Cloutology

Solomon B Taiwo, actor

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Thu, 04 Jul 2019 10:10:34 +0000

Solomon B Taiwo grew up in East London on the same street as rap star Dizzie Rascal and with the same passion for music, but at the age of 19 he discovered acting and that became his ambition. His father didn’t approve, they fell out and Solomon ended up homeless. This is the story of how he rebuilt his life and his relationship with his father without compromising on his dream…

Prof. Kristofer Helgen, Zoologist and Explorer

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 14 Jun 2019 10:27:18 +0000

Professor Kristofer Helgen is a zoologist renowned for his daring expeditions to far flung corners of the globe where he has found dozens of previously undiscovered species of mammal. When he’s not on out in the field, he’s looking for clues for his next adventure in the backrooms of world museums. I found him in a dusty space full of animal skeletons deep in the bowls of London’s famous Natural History Museum…

Noëlla Coursaris Musunka, model and advocate

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 24 May 2019 08:34:27 +0000

Noëlla Coursaris Musunka was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo but sent to live in Europe with relatives when her father died and mother could no longer afford to keep her. She was forced to work long hours as a domestic worker whilst trying to study but got a break when she won a competition to model for the high-end lingerie brand Agent Provocateur. She now works between London and New York appearing in the likes of Vogue and Vanity Fair. She spends as much time as possible back in Congo where she set up a school for girls and supports the surrounding village. Noëlla has appeared on stage many times alongside speakers like former US President Bill Clinton to advocate for African youth.

Ian Marber, nutritionist

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 26 Apr 2019 10:15:02 +0000

Ian Marber was in his twenties and working in property investment when he was diagnosed with coeliac disease. He became so interested with his diet, that he decided to resign and use his savings to study nutrition full-time. He went on to set up The Food Doctor consultancy which he has since sold. Ian still advises individual and corporate clients but is best known for his television appearances, newspaper columns and bestselling books…

Sarah Willingham, investor

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 05 Apr 2019 09:54:02 +0000

Sarah Willingham started working in a restaurant in northern England in her early teens and by her early 20s, she was managing one of the busiest eateries in Paris. She later moved to London, secured a senior management position at a leading British chain before deciding to break out on her own.

Sarah now invests in a wide range of businesses and has been repeatedly cited as one of the UK’s most influential business leaders. She’s best known perhaps as a judge on the hit TV show Dragons Den.

Money doesn’t drive Sarah but freedom does…

Tom Kerss, astronomer

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 12:51:36 +0000

Tom Kerss is an astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich in London – founded in 1675, its one of the most important scientific sites in the world. Tom has also authored books including Moongazing: Beginner’s Guide to Exploring the Moon. If space is his his passion then failing to communicate that is his fear.

Sir Geoffrey Kent, travel agent

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 15 Mar 2019 06:53:35 +0000

Sir Geoffrey Kent is founder of the award-winning luxury tour operator Abercrombie & Kent and he’s credited with inventing the experiential holiday. He has hosted everyone on his legendary African safaris from David Rockerfeller to Richard Burton and Prince Harry, each guest adding to his extraordinary bank of wild tales from every corner of the globe. Sir Geoffrey was brought up in the African bush himself and was trained at the Royal Military Academy in England but he has an old Land Rover and a few old notes of cash to thank for the towering empire that he eventually built…

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn or:

Prof. Linda Yueh, academic and journalist

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 08 Mar 2019 14:27:06 +0000

Linda Yueh is a Fellow in Economics Oxford University, a Professor at the London Business School and visiting Professor at Peking University. She’s advised the World Bank, European Commission, Asian Development Bank, World Economic Forum in Davos and held non-executive directorships at several major companies. She’s also a widely published author who’s had her own TV shows at Bloomberg and the BBC. With so many different roles, how does she describe herself?

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Stitcher, Lisbyn, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Mark Wright, digital entrepreneur

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 01 Mar 2019 08:43:49 +0000

Mark Wright is an award-winning entrepreneur and self-taught digital marketing specialist. He made his name winning The Apprentice TV show in the UK and he now runs several successful businesses. He made the Forbes 30 under 30 list for Europe in 2017, was named Entrepreneur of the Year at the 2018 UK Business Awards and it all started when he arrived in London as a backpacker from Australia.

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Levison Wood, explorer

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 15 Feb 2019 09:46:54 +0000

Levison Wood is a soldier-turned-explorer, best-selling author, photographer and documentary film-maker. In 2014, he completed a nine-month expedition along the length of the Nile and followed up with an even more ambitious trek along the Himalayas from Afghanistan to Bhutan and then a 5,000 mile circumnavigation of the Arabian peninsula from Iraq to Lebanon. Previously, Levison served as an Officer in the British Parachute Regiment and saw combat against the Taliban in Afghanistan, 2008. It may not surprise you to hear his fear is being stuck behind a desk.

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Njoki Njehu, activist

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Sun, 03 Feb 2019 10:56:15 +0000

Activist, educator and feminist: Njoki Njehu is co-founder of Daughters of Mumbi Global Resource Center, the coordinator of the Fight Inequality Alliance and has worked with many of the world’s leading NGOs. She has testified three times before the U.S. Congress on debt, HIV/AIDS and other crises facing Africa.

She’s based in Nairobi, Kenya where she was brought up by a mother who farmed and father who bought and sold cars. Her local church awarded her with a scholarship to study in the United States, kick-starting her career. She has been profiled and quoted in media ranging from the New York Times and Washington Post to the Financial Times and Sankei Shimbun. She is a highly sought after speaker.

Hear, Njoki tells Max that her fear is failing to build on the progress made by the campaigners who went before her, most notably her mother.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Stig Abell, editor and publisher

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 18 Jan 2019 15:40:46 +0000

Stig Abell is the editor and publisher of the esteemed Times Literary Supplement. He presents Front Row, an arts magazine show on equally esteemed Radio 4 and pops up as a commentator in the British and US media. Upon graduating from Cambridge University, he enjoyed a meteoric rise through the media industry to become Director of the Press Complaints Commission in his early twenties and Managing Editor of The Sun newspaper in his early 30s. His ambitious and well-received book How Britain Really Works examines exactly what the title suggests.

Hear his unique take on how to succeed on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Michael Howard, company chairman

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 11 Jan 2019 14:56:48 +0000

Michael Howard was born in 1960s London and brought up largely by a single mother who struggled to make ends meet. At 17, he was left to fend for himself, juggling several low-paid jobs just to cover his room and board. Then he got a break selling office furniture and he slowly worked his way up through the business until he was in a position to buy it. Maris Interiors now designs and fits out office spaces throughout London and has a turnover of around 100 million pounds a year. Max Foster sat down with Michael in the office he occupies in the shadows of the Shard building to hear his incredible rags to riches story.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Rachel Shabi, journalist and media trainer

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 04 Jan 2019 12:37:37 +0000

Rachel Shabi is a left-leaning British journalist best known for her work with the Guardian newspaper, previously as Middle East correspondent and now as a commentator on British society and politics. She appears regularly on television as a commentator on Middle-Eastern and British affairs and trains people from a diverse range of backgrounds on how to make the break in to TV. In her critically acclaimed book ‘Not the Enemy,’ Rachel tracks the history of Mizrahi Jews in Israel,and here she describes herself to Max Foster as a migrant driven to succeed by her outsider status.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Stitcher, Lisbyn, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Liam Halligan, journalist

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Sat, 15 Dec 2018 12:13:55 +0000

Liam Halligan is an economist, author and broadcaster, best known for his award winning ‘Economics Agenda’ column in The Sunday Telegraph. He’s also reported for the Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, Economist, Channel 4 News and he’s a regular panelist on my show CNN Talk. A vocal Brexiteer, he argues the UK economy is stronger outside the European Union and outlines his thinking in the book ‘Clean Brexit.’

Between 2007 and 2013, Liam took time out of journalism as chief economist at a multi-billion dollar asset management firm, then returned to his original passion of writing. He was the first member of his family to attend university and here he describes to Max his rise from humble beginnings to the heights of the commentariat.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Stitcher, Lisbyn, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Professor Kate Williams, academic and author

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 30 Nov 2018 15:29:58 +0000

Professor Kate Williams is a historian and author of several award-winning, bestselling books including Queen Victoria and Josephine Bonaparte biographies and the novel Storms of War. Her work has been adapted for stage and screen and she often appears on television in her own right as an expert and panelist on a wide range of factual and entertainment shows. Here she speaks to Max Foster about what she’s learnt about royalty, power and the benefits of embracing your fears.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Ayesha Hazarika, comedian & commentator

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 23 Nov 2018 14:28:23 +0000

Ayesha Hazarika is a columnist, author, political commentator, stand-up comedian and Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, which is an honour bestowed by The Queen. Previously, she was a Labour Party special advisor to the likes of Gordon Brown when he was Prime Minister and Ed Miliband, as Leader of the Official Opposition. She has also advised business leaders in the music industry and other sectors.

Here, she speaks to Max about what she’s learned about achieving success in her own right after spending so many years coaching others. Her fear is of losing what’s she has built up for herself…

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

James Murray, entrepreneur

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 09 Nov 2018 07:36:32 +0000

If James Murray was from the US, he would epitomise the American dream. He’s British however, which makes his rise to success even more remarkable. The UK culture isn’t steeped in entrepreneurialism and risk-taking and was even less so in the 1990s when James was starting out.

Dyslexic, he left school with few qualifications and moved to London to find work whilst his counterparts went off to university. After failing as a delivery driver, he found his feet as a telecoms salesmen and then set up Alternative Networks with a friend in 1994. They each invested £5,000 in the new venture. 22 years later, they sold for £184,000,000.

James now mentors young entrepreneurs. Here’s his story.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Brian Klaas, academic

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 02 Nov 2018 09:34:58 +0000

Dr. Brian Klaas is an Assistant Professor in Global Politics at University College London. He’s also a columnist for The Washington Post, an author and regulator media contributor - usually on the subject of Donald Trump’s presidency.

Apart from US politics and democracy, he specialises in authoritarian leadership and he brings those topics together in a series of books including "The Despot's Apprentice: Donald Trump's Attack on Democracy" and ’How to Rig an Election."

He first gained public attention on Twitter for his posts that aim to debunk what he sees as false statements made by the President.

Here he talks to Max about the good, the bad and the ugly of politics, social media and the dictators and terrorists he’s spent time with.

Fear is something he both studies and is driven by.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Lucy Beresford, psychotherapist

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 26 Oct 2018 11:40:11 +0000

Lucy Beresford is an investment banker turned author, psychotherapist and media ‘agony aunt.’ She appears regularly on ITV, LBC and the BBC. The Huffington Post describes her as a ‘Sex & Relationships Guru’ but she also offers commentary on the public response to national disasters such as terror attacks. At her private practice in London, Lucy counsels high-profile people on dealing with fame, addiction and associated anxieties.

Here, she describes to Max what she’s learnt about success from her deep insight in to people’s characters and how she’s personally driven by the fear of appearing lazy.

Listen Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Dharshini David, economist

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Thu, 18 Oct 2018 13:23:55 +0000

Dharshini David is an economist, broadcaster, writer, speaker, business advisor and self-confessed nerd. She has reported and presented for flagship TV news shows in the UK including the BBC’s Today programme on Radio 4. She has advised investment banks, government agencies and the supermarket chain Tesco. Her bestselling book, ‘The Almighty Dollar’ cuts through the jargon to make sense of the economic foundations that underpin the modern world.

Here, she talks to Max about fears for her reputation and using what makes her different to her advantage.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Nina Schick, political advisor

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Thu, 11 Oct 2018 14:24:05 +0000

Nina Schick is a political researcher, advisor and commentator with Rasmussen Global. She was brought up in Nepal but lives in London where she worked on the UK's 2016 EU Referendum. She also advised on Emmanuel Macron's successful bid to become French President in 2017.

In this fascinating discussion, she reveals her fear of losing control of her destiny.

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher or here:

Bonnie Greer, playwright

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Thu, 04 Oct 2018 12:27:34 +0000

Bonnie Greer is an American-British playwright, novelist and critic, known for Siren Spirits (1995), White Men Are Cracking Up (1996) and Horizon (1964). She’s a Verity Bargate Award winner, was named as one of the 300 Public Intellectuals in the UK by the Observer in 2010 and appointed as an officer of the British Empire by The Queen.

She has served as deputy chair of the British Museum and on the boards of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, London Film School and Theatre Royal. She was Chancellor of Kingston University and continues to be a regular contributor to a wide range of news and arts programming.

She lives in London’s West End but grew up on the South Side of Chicago, the eldest of seven children next to the railway dreaming of what it would be like to get on board and see the world.

Here, she describes to Max how she’s driven by her fear of being ‘phoney’ which is rooted in her father’s experience of living under segregation in Mississippi.

Listen Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Iain Dale, broadcaster

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 28 Sep 2018 04:47:31 +0000

Iain Dale is one of the UK’s most influential and well-connected political broadcasters and writers. He has a reputation for securing big name interviews for his LBC radio show and is regularly requested by other networks for his expert commentary on Brexit and other current issues. He’s also regular panelist on CNN Talk.

Here, he talks to Max Foster about success, opting out of farming and his lingering fears of ‘being found out.’

Listen Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, YouTube, Spotify, TuneIn or here:

Kate Andrews, political researcher

office@storynate.com (Max Foster) — Fri, 14 Sep 2018 07:54:16 +0000

At 28 years-old, Kate Andrews is already one of the UK’s most sought-after political commentators with her assured analysis of British and American politics. She is currently Associate Director at the free-market think tank, the Institute of Economic Affairs.

In this frank and enlightening interview, Kate recalls how she took her shoes off during her first TV appearance in case she had to ‘run out of the studio.’ She discusses her fear of boredom and how she believes success is defined by humility and goals that are set by you, not by others.