Derek Sivers is a man with his own mind. To describe him as a musician, circus clown, entrepreneur, programmer, author, speaker, philosopher, and Dad might whet your appetite but it would only be a part of the story. Whatever Derek does, he rarely does it on auto-pilot. He has a knack for questioning things, for doing something different. Don't try and put Derek in a box. This conversation is about beliefs, comfort zones, different places, different people, experiences, auto-pilot, curiosity, ruts, and the difference between being AC/DC or Bowie. It's a conversation about beliefs and the difference between what's true and what's useful and how we can all benefit from letting go of what we believe to be our truths.

This is a conversation with Steve Chapman. Steve worked for Glaxo Smith Kline for 20 years and then he became an artist. Steve talks here about working in a factory, social loafing, our addiction to expertise, embodying 'not knowing', the beginner's mind, silent podcasts, rumblings of discontent, helpful bosses, feelings being real, gut instinct, quantum flirting, safe uncertainty, child-like enthusiasm, comedy, money, learning to live below his means and more. Steve is an adventurer. He experiments, He wins and loses and does his best to practice letting go, noticing more and using everything. Enjoy 'Steve Chapman (@stevexoh) - exploring the counter-intuitive'

This episode is a sneak peek into a book that Neil has recently co-authored, and is due to be published later this year. The book is called Better Business On Purpose, and is a guide for leaders in building businesses that make money, create impact and are a force for good in the world. You can sign-up to updates about the book, and get notified when it's available here: https://www.bbopbook.com

Hello and welcome to our conversation with Pieter Levels. Peter is the man behind NomadList.com, /remoteOK.com, InflationChart.com, rebase.co and more. Pieter is hard to describe if you’re after a old-world description. He’s most certainly a business guy and a software developer guy but he works remotely, sometimes he charges for his creations, sometimes he doesn’t. He practices radical honesty with himself and others. He’s unafraid to experiment, to play and learned as a student that doing something different can have unexpected and very rewarding consequences. In this conversation, we discuss the importance, in an increasingly digital world, of getting out there and doing things in real life. Pieter himself, seems to be on a quest to find the joy in life but fully understands that what brings joy today may not be what brings joy tomorrow. It’s all an adventure.

Steph has learned to question the narratives in her life. She is unafraid to live life differently but she's not a risk-taker. Steph explores different ways of living life but she does it carefully, cautiously. She does it in small steps but importantly for Steph, she’s constantly checking that a missed step won’t result in her falling too far. If the life done differently that Steph seeks is on another metaphorical island. Steph does a heap of research before she sets off and then she rows, then she checks the boat is in perfect working order, then she rows, then she checks the boat, then she rows and so on. Steph isn’t interested in getting somewhere quickly, she’s just interested in getting there.

In this episode we talk to Rosie Sherry. Rosie is a self-declared introvert and community builder extraordinaire. She is best known for the Ministry of Testing, Indie Hackers, Rosie.land and RecklessMother.com Rosie and Graham have 5 kids aged 17 to 3 - none of whom go to school. It’s not that Rosie is looking to rebel. It's just that a conventional path would not allow her to live life, her way. Rosie’s approach to work and life is one of experimentation. She does what she wants to do and then she finds a way to make it work financially. She started her newsletter Rosie.land and got frustrated with her ability to build a writing habit, so she turned it into a paid newsletter which left her no choice but to write on a regular basis. Making yourself accountable to someone or an audience is a good way of encouraging change. She is so aware. The choices she and her family make are not necessarily the ones you or I would make but every decision she makes seems to be done with care, and because she is unafraid of the path less travelled, there are plenty of options. Enjoy Rosie Sherry - Reckless Mother

Mills founded ustwo with Sinx, his mate from school. Ustwo has become a digital product studio, a games company and an investment business. They have always worked with the biggest brands in the world and are the team behind the hugely successful Monument Valley. This is Mills' story, an episode of two halves. The first half being the story of 'ustwo' and the transition from chaos to order, and the second half is the story of Mills who lead the wonderfully creative chaos and as a consequence found himself in the need of new purpose. Mills is a modern-day emotional adventurer, exploring himself with the same verve he used to grow his company. If you like people who are open and honest. If you like people who are brave. You'll like Mills.

Emile is a 37-year-old knife-maker and bladesmith but it’s taken him a while to feel comfortable with those descriptions. Previously his world was software, apps, websites and originally studio engineering. Originally from the UK, he now lives in Chamonix in the French Alps. Emile has spent most of his working life with the distinct feeling that he wasn’t doing what he was meant to do. This is Emile’s very frank story of his struggles with anxiety and his search for meaning. His brilliantly open description of his rock bottom moment, which paradoxically appeared at the top of a mountain with friends, is an advertisement for action if there ever was one. Emile is very keen to point out he hasn’t nailed it - life that is! But it is a brilliant story of how to get started.

Charles Wookey is unusual. He's also the CEO of an unusual charity. Blueprint for Business is an independent charity whose purpose is to create a better society through better business. Charles has had an eclectic career. You would be hard-pressed at any point to guess his next career move. Finance, politics, economics, God and purpose-driven business are in the collection so far and the next chapter is brewing. Charles' story is one of quiet confidence, curiosity and charm and it teaches us that leading yourself, finding your own path and not the one that others expect of you, is a path worth exploring.

This is Part 2 of our conversation with Junior Smart, youth leader, ex-offender and much much more. This episode covers Junior's time in prison and his journey from disorder to Order of the British Empire.

Junior Smart is a youth leader, an ex-offender, an academic and a couple of months ago he added father to this list. If you don't believe people can change, listen to this. This is a story about the power of belonging. A need we all have to belong to a group. A lesson in how we often attach importance to the wrong things and end up in the wrong group, the wrong Club. It's a lesson in how, with an open mind and good people in your support team, you can change beyond your imagination. This is Part 1, more to follow . . .

Welcome to our conversation with Matt and Lucia Long. Matt and Lucia are both professional musicians and both lost their income overnight when COVID hit back in March. This is a story about fighting and rolling with the punches. It's about fighting when you have a plan and energy and rolling with the punches when you don't. It's the story of how, out of the chaos, they created Mini Music Makers; fun, energetic, educational music classes for pre-school kids and how it might yet lead them to the Costa Rican jungle dressed as Shady the Raccoon.

Welcome to our conversation with Ben Ivey. Ben is a coach to Entrepreneurs but what makes Ben interesting is his attention to the Entrepreneur as a person, the whole person not just as a business person. He's as happy talking about love as he is margins. He wants you to live the best life you can, one where regrets are minimised and magic moments are maximised.

Tom Libelt is a digital nomad. He lives between Thailand, Poland and the US. He's lived in many different countries and the path he's taken has not been conventional. Born in Communist Poland, Tom moved to the US aged 11 and by his mid-teens, he already had experience selling everything from marijuana to music. He had a successful departure into making music and had his fifteen minutes of fame before going back into business, the coffee business and then after a life of exploring, Tom started to focus on the business of digital marketing and the business of balancing healthy routines with reluctant adventuring.

Hi All - I was going to describe this as a COVID-19 special or as a pop-up episode but things that pop up, by there very nature, pop down again and I’m not entirely sure when that’s going to happen and we’re not discussing COVID-19 itself, more the way it’s affected us . . so I think we’re going to call these episodes. . . change uninvited In this episode, Neil and I are just getting our bearings on the whole thing. More will follow.

Our guest in conversation today is Clare Farrell, a leading voice of Extinction Rebellion and a Lecturer in 'sustainable fashion' (if there is such a thing) at St Martin's College, in London. Clare was a joy to hang out with.

Hi all - this conversation with Katey Wiseman was a bit of an impromptu experiment. A friend and I got chatting to Katey in The Walrus pub in Brighton. I'm sure Katey won't mind me saying this but Katey is a normal person, she has to balance work, being a mum and relationships in the same way we all have to balance things. But Katey was waiting to rehearse with La Bordello Boheme, a beginners burlesque show (not normal!) and once Katey had worked out we weren't complete weirdo's she started to share her story of how she'd moved from 12 years in a not very nice relationship with confidence at a low point to taking her clothes off in public. It was clear Katey is no extrovert so I wanted to find out more about the steps she took to rebuild her confidence and this is the conversation that followed a few weeks later.

Hello and welcome to this conversation with Damian Keyes, Musician and Entrepreneur. Big thanks to Jake at The Sneaky Panda which is a secret cocktail bar hidden behind a bookcase within the Artist Residence Hotel in Brighton. If you haven't been there it's absolutely worth it. The Artist Residence describe their hotels as an eccentric bunch of fun and friendly places to eat, drink and sleep - and we reckon they should add 'have interesting conversations' to that list. There's a big difference between being in a conversation and listening to a conversation and it's a real privilege being able to both. Listening to our conversation with Damian I was most struck by his 'burn the ships' approach. It's an approach that many guests have taken but I'm not sure anyone else has been so conscious, so deliberate about their own approach to life. In 1519, The Spanish Conquistador and explorer, Captain Hernan Cortez landed in Veracruz, Mexico. On his arrival, he ordered his men to burn the ships on which they'd arrived. Cortez and Damian both recognise that retreat is easy when the option is available. Damian does not believe in Plan B. Damian throws himself into his music industry ventures like Cortez did against the Aztecs, it's all or nothing, do or die - He makes it difficult for himself to step back into his old comfort zone. I think we can all learn from Damian's willingness to perform without a safety net. We've talked before about these 'crossing the threshold' moments but we've never talked about actively blocking the path home. It's not for the faint-hearted but it makes huge sense because one option makes decisions so much simpler. As Cicero said 'More is lost by indecision than wrong decision. Indecision is the thief of opportunity. It will steal you blind' We bring you Damian Keyes - Fuck Plan B