Curiosity and Command

Ben Newton
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A guest-led podcast exploring how thoughtful people build discipline, lead themselves and others, and make sense of work, life, and growth. Curiosity and Command is a guest-led podcast about leadership, discipline, growth, and the ideas that shape how we live and work. Supported by Kaizen Summit, the show brings together founders, thinkers, operators, athletes, and high performers for honest conversations about self-leadership, resilience, philosophy, mastery, and personal development. Each episode explores how thoughtful people make decisions, build discipline, lead others, and continue to grow

  1. 3d ago

    The injury was the best thing to happen to my career | James Murphy

    James Murphy, Director of Veterans and Families Employment at the Forces Employment Charity, on an injury that changed his direction and the five-year plan that got him ready to leave. Ad: Join the Kaizen community: https://portal.kaizen-summit.com/communities/groups/kaizen-community/about?am_id=bennewton644 I earn a commission when you join through this link. Thanks for supporting us. James leads the charity's employment services department, which delivers UK-wide, tailored employment programmes for Armed Forces veterans and the families of those serving or who have previously served. In the Army he served in the infantry and then the Intelligence Corps. After leaving he was Head of Cyber Threat Intelligence at the Government Digital Service (GDS), before becoming the first CEO of TechVets and bringing it into the charity in 2020. This is a conversation about turning a setback into a new direction, planning a career change years before you need to, and leading people with humans at the centre, including in the age of AI. What's inside: how an injury on operations changed James's direction; moving from the infantry to the Intelligence Corps; asking "what more?"; why he believes in probability rather than luck; the five-year exit plan he built before leaving the Army; building a network before you need one; the veteran community that's ready to help; the value of a mentor; keeping AI human-led; why "you can't deliver an AI output without a human"; leading when you're on your own; what "you're only as strong as the weakest person" meant in the military; and balancing ambition and family life. Chapters 00:00 Cold open 00:30 Meet James Murphy 01:05 From infantry to intelligence 03:37 Leaving the Army, grabbing chances 05:05 Becoming the first CEO of TechVets 07:07 Rebuilding after the injury 11:40 Finding purpose in helping others 14:33 Setbacks and staying positive 18:12 Luck or probability? 21:17 How his identity shifted 27:19 The five-year exit plan 31:46 Looking beyond the job title 34:20 Finding a mentor 38:09 Introducing AI at work 42:57 AI for early-stage founders 43:46 Career advice in the age of AI 46:17 What human-centred leadership means 48:01 Leading after the Army 52:52 Building the right culture 55:50 Balancing ambition and family life 1:00:28 The people who shape us 1:03:47 Closing thoughts Find the Forces Employment Charity Forces Employment Charity: https://www.forcesemployment.org.uk/ Forces Employment Charity on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/forcesemploymentcharity/ Forces Employment Charity on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/forces-employment-charity/ Forces Employment Charity on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@forcesemploymentcharity The Kaizen Assessment, the two minute leadership diagnostic: https://kaizen-summit.com/assessment?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=james-murphy Brought to you by Kaizen Summit https://kaizen-summit.com

  2. Oct 23

    The answer is yes. What's the question? | Shaun Pascoe

    Shaun Pascoe, CEO of the Lest We Forget Association, on combat medicine and leading by purpose. Ad: Join the Kaizen community: https://portal.kaizen-summit.com/communities/groups/kaizen-community/about?am_id=bennewton644 I earn a commission when you join through this link. Thanks for supporting us. Shaun Pascoe flew with the Medical Emergency Response Team in Afghanistan. He set up and ran the sailing charity Turn to Starboard, set up The MERT Club and set up and ran Take Point Training, and today he leads the Lest We Forget Association, which gives veterans and serving personnel free respite stays in Falmouth and is building a farm for them in Cornwall. This is a conversation about learning at speed, building teams around a purpose and making it easy for people to ask for help. What's inside: the advances Shaun saw in combat casualty care; debriefing after every mission; the lines on the resus room floor; where the name Turn to Starboard came from; why you should stop the boat; get your ducks in the race, not in a row; social isolation and why he'd rather you just made the call; "the answer is yes, what's the question?"; and seven ex-Royal Marines who booked a stay together and worked on the farm. CHAPTERS 00:00 Cold open 00:56 Retirement's off: taking on a charity 07:24 Inside MERT in Afghanistan 11:25 Learning at speed on the front line 17:51 Every role in the system matters 21:21 How sailing started 25:18 Why "Turn to Starboard" 27:47 A boat for a pound 36:30 Ducks in the race, not in a row 40:18 How Lest We Forget began 41:18 Social isolation: just make the call 44:51 Building a farm for veterans 48:59 Learning together on the farm 51:46 Closing thoughts Find Shaun and Lest We Forget Lest We Forget Association: https://www.lestweforgetassociation.org.uk/ Free respite stays (Coastal Breaks): https://www.lestweforgetassociation.org.uk/general-1 Get in touch: https://www.lestweforgetassociation.org.uk/get-in-touch The organisations Lest We Forget supports: https://www.lestweforgetassociation.org.uk/service-support Turn to Starboard: https://www.turntostarboard.co.uk/ Shaun on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaun-pascoe-942804bb/ The Kaizen Assessment, the two minute leadership diagnostic: https://kaizen-summit.com/assessment?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=shaun-pascoe Brought to you by Kaizen Summit https://kaizen-summit.com

  3. Oct 16

    921 Miles in a Pedal Go-Kart to the Arctic Circle | Scott Butler

    Scott Butler is a firefighter who pedalled a go-kart 921 miles from the bottom of Finland to the Arctic Circle. He rowed the Black Sea alone for 29 days, and he does most of his adventures on his own. This is a conversation about solitude, fear, failure and the mark you leave. What's inside: the go-kart trip that grew from 700 to 921 miles; how he copes when seventy per cent of his adventures are solo; the moose on the track; going from overweight and shy to the fire service; the speedway crash, a plastic femoral artery and feeling basically bionic; "I'll show you"; seven days going backwards on a para anchor, and the moment he felt so vulnerable on the Black Sea; the wheelbarrow run that stopped at 300 miles and why he doesn't see it as a complete failure; living like you might not make it to work tonight; the blue plaque he'd love one day; Devon Island and a pedal-powered ocean boat. CHAPTERS 00:00 Cold open and welcome 00:57 Pedalling a go-kart across Finland 02:53 Coping alone on the road 16:58 The moose moment 22:18 Identity shifts 24:14 The speedway crash 32:48 Going backwards on the Black Sea 39:28 Failure, reframed 48:27 Scott's why and his mark 50:59 What's next: Devon Island Find Scott: Website https://www.splitlipadventures.com | Instagram https://www.instagram.com/splitlipadventures/ | YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@splitlipadventures | LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-butler-699889110 Ad: Join the Kaizen community I earn a commission when you join through this link. Thanks for supporting us. Brought to you by Kaizen Summit https://kaizen-summit.com

  4. Oct 9

    Everest from England, grief and the next 20 minutes | Mitch Hutchcraft

    Mitch Hutchcraft rowed the Atlantic, climbed Everest from England and wrote Limitless. He lost his dad at twenty and chose to carry him rather than bury him. This is a conversation about grief, anxiety, trust and getting through the next twenty minutes. What's inside: why he wanted Everest from the age of six; the year he didn't cry and the night it all came out; grief as the log that keeps you warm; proportionality (your first mile is your Everest); the twenty-minute rule that got him across the planet; the limitless loop (action builds belief, belief fuels action); anxiety, acceptance and asking for help; building a small team you can lean on; trusting too easily, and learning to respond rather than react; the Pacific row and the men's mental health initiative behind it; writing Limitless. CHAPTERS00:00 Cold open00:31 Welcome and the Everest trip01:57 Why Everest, at six years old04:42 Losing his dad08:09 Grief is the log09:14 Carry them with you14:33 Comparison and your own Everest16:26 Twenty minutes at a time21:41 Anxiety and the limitless loop24:42 Coping, acceptance, asking for help27:19 Build your small team29:38 Trusting too easily32:40 The Pacific row and the why37:08 Ask if someone is okay39:32 Writing Limitless43:50 How to follow Mitch Find Mitch: Instagram https://www.instagram.com/_mitchhutch/ | YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@mitch_hutch | Limitless on Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=Limitless+Mitch+Hutchcraft If you are struggling, Samaritans are available 24 hours a day on 116 123. Veterans can contact NHS Op COURAGE. Brought to you by Kaizen Summit https://kaizen-summit.com

  5. Oct 2

    Matthew Addison-Black: The Mask of Leadership | Curiosity & Command

    Matthew Addison-Black spent his early career wearing a mask of leadership, copying the scripts he'd seen other people use instead of being himself. He tells Ben what it took to take it off, and why leadership is about behaviour rather than traits, which means anyone can learn it. In this episode: - The mask of leadership, and the 18 months of work it took to see it - Why leadership is behaviour, not traits - Leadership and management: why they belong together - "The standard you walk past is the standard you accept" - Celebrating your wins before the treadmill burns you out - Identity after the Army, and why you're not the same person you were five years ago - AI, critical thinking and the art of asking a good question - The curse of competence, and why you will never be finished Matthew is an executive coach (PCC), keynote speaker and Associate Professor at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, and is doing a PhD on identity. Watch the full conversation and subscribe for new episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvo4QMZvsPIAus6zB7vyr5g?sub_confirmation=1 Kaizen Summit: https://kaizen-summit.com Follow Matthew: https://www.veritashighperformance.com · https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewaddisonblack/ If you need someone to talk to, Samaritans is available free on 116 123, day or night: https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/ Chapters 0:00 Cold open 0:52 Introduction: from the rugby pitch to the Gurkhas 4:08 Unmasking, and early mistakes as a young officer 10:52 Self-talk and learning to trust your judgement 14:28 Leadership and management 16:47 Mentors and celebrating your wins 20:53 Chemotherapy, remission and "Little Matthew" 25:27 Looking back on military service and rites of passage 32:04 Why psychology: the Master's and the PhD 36:24 PhD research: adverse childhood experience and identity fusion 39:37 Identity, vulnerability and courage 43:49 Values, hindsight and advice to a younger self 46:40 AI, critical thinking and staying human 51:10 AI's wider impact: creativity, VR, deepfakes and conflict 1:02:11 Arrogance, the curse of competence and "never finished" 1:06:29 Closing Ad: Join the Kaizen community I earn a commission when you join through this link. Thanks for supporting us.

    Matthew Addison-Black: The Mask of Leadership | Curiosity & Command

  6. Sep 25

    Mark Ormrod MBE: Be the Guy That Doesn't Stop

    Mark Ormrod MBE never got promoted in the military, lost three limbs, and has gone on to build multiple businesses alongside a speaking career that takes him around the world. He tells Ben why you don't have to be the fittest, fastest or smartest; you just have to be the one who doesn't stop. In this episode: Why he took on a new business, Kaizen Summit, on top of speaking, property and film projectsImposter syndrome: why he still feels it, and why he hires people smarter than himMoney lessons: back taxes after leaving the military, compound interest and protecting what you buildKnowing your value, and turning down money that comes the wrong wayRelationships over transactions, and why he stopped seeing networking as a waste of timeMilitary lessons, and the lost fight that taught him to keep goingWatch the full conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/r20w7C0Nr40 Kaizen Summit: https://kaizen-summit.com Follow Mark: Instagram @markormrod · https://www.markormrod.com Ad: Join the Kaizen community I earn a commission when you join through this link. Thanks for supporting us. Intro music: Riverside ready-made, businessTech · intro · Low (Short)

  7. Sep 18

    Combat medic to physio: the barrier he had to take apart | Chris Stokes

    Chris Stokes spent years as a military medic, including close support in Afghanistan, where he learned to build a barrier between himself and the people in front of him. He tells Ben Newton he would picture them as a block of wood so he could keep working. Then he retrained as a physiotherapist and had to take that barrier apart. This episode covers what that actually took, and a lot of practical ground alongside it. Chris explains why he named his practice Return Physiotherapy, and why he would rather patients returned to the things they love than kept returning to him. He walks the NHS and private pathways side by side for someone with a torn ACL, from the acute knee clinic and the scan wait through to criteria-led rehab where nobody runs before twelve weeks. He makes the case that someone who has paid for treatment turns up differently from someone who has not. And he spends a long stretch on something most clinicians skip: how information actually lands on a frightened person, from scan results patients can now read themselves to jargon like NAD that means good news and sounds like bad. There is also an argument here about strength training that goes well beyond athletes, and a case for referring people out to chiropractors, sports therapists and psychologists rather than holding on to them. CHAPTERS 00:00 Arthritis, a 5K and a block of wood 01:20 Return to play, for your nan 03:04 The patient needs skin in the game 06:08 Should you go private? Yes and no 09:53 Not everyone thinks the way I do 13:02 What bone on bone actually means 14:42 The barrier he had to break down 20:15 Your scan says NAD. What now? 23:11 A torn ACL on the NHS, and the 98% 26:27 No running for 12 weeks, and why 36:15 Strength is never a weakness 41:28 Chiropractors, and the health tribe 46:46 Where to book, and the six month plan ABOUT THE GUEST Chris Stokes is an emergency care practitioner and a specialist musculoskeletal physiotherapist, and the founder of Return Physiotherapy. He came to the profession after a military career, went to university at 29, and has since worked across the NHS, private practice and professional sport. Chris on Instagram: instagram.com/return_physiotherapy ABOUT THE SHOW Curiosity & Command is a leadership podcast hosted by Ben Newton, supported by Kaizen Summit. Conversations with people worth listening to about how they lead, what it cost them, and what they would do differently. All episodes on YouTube: youtube.com/@Ben.Newton.Kaizen This conversation is general discussion and personal experience. It is not individual medical advice. Speak to your own clinician about your own injury. Ad: Join the Kaizen community I earn a commission when you join through this link. Thanks for supporting us.

  8. Sep 11

    I Get Anxiety More Than Most | Chris Binch, The Old Paratrooper Podcast

    Ex Para, Iraq close protection, anti piracy, twelve years a firefighter. Chris Binch on the fear that never left, and what he does with it. Chris Binch served in the Parachute Regiment, worked close protection in Iraq, spent three years protecting ships from piracy and then twelve years in the fire service. He now hosts The Old Paratrooper Podcast, which he started after losing friends and colleagues to mental health struggles. In this conversation he is honest about the gap between how he comes across and how he feels. He gets anxiety before every episode, every event and every hard thing he does, to the point he describes as crippling, and he goes anyway. He talks about the one time the anxious voice won and what it cost him. He explains why he is calm at two in the morning walking into a house fire and overwhelmed by an ordinary list of tasks, and what that says about training, process and how his brain works. He is open about being part way through an ADHD assessment and about why he does not want it as a label. And he explains why he said yes to a 50K mountain ultramarathon in Albania with a bad hip and no training, days after this recording. The through line is leadership of yourself: acting with the fear still there, reading the useful warning from the noise, managing yourself before there is a problem, and owning the mistakes that shaped you. New conversation every Friday. Follow so you don't miss the next one. Chris also talks about testosterone replacement. He mentions a clinic that is providing his treatment in return for promotion. That clinic is not named and is not endorsed by this podcast. Nothing here is medical advice. Chapters 0:00 Cold open 1:04 Welcome 3:44 The mistakes that shaped him 7:45 Why he started The Old Paratrooper Podcast 15:38 What the podcast gives him, and the anxiety behind the confidence 20:05 Acting with the fear still there 23:45 The one time the inner voice won 28:45 A life of service 32:55 Calm on the fire engine, overwhelmed by the admin 37:00 ADHD and understanding how his brain works 53:35 Managing yourself before there is a problem 56:05 Health, TRT and longevity (promotional arrangement, see the note above) 1:06:35 Albania: a 50K ultra with a bad hip 1:12:40 Be kind Find Chris The Old Paratrooper Podcast: https://theoldpara.co.uk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theoldparatrooperpodcast YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@theoldparatrooperpodcast Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4jm3x1EoBBcPqQUXTwD1xc LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-binch-4a660959 Curiosity and Command is hosted by Ben Newton and supported by Kaizen Summit. Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/DP55Ut3IxI4 Kaizen Summit: https://kaizen-summit.com This episode talks about mental health and about veterans who have died by suicide. If you are struggling, Samaritans are on 116 123, free, any time. Veterans and their families can also contact NHS Op COURAGE. Ad: Join the Kaizen community I earn a commission when you join through this link. Thanks for supporting us.

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About

A guest-led podcast exploring how thoughtful people build discipline, lead themselves and others, and make sense of work, life, and growth. Curiosity and Command is a guest-led podcast about leadership, discipline, growth, and the ideas that shape how we live and work. Supported by Kaizen Summit, the show brings together founders, thinkers, operators, athletes, and high performers for honest conversations about self-leadership, resilience, philosophy, mastery, and personal development. Each episode explores how thoughtful people make decisions, build discipline, lead others, and continue to grow

Information

  • Creator
    Ben Newton
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    28
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Ben Newton
  • Show Website
    Curiosity and Command