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The Longest Day

The Longest Day is an inspirational twenty-five minute weekly leadership podcast.

Latest podcast release

The Longest Day is a podcast that shares stories of resilience, determination and candour. These stories can shape yours.

We are convinced that people matter, and that conversations count.

The Longest Day is a series of conversations with a variety of guests, who all candidly share their experiences with us - however tough.

As they look back on their longest days, our hope is that it will empower you to look forward. We hope their stories will be a part of shaping yours.

Season 3 features guests including:
  • Naomi Smith - Best for Britain
  • Elizabeth Oldfield
  • Fiona Ross CBE
  • Mike Gatting OBE
  • Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE
  • Professor Lucy Easthope

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Key Insights

 Leah talks to Naomi Smith, the Chief Executive of Best for Britain. How would you feel if you experienced a crisis in which the very people you were trying to help turn against you? Naomi and her team endured attacks from a few, prominent, left-wing Guardian commentators. As a result, they went through a process of grief, anger, and sadness. But looking back, she believes a more empathetic approach matching their logical analysis would have been more persuasive. Listen to the nuances of how Naomi’s longest day has prepared her for facing a future of increasing polarisation in Britain.

S3E1: Naomi Smith, Best for Britain

When Elizabeth Oldfield, coach, consultant, people facilitator, and host of The Sacred podcast, faced the failure of the purchase of a new, communal home during her longest day, she found wisdom in simply and slowly adjusting to circumstances, considering that their relationships were more important than bricks and mortar. Their families had come to that place of intentional covenanting with each other so that they had sufficient trust in God and in each other to know that there is enough love and resilience to get them through the trial of living without fixed addresses temporarily. The ending of the story is happy and they now have more room at the table to feed others!

S3E2: Elizabeth Oldfield, Consultant

In our third episode, Leah talks to George Osei-Oppong Jr, the co-owner and CEO of Host Help, a digital company providing cloud-web hosting, SEO, research, software and data services. Although George finds the term ‘entrepreneur’ inadequate, he really is one at his core. Find out about what happened to George after navigating through his longest day, how his ability to question authority served him favourably, and which restaurant he would go to in hard times.

S3E3: George Osei-Oppong, Host Help

This week Leah chats to Natalie Campbell MBE, CEO of the bottled water company, Belu, University of Westminster Chancellor, and London mayoral candidate for the upcoming elections. Hear about her longest day and what went through her mind on the run up! Everything changed for her after Brexit and Trump, and seeing politicians not fixing issues they were elected to fix as things got worse. There was a disconnect between them and the people they were meant to serve struggling to make something of their lives. So for impactful change, Natalie insists, we must lean in. Now is the time!

S3E4: Naomi Campbell MBE

In this week’s episode, listen to Tara Austin, behavioural and brand strategist, talk about the crisis she experienced out of the COVID panic. Although like most people, isolation was the more painful experience from the lockdown. Find out what she believes is ‘the next great social innovation’ on par with technological ones like the internet and mobile phones. Given the state of our NHS, the endemic problems of alcoholism and drug addiction, she gives compelling reasons for why there should be national, access rights to it. Apart from that, she speaks about what her own experiences with it have taught her.

S3E5: Tara Austin

This week, Leah talks to Mike Gatting OBE, former English cricketer. He tells her about the longest day he experienced in the game. What went through his mind were anxious but natural thoughts about whether he would ever be able to play again. With his self-belief, he rose to the challenge despite painful setbacks. From his experience as a captain to the team, honesty, good communication and a listening ear are some of the qualities of a good leader.

S3E6: Mike Gatting OBE

KEY INSIGHTS
S3E2: Elizabeth Oldfield, Consultant

When Elizabeth Oldfield, coach, consultant, people facilitator, and host of The Sacred podcast, faced the failure of the purchase of a new, communal home during her longest day, she found wisdom in simply and slowly adjusting to circumstances, considering that their relationships were more important than bricks and mortar. Their families had come to that place of intentional covenanting with each other so that they had sufficient trust in God and in each other to know that there is enough love and resilience to get them through the trial of living without fixed addresses temporarily. The ending of the story is happy and they now have more room at the table to feed others!

KEY INSIGHTS
S3E3: George Osei-Oppong Jr., Host Help

For this episode, George Osei-Oppong Jr, co-founder and CEO of Host Help, talks to Leah about his longest day when he took the risk of declining a piloting apprenticeship to make his own way into business and then into IT. His independence and ability to challenge authority resulted in him trying something new. After a decade of working at a contractual role for Sainsburys, he realised that he always wanted to run his own business and start a foundation through which he could help others learn to sustain themselves. He believes that a good leader should be able to ask themselves questions about their decision-making and read to require his team to have a working knowledge of the business product for things to thrive.

As Featured In

Faith Amurao

Copywriter / Events

Christine holds various Diplomas and Certificates and has a wealth of experience in both large and small companies. Her key skills and expertise are office management/administration, project management, organising events/conferences and teaching/training. She lives in Westgate-on-Sea and enjoys gardening, travelling, card/jewellery making, and volunteering. Her values in life are kindness and integrity and her motto is “inspiration is found in the development of others”.

Nadia Burrell

Nadia is an accredited mediator with the Society of Mediators and established Thanet Mediation Centre. In her work with Broadstairs Consulting, she works closely with organisations to get to the root of their problems and identify the road to resolution. With experience working in the charity, government, and corporate sectors, Nadia has mediated problems from every angle.

Leah Brown FRSA

Leah is an accredited mediator with the Society of Mediators, and the Founder and CEO of Broadstairs Consulting. During her career as a corporate M&A lawyer, Leah found her voice through creative expression. Having written a book on transformation and becoming a self-employed consultant, Leah felt compelled to establish a problem-solving business that helped leaders get to the bottom of business-critical issues.

Saphy

The Dog

Sapphira (“Saphy”) is our sassy micro dog. She keeps us all in check and her Cavapoo charm wins over everyone who meets her. Her favourite place is on a sandy beach chasing a ball. She’s partial to a coffee shop with a comfy sofa but prefers a wine bar or a five star hotel. Her adventures can be found on Instagram @saphythesplendiferous.

Nadia Burrell

Project Lead

Nadia is the Project Lead based in London. She works closely with organisations to get to the root of their problems and identify the road to resolution. She is also an accredited mediator. With experience working in the charity, government, and corporate sectors, Nadia has solved problems from every angle. Her favourite place in the world is Jemaa el-Fnaa in Marrakech, enjoying the sunset and eating street food.

Tom Brewster

Head of Operations

Prior to this role, Tom worked with teenagers for ten years in church settings. That work cultivated a passion for helping people grow, develop and explore. He loves to see people working well together, and enabling teams to thrive and achieve their full potential. He is also studying for an MA, and is the director of Joyful Noise, a song-writing and publishing business. His favourite place in the world is the Lake District.

Owen Rees-Jones

Head of Marketing

After initially training as an architect, Owen made the move into digital advertising. With nearly a decade of experience in content production, programmatic advertising and creative strategy, Owen is passionate about the power of creativity and seeing how it can transform businesses. He is also always up for a beer and a board game and his favourite place in the world is probably somewhere in Africa.

Leah Brown

Founder and CEO

After a career as a corporate M&A lawyer, Leah found her voice through creative expression. Having written a memoir on transformation and becoming a self-employed consultant, Leah felt compelled to establish a problem-solving business that helped leaders get to the bottom of business-critical issues. She has a heart for reconciliation and is a team-player. With a long and distinguished track-record of managing crises, and as an accredited mediator, she is a regular speaker on leadership, governance, transformation and authenticity. In her free time, she enjoys engaging with the community in Thanet, walking Saphy on the beach, and hosting dinners. Her favourite place in the world is where she grew up in the Yorkshire Dales.

Viola Kanu

Operations Coordinator

Viola is passionate about social justice and has 10 years of experience in social policy, community engagement and grassroots organisation. In her spare time, she enjoys investing in the futures of young people and spending time with her loved ones. She is an avid lover of tech and enjoys the finer things of life. Her favourite place to go to is the White Cliffs of Dover where she reflects, meditates and takes in the scenery.