Bold, Brave, Brilliant: Believing It Forward

Louise Brown was invited to a future-CEO programme at Oxford's Saïd Business School and her first instinct was to say no. Not me. Not Oxford. I'm too northern. What would I wear?

She went anyway, dragging a bright pink suitcase with a broken handle onto a four-hour train, where a procession of helpful strangers took turns explaining to her how to work a handle. By the time she arrived she was sweating, disheveled and ready to cross the platform and go straight home to Lancashire. What stopped her was a realisation in a small room with the telly on: the only thing keeping her paralysed there was her.

In this episode, Louise, author of Bold, Brave, Brilliant, NLP coach, TEDx speaker and former vice principal with 30+ years in public service, makes the case that imposter syndrome isn't something to fix. It's a phenomenon, not a disorder. It's energy, and it's proof that you care. We talk about why confidence often gets quieter the further up you climb, why senior leaders are the last to admit it, journaling as a way to catch your inner critic in the act, and who's looking after HR while HR looks after everyone else.

Plus: what's next for Louise, a companion journal, a second book on leadership and culture, and why her best ideas arrive mid-run.

 

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This episode was edited and produced by The Productivity Playground Ltd. Podcast editing and admin support for small businesses.

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