The Unlock Moment leadership podcast: find your purpose for leadership and life Dr Gary Crotaz PhD

Here in summer 2024, the world is more uncertain and unstable than it has been for many years. And I have always believed in the power of the arts to transcend politics, to transcend conflict, to show us a light and to give us hope for a better future.

Today it is my privilege to welcome to the podcast an incredibly talented young dancer who epitomises that vision of hope. I met her late last year and was immediately captivated by her quiet power and her belief in exploration and growth. I’ve been watching her dance on her social media posts and she has that rare quality of being right there in that moment and simultaneously with layers that you only glimpse before they disappear again.

Sama Daw is an Arab citizen of Israel, and a current student at the world-leading Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance here in London. Home is in Nazareth, known as the childhood birthplace of Jesus and now the Arab capital of Israel. It’s home to 80,000 people, of whom two thirds are Muslim and one third are Christian.

But today we’re not talking about conflict, politics or religion. We’re talking about people and their dreams. We’re talking about the power of dance and real life in a time of great uncertainty. And we’ll be talking about how an Unlock Moment helped Sama to figure out the path ahead.

In these most volatile of times, it feels as though the only certainty in business and life is that change is the new normal. So today I’m delighted to welcome a world-leading thinker and author on transformation and change to The Unlock Moment.

Faisal Hoque is an accomplished entrepreneur, a noted thought leader, technology innovator and advisor to CEOs and the US federal government. He is the founder of SHADOKA and NextChapter, and he serves as a strategic partner and an innovation leader for CACI whose technology and expertise plays a vital role in US national security. He has been named one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in Technology and has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, BusinessWeek, the Financial Times as well as on Fox and CBS. He was shortlisted in 2023 for the Thinkers50 Distinguished Achievement Award at an event dubbed the Oscars of Management Thinking.

Faisal is the author of 10 award-winning books on humanity, business and technology, including Lift and Everything Connects, and his most recent book, a #1 Wall Street Journal Bestseller no less, is called REINVENT: Navigating Business Transformation in a Hyperdigital Era. In it Faisal makes the argument for reinvention to help position organisations and their leaders to reap the benefits of business and digital transformation.

That’s all well and good, but of course I’m also curious about the person behind the pen, so we’ll be digging into Faisal’s own story and the Unlock Moments of remarkable clarity that helped him to figure out the path ahead.

I met today’s guest last year, a world-leading coach and the kind of deep thinker that I love to spend time in conversation with. I know you will enjoy hearing from her too.
Dr Francoise Orlov, who holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Strasbourg in France, is an accredited Master Coach, Mentor, and Coaching Supervisor. She is a published author and a member of Marshall Goldsmith's 100 Coaches. As an advocate of the professionalisation of coaching, she actively contributes to the advancement of best practices through her collaborations with major coaching bodies.
Prior to this, Dr Francoise has held leadership positions across various industries, including global corporations and international organisations. Her hallmark is a trustworthy focus on pushing boundaries and driving excellence – both for herself and those she supports – fostering sustainable personal and organisational growth. Her clients value her pragmatic style which allows for diverse interpretations of the world.
And when she’s not doing all that, in her spare time, she enjoys treasure hunting, riding her motorbike or snorkelling in the Asia seas.
I’m looking forward to hearing how Francoise thinks about the power of difference, and how we can unlock our unique talents to become authentic leaders, and of course those Unlock Moments of remarkable clarity that helped her to figure out the path ahead.

Today we are meeting a top marketing executive, a leadership and branding coach and a top business school professor – the many-hatted Jenny Fernandez.
Jenny is an award-winning executive and team coach, Columbia and NYU faculty, and brand strategist. She works with senior leaders and their teams to maximise their impact by becoming more curious, collaborative, and resilient. Her work spans Fortune 500 companies, startups, and higher education. Jenny has been recognized by Thinkers50 Radar as one of the Top 30 Management Thinkers to Watch, and a Top 30 Global Guru.
Like me she is a member of Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches Agency and is a contributing author at Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and Fast Company and featured by The Washington Post and HuffPost.
She is a keynote speaker, moderator, and panelist in leadership, and the new world of work. Her book, Zig-Zag to Top – How to Master the Habits, Behaviors, and Mindset to Succeed, comes out in 2025.
Well that’s all well and good, but as my regular listeners will know, I’m deeply curious about the people behind the accolades, and I can’t wait to hear more about the Unlock Moments that shaped Jenny’s journey from growing up in the Dominican Republic to the life she leads today.

The Post Office Horizon IT Scandal represents the biggest single series of wrongful convictions in British legal history. Brought to life in the hit ITV series "Mr Bates vs. The Post Office", the story hit the headlines in early 2024 and at the time of publication is the subject of a major public inquiry.
Faulty equipment and computer software made it look as though money was missing from post office branch accounts and the sub-postmasters’ contracts held them personally liable. More than 900 were prosecuted, many went to prison and many others were financially ruined.
In this very special episode, I am privileged to be joined by one of the subpostmasters affected, Jess Kaur, whose story was told in the ITV drama. We are also joined by TV actress Krupa Pattani who played Jess on screen as 'Sam Kaur'.
If you've watched the series, you'll not be able to forget the scene when Sam's husband walks in to find her bleeding with a knife in her hand. We'll talk about that, how Jess talked to her children about what she went through and how Krupa prepared for such an important scene.
It's been a harrowing road for Jess and she has been very brave to come on and tell her story. I am deeply grateful.
The TV series has prompted a renewed sense of urgency for action, but most victims of the scandal remain without an apology and without compensation for what they have experienced. I hope that interviews like this will help to raise awareness of the personal toll that the scandal took on those affected, and will support those in power to ensure that justice is done.

The other day it was my huge honour to deliver the commencement address at the University College London (UCL) MBA Graduation.
Sitting in the front row and wearing my university robes for the first time in 20 years, I was humbled to hear from the graduating students how much they had sacrificed to complete their studies over four years alongside busy day jobs. And the common threads in each person's story were the human connections that they had made through the programme.
I talked about how my deepest underlying sense of purpose is about finding freedom to choose, and helping others to find their own freedom. Here is a little of what I said:

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"𝘔𝘺 𝙐𝙣𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙠 𝙈𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳. 𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯.
𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯.

𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦.
𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦.
𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥.
𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴.
𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘶𝘳𝘦.

Society makes us feel that some paths are better than others. Doctor, lawyer, engineer, professor, CEO.
But here, in simplicity, is the truth.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝘮𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘴.
𝘖𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶."
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When I spoke to people afterwards, the message that resonated the most was how we need to find time to pause and reflect, and through reflection we can find our own control and freedom.
Next time you’re feeling overwhelmed and out of control, find a pause, even a short one, so you can be more intentional about choosing the path ahead that’s exactly right for you.
Have a good week!