The Spike Podcast

This episode of The Spike is something special.

Not only does it represent the tenth episode of this insightful and powerful podcast, but it's one that's been inspired by you, the listeners.

Host Harry Portch's colleague Elle Jo has been nagging Harry to host an episode of the podcast and he's been resistant. 

He thought EJ is enough of a character to deal with in the office, without unleashing her on our loyal listeners. 

So, Elle Jo took to Linkedin with this post to get support for her idea. As you can see, there was overwhelming support.

And, as it's a Bank Holiday, Harry thought "why not"?

Click the player to hear a sneak preview of what you can expect on Monday.

How much time do you spend on social media?

Does it affect your mental health?

It certainly did in the case of this episode's guest, Alex Holmes.

The writer, emotional resilience teacher, journalist and podcaster had a bad experience on one particular platform, and decided to take some time out.

A while later, he resumed his posting, with a fresh outlook and perspective.

He now focused much of his content on one main platform, and enjoys a more positive social media experience.

During this conversation, you'll hear:

How Alex Holmes became such a mouthpiece for the positive promotion of men's mental health awareness.

How he lost out on an acting role to highly celebrated and popular actor Daniel Kaluuya, and how he's managed to 'spin' it to become a positive experience.

His philosophy on how social media should be used.

Why his book is such an important read.

Want to catch up on previous episodes of "The Spike"?

You can do so here.

Guests you might have missed:

TikTok and Instagram star "Temps".

IOTK podcaster and young entrepreneur Ted Lawlor.

BBC "The Apprentice" star and disruptive marketer Lewis Ellis.

Ecommerce whiz-kid Adam Power.

International DJ Ben Rainey.

Sports and business excellence coach Tony Walmsley

Crypto expert Elliott Rayne.

The next full episode you'll hear features Alex Holmes, who has too many fingers in too many pies to list here.

You'll just have to listen.

One thing we can tell you about Alex, is he's an incredibly bright and inspirational guy.

And if you aren't immediately drawn to follow him on Instagram after hearing what he has to say about mental health and social media, then we don't know what to tell you...

During the episode, you'll hear all about Alex's story, his insights, and his Spike.

This one is going to be quite special. 

Do you have pets? Are they stressed? Would you be able to tell?

Amman Ahmed came up with the idea for the ultimate stress buster for your furry friend. 

It's been dubbed, "Petflix" but it's way more than just a streaming service for pets.

And it's been getting great feedback, as well as quite a bit of press.

A popular and well known national TV show featured it in prime time.

In this cute episode of "The Spike", Amman Ahmed, founder of "Music for Pets" tells us all about "Relax My Dog" and its sister service "Relax My Cat".

However, as 'barking mad' as the concept might seem to you at first, the business model stems from a very smart mind.

Make no mistake, Amman is a successful entrepreneur, who takes his business very seriously.

And this episode contains some incredible knowledge bombs.

During this conversation, you'll hear:

How Amman got the idea for Music For Pets.

The one thing he feels every new entrepreneur needs to experience before deciding on taking the leap into becoming an entrepreneur.

Why he feels university might not be the best path to take for your dream career.

Want to catch up on previous episodes of "The Spike"?

You can do so here.

Guests you might have missed:

TikTok and Instagram star "Temps".

IOTK podcaster and young entrepreneur Ted Lawlor.

BBC "The Apprentice" star and disruptive marketer Lewis Ellis.

Ecommerce whiz-kid Adam Power.

International DJ Ben Rainey.

Sports and business excellence coach Tony Walmsley

Crypto expert Elliott Rayne.

The next full episode you'll hear features Amman Ahmed, a visionary entrepreneur who has revolutionised pet care.

During the episode, you'll hear all about his "Netflix for pets" creation.

Amman also offers a lot of high value advice for business owners from all walks of life! 

Cryptocurrency, crypto, Bitcoin, whatever you are calling it...

You probably have your own ideas about what it is and how it works.

This episode will hopefully break it down for you, and explain what crypto is and why you need to think about it for your investments.

Elliott Rayne from Planet Crypto Global joins Harry as this episode's guest on "The Spike".

Elliott's company offers various levels of service for his clients, either directing them in cryptocurrency investment, or handling their portfolio on their behalf.

What's clear from the episode's chat is just how knowledgeable Elliott is in on the subject of crypto and investment overall.

During this conversation, you'll hear:

A thorough and accessible explanation of what cryptocurrency is and the difference between crypto investment and 'normal' investment.

Why Bitcoin is not the be-all of crypto.

The situation with Elon Musk and his stance on crypto.

'Influencer' traders like Gary Vee and their negative impact on the space.

Want to catch up on previous episodes of "The Spike"?

You can do so here.

Guests you might have missed:

TikTok and Instagram star "Temps".

IOTK podcaster and young entrepreneur Ted Lawlor.

BBC "The Apprentice" star and disruptive marketer Lewis Ellis.

Ecommerce whiz-kid Adam Power.

International DJ Ben Rainey.

Sports and business excellence coach Tony Walmsley

The next full episode you'll hear features Elliott Rayne an expert on Cryptocurrency.  

During the episode, you'll hear the truth about Crypto and it's real value in the investment space.

Elliott dispels many of the myths surrounding Bitcoin and his thoughts on the many gurus like Gary Vee who talk about.

On the face of it, a career in sport, particularly football, is fairly clear-cut.

You play as a kid, you identify whether you're any good at it, and if you are, you chase it as a career through an established academy.

So how does being a football coach have anything in common with being a manager or leader in any kind of business?

You may be surprised.

"The Spike" host Harry stumbled across the work and reputation of Tony Walmsley back when he was a young football talent scout.

During this conversation, you'll hear:

The story of Tony's time with the Central Coast Mariners.

The drama surrounding Usain Bolt.

How Tony came to realise the gig of a lifetime at Manchester United.

Harry and Tony discuss the opportunities for young players to explore business opportunities outside of the sport, with particular reference to Jesse Lingard and Marcus Rashford.

How things could be done better in order to help players at academy level.

Want to catch up on previous episodes of "The Spike"?

You can do so here.

Guests you might have missed:

TikTok and Instagram star "Temps".

IOTK podcaster and young entrepreneur Ted Lawlor.

BBC "The Apprentice" star and disruptive marketer Lewis Ellis.

Ecommerce whiz-kid Adam Power.

International DJ Ben Rainey.

The next full episode you'll hear features Tony Walmsley, formerly a professional football coach who hails from Manchester. 

During the episode, hear about Tony's approach to leadership, and how he copes with managing high performers in business.

He also addresses the parallels between football teams and companies.

When you think of international DJs, you probably think of Instagram pages full of adoring girls, fast cars and fast times.

Ben Rainey could not be more opposite of that.

Ben is just a young guy who loves music, and wants to share it with the world.

From his high-energy dancing during his mixes to his insightful breaking down of dance tunes, Ben Rainey oozes likeability.

"The Spike" host Harry became aware of Ben through his friend Josh who is also an up and coming DJ.

During this conversation, you'll hear:

What drew Ben to his passion for spinning and creating records.

How Ben deals with mental health challenges, and his relationship with a national men's mental health charity.

The family festival that turned into chaos.

Why Ben feels it's important for young successful entrepreneurs to spend their money on smart things.

Ben's position on 'giving back'.

Want to catch up on previous episodes of "The Spike"?

You can do so here.

Guests you might have missed:

TikTok and Instagram star "Temps".

IOTK podcaster and young entrepreneur Ted Lawlor.

BBC "The Apprentice" star and disruptive marketer Lewis Ellis.

Ecommerce whiz-kid Adam Power.