Would you like to unlock the creative, imaginative and innovative potential in your team or organisation…BUT…don’t want to listen to another serious podcast which offers 7 steps, 5 habits, 3 mantras, and a hard sell in a pear tree?
Then join ‘The Occupational Philosophers’, a ‘not-so-serious’ podcast with Simon Banks (middle-aged Australian surfer man, artist and published author) and John Rice (middle-aged British man with a love of curiosity and philosophy) as they chat with a ‘clowder’ (great word!) of curious cats from the fields of Comedy, Academia, Philosophy, Neuroscience, Psychology, Design, Marketing, and Business, to explore how you, your team, and your organisation, can develop your curiosity, spark your creativity, and free your imagination, so you can grow your business and your people….sounds great huh?!
But don’t just take our word for it, read what our listeners think:
“Worth a listen, one of them has a strange Australian accent”
“They’re not philosophers, they’re idiots”
“If you like business, philosophy, humour, creativity, and imagination, then have a listen - if not, then I would leave well alone”
http://www.occupationalphilosophers.com
Episodes
Thursday Jul 20, 2023
Thursday Jul 20, 2023
In this inbetweener episode, The Occupational Philosophers explore the seven deadly sins of power point presentations - we’ve all been there…you face an avalanche of slides, information overload, the back of someone’s head as they read the slides out loud….it’s time to discover a different way as we explore:
- How to ensure people do not suffer ‘Death by Powerpoint’ or any other attempt on their life
- What we can learn from cats being scared of cucumbers and other viral memes
- How great keynote speakers capture their audience’s attention
- Why data proves, but stories move
- What sucks the energy out of the room and how to stop it
- Why is Simon so vexed?
The Occupational Philosophers hope you enjoy the show.
FYI: The Inbetweeners episodes are just that - smaller episodes 'in between' the longer format episodes designed to give a little kickstart to enable you to be the most curious, creative and imaginative cat you can be - and have some fun in the process.
Take the Innovation Scorecard!
https://empoweringinnovation.scoreapp.com/
Take creativity & innovation to the next level
Answer 25 questions and we’ll send you a personalised report to benchmark the level of creativity and innovation in your organisation
- It’ just takes a few minutes takes just a few minutes
- It’s completely free
- Receive customised results instantly
Say Hello
www.occupationalphilosophers.comIt takes just few minutes to complete
Their day jobs
JOHN: https://www.bowlandconsulting.com/
SIMON: www.simonbanks.com.au
SIMON SHOWREEL: https://youtu.be/YZQdJI6qGvg
Monday Jul 03, 2023
Monday Jul 03, 2023
In this inbetweener episode, The Occupational Philosophers dive into the world of job advertisements - the good, the not so good and the inbetween (ers).
Mmmm, did you see what they did there…?
- When you are being asked for flexibility, do you turn up in a Yoga outfit?
- Does a workplace rockstar need to throw computers out the window and have half a shaved head?
- Would a ninja need to have a set of throwing stars?
- If you hit the ground running, what type of shoes would you need to wear?
- And finally, whilst it’s important, to be honest in recruitment ads, how honest can you be?
The Occupational Philosophers hope you enjoy the show.
FYI: The Inbetweeners episodes are just that - smaller episodes 'in between' the longer format episodes designed to give a little kickstart to enable you to be the most curious, creative and imaginative cat you can be - and have some fun in the process.
Take the Innovation Scorecard!
https://empoweringinnovation.scoreapp.com/
Take creativity & innovation to the next level
Answer 25 questions and we’ll send you a personalised report to benchmark the level of creativity and innovation in your organisation
- It just takes a few minutes takes just a few minutes
- It’s completely free
- Receive customised results instantly
Say Hello
www.occupationalphilosophers.com
Their day jobs
- JOHN: https://www.bowlandconsulting.com/
- SIMON: www.simonbanks.com.au
- SIMON SHOWREEL: https://youtu.be/YZQdJI6qGvg
- Innovation Scorecard https://empoweringinnovation.scoreapp.com/
Tuesday Jun 27, 2023
Tuesday Jun 27, 2023
In Episode 68, The Occupational Philosophers chat with Chris Barez Brown, author, keynote speaker, and founder of 'Upping Your Elvis', which looks to embed a human, energetic and creative working culture in corporations across the globe, making work easier, more fun, and more extraordinary in the process
Chris has a deep passion to help people work out who they are, what they stand for and how they can use their unique talents to bring energy to everything they do as individuals, as members of teams, or as leaders.
He spent ten years at ?What If!, the world’s largest innovation consultancy, and is a published author of many books, including:
-
- ‘How to Have Kick Ass Ideas’
- ‘Shine. How to survive and thrive at work’.
- ‘Free. Love your work, love your life’.
- Wake Up! Escaping a life on autopilot
- Upping Your Elvis
His latest venture, Talk it Out, is a social enterprise determined to make a positive impact on people’s mental wellbeing around the world.
In this episode, they explore:
- Why slowing down to connect with people reveals how everyone has a gift
- How movement leads to improvement; try stuff out, experiment, don't stop
- Why experimentation is at the heart of any successful organisation
- How we are hooked on being busy
- How we can make work fit us, rather then make us fit us
- What 'talking it out' can do for our mental wellbeing
- And whether Chris truly is the love child of Richard Branson and a wizard...
As ever they throw in a few ‘Thought Experiments’, this time they have:
- Knowing Your Elvis
Learn more about Chris
https://www.uppingyourelvis.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-bar%C3%A9z-brown-0695531/
References
https://www.munchmuseet.no/en/
https://theamazingthundercat.com/
https://open.spotify.com/artist/3vWKFSpMV1vc1cRTjY1cl3?si=IYig3dfkSWe030pHvbtRCw
https://www.waterstones.com/book/lost-connections/johann-hari/9781408878729
Monday Jun 19, 2023
Monday Jun 19, 2023
In episode 67, The Occupational Philosophers dive into the world of personal biases, filters and perceptions or the way we take in information.
And what did they discover? We ALL take in information differently - whether we believe it or not.
In this episode, they explore:
- Confirmation bias
- Perception bias and how two people can see the same situation differently
- Frequency bias. Why am I now seeing red cars everywhere?
- How a muffin can appear 50% bigger if you are hungry (even though its not!)
- Change blindness (say what?)
- How we don't see change in real-time - even though we think we do
- Why Heraclitus has some good advice for modern-day change
If you have read this far, well done and you have made it past some of your biases and filters. Turn up your curiosity bias and tune in!
FYI: The Inbetweeners episodes are just that - smaller episodes 'in between' the longer format episodes designed to give a little kickstart to enable you to be the most curious, creative and imaginative cat you can be - and have some fun in the process.
Say Hello
www.occupationalphilosophers.com
Their day jobs
- JOHN: https://www.bowlandconsulting.com/
- SIMON: www.simonbanks.com.au
- SIMON SHOWREEL: https://youtu.be/YZQdJI6qGvg
Thursday Jun 08, 2023
Thursday Jun 08, 2023
In this short, sharp inbetweener episode, The Occupational Philosophers do a little bit of time travel and in the process explore:
- What an abstract artwork can teach us about how we react to something out of our comfort zone
- Why at times it's all too easy to jump to outrage
- Why a creative shock can create long-lasting change
- What the hell is Blue Poles?
- Why a good philosopher will always ask questions first
- The importance of always, always being open to the new
- Why it's important to keep an eye out for Blue Poles in your organisation...
They Occupational Philosophers hope you enjoy the show!
FYI: The Inbetweeners episodes are just that - smaller episodes 'in between' the longer format episodes designed to give a little kickstart to enable you to be the most curious, creative and imaginative cat you can be - and have some fun in the process.
Say Hello
www.occupationalphilosophers.com
Their day jobs
- JOHN: https://www.bowlandconsulting.com/
- SIMON: www.simonbanks.com.au
- SIMON SHOWREEL: https://youtu.be/YZQdJI6qGvg
Tuesday May 30, 2023
Tuesday May 30, 2023
In Episode 65, The Occupational Philosophers chat with Dr Jason Fox a wizard-philosopher masquerading as a leadership advisor. His clients include the senior leadership teams of Fortune 500 companies around the world including Microsoft, Toyota, Honda, Sony, Salesforce, KPMG, The International Institute of Research (not to mention: financial institutions, universities, telcos, government agencies, insurers, software developers, associations, intergovernmental forums, and so on).
He has lectured at three universities (systems and behaviour), and is the bestselling author of ‘The Game Changer’ and ‘How to Lead a Quest’ and his Museletter is read by more than 11,000 folk around the world.
In addition to serving as a leadership adviser, Dr Fox is also a globally in-demand keynote speaker who works particularly well with sceptical audiences who have ‘seen it all before’, and in 2016 he was awarded Keynote Speaker of the Year.
He lives with an illustrator-veterinarian and a cat called ‘π’ in an old chocolate factory in Melbourne, Australia. When not liberating the world from the delusion of progress, He enjoys partaking in extreme sports such as reading, sun avoidance and coffee snobbery.
In this episode, they explore:
- How teams and organisations can make meaningful progress and not suffer under the ‘delusion of progress'
- What is ‘anti-fragile brooding’ and how doubt is key to progress
- When is a good time to give audiences a good ‘intellectual spanking’?
- What does curiosity look like?
- The value of just being together as a team and allowing the ‘fireside chats’ to emerge at the end of the day
- Why finding your own ‘Suicide Squad’ is the key to fellowship and creativity
As ever they throw in a few ‘Thought Experiments’, this time they have:
- Philosophy or Foolosophy?
- Listeners questions
Learn more about Jason
References
- https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/play-your-way-sane/202303/7-research-backed-benefits-of-improv-comedy?utm_source=pocket_saves
- https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2023/may/03/italian-historian-claims-to-have-identified-bridge-in-mona-lisa-backdrop
- https://www.amazon.co.uk/Finite-Infinite-Games-James-Carse/dp/1476731713
Wednesday May 17, 2023
Wednesday May 17, 2023
In this short sharp in-betweener episode, the Occupational Philosophers explore the habits of creative door kickers and kick-arse inventors and ponder, "What can we learn from these curious cats?"
As it happens, we can learn a hell of a lot such as:
- How to find your flow and what works for you
- Why it's worth packing a pair of swimming trunks if you want a great idea
- How Churchill won the war despite not getting out of bed until 11 am
- Why having a micro creative habit in your office may be the best productivity hack since micro dosing....(not that we have tried that, just sayin...)
They hope you enjoy the show!
FYI: The Inbetweeners episodes are just that - smaller episodes 'in between' the longer format episodes designed to give a little kickstart to enable you to be the most curious, creative and imaginative cat you can be - and have some fun in the process.
Say Hello
www.occupationalphilosophers.com
Their day jobs
- JOHN: https://www.bowlandconsulting.com/
- SIMON: www.simonbanks.com.au
- SIMON SHOWREEL: https://youtu.be/YZQdJI6qGvg
Wednesday May 10, 2023
Wednesday May 10, 2023
Jemma Enright is a strategic and creative innovator who has an entrepreneurial spirit bigger than Mt Everest. She takes opportunities from little beans to full Jack and the Beanstalk scenario but with a much friendlier ending with no real Giants dying in the process. She is strongly connected to the startup and innovation community, as well as the media and advertising community. She plays an active role in mentoring startups and future innovators as well as being a strong advocate for women and diversity in innovation. She has been an angel investor and has been both an intrapreneur, driving change in large companies, and an entrepreneur, taking an exciting new startup in the personal finance space, MoneyBrilliant, from idea to an exit in the role of CEO and Cofounder.
She is a real-world, kick-ass, start-up Mega star and one awesome person to boot!
In this episode, the Occupational Philosophers explore:
- What surprised her most about launching and selling a business?
- The make-up of a perfect team to launch, scale and then sell a business
- The how/when/where of looking for funding for your idea
- The one key thing to nail on your start-up journey
- What is customer centricity and importantly, how do we become more customer-centric?
- What do potential entrepreneurs need to consider before doing the work of launching a startup?
- Why you need to be careful with the term entrepreneur porn
As always, there are some great thought experiments including “start up or wind up?”
The Occupational Philosophers hope you enjoy the show as much as they enjoyed making it!
Learn more about Jemma
Say hello to the Occupational Philosophers
www.occupationalphilosophers.com
Their day jobs
- JOHN: https://www.bowlandconsulting.com/
- SIMON: www.simonbanks.com.au
- SIMON SHOWREEL: https://youtu.be/YZQdJI6qGvg
Wednesday Apr 26, 2023
Wednesday Apr 26, 2023
In this short, sharp Inbetweener episode, The Occupational Philosophers explore ‘Generic Parts Technique’ or GPT. (Not to be confused with chat GPT)
It’s quite hard to explain in words so we think it’s best to just listen really….
FYI: The Inbetweeners episodes are just that - smaller episodes 'in between' the longer format episodes designed to give a little kickstart to enable you to be the most curious, creative and imaginative cat you can be - and have some fun in the process.
Say Hello
www.occupationalphilosophers.com
Their day jobs
- JOHN: https://www.bowlandconsulting.com/
- SIMON: www.simonbanks.com.au
- SIMON SHOWREEL: https://youtu.be/YZQdJI6qGvg
Tuesday Apr 18, 2023
Tuesday Apr 18, 2023
In this short, sharp Inbetweener episode, The Occupational Philosophers, inspired by the banning of hip-hop at Sydney’s Royal Easter Show, turn their attention to wicked problems. In this episode, they explore:
- How do you solve a challenge with multiple truths?
- What’s the secret sauce when every problem is different?
- How can you flourish in a FUCA world....(not VUCA...!)?
- The importance of reframing challenges
- Why curiosity, empathy and Hip Hop belong together
- Why saying "It's banned" may not be the best approach....
We hope you enjoy the show AND as The Occupational Philosophers always say: stay curious, make stuff, play more, have fun and date life...
FYI: The Inbetweeners episodes are just that - smaller episodes 'in between' the longer format episodes designed to give a little kickstart to enable you to be the most curious, creative and imaginative cat you can be - and have some fun in the process.
Say Hello
www.occupationalphilosophers.com
Their day jobs
- JOHN: https://www.bowlandconsulting.com/
- SIMON: www.simonbanks.com.au
- SIMON SHOWREEL: https://youtu.be/YZQdJI6qGvg