The Phil Lewis Podcast

The lawsuit

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0100

Lysa Holdstock started her business in 2008. By 2016, she had a team of 250 people. As the business successfully grew, a dream deal arrived - Lysa sold shares and retained a minority shareholding in the business - but this dream quickly turned into a nightmare as she discovered the horrendous culture and behaviour she'd found herself part of was at best, utterly destabilising.

In this last episode of Series 1, Lysa shares her experience, before Phil is joined by Sandra Stein, a Trauma Counsellor Therapist, to unpack the deeper themes and issues from Lysa's story.

https://www.sascounsellingtherapy.co.uk/

https://www.joincabal.com/about-1

Mentioned in this episode:

Find out more about Energy Sessions

Where we share the principles of organisational energy that drive high performance cultures, and help leadership teams plan and commit to action: https://www.philhq.com/energy-sessions/

The legacy

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0100

This month, Phil is joined by Nishant Sharma, whose incredible story takes us from India to Edinburgh. Starting out as a dishwasher, Nishant worked several jobs until the death of his grandmother had a profound impact on his life. He then decided to take matters into his own hands, and start his own business, as a way of honouring those who came before him.

In the second half, Jane Bruce reflects with Phil on Nishant's journey, and together they discuss what it means a run a business well, while trying to look after ourselves.

https://www.philhq.com/

https://rutlandsquare.com/pages/nishant-sharma-founder-of-rutland-square-spirits?srsltid=AfmBOoo0N7ypEs_2YwyaPE8dbESg8RxK107Gfiw_-7A1bygRBka9Yp1X

https://www.brilliantleaders.org/janebruce

Mentioned in this episode:

Find out more about Energy Sessions

Where we share the principles of organisational energy that drive high performance cultures, and help leadership teams plan and commit to action: https://www.philhq.com/energy-sessions/

The merger

Tue, 10 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0100

What happens when the gulf between the things you need and the system you're working in expects of you starts to feel too wide?

This month is a little bit different, in that the guest for both the first and second half of this episode is the same practitioner - Chief People Officer and HR Consultant Rupert Brown.

https://amzn.eu/d/0hPKvX8f

https://www.philhq.com/

Mentioned in this episode:

Find out more about Energy Sessions

Where we share the principles of organisational energy that drive high performance cultures, and help leadership teams plan and commit to action: https://www.philhq.com/energy-sessions/

The addiction

Tue, 13 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0100

(Content Warning: Addiction / alcohol abuse) Anybody who leads a business will know that sometimes, pressures can feel overwhelming.

But at those times - where do we turn to cope?

In this month's episode, Phil is joined by a remarkable leader, Simon Farrell, who started to use alcohol as a coping strategy. This had severe impacts on his professional and personal life. This episode is for anybody who is thinking about how they handle and process pressure.

In the second half, we are joined by coach Krish Surroy to examine the wider lessons from Simon's story.

https://www.simonwfarrell.com/

https://www.krishsurroy.com/

If listening to this episode has left you feeling like you are concerned about yourself or someone else, please talk to someone. Contact your doctor, or in the UK, you can call Samaritans at any time on 116 123.

Mentioned in this episode:

Find out more about Energy Sessions

Where we share the principles of organisational energy that drive high performance cultures, and help leadership teams plan and commit to action: https://www.philhq.com/energy-sessions/

The grind

Fri, 12 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0100

Any small business owner will tell you that getting your idea off the ground can be a real grind - a rollercoaster with several ups and downs. But when the chips are really down, how far is too far before calling it a day?

This week's guest, Donnie Maclean, founder and CEO of Eat Balanced, talks to Phil about the lengths he was prepared to go to in order to succeed - which he did.

In the second half, Phil is joined by long-time colleague Claire Croft to discuss Donnie's story - and why the phrase 'giving up' is unhelpful.

https://www.eatbalanced.com/

https://selltoretire.co.uk/

Mentioned in this episode:

Find out more about Energy Sessions

Where we share the principles of organisational energy that drive high performance cultures, and help leadership teams plan and commit to action: https://www.philhq.com/energy-sessions/

The closure

Tue, 11 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0100

Nobody likes being the bearer of bad news.

When the bad news you have to deliver is about the closure of an entire school AND it's a decision you don't agree with ... that's a whole new level.

In this episode, Phil is joined by Liz Robinson, CEO of schools multi-academy trust Big Education. Liz talks through this impossibly difficult time in her career; how she dealt with it, how she led her team through it, and the personal toll it took on her.

After this, Phil and Hasan Khair, CEO of tyllr and Mavericks Unlimited explore what we can learn from Liz's story - particularly the toll that leadership can often extract, and how we set boundaries.

https://www.philhq.com/

https://bigeducation.org/

https://tyllr.co/about-us

Mentioned in this episode:

Find out more about Energy Sessions

Where we share the principles of organisational energy that drive high performance cultures, and help leadership teams plan and commit to action: https://www.philhq.com/energy-sessions/

The burnout

Tue, 14 Oct 2025 01:00:00 +0100

When Tom Cheesewright wasn't getting results in his start-up business, he doubled down. He thought working harder and longer would fix his problems – but ended up burnt out and largely estranged from his young family.

He now says it was a painful period, but one that taught him lessons that have led to his success today as an Applied Futurist.

In the second part of the episode, Phil and fellow coach and consultant Kayleigh Basford consider the wider leadership lessons that can be learned from Tom's story.

https://www.philhq.com/

https://tomcheesewright.com/

Mentioned in this episode:

Find out more about Energy Sessions

Where we share the principles of organisational energy that drive high performance cultures, and help leadership teams plan and commit to action: https://www.philhq.com/energy-sessions/

The turnaround

Tue, 23 Sep 2025 01:00:00 +0100

Mark Watson was brought in, as a relative outsider, to change the fortunes of a loss-making part of global marketing business tms. He talks with Phil about the challenges he faced, the tools he used to get the job done, and how the experience has shaped his mindset as a leader.

In the second part of the episode, Phil and fellow consultant Steve Hearsum consider the wider leadership lessons that can be learned from Mark's story.

LINKS:

Article about hero leadership: https://www.philhq.com/hungry-for-heroes/

More information about tms: https://www.tmsw.com

More information about Steve Hearsum: https://www.edgeandstretch.com

Mentioned in this episode:

Find out more about Energy Sessions

Where we share the principles of organisational energy that drive high performance cultures, and help leadership teams plan and commit to action: https://www.philhq.com/energy-sessions/

Introducing: The Phil Lewis Podcast

Thu, 28 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0100

Welcome to The Phil Lewis Podcast.

Sometimes, to keep moving forward, you need a fresh perspective - or a new way of doing things.

This is where coach and consultant Phil Lewis comes in - helping leaders all over the world figure out how to make progress in the face of problems, shortfalls - even crisis.

Each episode is an object lesson - starting with someone's worst time in business. We'll hear how that person got out of the difficult spot, what came after, and examine what lessons can be taken from their experience for us all.