50 The Unlock Moment Box of Keys #2: Getting Good At Stopping Things

Hi, it’s Gary here. Welcome to a very special episode of The Unlock Moment. This is something we’ve been planning for a long time, and at the same time it’s something we didn’t plan at all. Something quite remarkable that gets right to the heart of The Unlock Moment.

Back in October 2022 I was joined by Maika Leibbrandt in Episode 42 of The Unlock Moment. She’s one of the world’s very best and highest profile strengths coaches, having spent many years at the Gallup Organisation developing and leading much of their work on talents and strengths. When we spoke she’d just left her role to set up as an independent coach and we talked about her journey of Finding Freedom.

That episode with Maika has been the most downloaded of all time here on The Unlock Moment. I invited her back to explore what she knows now that she didn’t know then. I thought we would be talking about personal growth and business growth. And then we found something much more powerful. A new perspective on the true essence of The Unlock Moment.

And that wasn’t easy to find. As you’ll hear, we recorded this episode and we thought we were done. And then Maika reached out to say “I just unlocked my Unlock Moment, we need to record again.”

Sometimes you just need to allow a conversation to go where it needs to go and run for as long as it needs to run. Trust in the journey. Trust in the process.

Welcome. Join Maika and myself on this very special exploration of The Unlock Moment.

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Maika Leibbrandt: https://hellomaika.com

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com

A coach, a mentor and an expert in strategic insight, Febronia Ruocco’s career has taken her around the world. A career history that includes such world-leading brands as McDonalds, Heineken, GSK and Twinings Tea, she’s an expert in knowing what’s going on in the market and how to find out if you don’t know.

So in our quest to navigate uncertainty in our own lives and careers, I can’t wait to hear how she’s translating that curious mindset into a new strand in executive coaching.

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Febronia Ruocco on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/febroniaruocco/

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com

Back in 2019/2020 when I started on this journey of coaching, speaking, podcasting and writing, I had the great privilege of training on the Henley Business School coaching programme here in the UK. My guest today is an esteemed Professor at Henley and I was fascinated by her recent choice to trade places and become a student on the same programme that I’d trained. We’ll talk about that! But her personal journey is also frankly pretty inspiring – how she beat the odds to ascend the academic ladder and become a business school professor.  

Professor Rebecca Jones PhD is a Professor in Coaching and Behavioural Change at Henley Business School, a Chartered Psychologist and Co-Founder of the Inclusive Leadership Company. Her research interests lie in examining the factors that influence coaching effectiveness and her consultancy practice focuses on working with organisations to create diverse and inclusive workplaces using coaching and psychological theory and research to achieve sustained behaviour change. Rebecca is the author of the book ‘Coaching with Research in Mind’, host of ‘Coaching@Henley’ and ‘The Coaching Academic’ podcasts and has published her research in globally renowned journals.

I’m looking forward to hearing more of her personal journey and also to get her take on how we can turn intent into action and establish effective new habits in work and in life that help us to be at our very best.

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Prof Rebecca Jones: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-jones-35ab8526/

Coaching at Henley Business School: https://www.henley.ac.uk/coaching-at-henley

The Inclusive Leadership Company: https://inclusiveleadershipcompany.com/

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com

Today’s guest is one of the very top coaches in the world. Michael Bungay Stanier grew up in Australia, was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford and now lives in Toronto. His work centres around coaching and curiosity, the challenges of change at an individual and organisational level, and how to stay focused on work that matters.

In 2023 Michael was awarded the prestigious Thinkers50 Marshall Goldsmith Award for Coaching and Mentoring at a gala dinner considered the Oscars of management thinking. His 2016 book ‘The Coaching Habit, Say Less, Ask More’ has sold more than a million copies and has been translated into 20 languages – the bestselling book on coaching this century. His TEDx talk, “Tame Your Advice Monster”, has been viewed well over a million times. He’s also written books including The Advice Trap, How to Begin and Do More Great Work. His most recent book is entitled How to Work with (Almost) Anyone: Five Questions for Building The Best Possible Relationships.

It's been a tough year in 2023 and a lot of people I’m working with at the moment are figuring out how they can work on building stronger relationships at work and in life. For all that AI might be taking over, one thing I’m sure of is that person and professional success in 2024 is going to be built on people and conversations. I’m looking forward to hearing Michael’s take on the power of a curious mindset and of course I’m looking forward to indulging my own curiosity in discovering more about the Unlock Moments of remarkable clarity that shaped his own life’s path.

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Michael Bungay Stanier: https://www.mbs.works/

How To Work With Almost Anyone: https://www.mbs.works/how-to-work-with-almost-anyone-book/

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com

Last year it was my great pleasure to speak at Carfest, a huge summer festival here in the UK where the health and wellbeing zone Spafest brought together many leading lights in the areas of holistic wellbeing, mindfulness and the general pursuit of happiness.

And twas there that I met the force of nature that is Donna Easton. Donna is a Joyologist, a performer, a presenter and the creator of Joyology. A highly sought after speaker, Donna’s work can be found on TV, radio and she has written for national press including Hello! magazine, Stylist and The Express newspaper. Donna helps individuals, entrepreneurs and businesses re-frame mindsets and shift how we show up each day to re-connect with the real 'us'. Donna has hosted stages and delivered talks at events across the UK, including Car Fest, Camp Bestival, Mind Body Spirit Festival, Latitude and MOVE IT and has delivered keynotes for organisations such as Google, MARS and Holland & Barrett. She helps people re-connect with themselves, find their joy and maximise success in their lives and career.

Donna's challenging personal journey puts her life's mission in context. Childhood bullying, an eating disorder and overnight hair loss gave her a deep appreciation of what really matters in life. And this is manifest throughout her life and work as a parent and as a coach.

After a pretty challenging 2023, I think we all need a bit more joy in our lives and I’m looking forward to hearing Donna’s take on how to reconnect with our best selves through the power of Joyology. And of course I’m curious to learn about the Unlock Moments of remarkable clarity that shaped her own life’s journey.

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Donna Easton: https://mylifeshines.com/

Donna Easton on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mylifeshines/

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com

My regular listeners will know that The Unlock Moment is a podcast about leadership, but more importantly a podcast about purpose. By diving into the moments of remarkable clarity when we suddenly figured out the path ahead, we unlock new connections and understanding of those deepest drivers of our fundamental purpose. It’s been fascinating to travel with my guests as they explore those new connections live in the conversation – it’s powerful stuff.

So given our focus on purpose, today’s guest is someone I’ve been keen to get on the podcast for a long time.

Davin Salvagno is an inspirational speaker and recognised as one of the top voices on purpose in the world. He is the Founder of PurposePoint and The Purpose Summit, and the Bestselling Author of “Finding Purpose at Work.” He’s an esteemed member of the Marshall Goldsmith 100 Coaches and his work spans coaching, leadership and organisational development.

Through The Purpose Summit, Davin curates the wisdom and experience of some of the most forward-thinking leaders and coaches on finding purpose in work and in life. I’m looking forward to hearing his take on how to unlock purpose in yourself and in those around you. And of course I’m curious to learn about the Unlock Moments of remarkable clarity that shaped his own life’s journey.

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Davin Salvagno: https://www.davinsalvagno.com/

The Purpose Summit: https://www.thepurposesummit.com/

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com

Hello dear listener and welcome to another episode of ‘The Unlock Moment’ podcast. And what a special episode. It’s our first returner, and a chance to welcome back my very first guest on the podcast, the hugely talented and all-round master of merriment Samuel Haughton. I can’t tell you how many people from all walks of life have reached out to tell me that they were touched by his story and inspired by the powerful choice he made. His was the Unlock Moment that defined the term for me, so I’m very much in his debt.

We’d been working together in coaching for a while and we’re going back to March 2022 when Sam recorded an episode I called “Choosing Happiness”. In the two years since we recorded that Episode 1 and heard about Sam’s fundamental Unlock Moment of remarkable clarity, he’s been on a quite extraordinary journey.

Let’s hear more about the Unlock Moment that sparked this all and catch up with the what happened next. Sam Haughton, it is my huge pleasure to welcome you back to The Unlock Moment.

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Samuel Haughton: https://www.samuelhaughton.com/

Samuel Haughton on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samuel.haughton.42/

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com

This is a difficult story, but a powerful one. It’s a story of having it all, losing it all and finding the strength to build again, from the very beginning. It’s a story of struggle, of grit, of commitment in pursuit of freedom and empowerment for a mother and her three children.

When she walked out on her husband with three children in tow, she left behind the private jet, the Bentleys and Ferraris and the gilded lifestyle of a property tycoon. Her bank account was empty and she was left to sleep on a friend's floor and live off 14 pounds a day, with four mouths to feed. What happened next tells you everything about the kind of person she is.

Today Geeta Sidhu-Robb is a coach, an author, a speaker and a podcaster. She’s the kind of coach who counts A-list celebrities and royalty amongst her select clients. But what really makes her who she is today? Well that’s all tied up with the extraordinary journey she’s been on.

I am deeply grateful that she is coming on the podcast to share her story, what she’s learned from her Unlock Moments of remarkable clarity, and how her journey has shaped the person we see and know today.

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Geeta Sidhu-Robb: https://www.geetasidhu-robb.com/

Activate Yourself podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/61y3qdeZCwi5vgMAeFEWvx

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com

One of the books that fundamentally changed my outlook early in my coaching journey was Challenging Coaching, by John Blakey and Ian Day – one of the UK’s best-selling leadership books. It explores a way to bring powerful challenge into the coaching conversation in a way that resonates strongly with senior leaders and helps them to accelerate their growth. Not all coaches agree that it’s right for the coach to be too challenging, but in my own work it's been a real game-changer. Today I’m delighted to have one of the authors, Dr John Blakey, here on The Unlock Moment.

John has been an executive coach to over 130 CEOs from 22 different countries – board-level leaders in organisations such as Capgemini, Kellogg's, British Airways, the NHS, and the BBC. For ten years, he was a board advisor on leadership development and executive coaching to global corporates. He has also worked extensively in elite sports, developing coaches in a variety of sports, from handling the media and managing the politics to leading team selection and developing inspirational communication skills. Today he works with a small number of ambitious and pioneering CEOs, particularly in the BCorp movement.

John is also the author of The Trusted Executive: Nine Leadership Habits That Inspire Results, Relationships and Reputation. His new book ‘Force for Good: How to Thrive as a Purpose-Driven Leader’ is coming out in summer 2024.

I’m looking forward to hearing John’s take on how leaders can perform at their best, build trust, challenge themselves and deliver exceptional results. And of course I’m curious to learn about the Unlock Moments of remarkable clarity that shaped his own life’s journey.

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Dr John Blakey, CEO Coach: https://johnblakey.co.uk/

'Force For Good' on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Force-Good-Thrive-Purpose-Driven-Leader/dp/1398615218

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com

Genuinely one of the most remarkable people I have ever had on the podcast, Inga Stasiulionyte is an Olympian and an elite performance and leadership coach, whose passion and prowess for throwing the javelin took her to the Beijing Olympics back in 2008 representing Lithuania. I was very kindly introduced to Inga by fellow Olympian Joe Jacobi who you can hear back in episode 112 of this podcast.

A lifetime in sport and over 14 years of working with executives in demanding industries has given Inga profound insights into resolving intricate leadership challenges using the mindset of a competitive athlete. She’s worked as a business analyst, built startups, and led the first MIT Sports Entrepreneurship Bootcamp – she brings a deep understanding of the challenges and needs of striving for self-realisation on and off the field. She’s also a co-founder of the Elevating Leadership Institute.

But it was facing into cancer that she faced her biggest challenge - learning to love her body again. In this intimate and disarmingly honest conversation, I was struck by her profound sense of clarity and freedom. And I want you to hear that in her and learn from it. I think Inga is quite remarkable and I’m so grateful to her for coming on and telling her story with such openness and vulnerability.

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Inga Stasiulionyte: https://www.instagram.com/javelingaworld/

OFounders: https://ofounders.com/

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 100 countries. Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com