Let's Just Start Podcast with Laura Racky and Christian Cunningham

Christian Cunningham and Laura Racky
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Laura Racky and Christian Cunningham talking business, growth, parenting, leadership, fashion, politics, and some occasional economics.

  1. 1D AGO

    Weekend Edition: Iran, Energy Security, And The Best Leadership Lessons We’ve Learned

    In this Weekend Edition, we start with the rapidly unfolding situation in Iran and what it could mean for global stability, oil prices, and Australia’s energy security. We talk through the strategic risks, why prolonged conflict would hurt everyone, and why Australia may be far less prepared than people realise. Then we shift gears into a much more positive conversation about leadership. We reflect on the smartest people and the lessons that stayed with us. From relationship-building and strategic patience to detaching ego from business success and never losing your sense of curiosity, this is a practical conversation about what real leadership looks like when you see it up close. In short What’s happening in Iran and why control of the airspace changes the strategic picture quicklyWhy a prolonged conflict could trigger major oil price shocks and global economic consequencesAustralia’s energy security problem and why relying on imported fuel and supply chains creates riskWhy governments often focus on visible political wins rather than difficult long-term infrastructure and security planningLeadership lessons from exceptional operators we’ve worked with across different industriesWhy strong client relationships and genuine personal connection matter just as much as technical skillThe importance of clearly demonstrating value in professional services, especially when billing significant amountsHow the best leaders separate ego from business success and focus on performance rather than personal profileThe power of strategic thinking and why some of the best decisions are made with a 10 or 20 year horizonSmall comments from smart people that can permanently change how you think about work, balance, and prioritiesA final reminder from Morgan Freeman’s advice: stay curious, keep moving, and never “let the old man in” Find us here: Instagram: @letsjuststartpodcast Tiktok: @letsjuststartpodcast Youtube: @LetsJustStartPodcast Laura Insta: @laura.racky Laura Tiktok: @lauraracky Christian Insta: @leaderbiltacademy Christian Tiktok: @leaderbilt Leadership training and coaching: Leaderbilt.co

    32 min

  2. 2D AGO

    #47 Kyle And Jackie O Reactions, Bullying, Work Performance Reviews Advice, Australia's Lost Economic Decade

    Ep 47! This starts with the Kyle and Jackie O media controversy and turns into something much bigger. We tackle the grey zone between bullying and adult behaviour, why identity makes people cling to roles, and why modern culture has become allergic to nuance. Then we get practical on performance reviews, promotion strategy, and how to build leverage long before the meeting starts. We close with a direct look at Australia’s economy and a lost economic decade, extractive behaviour by rent seekers, and increasingly disconnected from real growth. Some tricky stuff. In short: A conversation about Kyle and Jackie O becomes a deeper discussion on bullying, adult responsibility, and public expectations We ask whether the same standards should apply to a teenager in a café and a multimillion-dollar media figure at the top of their game We work through power dynamics, resilience, misogyny, disappointment, and why these questions are harder than they first appear We also talk about the loss of nuance in modern discussion and why so many people now treat disagreement as danger Then we move into performance reviews and explain why high performers need to prepare months in advance, not days We break down how to track your value, tie your work to outcomes, define what you want next, and negotiate from evidence instead of emotion We also cover what good leaders should do differently when managing reviews, expectations, and development pathways To finish, we take on Australia’s economic drift, stagnant productivity, rising cost pressures, and why the country increasingly feels built around rent-seeking instead of energy, growth, and ambition Find us here: Instagram: @letsjuststartpodcast Tiktok: @letsjuststartpodcast Youtube: @LetsJustStartPodcast Laura Insta: @laura.racky Laura Tiktok: @lauraracky Christian Insta: @leaderbiltacademy Christian Tiktok: @leaderbilt Leadership training and coaching: Leaderbilt.co

    56 min

  3. MAR 2

    Iran Analysis, AI Layoffs, and the Mental Load Nobody Sees - LJS Weekend Edition

    A new format - Let's Just Start Weekend Edition. Shorter episode on the biggest stories and what they mean for real life. In this episode we cover: Iran and analysis on why intervention, strategy, and regime change are never clean What the real drivers might be, beyond the public narrative Block cutting 4,000 jobs and why “AI” is a powerful headline The reality of visibility at work and the risk of being outside the decision circle Blue Jobs Pink Jobs and the system we use to split household admin fairly The mental load, invisible work, and how resentment builds when roles are unclear What’s next, performance reviews, pay rises, and setting your team up to win If you want the Blue Jobs Pink Jobs pamphlet, it’s on the Racky Cunningham Collective website. Find us here: Instagram: @letsjuststartpodcast Tiktok: @letsjuststartpodcast Youtube: @LetsJustStartPodcast Laura Insta: @laura.racky Laura Tiktok: @lauraracky Christian Insta: @leaderbiltacademy Christian Tiktok: @leaderbilt Leadership training and coaching: Leaderbilt.co

    32 min

  4. FEB 28

    #45 How To Leave A Job Without Burning A Bridge, 3 Marriage Agreements (Before It's Too Late), Mass Sackings in SaaS, Guilt, Loyalty, And Reputation.

    Some challenging stuff in Ep 45. Leaving a job without burning a bridge, one of the most confronting and important skills in professional life. We also talk about mass SaaS layoffs (WiseTech), tariffs, our 3 marriage agreements, guilt, loyalty, reputation, it's all there... In short: ​How to resign and move on without torching relationships.​Laura explains why leaving can feel personal, especially when you feel loyalty to leaders who invested in you, and why employment is still a transaction at the core.​We cover how to protect your reputation, work your notice properly, and leave with goodwill and clean handover notes, even if you are frustrated.​Values, parenting standards, partnership alignment, and conscious trade-offs come before any “should I take the promotion?” moment.​We close with the three agreements that changed our trajectory, truth pact, kids first, and yes to everything always. ​Also included, a short discussion on tariffs and a layoff story being linked to AI.Packed. Find us here: Instagram: @letsjuststartpodcast Tiktok: @letsjuststartpodcast Youtube: @LetsJustStartPodcast Laura Insta: @laura.racky Laura Tiktok: @lauraracky Christian Insta: @leaderbiltacademy Christian Tiktok: @leaderbilt Leadership training and coaching: Leaderbilt.co

    55 min

  5. FEB 20

    #44 NEW STUDIO, Leadership Tips For Great Doers, Fasting And Autophagy, Making Big Career Leaps, Psychological Biases, Balancing Ambition And Gratitude

    NEW STUDIO! Fun. We jump straight into three big buckets: health, developing people for 'great doers', and the psychological biases that quietly steer decisions at work. In no particular order: ​Fasting explained properly, not as a fad, but as a tool that needs context, timing, and discipline​Autophagy in plain English, why the body starts recycling damaged cells, and why inflammation can drop when you tighten the edges​The performance downside of fasting if you train hard, work hard, and run on empty without planning​Low calorie dieting and online aesthetics, why ultra thin bodies often come with a huge cognitive and lifestyle cost​New leader development, why being a great doer is not the same as being a great manager​A simple training method for small teams, pick three or four themes, do short daily reps, real scenarios​Delegation, training for the work you want to hand over, not just throwing people in• How juniors can learn faster, reduce friction and speed run development​Biases that drive workplaces, highest paid opinion wins, action versus inaction cultures, social proof, sunk cost traps, halo effect ​The ambition and contentment tension, how to enjoy the now while still chasing the next prize without guilt or manipulation Find us here: Instagram: @letsjuststartpodcast Tiktok: @letsjuststartpodcast Youtube: @LetsJustStartPodcast Laura Insta: @laura.racky Laura Tiktok: @lauraracky Christian Insta: @leaderbiltacademy Christian Tiktok: @leaderbilt Leadership training and coaching: Leaderbilt.co

    47 min

  6. FEB 15

    5 Phrases That INSTANTLY Increase Your Authority at Work + Dealing with Bully Bosses

    In the final (probably) of the summer series, this is an excerpt from episode 27 focusing on two serious situations - increasing your authority at work, and dealing with bully bosses in the workplace. The phrases that build (or weaken) authority Confidence vs arrogance in leadership communication Handling “what about” people in meetings Creating ownership instead of issuing commands Protecting yourself from toxic behaviour at work Setting boundaries without escalating conflict Planning your exit from unhealthy environments These 5 MAGICAL statements will instantly lift your authority in the room: “Here’s what I recommend.” “I’ll take responsibility for that — leave it with me.” “That’s a fair point — what do you recommend?” “Let’s focus on what we can control.” “Do you believe you can deliver X by Y date?” We then tackle a tougher reality: how to deal with an aggressive or bullying manager when you can’t just walk away. This is a grounded conversation about reality, protecting your confidence, setting boundaries, detaching from toxic behaviour, and building an exit strategy without pretending the situation is simple. If you’ve ever struggled to be heard, felt your authority slipping, or needed practical ways to navigate difficult workplace relationships, this episode gives you tools you can use immediately. Find us here: Instagram: @letsjuststartpodcast Tiktok: @letsjuststartpodcast Youtube: @LetsJustStartPodcast Laura Insta: @laura.racky Laura Tiktok: @lauraracky Christian Insta: @leaderbiltacademy Christian Tiktok: @leaderbilt Leadership training and coaching: Leaderbilt.co

    26 min

  7. FEB 8

    Radical Self-Accountability - How To Get Out Of The Matrix

    In this episode, we tackle radical self-accountability, not as self-blame, but as an approach that can totally change your life. Even when something isn’t your fault, your reaction is still your responsibility. And when something is partly your fault (choices, omissions, patterns), refusing to face it stops you from learning the lessons it offers. This is an entirely new way to view the world, and it's not for everyone. The key question when something goes wrong: “What did I contribute… and should I have seen this coming?” Why accountability isn’t self-flagellation (and why “I’m the worst” is just another escape) How “you teach people how to treat you” plays out at work, at home, and in relationships Why victimhood is seductive and how social media can reward grievance until it becomes an identity The difference between truth and toxic perfectionism: owning reality while keeping compassion Why the worst lie is the one you tell yourself and how inner/outer “misalignment” fuels anxiety The “Matrix choice”: short-term comfort vs long-term freedom Find us here: Instagram: @letsjuststartpodcast Tiktok: @letsjuststartpodcast Youtube: @LetsJustStartPodcast Laura Insta: @laura.racky Laura Tiktok: @lauraracky Christian Insta: @leaderbiltacademy Christian Tiktok: @leaderbilt Leadership training and coaching: Leaderbilt.co

    36 min

  8. FEB 1 · BONUS

    The 4 Hard Parts of Senior Leadership No One Tells You About - But We Will

    This segment from Ep 17 runs through the 4 Hard Parts Of Senior Leadership No One Tells You About. But we will. There are parts of senior leadership that almost no one prepares you for, especially once real P&L responsibility lands on your desk. In this episode, we break down four hard truths about very senior leadership that most people only learn the painful way. First: you will always regret not acting on poor performance sooner. Leaders don’t fail by being too decisive, they fail by letting underperformance drift, damaging morale and driving away their best people. Second: the higher you go, the worse the information gets. Senior leaders are forced to make consequential decisions with incomplete, imperfect, and often late data. At the top, waiting for certainty is usually more dangerous than making a call. Third: you must model the standards you expect of others. Culture is set by behaviour, not policy. If you tolerate things in yourself that you wouldn’t accept in your team, the organisation will follow your lead, whether you like it or not. Finally: if you want to keep moving up, you must aggressively succession plan. The paradox of senior leadership is that the more replaceable you are, the more valuable you become. This is a grounded, honest conversation about what leadership actually demands when the stakes are real. Find us here: Instagram: @letsjuststartpodcast Tiktok: @letsjuststartpodcast Youtube: @LetsJustStartPodcast Laura Insta: @laura.racky Laura Tiktok: @lauraracky Christian Insta: @leaderbiltacademy Christian Tiktok: @leaderbilt Leadership training and coaching: Leaderbilt.co

    7 min
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Laura Racky and Christian Cunningham talking business, growth, parenting, leadership, fashion, politics, and some occasional economics.

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