Resilience Unravelled

Russell Thackeray
  • 5.0 (47)
  • Mental Health
  • Updated Weekly

These podcasts help you get the most from life and work by helping you reduce burnout and improve your resilience and performance.

  1. 4d ago

    Bridging the Implementation Gap: Neurodiversity at Work and Australia’s NDIS Under Threat

    Host Dr Russell Thackeray interviews Jodie Herbert in Canberra, Australia, founder of Ability Pathways Australia and a carer of three children on the autism spectrum. They discuss neurodiversity as natural variation in thinking, differences in autism categorisation (ASD 1–4), and how modern workplaces with constant digital channels can make neurodivergent needs harder to accommodate. Jodie describes practical, low-cost adjustments employers can make—written follow-ups, clear SOPs, and quiet workspaces or work-from-home options—and explains her data-driven “longitudinal study” approach: clients complete daily questionnaires for 30 days, producing visualised recommendations to help employers close the “implementation gap.” They also cover Australia’s disability legislation and the NDIS, noting proposed 2026 funding cuts and a pending parliamentary bill, with concerns about service loss, economic impact, and participant wellbeing. 00:00 Welcome and Introductions 00:21 Life in Canberra 01:28 Jodie’s Story and Mission 02:50 What Neurodiversity Means 03:56 Autism Levels Explained 06:37 Workplace Overload and Inclusion 11:33 Simple Adjustments That Work 14:57 Remote Work and Real Needs 17:31 Closing the Implementation Gap 20:56 Australia Disability Policy and NDIS 23:32 NDIS Cuts and What’s at Stake 27:16 How to Connect and Final Thoughts You can contact us at info@qedod.com Resources can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com

  2. Aug 10

    The Executive Condition: Biological Foundations of Sustainable Leadership with Dr. Denis Cronson

    Dr Russell Thackeray welcomes Dr. Denis Cronson, a South African-born medical doctor now based in Switzerland, to discuss leadership through a biological lens. Cronson describes moving from trauma surgery into 20 years of organisational health and executive consulting, observing how overcommitment, “success but sacrifice” cultures, and failure patterns deplete leaders and spread dysfunction through organisations. They argue many leaders respond with “hacks” (supplements, sleep programs, workouts) that increase capacity without changing the underlying system creating unsustainable load. Cronson links leadership attributes like judgment, empathy, adaptability, and working memory to neurobiology affected by sleep, nutrition, and chronic stress, and notes normalised distraction and phone scrolling. He outlines “Leadership 3.0” as the biological and psychological condition required to lead, and introduces his book, The Executive Condition, released internationally Sept 1, 2026, aimed at leaders, boards, shareholders, HR, and coaches. 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 00:30 South Africa to Switzerland 01:23 Culture Humour and Humanity 03:30 From Trauma Surgery to Exec Health 05:29 Why Hacks Miss the System 09:06 Neurobiology of Leadership 12:56 Working Memory and Doomscrolling 15:20 ADHD Normalisation Debate 17:11 Leadership 3.0 Framework 19:35 The Executive Condition Book 24:57 Wellbeing Programs vs Redesign 28:09 Resilience Band Aids and Culture 29:11 Where to Get the Book Closing You can contact us at info@qedod.com Resources can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com

  3. Aug 3

    Belonging as a Measurable Driver of Resilience and Performance with Andrea Carter

    Host Dr Russell Thackeray welcomes Andrea Carter, a Canada-based organisational scientist known for validating a way to measure belonging and leading studies across 3,500 people in 13 companies, later extended across eight industries and 150,000 employees. This is a genuinely fascinating episode and worth a full listen..! Andrea argues resilience is often treated as a solo sport—“exile with a deadline”—and that the real breaking point is facing hardship alone. She defines belonging as a measurable performance metric co-created by individuals and systems, distinct from “fitting in,” and explains five neurological indicators: comfort (clarity/predictability), connection (trust beyond transaction), contribution (evidence you matter), psychological safety, and wellbeing/recovery, noting “resilience without recovery is delayed collapse.” The discussion covers measuring belonging at organisational, team, and individual levels, focusing on shrinking belonging “gap scores,” and cites a plant intervention improving gap and discretionary effort, plus faster safety reporting. They also touch on DEI measurement issues, cultural differences, schools’ rising anxiety, and social media’s negative effects. 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 01:00 Andrea Background and Research 04:34 Resilience Is Not Solo 07:04 Fitting In vs Belonging 10:35 Measuring Belonging Science 11:44 Five Indicators Explained 20:59 Teams Leaders and Culture 26:36 Belonging Drives Performance 30:39 Friction That Grows 39:32 Schools Youth and Social Media 44:05 Wrap Up and Contact Info You can contact us at info@qedod.com Resources can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com

  4. Jul 27

    Lenore Lambert on Human Flourishing, People Against Rushing, and Building Resilience Through Personal Growth

    Host Dr Russell Thackeray interviews Sydney-based psychologist, former HR/leadership development director, and secular Buddhist teacher Lenore Lambert about her work Flourish Personal Growth and her “People Against Rushing” (PAR) intentions: a 20% time buffer, blank diary spaces, and “be where you are.” Lambert outlines her “nine elements of human flourishing,” adding safety factors to Seligman’s model: material security, autonomy, ease with uncertainty, and belonging, plus pleasure, engagement/flow, achievement, connection, and contribution. They discuss resilience as bouncing back/forward from setbacks, the risks of overdoing any element (especially money, power, and status), and research on “maximisers” vs “sufficers.” Lenore emphasises flourishing as both content and process, using learning, mindfulness, and Buddhist insight to reduce reactivity and respond rather than react. She directs listeners to flourishpersonalgrowth.com and suggests downloading her free self-assessment to improve the lowest-scoring element. 00:00 Welcome From Sydney 00:57 Background And Work 02:57 People Against Rushing 04:36 Neurodiversity And Difficulty 05:24 Nine Elements Of Flourishing 08:36 Building The Model 10:35 Resilience And Setbacks 11:52 Money Status And Meaning 15:38 Workplace Leadership Effects 16:26 Sufficiency Versus Maximising 18:00 Paradox of Choice 19:08 Perfectionism and Maximisers 20:01 Learning as Resilience 20:35 Flourishing Process Model 22:09 Who Defines Flourishing 24:33 Happiness Myth Spectrum 27:32 Contentment and Comparison 29:18 Tools Programs and Website 30:26 Feelings as Body Sensations 33:33 Buddhist Nonreactivity Practice 37:15 How to Engage and Next Steps 38:26 Final Task and Farewell You can contact us at info@qedod.com Resources can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com

  5. Jul 20

    Duncan Starr-Boltt on Fitness, Identity, Eastern Mind Mastery, and Purpose-Driven Goal Setting

    Host Russell Thackeray welcomes Duncan Starr-Boltt, a Cambridge-based Brit who lives in Crete most of the year, and explores his journey from mechanical engineering into personal training, coaching, and running a CrossFit gym. Duncan describes intense fitness challenges (including a wall-ball world record of 452) and how proving fitness shaped his identity, later easing once he felt he’d proven it to himself. After becoming stressed running the gym, he found Western approaches ineffective and turned to Eastern ideas, emphasising “you are not the mind,” cultivating the observer through meditation and mindfulness, and focusing on feeling okay internally. He discusses the tension between goals and contentment, advocating goals for clarity without unhealthy drive, and shares his father’s Maslow-inspired visualisation process that iteratively achieves goals to uncover deeper purpose. He also mentions his fictional book, "Seeking Sukha," about lasting happiness and peace, and how to find him online. 00:00 Introductions 00:37 From Engineer to Fitness Coach 01:55 Gym Stress and Eastern Practices 02:50 Forrest Gump Fitness Identity 03:33 Chasing World Records 06:06 Did Proving It Matter 07:09 The Goal Behind Goals 08:38 Goal Setting vs Discontentment 11:08 Driven Energy and Satisfaction 11:53 Why We Choose Unsatisfied 12:48 Why We Tolerate Abuse 13:38 Eastern Wisdom vs Western Fixes 14:45 You Are Not The Mind 17:08 Observer Mindfulness and Goals 17:50 Purpose Beyond the Cave 19:15 Vision Triangle Goal Process 23:21 Identity and Future Self 24:40 Seeking Sukha Book Story 26:26 Audiobook Recording Realities 26:53 Where to Find Duncan 27:24 Final Reflections and Goodbye You can contact us at info@qedod.com Resources can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com

  6. Jul 13

    Celeste Warren on The Truth About Equity: Myths, Access, and Turning Awareness Into Action

    In this Resilience Unravelled episode, Dr Russell Thackeray interviews Celeste Warren, a US-based former chief diversity and inclusion officer who retired after nearly four decades in global corporations and now consults, speaks, and promotes her book The Truth About Equity. Warren explains why equity is often misunderstood as preferential treatment and uses the “rocks and fence” analogy to show equity as giving people what they need without taking away from others, while the fence represents systemic “isms” that require long-term change. She emphasises the role of dialogue in widening entrenched perspectives formed early in life, addresses DE&I pushback by framing equity as pragmatic business, marketing, and leadership basics, and outlines a six-step “equity in action” model including awareness, access, advocacy, action, accountability, and empowerment. She discusses AI hiring risks and the need for checks and balances, shares her goal of creating ripple effects through education and allyship, and closes with “stay relevant, stay supportive, and stay in the fight.” 00:00 Welcome and Introductions 00:49 Celeste’s Career Journey 02:36 Why Equity Matters 03:40 Rocks and Fence Explained 06:54 Mindsets and Upbringing 10:58 DEI Pushback and Proof 11:35 Equity as Business Basics 15:17 Who the Book Is For 16:09 From Awareness to Impact 17:39 Equity in the Age of AI 20:38 Big Dream and Ripple Effect 21:52 Where to Get the Book 22:16 Final Takeaways and Wrap You can contact us at info@qedod.com Resources can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com

  7. Jul 6

    Deborah Santana on Loving the Fire, Choosing Freedom, and Levelling the Playing Field

    Dr Russell Thackeray welcomes writer and nonprofit leader Deborah Santana from Los Angeles to discuss her work and memoir, Loving the Fire: Choosing Me, Finding Freedom. Deborah explains her nonprofit Do Little, which supports women and girls in health, education, and happiness, and describes her lifelong commitment to challenging exclusion, shaped by growing up with an interracial family and seeing ongoing barriers such as limits on women’s ordination. She critiques cultural and political forces she sees as pushing society toward a white patriarchal system, and emphasises education through original, trustworthy sources. She shares how being married to guitarist Carlos Santana for 34 years led her to feel unseen, and how leaving helped her live by her values, focus on collaborative “circle” work, and reclaim her identity. She highlights meditation as a core resilience practice and offers guidance on moving away from toxic relationships. She directs viewers to deborahsantana.com and notes an audiobook is in progress. 00:00 Welcome and Introductions 00:49 Flowers and Gardening Chat 02:03 Nonprofit Mission Do Little 02:58 Why Equality Still Matters 03:39 Family Roots and Exclusion 08:20 Reclaiming Your Voice 10:41 Leaving Celebrity Life 11:35 Circles and Museum Work 13:11 Truth Education and AI 14:31 Loving the Fire Memoir 17:12 Meditation and Walking Through Fire 19:13 Toxic Relationships and Change 20:54 Where to Find the Book 21:41 Audiobook and Closing You can contact us at info@qedod.com Resources can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com

  8. Jun 29

    Oneika Mays on Mindfulness, Loving-Kindness, and Writing ‘Sit With Me’

    Host Dr Russell Thackeray interviews Jersey City-based meditation teacher, yoga teacher, and licensed massage therapist Oneika Mays, discussing her love of reading and music, the value of stories, and how technology, social media, and AI affect attention and thinking. Mays describes being introduced to meditation over 15 years ago and teaching for about 10, explaining that an injury and over-reliance on yoga classes led her to deeper meditation and mindfulness, which helped her feel okay even when she didn’t feel okay. She emphasises practicing with compassion, distinguishing Buddhist “kindness” as ease and spaciousness from “tenderness” as self-love, and notes how her experiences as a Black queer woman inform her teaching around feeling “othered.” She recommends Jon Kabat-Zinn and Sharon Salzberg, and explains her book, “Sit With Me: A Non-BS Journey to Mindfulness and Meditation,” combining memoir, metta practice, and her work launching a wellness program at Rikers Island’s women’s jail. 00:00 Welcome and Introductions 00:19 Life in Jersey City 01:23 Oneika Beyond Work 02:37 Love of Reading 04:55 Teachers and Names 06:47 Books Versus Screens 08:33 Meditation Origin Story 10:18 Kindness and Tenderness 13:02 Othering and Belonging 15:56 Nuance in a Divided World 19:57 AI and Attention Spans 21:13 Books for Meditation 22:15 Why She Wrote Sit With Me 24:41 Rikers and the Program 26:15 Metta Loving Kindness 28:05 Final Takeaway You can contact us at info@qedod.com Resources can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com

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5
out of 5
47 Ratings

About

These podcasts help you get the most from life and work by helping you reduce burnout and improve your resilience and performance.

Information

  • Creator
    Russell Thackeray
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2026
  • Episodes
    300
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 QED - Performance on Purpose
  • Show Website
    Resilience Unravelled

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