Present & Promoted

Bandz

For the high-achieving father who is winning at work but losing the moments that matter. Host Bandz sits down with executives, entrepreneurs, founders, and senior leaders for honest conversations about what it actually takes to lead powerfully at work without losing yourself at home. The mental load. The ambition. The guilt. And the path through. Not work-life balance. Integration. Identity. Presence. New episodes every Tuesday.

Episodes

  1. 6d ago

    Ep 7: Una Van Staden — Own the Morning

    “15 minutes without a phone is much better than two hours of a dad who’s not present.” Most parents think there are only two options for a child’s sleep: sleep training or doing nothing at all. My guest today offers families a third option. Una Van Staden is the owner of Pikanini Baby Academy. She is not only a sleep consultant. Her work leans into early childhood development, play therapy and social work, so she looks at the whole family system, not just sleep in isolation. She spends time in the homes of high-achieving fathers and has seen what late arrivals, disrupted sleep and carried stress do to a child who does not have the words to explain it. She has helped me in my own home, and what she has done has changed our lives. This one is for the father who walks in at 9pm and wonders if the kiss goodnight is worth it. In this episode: ​Why, according to Una, “keep them up later so they sleep later” backfires​The clock, the bedroom and the team dynamic: the three things she checks first​Why she says not to wake a sleeping child for a kiss goodnight: “it’s like setting off a little smoke alarm”​What to do when you get home at 8 or 9pm, and why “own the morning” changes everything​The emotional temperature of your home, and the work clothes rule​Shorts and a T-shirt on the floor, and the voice recording for when you travel​Quality over quantity, and why rewards should be an experience with a parent, not a toy​What good enough looks like when you cannot fix bedtime every night A note: this episode is general information, not medical advice. If your child’s sleep is a real struggle, please speak to your paediatrician or a qualified sleep consultant. If this landed, send it to one father who needs it this week. The Present Dad Playbook, free at presentandpromoted.com. Link in show notes. Because you don’t have to choose between the boardroom and bedtime. Host: Bandz New episodes every Tuesday. Chapters 00:00 Don’t Wake Sleeping Kids 00:47 Meet the Sleep Coach 03:46 Her Wake Up Call 05:15 Holistic Sleep Assessment 07:29 Consistency and Teamwork 10:42 Myths About Bedtime 13:09 Own the Morning 19:01 Weekends Without Chaos 22:50 How Stress Affects Kids 26:02 Commutes, Travel and Connection 29:12 Quality Over Quantity 30:06 Reward Charts That Work 32:44 Experiences, Not Toys 33:46 Dads in the Evening Routine 35:39 Rethinking Bath, Bottle, Bed 38:26 Good Enough Dad Basics 40:54 Safe Sleep and Flexibility 43:45 Lightning Round Stories 50:48 Parting Message on Connection 54:37 Closing Reflections #WorkingDad #PresentFatherhood #ExecutiveDad #Fatherhood #Leadership #PresentAndPromoted

  2. Oct 20

    Ep 6: Puso Thahane — I Want My Kids to Miss Me

    "In a weird way, I want my kids to miss me. It means that when I am here, I am present." Puso Thahane is a Partner at BCG, a father of three, and a friend of mine since we were teenagers. He and his wife both work at partner level. In this conversation he says out loud what most high achieving fathers only think: that going after a demanding career is not the opposite of being a good dad, and that he has not figured it all out. A note before you press play. The recording of this conversation was corrupted and part of it is lost. I recovered what I could, and in a few places I step in to tell you what I asked. It is unpolished and honest, which is how this show runs. In this episode: ​Why he would be a lesser version of himself if he stopped chasing what gives him energy and purpose​The cots, the car seats and the pram: what changes between two kids and three​The au pair, the KPIs, and the school run that broke the system​Bath time, "work holidays", and what his children say when he travels​How he tells his kids he is leaving, so it is never a surprise​When both of you are in a tough season, and the "smell in the room" rule​His advice for any father weighing a promotion: do the same at home If this landed, send it to one father who needs it this week. If you want the full system, I wrote it up. It is called The Present Dad Playbook, and it is free at presentandpromoted.com. Because you don't have to choose between the boardroom and bedtime. New episodes every Tuesday. Chapters 00:00 Kids Should Miss You 00:45 Lost Audio Disclaimer 01:33 Meet Puso Thahane 02:55 How Are You Really 04:50 Ambition Versus Selfishness 07:38 Third Child Shock 08:42 Outsourcing the School Run 10:55 When Kids Call You Out 15:57 Talking About Travel 20:11 Two Careers One Home 26:29 Rapid Fire Closing 29:25 Advice For Guilty Dads 32:52 Final Thanks And Outro

  3. Oct 13

    Ep 5: The Decompression Switch — My First Solo Episode

    Work is Dada’s home. He was three when he said it. Three interviews in, I kept hearing the same thing from three different angles — and it forced me to build something I had not shared before, not even with my wife. In this first solo episode, I break down the ritual I now use every single day: The Decompression Switch. Three deliberate moments inside the commute. ​Switch One: The 10 seconds before I pull off in the morning that decides the whole day​Switch Two: Why I sit in the basement parking and welcome the worst day before walking into the office​Switch Three: The 2 minutes in the driveway most fathers skip — the moment you stop being who work made you and start being Dada It is small. It is also the most honest thing I have said on this show so far. If you want the full system, I wrote it up. Five strategies in total. It is called The Present Dad Playbook — free at: presentandpromoted.com. Because you don’t have to choose between the boardroom and bedtime. Host: Bandz New episodes every Tuesday. Chapters: 00:00 Work Is Dada’s Home 00:48 Why This Show Exists 01:29 First Solo Episode — Why Now 02:03 The Pattern Across Three Guests 02:27 Anchors and Switching On 03:13 Be Fully With Kids 04:27 Legacy and Presence 05:23 The Decompression Switch 06:30 Switch One — Morning Intent08:07 Switch Two — Welcome the Worst Day 09:01 Switch Three — Commute Home 10:31 The Two Minutes Before Dad Mode 11:14 The Present Dad Playbook 11:56 Closing #WorkingDad #PresentFatherhood #ExecutiveDad #Fatherhood #Leadership #MentalFitness

  4. Oct 6

    Ep 4: Christian Trumpelmann — Presents, Not Presence

    He was COO of a JSE-listed company. Board member. Running operations across Sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius. Two weeks on the road every month. By every metric, he'd made it. Then his wife asked him one question: "Do you want to be a weekend dad, or are we going to stay a family?" Christian Trumpelmann talks about golden handcuffs, the drive between Margate and Ladysmith where he had to pull over and cry, and coming home to kids who only asked him one thing: "What did you bring me?" He thought buying presents at the airport meant he was a good dad. He wasn't present. A conversation about what it costs to be gone two weeks a month, and what it actually takes to come back. In this episode: 00:00 Presents Not Presence 00:42 Meet Christian's Story 02:17 Chasing Success Early 03:31 Bank Account Benchmark 05:21 Golden Handcuffs Life 07:43 Weekend Dad Ultimatum 08:55 Kids Feel The Absence 12:01 Crying On The Road 17:35 Redefining Identity 21:39 Home Transition Reality 26:11 Missing Corporate Thrill 28:35 Showing Up For Reuben 32:48 Reuben Beyond Cricket 33:45 Identity After Sport 34:59 Commitment Versus Selling Out 35:41 Marriage, Time And Space 37:27 Kayla And Family Dynamics 39:42 When Relationships Dip 41:18 Legacy And Interdependence 43:47 Advice For Golden Handcuffs 46:40 Reflection, Triggers And Mentors 50:04 Corporate Regrets And People 52:47 Lightning Round Lessons 57:43 When It's Not Too Late 01:03:32 Final Warning On Identity Host: Bandz Guest: Christiaan Trumpelmann New episodes every Tuesday. #WorkingDad #CorporateDad #WorkLifeIntegration #ExecutiveFatherhood #MentalHealth #Leadership #PresentAndPromoted

  5. Sep 29

    Ep 3: Simbah Mutasa — Dad Was There: Leading Africa While Raising Four

    Simbah Mutasa grew up in Zimbabwe, where his parents still live. Two decades and several continents later, he leads Investment Banking across Africa for one of the world's largest banks. Home is now South Africa, where he and his wife are raising four children, the youngest a new arrival. This conversation sits inside our Work Life Integration pillar, what we call The Integrated Man. Not the idea of balance, which suggests two things constantly fighting for the same hours, but integration, where ambition and family are built to move together rather than compete. Simbah is a man with a genuinely global footprint. Different countries, different systems, a career that keeps stretching. And still, a Tuesday night routine that holds. A hidden support system most people never see behind a title like his. A father who talks openly about what changes the moment you go from three children to four, and what it actually takes to keep choosing presence when the career keeps asking for more. We talk about home and what it means when your work and your childhood both span borders. We talk about switching off. We talk about letting go, and what turning 40 rearranged for him. And we talk about legacy, in the plainest terms a man can offer it. If you're building something big while trying to stay close to the people who matter most, this one is for you. Chapters 00:00 Dad Was There 00:32 Meet Simba Mutasa 02:26 Growing Up In Zimbabwe 03:57 Ambition And Values 05:28 When Fatherhood Began 06:47 Career Versus Family 07:58 Defining Home 10:25 A Tuesday Night Routine 13:00 Switching Off From Work 14:59 The Hidden Support System 23:10 Four Kids Changes Everything 25:57 Learning To Let Go 27:22 Letting Go Mindset 28:53 Turning 40 New Priorities 30:25 Family First Output Season 31:40 Raising Good Humans 33:42 The Trap Of Everything 38:56 Consulting Elders For Wisdom 42:44 Legacy Dad Was There 45:03 Ego Chaos And Promotions 49:42 Travel Costs And Tradeoffs 50:35 Lightning Round Reflections 53:05 Run Your Own Race 53:52 Final Takeaways And Outro Podcasts. New episodes every Tuesday.

  6. Sep 22

    Ep 2: Jacques Van Niekerk — What If There's No Later?

    A cross border tax and fiduciary advisor who has spent fifteen years watching what happens when fathers run out of time. Jacques Van Niekerk joins Present and Promoted to talk legacy, presence, and the cost of postponing the things that matter. He has sat across from a client whose only answer to "what's out of reach" was time. He does not deal in theory. He deals in what actually happens when a father tells himself he will get to it later. Jacques is also a father of two young children who comes home from those conversations and gets on the floor with his kids. We talk about consistency over quantity, the difference between structures and values, why bringing your family into the room matters more than any trust document, and a promise he made to his newborn daughter in a Sunninghill hospital bed that changed how he defines legacy. If you keep telling yourself you will get to the important things when things slow down, this one is for you. Because you don't have to choose between the boardroom and bedtime.

  7. Sep 15

    Ep 1: Work Is Dada's Home

    My three year old said four words to me that I have not stopped thinking about since. No anger behind them, just what he saw. This first episode is me sitting with that moment, and why it became the reason this whole show exists. I get into my own father, a paint factory HR director who never brought work home the way I do, and why presence looked so different a generation ago. I talk about the tips and strategies show I almost built, and why I killed it before it started. And I get into the conversation men my age never actually have, not at birthday parties, not at school drop off, the one our wives and partners have always had a tribe for. This is Present & Promoted. Because you don't have to choose between the boardroom and bedtime. New episodes every Tuesday.

  8. Trailer

    Trailer — Present & Promoted

    10 months ago, my youngest son looked at me and said four words I haven't stopped thinking about since. "Work is Dada's home." He wasn't angry. He was four years old. He was just telling me what he saw. That sentence is why this show exists. Present & Promoted is a podcast for high-achieving fathers who are done choosing between the boardroom and bedtime. Every week I sit down with executives, founders and senior leaders for honest, unfiltered conversations about what it actually takes to lead powerfully at work without losing yourself at home. We cover the mental load nobody talks about at the office. The difference between being in the room and actually being present. Permission to want more professionally without guilt. And the bigger question underneath all of it — what kind of man do you actually want to be remembered as. My name is Bandz. I'm a founder, a banker, and a father of two based in Johannesburg, South Africa. New episodes every Tuesday. Subscribe now so you don't miss the first guest dropping 22 September 2026. If this landed for you — share it with a dad who needs to hear he's not alone.

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    7 Episodes

Trailer

Ratings & Reviews

About

For the high-achieving father who is winning at work but losing the moments that matter. Host Bandz sits down with executives, entrepreneurs, founders, and senior leaders for honest conversations about what it actually takes to lead powerfully at work without losing yourself at home. The mental load. The ambition. The guilt. And the path through. Not work-life balance. Integration. Identity. Presence. New episodes every Tuesday.

Information

  • Creator
    Bandz
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    8
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Bandz
  • Show Website
    Present & Promoted

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