A chat with James McPherson – Rebranding Safety

James McPherson has been described as the “hip young gunslinger” of Health & Safety after launching his hugely successful Rebranding Safety podcast in December of 2018. As a podcasting contemporary, Colin is in informal mode today with James, where they discuss the impact that podcasting itself is having on safety awareness, their shared love of sport and the message and purpose that connect them. KEY TAKEAWAYS Podcasting is turning into a supremely effective way to connect with likeminded Health & Safety disruptors, and a great method of spreading awareness in a fascinating way. The skill behind being a truly great host is the ability to recognise the structure of a conversation ahead of time. It is the art of moving the conversation forward. Health & Safety is not a competition. No-one should feel that they cannot spread the word for fear of treading on someone’s toes. The more voices out there, the safer the world will be. The safety industry is unfortunately beset by a certain arrogance. There are those who feel as though they have learned all they need to know. But there is always more to know. Learning should be a continuous, evolving pursuit. Different voices provide different perspectives. The greater number of voices, the greater perspectives we will have.    BEST MOMENTS ‘If the person’s interesting, you’re never going to run out of things to ask’ ‘If we’re genuinely passionate about what we do, then we should give it away for free’ ‘If you’re doing a job that you genuinely love doing, then it’s not a job’ ‘I’ve acknowledged that I have room to grow, too’ ‘Health and safety is like chocolate biscuits' VALUABLE RESOURCES The Interesting Health And Safety Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/training-competency-creating-effective-plan-process/id1467771449?i=1000452692837  James McPherson Twitter - https://twitter.com/jamesmacpherso8?lang=en James McPherson LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jmacpherson1/?originalSubdomain=uk The Rebranding Safety Podcast - https://anchor.fm/rebrandingsafety Rebranding Safety on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeSzxgNnZ8QE0bdZRIxf8eA ABOUT THE HOST Colin Nottage ‘Making health and safety as important as everything else we do.’ This is the belief that Colin is passionate about and through his consultancy Influential Management Group (IMG) is able to spread into industry. Colin works at a strategic level with company owners and board members. He helps business leaders establish and achieve their health and safety ambitions. He has developed a number of leading competency improvement programmes that are delivered across industry and his strengths are his ability to take a practical approach to problem-solving and being able to liaise at all levels within an organisation. Colin also runs a company that vets contractors online and a network that develops and support H&S consultancies to become better businesses. Colin chairs the Construction Dust Partnership, an industry collaboration directly involving many organisations, including the Health and Safety Executive. He is a Post Graduate Tutor at Strathclyde University and a highly sought-after health and safety speaker and trainer. He has a Post Graduate Certificate in Safety and Risk management, an engineering degree and is a Chartered Member of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH).