“You don’t have to be liked as a leader, but you must always be kind.”

Those are the words of this week’s Unmuted podcast guest, Zoe Egerickx, a leadership and team coach who spent 30 years in the NHS.

Zoe began training as a coach at weekends whilst still working as a nurse to help others find what she had discovered herself: that real, lasting change at work starts with how we relate to each other.

We cover:

• Why moving into leadership can be so overwhelming and why nobody warns you it will be
• The difference between being nice and being kind and why it matters more than you'd think
• Why "clear is kind" in the relatives' room, the boardroom, and everywhere in between
• How burnout is spreading at every level and what we can actually do about it
• The power of reverse mentoring and why your most junior colleague might have the most valuable perspective in the room
• Why we need to stop outsourcing the responsibility of our own wellbeing

She believes everyone is born with the potential for EQ but not everyone fully develops theirs. It can be grown through experience and self-awareness, and it underpins everything from clinical care to executive leadership.

Whether you’re an established leader, new to leadership and management, or simply looking for inspiration to grow your own emotional intelligence for the workplace - this podcast delivers a masterclass in how to hold space for others whilst taking care of yourself.

Music: 'Spirit of Fire' - fiftysounds.com

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He’s one of the most recognised voices in dementia care and widely renowned for his revolutionary research and approach to supporting people with a dementia.

David Wilson Wynne is a senior dementia consultant and an award-winning practitioner in dementia care. In this episode, we put the professional credentials to one side and got to know the man behind the work and the stories from his experience that continue to drive him today.

Over 60 minutes, David talks about:

🎵 How a simple playlist transformed a hospital ward and why colleagues told him he was just ‘winding patients up’.

🗣️ Why he believes the word care is doing more harm than good and what he thinks we should say instead

🎤 Creating the UK's first choir for people living with dementia and the powerful effect it has had

💡 Why person-centred care, as we know it, is no longer fit for purpose

❤️ The older people who shaped who he is, including a World War II veteran whose story he's never forgotten

Whether you work in health and social care, support a loved one with dementia, or have simply ever wondered what good, human support actually looks like this episode will make you think, and we promise it will make you feel something.

Music: 'Spirit of Fire' - fiftysounds.com

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Six decades in showbusiness. A king of the jungle. A dame of legendary status. And still, somehow, the most genuine man in the room.

Despite all of these extraordinary accolades, Christopher Biggins offers a masterclass in how to be self-aware without being self-important when he met with Gary Robinson for the latest episode of Unmuted.

Biggins reveals that there was no grand ambition, his career simply unfolded, perhaps in part due to his open-mindedness and lack of ego.

It may be surprising to learn that Biggins cites winning I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! as the single most important thing he's ever done.

"What is the most important job I've ever done? Winning I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here. Because I won it through the public voting for me."

An openly gay man who has never hidden his sexuality, He speaks movingly about those who never came out, and the personal cost of living a hidden life. He shares very frank views on influencers, cancel culture and the worrying debt-burden young people face from higher education pressures.

A frank, endearing and revealing interview with one of the UK’s most enduring and entertaining characters.

Music: 'Spirit of Fire' - fiftysounds.com

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