promise to lead with dignity, a pledge she kept across decades in social work, supported housing, pubs, and company directorships.

The centre of gravity is service. Linda shares intimate, hard-won stories from homelessness support, including a young father who, after months of learning and resolve, won custody and a new home for his child. These are victories measured in confidence regained, routines restored, and doors opened. Her inspiration comes from ordinary people facing extraordinary pressure and from the disciplined habit of finding a usable positive in the negative. We explore how she practises emotional agency—separating content from reaction—and why “Just for today” remains a practical anchor for focus and wellbeing.

There’s tenderness, too: Halcyon days in the long spring of 1975 when her first child Brennan was born; music that holds memory—Simon and Garfunkel’s Bookends, the ache of Going Home; and a signature coffee cake taught by Nanny Taylor that became a small community legend. We linger at twilight, that moment when day blends into night, and consider legacy without fanfare: protect dignity, pass on what works, laugh when you can, make one good thing well and share it. Linda also speaks candidly about facing serious illness and her plan to turn hardship into guidance for fellow social workers, transforming pain into a map others can use.

Come for the stories; stay for the tools. If you value humane leadership, homelessness advocacy, emotional resilience, and the restorative pull of nature, you’ll find a generous guide here. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs steadiness today, and leave a review with your own motto for moving forwards—what keeps you going onwards and upwards?

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening! 

Send us Fan Mail

Your Team can tell when you’re not really there and horses can tell even faster! Leadership Strategist, Speaker, Author & Equine-guided Coach Julia Felton, joins me to unpack “Business HorsePower”: the practical Leadership lessons that we can borrow from nature and horse-herd-dynamics to build trust, presence, and stronger Teams in the 21st century. We talk candidly about burnout that hides behind adrenaline, the identity wobble that shows up when the job title disappears, and why reinvention is no longer a one-off event but a constant Leadership capability.

Julia shares how time in the African bush sharpened her ability to be present and how that same discipline translates into psychological safety at work. When leaders are distracted, inconsistent, or living in the future, teams feel unsafe and performance suffers. We explore the ripple effect leaders leave behind them, the difference between doing and being, and why sustainable pace matters more than perpetual drive.

We also dig into technology and AI: the gift of lifelong learning, the curse of FOMO, and the growing trust problem when it’s hard to know what’s real. Julia introduces her diamond model of leadership for navigating uncertainty, built around attention, direction, energy, and congruence with belonging at the centre, and explains why equine-guided experiences create embodied learning that sticks long after the workshop ends.

If you enjoy leadership development, team performance, reinvention, and human-centred communication, you’ll take away clear ideas you can apply immediately. Subscribe for more stories from The Clearing, share this with a leader who needs a reset, and leave a review telling us what builds trust fastest in your workplace.

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening! 

Send us Fan Mail

If you don't yet have a frame of reference for Design Response Queen Lori Haller, then here she comes! "The reason I named my company Designing Response is that's how I show up: I'm not here to just create a beautiful design and jooje the copy. I'm here hardcore to hop-on-top of whatever project it is and make sure I get a RESPONSE: Click a button, say "Yes!" and get out your wallet": BOOM! 

Pretty design is easy. Design that makes someone stop, FEEL something, and take ACTION is a different craft entirely and that’s where Lori Haller lives. From just outside Washington, DC, Lori joins me in The Clearing to unpack what she calls “designing response”: showing up with copy, visuals and strategy that align so tightly the next step becomes obvious. We get into what congruence really looks like in direct mail, sales pages and campaigns, and why being the brave voice in the room can be the difference between a nice-looking piece and a profitable one.

Lori also opens up about how she finds creative flow and why nature is not a luxury but part of the job when you are paid to think. We talk about her serious happy place at the ocean, using music to match the heartbeat of a project, and the joy she gets from coaching writers and designers into stronger collaboration. If you have ever watched a team argue in circles, you will love her practical take on how to work together, speak up, and still keep it human.

We also go head-on into AI in marketing and design. Lori sees AI as a force multiplier when it frees talented people from endless “doing” and gives them back the time to dig deeper and find the explosive ideas. You’ll hear how she helps companies improve systems, adopt new tools and drive real profitability, plus the personal values underneath it all: making ripples that help someone else live better.

If you enjoy the conversation, subscribe, share the show with a friend who cares about direct response marketing and creative leadership, and leave a review so more listeners can find us. What part of Lori’s approach are you going to try first?

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening! 

Send us Fan Mail

What does it take to turn a derelict pub, a borrowed hotel room, and a spontaneous spa acquisition into a thriving Suffolk brand? Meet the Pilleys! Daniel, James, and Rebecca—for a fast-moving 'Founder Story' about gutsy bets, patient craft, and the kind of trust you can only build at home and at work.

From Salon 9’s leap from 2 hotel rooms to a 9 chair high street salon, to the complete rebirth of The Suffolk Hotel’s bar into the Tiger Fusion Restaurant, to taking the reins of the Gainsborough Health Club and Spa, every chapter is rooted in one idea: Design the feeling first, and the rest will follow.

Daniel shares how leaving a safe job before Rebecca was born set the tone for decades of entrepreneurship, why marketing is oxygen, and how “anything is possible” became the family’s operating system. James opens up about swapping a desk for the kitchen, the art of getting a concept to hum, and a Marco Pierre White–inspired focus on atmosphere over perfection. Rebecca reveals the spark behind Salon 9’s growth, how she builds a team culture that’s warm and a bit wild, and why happiness is her filter for every decision. Along the way we talk teams at scale, managing shiny-object energy, building lanes for momentum, and a win that brings Joe Wicks’ Body Coach app to premium spa members.

Expect practical tactics and real stories: deadline sprints that stick the landing, the value of a coach who compresses time, and the discipline to keep hospitality, wellness, and beauty aligned. If you’re building a family business—or want your company to feel more like one—you’ll find a blueprint here for culture, brand experience, and growth that still feels human.

Enjoyed the conversation? Subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with a friend who’s building something bold. Which lesson will you try first?

Tune in next week for more stories of 'Distinction & Genius' from The Good Listening To Show 'Clearing'.  If you would like to be my Guest too then you can find out HOW via the different 'series strands' at 'The Good Listening To Show' website.

• Show Website: https://www.thegoodlisteningtoshow.com
• You can email  me about the Show: [email protected]
• Twitter thatchrisgrimes
• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-grimes-actor-broadcaster-facilitator-coach/
• FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/842056403204860

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW wherever you get your Podcasts :)

Thanks for listening!