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Adversity to Advantage

Self Development

Petra Velzeboer was raised in a religious cult with no education that erased her identity and future. Through depression, anxiety, alcohol dependence and suicidal thoughts she reached her rock bottom by age 25. Today her goal is to help others who are near their rock bottom to learn the fast track for improving their lives! Join Petra as she interviews people from all walks of life about their journey to discovering that their superpowers are nurtured in their pain and their success is crafted through their story.

Location:

United Kingdom

Description:

Petra Velzeboer was raised in a religious cult with no education that erased her identity and future. Through depression, anxiety, alcohol dependence and suicidal thoughts she reached her rock bottom by age 25. Today her goal is to help others who are near their rock bottom to learn the fast track for improving their lives! Join Petra as she interviews people from all walks of life about their journey to discovering that their superpowers are nurtured in their pain and their success is crafted through their story.

Language:

English

Contact:

0044 7970 323011


Episodes

156. Buy In From The Top with Geoff McDonald

12/6/2020
“What really saved my life during that time was my ability to talk” I am SUPER excited to have gotten the chance to interview the Legendary, Mental Health Power House that is Geoff McDonald! Best known as a global advocate, campaigner and consultant who is passionate about addressing the stigma of mental ill health in workplaces, and about helping organisations embed purpose as a key driver of business performance. His sense of purpose to his work was catalysed by his diagnosis in 2008 of...

Duration:00:33:48

155. Tactics for Creating a Happier Workforce with Samantha Clarke

11/30/2020
‘It’s not going back to business as normal, we’re in a very new era now and If you’re not stretching yourself to meet that you will get left behind’ Samantha Clarke is an amazing friend of mine, Happiness Consultant, TedX speaker and Author of Love it or Leave it . She advices global companies on Happiness at Work and supports people’s conscious decisions to either Love it or Leave it! She is full of innovative advice for employers and employees on finding happiness in our work as well as...

Duration:00:49:13

154. Coming out and the new normal with Matthew Clements

11/22/2020
“When I came out…..I had completely unconditional support and love and I realised that’s sadly not the case for everyone” I feel very privileged to interview Matthew Clements. Matthew is the Senior diversity and inclusion advisor at Herbert Smith Freehills and i have had the pleasure of working with him through the partnership between Medigold and PVL where i have been supporting the Mental Health strategy and training of HSF. We discuss Mental health and his Matthew goes deep on his own...

Duration:00:38:23

153. Fill Your Cup with Hannah Meredith

11/16/2020
“You really can’t pour from an empty cup. You need to make sure you are ok first” Ranked as one of the top 10 companies to work for by The Sunday Times and recently shortlisted for the REBA wellbeing awards, Hannah Meredith leads the way on Health and Wellbeing for MVF Global We discuss the current and long-lasting impact of the pandemic on employees and their mental health and Hannah lends practical advice on how employers can implement mental health strategies. Hannah also opens up...

Duration:00:40:52

152. Pandemic Baby: Thoughts on leading by example with Selena Alcover

11/9/2020
‘We have to adapt with the changing times and we have to adapt to what are employees are needing’ So excited to speak with Selena Alcover who is an Employee Experience Manager at National Grid. We discuss the impact of the current pandemic on employees and Selena offers tangible advice to leaders on supporting their workforce through these challenging times as well as opening up about her own personal struggle of becoming a first time parent in the midst of a pandemic. We go deep...

Duration:00:49:05

151. Off work with poor mental health - an employee experience and what helps with Tony Nneke

11/1/2020
‘I would say to anyone, speak and there is bravery in that even if you are vulnerable ‘ Tony Nneke is Chair of Oracle UKIE Cultural Harmony Network and passionate about Diversity and Inclusion as well as mental health. Tony talks openly about needing to take time off work due to poor mental health and how leaders helped or hindered his experience in the workplace. We go deep on: Connect with Tony on Linkedin and hear more about our mental health work at Petra Velzeboer Ltd.

Duration:00:55:57

150. Invest in Your People - Advice from 20 Years in the Military with Jules Parke-Robinson

10/26/2020
‘I think you are a better leader if you bring your whole self to work ‘ I am so excited to have been introduced to Jules Parke-Robinson - with a 20 year career in the British Military and current experience as Chair of the British Wheelchair Basketball, she has amazing insights on motivating a team, men’s mental health and adapting to change. We discuss her experiences of mental health and leadership in the workplace as well as retiring only to be thrust in a world where she didn’t feel...

Duration:00:48:16

149. Young People and Our Workforce with Sayce Holmes - Lewis

10/19/2020
‘As adults we seem to forget that we were once children ’ It was so great to speak with Sayce Holmes - Williams, CEO of Mentivity, Activist and key note speaker and a coach of young people. Sayce has a passion for raising the aspirations of young people between the ages of 8 & 25 by sharing his own personal stories and experiences of his childhood journey growing up in south east London. His organisation Mentivity is an inspirational mentoring organisation and alternative educational...

Duration:00:42:40

148. Mental Health at Work- A CEO on How to Lead by Example with David Allard

10/11/2020
Super excited to have this conversation with David Allard, Part of the Petra Velzeboer team , David is now retired but has a wealth of experience as a CEO of a financial services organisation. David shares with me his approach to mental health in the workplace and how CEOs can champion the cause , leading by example, creating the correct environment and promoting the correct culture amongst their workforce. We discuss topics such as Connect with on Linkedin and join the conversation at...

Duration:00:47:52

147.How to Build Team Mental Health with Rondette Amoy Smith

10/4/2020
The most important question you can ask someone, is the simplest, it’s “How are you?” I am so excited for this new season where we focus 10 episodes on mental health at work and the people that champion this conversation with organisations. Rondette Smith is an executive director in Human Capital Management at Goldman Sachs. A member of the Diversity & inclusion team, she oversees the Black & Asian talent strategies across Europe, the Middle East & Africa. She is also part of our advisory...

Duration:00:50:25

146. Do I have a Drinking Problem with Sam Church

8/10/2020
“I remember laying face down shirt ripped, phone gone, money gone and thinking if I lay here long enough il just die” Totally relating to Sam’s story of his descent into alcoholism and the shame associated with it, I just HAD to get Sam Church on the A2A podcast to share his journey with me. Sam is a Mental Health Advocate, Sales Professional and Co-Founder of MENtality. Having lived the majority of his life with poor mental health and still having to work on this on a daily basis Sam...

Duration:00:44:52

145. Becoming Superhuman with Gavin Johnson

8/3/2020
“When you fail, its just a moment, it’s not permanent, it doesn’t define you as a person” Gavin Johnson has always been a keen sportsman, he started as a decathlete and moved into the javelin winning various national medals. When Covid-19 hit, Gavin decided to change a few things in his life, focusing on writing, art and other business ventures with the hope of coming out of the pandemic better than he went in. He set about developing skills and began training to be a Life Coach which...

Duration:00:45:53

144. Addiction Recovery with Enton Barefoot

7/27/2020
“If I drink now, there’s no point carrying on. I’ll just go and kill myself” A passionate and avid sportsman, Enton played semi-professional football and was on track to follow his dream of playing as a career when a sliding doors moment changed everything. He fell gradually into a whirlwind life of addiction and homelessness. Enton is now twelve years sober, he is a qualified Drugs and Alcohol counsellor and has worked as a support worker for local charities. His passion is now to...

Duration:00:46:28

143. Living with Schizophrenia with Wesley Alston

7/20/2020
“A lot of people that knew me could sense that something strange was going on” I feel so privileged to speak with Wesley Alston as he opens up to me about his experience of living with Schizophrenia. Wesley is 29 years old, from Greensboro, North Carolina, U.S.A. and started to experience symptoms of schizophrenia in 2011 at the age of 20. It was later that same year he was diagnosed. Through mentorship and support from a number of people including his family, psychiatrist and day program...

Duration:00:36:10

142. Practical tips for Elite Performance with Dr Philip Hopley

7/12/2020
Dr Phil Hopley helps me re-think entrepreneurship and the cult of busy! This felt like a private advice session and so timely while scaling my business during one of the most challenging times globally. As entrepreneurs we are excited about our work and presume that working flat out is the only way through! Dr Phil works with elite performers and challenges this idea explaining the 1 non-negotiable when it comes to sustaining high performance: RECOVERY! Dr Phil’s training in forensic,...

Duration:00:32:51

141. Lessons for Life with Matthew Zinman

7/5/2020
I’m very excited about this episode from a man who has been through an enormous amount but has channelled everything into passion and progress! Matt Zinman is a personal success trainer whose varied experiences as an entrepreneur, athlete, single parent, caretaker, consultant and nonprofit founder drive him to be a difference-maker. Matt suffered from depression since his early teens. Losing his Mother to HIV contracted from tainted blood during surgery and the loss of a brother to...

Duration:00:40:10

140. De-stress Your Body with Geeta Sidhu-Robb

6/28/2020
“Your power your strength your confidence , comes from your physical state Finding a cure for her sick son led ex lawyer Geeta Sidhu-Robb to be a successful Health Entrepreneur. She is a health & stress specialist who provides specialist health programmes for the over 40. As well as explaining how stress impacts us, Geeta shares her inspiring story with me and details how she went from being homeless to creating her multi award winning empire. We go deep on topics such as. Connect with...

Duration:00:31:35

139. Starbucks Finance Director on Mental Fitness

6/22/2020
“There’s lots of ways we can show kindness, I think that goes a long way to supporting our mental health and wellbeing during these times” Jonny Jacobs is the Financial Director of Starbucks, a Trustee for the Mental Health Foundation and an Advisory Board Member for Mental Health summit Mad World. Jonny is passionate about engaging with businesses on the topic of mental health, challenging stigma and ensuring leadership is inclusive and purposeful, creating psychological safety in times...

Duration:00:36:45

138. The Bucket List Guy Travis Bell

6/7/2020
“A Regret free life rather than a regretful life” Travis Bell has had a Bucket List since the age of 18, but it wasn’t until he did his first seminar that he realised that this was not something that was common practice. From this realisation the ‘Bucket List Guy’ was born. Spreading his message through keynote speaking, blogging, his podcast and a Tedx talk, Travis Bell revels in helping people to live a life of more meaning , more purpose and more fulfilment. Travis takes me through how...

Duration:00:37:16

137. The Legendary Geoff McDonald on Mental Health

5/31/2020
“What really saved my life during that time was my ability to talk” I am SUPER excited to have gotten the chance to interview the Legendary, Mental Health Power House that is Geoff McDonald! Best known as a global advocate, campaigner and consultant who is passionate about addressing the stigma of mental ill health in workplaces, and about helping organisations embed purpose as a key driver of business performance. His sense of purpose to his work was catalysed by his diagnosis in 2008...

Duration:00:34:05