E58 - Guests: Lord Graham Brady, Former Chairman of the 1922 Committee

Another week and another amazing guest on Leading 4 Life "Stories.  Lord Graham Brady was MP for Altrincham & Sale West from 1997-2024, and for the last 14 of those years he was also the Chairman of the Conservative Party's 1922 Committee, which is the committee of back bench MPs that, amongst other things, is responsible for electing the leader of the party.  Graham stepped down from Parliament prior to the 2024 General Election and was subsequently ennobled as Baron Brady of Altrincham in the Government's dissolution honours list.Graham was not only the longest serving Chairman of the 1922 Committee but also the first to have to preside over leadership elections whilst the Conservative Party was in government, and it was this role that brought him much more into the public eye over recent years.We had a fascinating conversation about both the 1922 Committee itself and also the challenges of leadership in the political arena through some very turbulent times.  Graham was very candid in this interview and I very much hope you will find what he has to say as interesting as I did.Graham's autobiography, entitled "Kingmaker", will be published very shortly and, based on the insights he gave me on the podcast, I am sure it will be a fascinating read.You can find Graham here:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/graham-brady-b303645/In this episode we cover the following topics (starting time in brackets):Graham's career journey (00.02.05)Early motivations (00.03.39)The 1922 Committee (00.07.46)The challenges of chairing the 1922 Committee and working in the political arena (00.10.51)Leadership confidence votes (00.22.49)Graham's book "Kingmaker" (00.26.15)Graham's own leadership ambitions (00.29.40)The challenges for the next leader of the Conservative Party (00.34.56)Is there a need for more cross-Party consensus? (00.39.16)The appeal (or lack of it) of being a politician in today's environment (00.43.37)Role models (00.49.13)Advice to a school age Graham (00.53.05)Highs and lows: would Graham do anything differently? (00.56.12)Career high point (00.58.14)Career low point (01.00.10)The moral dilemma of changing political party (01.01.52)Work : life balance (01.04.35)Geopolitical challenges and the UK's influence in the world (01.06.56)Most memorable event! (01.10.59)Most difficult question! (01.11.29)Send me a Text MessageSupport the showJOIN THE CONVERSATIONWhat stood out for you in this episode? I would genuinely welcome your thoughts, experiences and suggestions for future programmes. Use the “Send me a Text Message” link above or leave a comment on YouTube.If you enjoyed the episode, please follow Leading 4 Life “Stories” on your podcast platform so that you receive future episodes automatically. Sharing it with someone who might find it valuable is also one of the best ways to support the show.SUPPORT LEADING 4 LIFE “STORIES”If you value the content and would like to help me continue producing the podcast, you can become a Supporter, Champion or Patron by clicking the "Support the show" link above or by going to:https://www.patreon.com/leading4life/ Any contribution is greatly appreciated, but listening, following, sharing and providing feedback are equally valuable.CONNECT WITH BOB JUDSONLinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonbob/Website:https://leading4life.co.uk/YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@Leading4LifeX:https://x.com/JudsonBob