LifeDoneDifferent.ly
by Neil Witten & Ray Richards
Do you wonder whether there’s another way? Another, more creative, more meaningful approach to living your life. Well there is and there’s a growing movement of people from all kinds of walks of life who are proving that the way we end up doing what we do in life is often a side effect of external forces. Rather than a deliberate, conscious and authentic set of choices that have come from you and your unique needs. What are you chasing? Success? Safety? Fame? Fortune? Recognition? Have you stopped to think recently why you’re doing what your doing with your life? Are the stories that you're creating today the ones that you hope your grandchildren will be telling to their children? Are you creating your legacy?
Episodes
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Brad Carter - Raver and Michelin Starred Chef. Teach Yourself.
This conversation is with the chef, raver and compulsively creative Brad Carter. Brad’s not averse to learning from others but his energy levels peak, his boat is well and truly floated, when he has a vision for something different. From winning a pizza-making competition at school through his...
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Boff Whalley from Chumbawamba - Let it Be
Welcome to our conversation with the Musician and Artist Boff Whalley. Boff was formerly the lead-guitarist of British anarchist punk band Chumbawumba. Best known for their 1997 single "Tubthumping". Boff grew up in Burnley, in a Morman family. He embraced the art and punk scenes, experimented…
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Derek Sivers - The usefulness of opposites
Derek Sivers is a man with his own mind. To describe him as a musician, circus clown, entrepreneur, programmer, author, speaker, philosopher and Dad might whet your appetite but it would only be a part of the story. Whatever Derek does, he rarely does it on auto-pilot. He has a knack for...
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Steve Chapman (@stevexoh) - exploring the counter-intuitive
This is a conversation with Steve Chapman. Steve worked for Glaxo Smith Kline for 20 years, he started packing boxes and ended up in a senior management role - and then he became an artist. It sounds like a huge dose of doing something very different but it's not quite as dramatic as that. Steve...
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A Sneak Peek of a Project Neil has been working on
Better Business On Purpose is a book that Neil has recently co-authored. It's a practical guide for leaders who want to grow profit and have a positive impact on the world. Included in the book: Examples of inspiring businesses that have embedded purpose in their DNA, and who are making it work....
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Pieter Levels - Thinking and doing for yourself
Hello and welcome to our conversation with Pieter Levels. Peter is the man behind NomadList.com, remoteOK.com, InflationChart.com, rebase.co and more. Pieter is hard to describe if you’re after an old-world description. He’s most certainly a business guy and a software developer guy but he works...
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Steph Smith - Life done differently for the risk adverse
Until she went to Sweden as part of a student exchange programme, Steph didn't really question the trajectory she was on. She was going with the flow. A spell in Sweden, a different culture with different people and in particular a different educational system woke Steph up to the idea that she…
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Rosie Sherry - Reckless Mother
Hi All - in this episode we talk to Rosie Sherry. Rosie is a self-declared introvert and community builder extraordinaire. She is best known for the Ministry of Testing, Indie Hackers, Rosie.land and RecklessMother.com Rosie builds communities and has done so for more than 15 years. It includes…
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Mills - Finding Myself
Mills founded ustwo with Sinx, his mate from school. Ustwo has become a digital product studio, a games company and an investment business. They have always worked with the biggest brands in the world. In part, Neil & I enjoyed this because Mills is from a world we understand pretty well. It’s a...
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Emile Bennett - Letting Go
Hi all - welcome to our conversation with Emile Bennett, Emile is a 37-year-old knife-maker and bladesmith but it’s taken him a while to feel comfortable with those descriptions. Previously his world was software, apps, websites and to begin with studio engineering. Originally from the UK, he now...
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Charles Wookey - Reinvent Yourself
Hi everyone. I hope you're doing okay given the circumstances. Welcome to our conversation with Charles Wookey. Charles is the CEO of A Blueprint for Better Business, a charity that helps organisations consider their social and environmental impact alongside their financial goals. This is how I...
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Junior Smart OBE - Leader - Part 2
Hello hello - welcome to Part 2 of our conversation with Junior Smart. If you haven't listened to Part 1 I suggest you do that first. Part One takes us to the point where Junior is just about to be sent to prison for what turned out to be a twelve-year sentence. This is Part 2 where Junior...
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Junior Smart - Getting comfortable with uncomfortable - Part 1
Junior Smart is a youth leader, an ex-offender, an academic and a couple of months ago he added father to this list. If you don't believe people can change, listen to this. This is a story about the power of belonging. A need we all have to belong to a group. A lesson in how we often attach...
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Matt & Lucia Long - I'm actually an opera singer
Hi everyone. Hope you're all okay, coping, surviving, learning, growing - it's hard to know what to say these days - we're all experiencing the same thing and whilst the experience is so shared sometimes . . . the more I talk to people the more I understand, at times, how very differently we're…
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Ben Ivey - When did you feel most loved?
Hi All - welcome to our conversation with Ben Ivey. Ben is a coach to Entrepreneurs but what makes Ben interesting is that he's interested in the Entrepreneur as a person, the whole person not just as a business person. He's as happy talking about love as he is margins. He wants you to live the...
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Tom Libelt - The Reluctant Adventurer
This episode is a conversation with Tom Libelt, salesman, musician and DJ, coffee shop owner, publisher and most recently digital nomad. Thank you to Tom for a thoroughly enjoyable conversation. As you've probably noticed, our title for Tom is 'The Reluctant Adventurer'. For Tom, adventure is a...
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Ray & Neil | Change Uninvited Kick-Off
The benefits of being forced to do something we said we'd never do Responding to change The difference between hearing a story and experiencing it The need for human connection The importance of humour Finding ups within the downs Can you build real relationships via technology? How we can all...
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Clare Farrell - Rebellion
She tried mainstream fashion but didn't fit in. Clare doesn't fit in - in so many ways! Clare's a rebel. She suggests that rebellion became a part of her when she moved schools and studied the same syllabus and sat the same exams two years on the trot. Clare, because she was bright got very bored...
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Katey Wiseman | Why we all need a support team
We met up a few weeks later and Katey told me more. More about: The wasted years of her life and how she started to doubt people were good Noticing she was angry with herself and everyone around her The point at which she decided not to be angry How she became braver, how she started to change…
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Damian Keyes - F**k Plan B
We have a big old natter about: Growing up in Swansea The problem of doing what you want on your wedding day - when others want you to go with the flow (one week after this conversation Damian was getting married Vegas) Moving to New York The problem of describing what he does; Musician v Builder...
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Dave Cornthwaite - Say Yes More
In this episode, we talk to Dave about: the importance of articulating a vision when you're working in a team the move from graphic designer to Adventurer the move from adventurer to community leader not wanting to wait for the bad thing to happen before making changes to his life being a…
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Kim Slade - Licking the Lid of Life
We talked to Kim about Studying the stoner's degree that is music technology Not feeling he could focus enough to become a professional singer-songwriter Swapping music tours for travelling Enjoying the creative process Going to the Happy Startup School Summercamp five years previously when first...
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Neil and Ray at the Cottage
We recorded this episode at Port Moor Cottage, a shack on stilts sitting on an island in Essex. It would be an understatement to say we've learned from our conversations with guests. They have been kind enough to share their stories of change and do so in some depth. In this wrap-up episode we…
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Mike Dicks - Who's saying you can't do what you want to do?
In this conversation we explored: Why people often apologise for the work they do The stories we tell ourselves and how they can limit our development The inevitably of the ups and downs in our lives Why he eventually got expelled from college His first job selling computers at Dixons Meeting Sir...
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Pablo Woodward - What would you do if you only had one life?
This conversation in the Bunny Bus covered many moments in the life of Pablo Woodward. This includes the arrival of his 3 children and the Disco Bunny plus: Realising he didn't have a life he'd asked for or wanted His quest to understand himself Going from not believing in himself to doing what…
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Rik Turner and Henrietta Jayden - What would you notice, if you slowed down?
We talked to Rik and Hen about the new life they've created and how. They talk to us about: The productivity benefits of slowing down The importance of taking ownership of how we spend our time The importance of understanding when working harder isn't working Financial security in the future v...
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Liam McGough - From big trees to Big Brother and back again - Part 2
These show notes are a duplicate of those found in Part 1. Our conversation with Liam covered many topics. He talked openly about: Growing up thinking he was the dumb one Failing all his GCSE's Thinking he has undiagnosed dyslexia Finding confidence in his quick-wittedness and his climbing…
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Liam McGough - From big trees to Big Brother and back again - Part 1
Our conversation with Liam covered many topics. He talked openly about: Growing up thinking he was the dumb one Failing all his GCSE's Thinking he has undiagnosed dyslexia Finding confidence in his quick-wittedness and his climbing ability Deciding to study climbing trees because he was already...
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Alastair Humphreys - Fear is an adventure
We chatted to Alastair at the British Library. He talked to us about: His natural personality of nervousness, stress and hate of late Coaxing himself to become more curious, more spontaneous, more relaxed and more adventurous Differentiate between the things where you have control and those you...
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Hamish McKenzie - How to recycle yourself out of the system
It would be fair to say Hamish is not a conventional man. Check out The Bizarre Houseboats of Britain to see what I mean. He thinks and acts differently and the effect is certainly different. In this conversation he tells us: - Why he got rid of the TV at 18 years old - Why he rescued a shapely…
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Laurence McCahill - Chipping away at the rock until the image reveals itself
Laurence and Carlos are designers of events and an online community that make entrepreneurs happy. In this conversation, Laurence talked to us about: Growing up in London pubs The family DNA of bringing people together The benefits of aligning what you think, say and do How he helps corporate...
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Bruce Daisley - How 'Cartoon Boy' finds the fast lane
We wished we'd had longer with Bruce. He's a brilliant demonstration of what you can achieve if you truly understand your strengths. He seems very able in many areas but what sets him apart is his ability to understand and therefore reach his audience. He seems to always find a way to stand out...
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Fiona Oakes - Searching for pain in pursuit of purpose
Fiona is the antidote to any 'get rich quick' or 'instagram' society. Her philosophy on life is simple; if there's a problem that needs fixing, fix it yourself. Don't talk about the problem, paper over the cracks, ask for help or look for shortcuts. Just get stuck in and learn from your…
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Oliver Dall - Wrap Up Episode
Is this a useful format? Please tell us what you think over on twitter https://twitter.com/lifedonediff
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Oliver Dall - How your weirdness can be your most valuable asset
Oliver was our first ever guest. Neil happened to go into Oliver's store and was so enamoured with both the store and proprietor, he asked if we could meet. LifeDoneDifferent.ly was born. Oliver talked to us about: Selling plums outside his parents house How school really wasn't entertaining…
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Tom Hall - A life of risk and a heart attack at the ballet
We met Tom at his very nice house in London. It's really nice! He shared his experiences in business and in life. He shared how he's changed and how his motivations have changed. What I like most about Tom is his ability to focus but never lose sight of the bigger picture including a super-skill…
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Mark Williamson - Confessions of a recovering people pleaser
We've known Mark and Action for Happiness for many years but this conversation was different. Here we learned about Mark's sometimes painful journey into the world of social entrepreneurship. It was a real pleasure to talk about: Big questions such as "What really matters in life?" What happens...
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Monty Munford - Take it to the edge or don't take it at all
"Those who tell stories rule society" so said, Plato. Monty Munford collects and tells very good stories. He doesn’t run society yet, but we’ll have more fun when he does. Monty was on the way to the pub when the lure of a few unusual beers persuaded him to join us in Ray’s cellar for a...
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Alan Phillips - When work is life
Alan says "creativity is intelligence having fun”. He balances some very rigid and carefully designed routines with architectural anarchy. He joined us in The Walrus pub where he shared his thoughts on life including: Why everything will be fine On vision as an ability to visualise and create…
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Gina Lyons - When you have nothing to lose, you have everything to gain
“I want one moment in time. When I'm more than I thought I could be”, so sang Gina Lyons and Whitney Houston every morning for two weeks as Gina’s dreamed of becoming Britain’s first reality TV appointed TV Producer. Gina met us in the Prince Albert pub to tell us what it’s like to be a rude...
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Neil and Ray - Introducing a Life Done Different.ly
We recorded this episode in Ray's cellar having just recorded the ninth episode. We provide a bit of background which explains who we are, how we met and what we're interested in. Our plan is to have this sort of conversation every 10th episode or so. We cover the ideas that: successful lives are...
About this show
Do you wonder whether there’s another way? Another, more creative, more meaningful approach to living your life. Well there is and there’s a growing movement of people from all kinds of walks of life who are proving that the way we end up doing what we do in life is often a side effect of external forces. Rather than a deliberate, conscious and authentic set of choices that have come from you and your unique needs. What are you chasing? Success? Safety? Fame? Fortune? Recognition? Have you stopped to think recently why you’re doing what your doing with your life? Are the stories that you're creating today the ones that you hope your grandchildren will be telling to their children? Are you creating your legacy?
Hosted by
Neil Witten & Ray Richards
Categories