The Decision-Making Studio Podcast

How are you? This is a question we all regularly ask and answer on a daily basis. And in doing so, we rarely, if ever, expect or deliver a genuine response. As we are finding out – this is a huge problem, particularly amongst so-called high achievers – leaders in organisations, entrepreneurs, and others. The coronavirus pandemic seems to have only exacerbated that. This is something that frustrated my guest and his collaborator so much that he decided to look deeply into it. Jonny Miller – who you will get to know in this episode – and Jan Chipchase were both frustrated at the impact that burnout was having on their peers, family, friends, and themselves. So, they set out to explore the common triggers to burnout, how extensive the problem is, and what we can do about it. They set up a survey which was completed by 261 people, a follow-up survey during the covid pandemic, interviews and a literature review. The result is the Emotional Resilience in Leadership Report, which offers a fantastic analysis of what’s happening, including the hidden stressors that can cause burnout. Jonny is the founder of Curious Humans, an independent consultancy that helps leaders ask better questions. He operates a coaching practice for founders and executives, hosts his own podcast and was one of the co-founders of Maptia. In this conversation, we cover tons of ground on emotional resilience, burnout, hidden stressors, and what we can do to prevent and combat burnout. Show notes: Emotional Resilience in Leadership Report - summary deck, full report Curious Human podcast including Breathwork episode with Edward Dangerfield Some resources on emotional resilience Jonny on Twitter Jonny’s TEDx talk “That Discomfort You’re Feeling is Grief” by Scott Berinato Internal Family Systems Escape the City Fear Setting Jane McGonigal Ep. 149 of All Things Risk with Lan and Harlan Cao _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence

This is our first-ever mother and daughter guest combination on the podcast. I am delighted to bring you this conversation with Lan Cao and her daughter Harlan Cao, co-authors of an amazing book entitled Family in Six Tones. Lan Cao is an acclaimed author who was born in Saigon, Vietnam in 1961, a turbulent time in that country’s history – which would only get more turbulent. During this time, she found solace in books and stories. In 1975, as South Vietnam fell to North Vietnam, Lan was adopted by an American officer and went to live in the United States. Her parents followed several months later. Lan began American high school and her initial time in the USA coincided with loneliness, loss of country and at times hostility. In that, she again found solace in reading. So, it is perhaps not surprising that - during and after a career in law – she became a writer. Family in Six Tones is a dual person memoir by Lan and Harlan. Harlan is 18 years old and starting university. She obviously has a very different upbringing from Lan. The contrast in cultures and personalities makes this book incredibly interesting through its interwoven chapters written by both Lan and Harlan. Lan describes struggling to find her place in the USA as a 13-year old refugee through to being a mother, and the aftermath of the Vietnam War. Harlan describes her own struggles and challenges which are different to that of her mother. In all of this, there is something quite universal that fits many of the themes of our show around dealing with uncertainty, risk and setbacks. We cover so much ground in this episode – Lan discusses her life in Vietnam, moving to the USA, geopolitics. Harlan and Lan discuss cultural differences – particularly between the individual and the collective, we focus on uncertainty, and tons more. Show notes: Family in Six Tones Lan’s website Lan on Goodreads The Tet offensive Realpolitik “Pottery Barn rule” _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence

Today, we talk about unintended consequences, which seems very appropriate for 2020. My guest is Paul Orlando. Paul is a specialist in helping startups succeed, teaches business at the University of Southern California and for the purposes of this episode, is an accomplished thinker and writer on unintended consequences or so-called “second order effects”. He runs a blog by that name and his insightful articles have appeared in a range or publications. Paul has written over 80 articles on unintended consequences that offer fascinating insights we discuss in this episode, including: Why self-checkouts create an increase in shoplifting; How AI facial recognition technology can lead to false arrests; Why eliminating disease-carrying mosquitoes is not such a good idea Paul’s work on unintended consequences is an apt reminder that for better or worse, human beings do not know how everything works, that uncertainty is an enduring aspect of our world, and that this has profound implications for the way in which we make decisions. Unintended consequences are all around us. As we understand them better and appreciate complexity and systems more, we can, as Paul puts it, thrive. Show notes: Paul’s Unintended Consequences blog; Paul on Twitter; Paul on autonomous vehicles; Paul on self checkouts; Paul on AI and false arrests; Paul on mosquitoes; The precautionary principle; Charlie Munger _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence

With the results of the US election now in and a Biden presidency forthcoming, what does it all mean? What is Trump’s legacy? What challenges does the Biden administration face? How does it deal with Covid 19? What about foreign affairs and the rest of the world? Daniel Wagner returns to the show to discuss these and related topics. Daniel’s latest book – The America-China Divide: The Race to Control the World in Amazon and in Amazon’s UK site Daniel on Twitter: https://twitter.com/countryriskmgmt Daniel’s company, Country Risk Solutions: http://countryrisksolutions.com/ Daniel’s other recent books: China Vision on Amazon’s US site China Vision on Amazon’s UK site AI Supremacy Virtual Terror _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence  

As we’ve either learned or have been reminded in 2020, the world is filled with uncertainty. Wouldn’t it be a good idea if more of us, and more of our institutions and ways of living embedded more resilience -  ways to withstand and even thrive in the midst of stressors and shocks? Has any of this been done before? Well, here’s some good news – it has, at least in a few places. One of those places is Melbourne, Australia, one of the world’s most liveable cities and a city that has received positive press coverage for the way it has handled the Covid-19 pandemic. Our guest today has had something to do with that. He has been described as “the man helping to future-proof Melbourne”. Meet Toby Kent. Toby was Melbourne’s Chief Resilience Officer, a position appointed under the Rockefeller Foundation’s Global Resilient Cities Initiative. In this role, Toby created and delivered Australia’s first urban resilience strategy, Resilient Melbourne, a collection of Melbourne’s 32 councils, State, private and non-profit organisations, And, as part of that strategy, Toby warned – back in 2015 – that a pandemic was among the 20 things that could threaten Melbourne. So, we obviously get into that and talk about some of the lessons of the Covid-19 pandemic. We also get into a number of broader areas as well including the environment, climate change, mental health, anti-fragility, and community resilience. Toby has an extensive background in sustainability and resilience and I am sure that you will enjoy this conversation. Show notes: Toby’s website Toby on Twitter Toby on LinkedIn Resilient Melbourne “ Meet the Man Helping to Future-proof Melbourne” – article in The Age Jane Jacobs The Rockefeller Foundation Deepwater Horizon Social Capital and Disaster Recovery by Daniel Aldrich Antifragile by Nassim Taleb City Limits, the Grattan Institute _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence

It has been a few weeks but we are back! Today's conversation is about purpose, loss, wellness and entrepreneurship. My guest is Chris Lampitt. Chris is a London-based entrepreneur who started his career and spent several years in the banking industry. That is, until an incident caused him to question his purpose and his physical and mental health. Since then, Chris dedicated himself to health and wellness and made a career out of this - even starting his own company called FIT20:20 last year.  If you've listened to many of our previous episodes, you know that many of our past guests have emphasised the connection between resilience, uncertainty and wellbeing. This has been brought into sharp relief since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Chris underscores this in this conversation. On top of this, Chris has recently launched an initiative that combines his passion and background to help the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK. The NHS of course been under a lot of strain because of Covid19. Chris shares this on the show as well. Show notes: Chris on LinkedIn Chris on Twitter FIT20:20 Jordan Henderson's NHS coronavirus fund Prince William's mental health documentary _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence

Today, we discuss diversity, purpose, mountains, setbacks, and success. Our guest on this episode is Saray Khumalo, the first Black African woman to have summited Mount Everest and to reach the South Pole. Saray is an award-winning mountaineer, a speaker, an entrepreneur, and a philanthropist. She is South Africa, born in Zambia and of Rwandan descent. Last year, after three previous failed attempts, Saray reached the summit of Mount Everest, to much acclaim and fanfare, including from those who likely doubted her. When you listen to her story, you realise that this achievement encompassed many highs, but also lows and setbacks – including . Mountaineering involves making decisions in an environment in which a poor decision can lead to paying the ultimate price. This is real-world risk management. Beyond this, the reality is that even in 2020, diversity in mountaineering and adventuring simply isn’t there. Many do not think about a stereotypical adventurer and envision a black woman. And that, is in many ways, why Saray does what she does. This is both an inspiring and insightful episode. Show notes: Saray’s website Saray on Twitter Saray’s successful summit of Mount Everest Saray’s South Pole expedition Saray featured by the Nelson Mandela Foundation- “Madiba exemplified” Saray’s TED talk _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence

Today, we talk cults, mind control, and Donald Trump. My guest is Steven Hassan, one of the world’s foremost authorities on cults and mind control. Steven has made this his life’s work since the 1970s when he left the cult of the Unification Church (a.k.a. “The Moonies” after its leader Sun Myung Moon). As you will hear, Steven left the cult and deconstructed how his recruitment involved the use of unethical and powerful psychological influence techniques. Since 1976, he has helped thousands of people exit destructive cults. He has written a number of books on the topic, his first entitled Combatting Cult Mind Control. In 1999, Steven founded the Freedom of Mind Resource Centre which helps rescue victims of mind control and to recover from the experience. Steven is a qualified mental health professional and has also studied neuro-linguistic programming and hypnosis. So, he knows of what he speaks. This brings us to the focus of this conversation – the current President of the United States, Donald Trump. Steven’s most recent book is called The Cult of Trump: A Leading Cult Expert Explains How the President Uses Mind Control. As you will hear, cults don’t have to be religious – they can be political, commercial (e.g. multi-level marketing schemes) or cults of personality. When Steven started looking into Trump’s behaviour – how he tries to control behaviour, information, thoughts and emotions (Steven’s BITE model of mind control), he found significant parallels between the President and cult leaders like David Koresh, Jim Jones, L. Ron Hubbard and Sun Myung Moon. The book is a fascinating and in-depth analysis of the US President and also why people who may be sane, rational and well-adjusted can be persuaded to believe outrageous ideas. We get into all of that. In addition, Steven shares expertise on how to engage with anyone who may have been under the influence of mind control as well as how to check ourselves for mind control influence.   Show notes:   Steven’s bio Steven on Twitter Freedom of Mind Resource Centre Steven’s latest book The Cult of Trump Steven’s first book Combatting Cult Mind Control The BITE model The Unification Church (“The Moonies”) Margaret Singer Robert Jay Lifton The Science of Social Influence by Anthony Pratkanis Jim Jones L. Ron Hubbard Charles Manson Malignant Narcissism Opus Dei National Prayer Breakfasts Netflix documentary “The Family” New Apostolic Reformation Norman Vincent Peale QAnon The Mueller Report The Influence Continuum _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence

Today we welcome back several-time guest and friend of the show, Daniel Wagner. As you may know, Daniel and I have been doing a series on Covid19. This time however, we talk China and specifically, the focus of Daniel’s latest book The Chinese Vortex – The Belt and Road Initiative and Its Impact on the World. As you will hear the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a set of large infrastructure projects that China has been using to extend its influence on the world. It is an extension of China’s tremendous and growing power. As you will also hear all is not as it seems with the BRI, nor is all as it was intended. In fact, the BRI is an insightful prism through which to understand not only China’s place in the world, how it views the world, but also its weaknesses. We cover a lot in this episode, including: The origins of the BRI and its objectives; So-called “debt trap diplomacy”; How BRI projects are received; China’s export of authoritarianism; China, the BRI and Covid19; How China views the upcoming US elections; Much more! Show notes: Daniel’s latest book – The Chinese Vortex – The Belt and Road Initiative and Its Impact on the World and in Amazon’s UK site Daniel on Twitter: https://twitter.com/countryriskmgmt Daniel’s company, Country Risk Solutions: http://countryrisksolutions.com/ Daniel’s other recent books: China Vision on Amazon’s US site China Vision on Amazon’s UK site AI Supremacy Virtual Terror The Belt and Road Initiative Debt trap diplomacy The string of pearls geopolitical strategy Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index Coca Codo dam in Ecuador The Malaysia 1MDB scandal DCEP, China’s digital currency China’s Social Credit System Daniel’s recent interview on RT’s Crosstalk Unrestricted warfare Pew survey on China Ep. 91 with Daniel and Keith Furst and Ep 138 Ep 132, Ep 129,  Ep 124, Ep 119 Ep 102 Ep 98  Ep 69,  Ep 57, Ep 17 and Ep 10 with Daniel Wagner _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence

Today, we have a fascinating conversation about race and popular culture, particularly around what’s happened recently in the United States following the murder of George Floyd and the protests and uprisings that have followed. As you will hear, this event follows an unfortunate pattern and history that sadly, spans decades. I wanted to explore them within some historical and cultural context. So, I invited Dr. Todd Boyd, aka “The Notorious PhD” onto the podcast – and he graciously accepted. If you are new to Dr. Boyd, he is the Katherine and Frank Price Chair for the Study of Race and Popular Culture at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Dr. Boyd is an author, media commentator, producer and scholar. The has appeared in numerous documentaries, most recently in the popular Netflix series “The Last Dance” which was about Michael Jordan’s last season with the Chicago Bulls. He wrote and produced the cult classic film “The Wood” and produced the Netflix documentary “At All Costs”. Dr. Boyd’s books include The Notorious PhD’s Guide to the Super Fly 1970s, Young, Black, Rich and Famous, The New H.N.I.C. and Am I Black Enough For You? He has written articles for the New York Times, Los Angeles Times and the Guardian, amongst others. Dr. Boyd is a pioneer. He developed a new field of study in the 1990s on Hip Hop culture. His work makes connections across sport, cinema, music, fashion, art and politics. This not just  a conversation about race in the USA – and by extension many other countries. It is also a conversation about the importance of popular culture and how culture does more than merely reflect society – it can help shape it in unseen and often uncertain ways. Show notes: Dr. Todd Boyd Dr. Boyd on Twitter Dr. Boyd on Instagram Recent piece by Dr. Boyd in the The Guardian on racism in Hollywood 1943 Detroit Race Riot 1967 Detroit Race Riot The Watts Riot / Watts Rebellion Rodney King Riot Ali – Liston II fight Yo! MTV Raps Colin Kaepernick and Roger Goodell 1968 Olympics Black Power Salute Jim Brown Craig Hodges Jackie Robinson Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf The Last Dance Isiah Thomas and the Dennis Rodman comments on Larry Bird The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975 Stokely Carmichael Angela Davis Eryka Badu _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe and/or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: http://apple.co/1PjLmK Subscribe on Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/all-things-risk/the-all-things-risk-podcast Subscribe on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ben-cattaneo Follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiskThings Drop us a note: allthingsrisk@gmail.com  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Our free course module “How to Set Up Any Decision for Success” from our upcoming course How to Make Decisions With Calm and Confidence