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  • 98: Freedom and Meaning: Existential Coaching Approach

    98: Freedom and Meaning: Existential Coaching Approach
    2025/08/19
    Show Notes
    In this episode, Simon is joined by Natalie to open up the existential questions that lie at the heart of coaching: What does it mean to live well? How do we find meaning in a finite life? How do we coach for authenticity, freedom and responsibility?
    Far from being bleak, existentialism is revealed here as a liberating practice. Death is not avoided but faced - giving urgency and clarity to our choices, reminding us that life is finite and must be lived meaningfully. This conversation shows how reinvention is possible at any stage of life, and how helping others can deepen our own sense of happiness and fulfillment.
    Together, Simon and Natalie highlight the value of micro meanings - the everyday rituals, relationships and joys that ground us in significance. They reflect on the importance of structure in supporting growth, while also recognising the liberation that comes when we accept life’s pointlessness and take responsibility for creating meaning ourselves. To live authentically, we must face uncomfortable truths, resist “bad faith,” and embrace freedom with courage.
    Existential coaching, then, is less about problem-solving and more about opening a space where clients can explore their choices, discover what matters, and move towards a life without regrets. It speaks to the universal human pursuit of meaning, and to the possibility of finding spirituality and depth even in the midst of uncertainty.

    Key Reflections
    • Coaching at its best creates space for clients to face the uncomfortable truths of freedom, choice, and responsibility.
    • Awareness of death can deepen our sense of aliveness and urgency to live meaningfully.
    • Micro meanings - rituals, relationships, and small daily joys - are vital in shaping a good life.
    • Bad faith often creeps into coaching conversations, and part of the coach’s role is to gently challenge it.
    • Balancing structure and freedom is essential, both for personal growth and for effective coaching practice.
    Keywords
    existential coaching, good life, meaning, spirituality, death, personal growth, coaching psychology, self-discovery, relationships, happiness

    Brief Bio
    Dr Natalie Lancer CPsychol is a Chartered Coaching Psychologist, experienced supervisor and Former Chair of the British Psychological Society’s Division of Coaching Psychology (DoCP). She coaches a range of people from doctoral students keeping up their motivation and self-belief to get their thesis over the line, to young people applying for their first job, as well as female executives and retired professionals, often using The Eight Tensions framework. She runs professional development and training for coaches and coaching psychologists including Eight Tensions Coach Training (based on existential psychology), Coach Development Club and The School of Supervision. Natalie is a Master’s and PhD supervisor at the New School of Psychotherapy and Counselling. In 2016, she co-authored ‘Techniques for Coaching and Mentoring’ with David Clutterbuck. She also is a stand-up comic and performed most recently at the BPS DoCP 2025 Conference.
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    37 分
  • 97: Ikigai in Coaching Practice

    97: Ikigai in Coaching Practice
    2025/08/07
    Show Notes:
    Simon Western is joined by Yoko Kunii Aldous - lecturer, coach, hypnotherapist and cultural translator - to explore the deeper roots of this Japanese concept, revealing it to be less a “life purpose formula” and more a way of being-in-the-world.
    Yoko reflects on her journey from Japan to the UK and how living between languages and cultures opens up inner landscapes. She shares the real history of Ikigai - not as a productivity hack, but a pre-capitalist way of locating oneself in community and cosmos - and interrogates why the popular Western Venn diagram (“what you love, what you’re good at…”) oversimplifies and erases its cultural nuance. Drawing on Japanese concepts, Yoko frames language as a worldview where nature, spirit, and objects are integral to self-understanding. She speaks of spirituality in everyday life - from cherry blossoms to chopsticks - and explains why Ikigai should be seen as fluid, shifting across life stages and relationships, rather than as a fixed endpoint. The conversation explores the tension between individualism and collective responsibility, asking whether one can truly have Ikigai without caring for the village. From embracing imperfection through wabi-sabi, to recognising sacrifice and service as pathways to fulfilment, the episode challenges Western coaching to move beyond self-improvement toward a more relational, ecological, and culturally entangled way of living.

    Key Reflections:
    • True Ikigai cannot be pinned down or defined - it must be lived
    • Culture shapes not only what we think, but how we feel our way into meaning
    • Japanese aesthetics embrace imperfection (wabi-sabi) as essential to beauty and purpose
    • Spirituality in Japan is woven into the everyday - from teacups to trees
    • Personal meaning and collective wellbeing are not separate projects
    • Every item has a spirit
    Keywords:
    Ikigai, cultural insights, coaching, psychology, Japan, Western perspectives, personal development, spirituality, Venn diagram

    Brief Bio:
    Yoko Kunii Aldous is an award-winning university lecturer, coach, and language and culture trainer for the Ministry of Defence. She holds an MA in Applied Linguistics and an MSc in Coaching Psychology, and is a certified coach, hypnotherapist, and yoga instructor. Her background in language and communication informs her work in higher education, cross-cultural training, and personal development coaching.
    Her latest research explores how the Japanese concept of Ikigai is understood and applied by non-Japanese coaches. Her study critically examines how Ikigai is interpreted and integrated into coaching practices outside Japan, revealing common misconceptions and promoting a more culturally authentic understanding. This work was recognised with the Best Early Career Research Paper award by BPS Division of Coaching Psychology.
    By integrating Eastern philosophy with Western psychological theory, Yoko offers a coaching approach that is reflective, holistic, and grounded in cultural nuance. She supports individuals and professionals in aligning their core values with purposeful action, towards meaningful and sustainable change.
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    34 分
  • 96: Place: Identity and Belonging

    96: Place: Identity and Belonging
    2025/07/25
    Show Notes
    In this episode, Simon Western is joined by Daniel B. Frank and Caro Bainbridge to explore how our connection to place shapes who we are, how we relate to others, and how we make sense of the world. They share stories of growing up in Chicago and Liverpool, revealing how personal and collective histories are held within the places we call home.
    The conversation moves between the intimate and the systemic. Dan and Caro reflect on how certain streets evoke safety or sorrow, how schools have taken on roles far beyond education, and how cultural roots are both grounding and restrictive. They examine the emotional weight of returning to one’s childhood city, and the strangeness that can accompany that return.
    With digital life pulling people away from physical presence and history, the episode raises timely questions about what it means to belong - and how identity is shaped in an era of mobility, forgetting, and cultural fragmentation.

    Key Reflections
    • A sense of place gives structure to identity and meaning to memory.
    • Emotional ties to place can be nurturing or suffocating—or both at once.
    • The same place is experienced differently depending on one’s history, role, and identity.
    • The legacy of slavery and colonialism shapes how some communities relate to home. Being physically present in a place doesn't always mean belonging to it.
    • Schools are now expected to hold emotional, moral, and community roles once carried by families.
    • Digital technology creates new forms of disconnection, despite increased connectivity.
    • Living well includes being present - to place, to people, and to time.

    Keywords
    sense of place, identity, displacement, cultural connections, history, emotional well-being, modernity, community, education, technology

    Brief Bios
    Daniel B. Frank, Ph.D. is a graduate of Francis W. Parker School in Chicago where he has been has been its Principal for over 20 years and has been a senior administrator there since 1988. He is the founding Executive Editor of the international education journal Schools: Studies in Education, which is published by the University of Chicago Press, and has served as Executive Director of the International Society for the Psychoanalytic Study of Organizations.

    Caro Bainbridge works at the intersection of psychoanalysis, culture and organisational life. She is an organisational consultant, leadership development expert and executive coach, known for bringing depth insight to complex systems and supporting individuals and teams as they navigate change, uncertainty and transformation. Her practice is grounded in a long academic career: she is Emeritus Professor of Psychoanalysis & Culture, a former editor of Free Associations and of the film section of the International Journal of Psychoanalysis, and co-editor of Routledge’s Psychoanalysis and Popular Culture book series. Caro is a Fellow of the RSA and a Founding Scholar of the British Psychoanalytic Council. She is widely published in the academic context, and has recently launched The Culture Fix on Substack, where she explores the emotional and symbolic currents shaping contemporary life. Her work is animated by a belief in the generative potential of thresholds and transitions - a perspective shaped, in part, by her daily walks near Antony Gormley’s Another Place, where art, nature and thought meet at the water’s edge.
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    53 分
  • 95: The Leadership of Pope Francis

    95: The Leadership of Pope Francis
    2025/07/09
    Show Notes
    In this episode of Edgy Ideas, Simon Western is joined by Fr. David McCallum, a Jesuit priest and Executive Director of the Program for Discerning Leadership. Together, they explore the unique leadership style of Pope Francis and what it means for the future of the Catholic Church - and humanity at large.
    The conversation unfolds around the radical shift Pope Francis has led, prioritizing humility, listening, and symbolic action over institutional command. Fr. David shares moving anecdotes from his encounters with the Pope, offering insight into how leadership rooted in deep presence and discernment can inspire systemic change. They reflect on synodality as a leadership practice - a process rooted in dialogue, participation, and inclusion - and the ways it reorients traditional hierarchies toward relational and collective discernment.
    They discuss how change often emerges from the margins rather than the center, and how Pope Francis embraced paradox and complexity rather than rushing to resolve it. In a world increasingly polarized, this leadership invites us to see difference as generative and to engage across divides with empathy and courage.
    Looking ahead, the conversation calls on leaders across sectors to let go of rigid structures and embrace more inclusive, compassionate and participatory ways of leading. Through stories, reflection, and critical insight, this episode challenges the dominant narratives of leadership and offers a deeply human alternative.

    Key Reflections
    • Leadership is a relational and spiritual practice, not a role tied to status or control.
    • Navigating polarity and difference is essential in an increasingly divided world.
    • The Church’s transformation under Pope Francis offers broader insights into how leaders can hold space for complexity.
    • Leadership rooted in presence, encounter, and discernment can offer healing and direction in times of global uncertainty.
    • Every meaningful interaction has the potential to be a transformative leadership act.

    Keywords
    Pope Francis, Jesuit leadership, synodality, listening, symbolic action, humility, Catholic Church, polarity, discernment, relational leadership, spiritual leadership, inclusion, soul at work

    Brief Bio
    Fr. David McCallum, S.J., Ed.D, is a Jesuit priest from the USA who serves as the founding Executive Director of the Program for Discerning Leadership, a special initiative of the Society of Jesus headquartered in Rome. The Program provides leadership formation and organizational development support for senior Vatican officials and major superiors of religious orders headquartered in Rome and internationally. From 2021-2024, Fr. McCallum has worked with the Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops on the Commission on Methodology, as a member of the international group that developed the synthesis of the National and Regional Bishop’s Conferences reports at Frascati, and as a facilitator expert at the Synods in October 2023 and 2024. Formerly, Fr. McCallum served as faculty member and then the Dean of the Madden School of Business and as the VP of Mission Integration and Development at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, NY. His doctoral research at Teachers College, Columbia University, focused on the implications of developmental diversity in meeting the leadership challenges of conflict, complexity, and ambiguity.
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    38 分
  • 94: Building Civil Society: Reflections from a Lebanese Activist

    94: Building Civil Society: Reflections from a Lebanese Activist
    2025/05/30
    Show Notes
    In this episode, Simon Western speaks with Lebanese scholar and activist Karim Safieddine. Together, they discuss the vibrant and volatile political landscape of Lebanon, exploring how social movements, intellectual traditions, and grassroots activism collide and coalesce in the streets of Beirut. Karim shares his personal story of growing up amidst conflict, complexity, and contradiction, offering a lens into how identity is formed in a fractured society and how hope emerges through resistance.
    They explore themes of secularism, anti-establishment politics, and the evolving role of intellectuals in social change. The conversation touches deeply on what it means to live a good life and how ordinary people - through organising, dissent, and imagination - shape the possibility of a good civile society.
    Key Reflections
    · Elites often suppress transformative movements; activism persists through localised, organic mobilisation.
    · Intellectuals must step beyond theory and engage meaningfully with activist work.
    · A good life is not about material excess but about meaningful relationships, creativity, and communal survival.
    · Resistance is necessary for vitality; dissent keeps societies alive and evolving.
    · Bridging academia and activism is essential for sustainable change.
    · Empowering local voices and grassroots movements is crucial to Lebanon’s future.

    Keywords
    social movements, political sociology, secularism, identity, intellectuals, activism, anti-establishment, cosmopolitanism
    Brief Bio
    Karim Safieddine is a PhD student in Sociology at the University of Pittsburgh whose work explores the intersection of social movements, intellectual history, and political power in Lebanon. With a particular focus on the Lebanese Left, Karim investigates how oppositional movements both contest and reproduce dominant ideological frameworks and structures of authority from the late 20th century to the present.
    Rooted in a Gramscian tradition yet open to diverse theoretical tools, his research engages with questions of leadership, resistance, and hegemony. His work bridges political sociology and historical analysis, offering critical insights into how movements emerge, evolve, and navigate Lebanon's sectarian and neoliberal political terrain.
    Karim holds an MSc in Comparative Politics from the London School of Economics (2020) and a BA in Economics from the American University of Beirut (2019). His academic interests include political and historical sociology, social movements, and the role of intellectuals in shaping public discourse.
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    38 分
  • 93: Living Through Conflict: Insights from Ukraine

    93: Living Through Conflict: Insights from Ukraine
    2025/05/01
    Show Notes
    In this compelling and deeply human episode, Simon speaks with Daria (Dasha) Kuznetsova, a Ukrainian humanitarian professional working amidst the war in Ukraine.
    Daria brings a grounded yet emotionally resonant perspective on what it means to live in a war zone - not just physically, but psychologically and spiritually. She discusses how individuals and communities survive amidst collapse, and what it takes to begin imagining a future beyond trauma.
    Simon and Daria discuss themes of self-awareness, trauma recovery, and the embodied experience of conflict. Daria shares how the first years of war were marked by survival, scarcity of time, and emotional suppression, and how she has come to understand the necessity of listening to the body, building emotional resilience, and holding space for others.
    The conversation moves from personal coping mechanisms to wider systemic reflections - offering a rare insight into how community support and relational containment become lifelines in the face of collective breakdown. This episode invites us to consider how diversity, freedom, and emotional truth-telling are vital elements in rebuilding not just Ukraine, but any society fractured by violence or division.
    This episode will speak to leaders, coaches, and listeners who are drawn to the depths of human experience, particularly when systems are under strain. It also speaks to the power of Eco-Leadership, where relationality, resilience, and emotional intelligence create the conditions for regenerative futures.

    Key Reflections
    • War reshapes both the physical environment and the emotional lives of those affected.
    • Developing self-awareness is essential for navigating the psychological strain of conflict.
    • Small, everyday actions can provide stability and a sense of control in times of crisis.
    • The body often holds trauma that the mind cannot yet process or articulate.
    • Strong community connections are vital for emotional and practical survival during war.
    • Rebuilding society requires a foundation of safety, freedom of expression, and inclusion.
    • Honest conversations about pain and recovery are the first steps toward collective healing.
    Keywords
    humanitarian aid, war experiences, emotional resilience, community support, trauma recovery, self-awareness, coping mechanisms, rebuilding society, relational depth, Eco-Leadership

    Brief Bio
    Daria Kuznetsova is a humanitarian and recovery professional with over a decade of experience leading multisectoral and multipartner portfolios in Ukraine. Her work spans international humanitarian principles, large-scale project management, and strategic partnership development, guided by results-driven leadership approaches.
    Following the full-scale invasion, Daria played a key role in scaling up humanitarian efforts, managing projects funded by the EU, FCDO, USAID, SDC, BMZ, and other major donors. She currently expands her expertise into the areas of Partnership and Localization, overseeing a portfolio of more than 100 partnerships.
    Her current focus is on strategic development, mentoring, and fostering impactful, sustainable change within organizations and communities.
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    33 分
  • 92: Modern Temples of Power

    92: Modern Temples of Power
    2025/04/03
    Show Notes
    In this conversation, Chris Yates and Simon Western discuss how organizations have become modern temples of power, shaping societal norms in positive and challenging ways. Organizations offer spaces to be productive, to deliver services and to provide meaning and development for individuals, yet they also can stifle individuality and feedback through corporate conformity. The podcast reflects on how art, small acts of kindness and ecosystems thinking are the leadership approaches that can transform organisations and liberate employees to engage relationally and realise their full potential.
    Chris questions traditional leadership models, highlighting the need to prioritize character over competence and move beyond the military-influenced structures that dominate corporate life. Leadership, they argue, is not about static positions but fluid relationships—emerging in unexpected places and shaped by small moments of humanity rather than grand, ego-driven achievements. The conversation also highlights the burden of projections on leaders, who risk becoming seduced by the images others place upon them.
    Looking ahead, Simon and Chris consider the future of leadership in a world that increasingly demands authenticity and interconnectedness. They call for a shift to eco-centric leadership, one that embraces moral responsibility, acknowledges the social role of organizations, and also seeks inspiration from art to reimagine work and leadership. Chris closes by reminding us that the smallest acts of kindness and courage in the face of adversity can reshape leadership, organizations, and society itself.

    Key Reflections
    • Organizations hold immense power as modern temples, shaping societal norms and driving change.
    • Corporate cultures often enforce conformity, stifling individuality, feedback, and personal identity.
    • Leadership discussions focus too much on competence and too little on the moral character of leaders.
    • Leadership is not a fixed title but a fluid, relational process that can emerge from unexpected places.
    • Leaders must resist being seduced by the projections and expectations placed upon them.
    • The future of leadership requires shifting from ego-driven ambition to collective, eco-centric responsibility.
    • True leadership is found not in grand gestures but in small, everyday acts of humanity.
    • Creativity and art offers a powerful lens to rethink work, leadership, and our role in the world.
    Keywords
    corporate culture, society, leadership, power dynamics, identity, character, reimagination, eco-leadership

    Brief Bio
    Christopher Yates, Senior Vice President of Talent at Equinix, is a leader committed to professional and personal growth within organizations. He oversees Equinix’s global talent strategy, focusing on attracting, developing, and retaining diverse talent while aligning leadership initiatives with the company’s growth and innovation objectives. Previously Chris held senior OD positions in Microsoft, Ford, American Express, Caterpillar and HSBC bank, playing a vital role in shaping business transformation. Chris is co-author with Pooja Sachdev of Rewire: A Radical Approach to Tackling Diversity and Difference and has also co-authored Share: How Organizations Can Thrive in an Age of Networked Knowledge, Power and Relationships. Chris brings a huge breadth of experience to organisational thinking, and is admired for his empathy, dynamism and original and imaginative leadership.
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    46 分
  • 91: Racial Consciousness in Coaching and Work

    91: Racial Consciousness in Coaching and Work
    2025/03/20
    Show Notes
    In this episode Bernice Hewson and Simon Western challenge the conventional coaching paradigm, exposing its tendency to operate in a decontextualized bubble—detached from the social, political, and historical forces shaping our identities. Bernice brings personal insights from her own journey toward racial consciousness, unpacking the ways coaching often fails to engage with racial trauma, frequently misdiagnosing it as imposter syndrome.
    Together, they explore the complexities of addressing racial identities in work and coaching, where labels and names carry power—how they define, constrain, and sometimes liberate.
    This isn’t about surface-level diversity work; it’s about questioning the structures within which coaching exists. They explore the profound discomfort required to build true racial literacy, the impact of institutional whiteness in coaching spaces, and the need for collaboration to ignite meaningful change. Coaching, Bernice argues, must move beyond individual self-improvement and cultivate a critical awareness—one that challenges dominant narratives and creates space for authentic shifts in practice.
    The episode closes with a call to action: to embrace the edges, hold space for the difficult conversations, and commit to coaching as a radical, relational, and socially conscious practice.

    Key Reflections
    • Racial identity is more than just personal identity; it's a power dynamic.
    • Understanding one's racial identity is crucial for effective coaching.
    • Coaching often operates in a decontextualized bubble.
    • Racial trauma is often misdiagnosed as imposter syndrome.
    • Coaching can be part of the solution to systemic issues.
    • Emotional resilience is key to holding difficult conversations.
    • Institutional whiteness affects coaching practices.
    • Using personal experiences as data can inform coaching.
    • Language around DEI is evolving and requires confidence.
    • Change in coaching requires collaboration and critical consciousness.
    Keywords
    racial consciousness, identity, coaching, decolonization, belonging, racial equity, personal journey

    Brief Bio
    Bernice Hewson, founder of Raising Racial Consciousness, is dedicated to challenging conventional thinking to build a racially equitable society. An accredited coach (European Mentoring and Coaching Council) and emotional intelligence practitioner, she holds a Psychosocial MA in ‘Race,’ Empire, and Post-coloniality.
    With over 15 years in corporate leadership, Bernice understands the complexities leaders face in driving meaningful diversity and inclusion strategies. She emphasizes that lasting change begins with individuals and that racially conscious leadership is essential for progress.
    Bernice equips leaders and coaches with the knowledge, language, and confidence to engage in critical diversity conversations. Through safe spaces for learning and reflection, she empowers professionals to develop race-consciousness as a core competency, fostering inclusion and equity in workplaces and beyond.
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    39 分