On Change With Petro Du Pisani

From overwork to self-care and career pivots. Episode 6 of a series of podcasts on taking conscious breaks from work. In this episode, Petro du Pisani speaks to Dr Gargi Mishra about taking career breaks or sabbaticals. Gargi shares her experience of taking an intentional break during the COVID-19 pandemic when she realized she was overworking and neglecting her family. During the break, she re-skilled herself and eventually pivoted to being a futurist. She discusses the importance of planning finances, being patient for the right opportunity, setting boundaries between work and personal life, and practicing self-care habits like exercise and mindfulness. When this episode was recorded, Gargi was on a mini-break seeking opportunities aligned with her interests in strategy, foresight, and academia. More about Petro du Pisani and On Change here · Connect with Petro · Solid Gold Podcasts · Solid Gold Podcasts

Pausing with Purpose: Giving back, Parenthood, and Resilience. Episode 5 of a series of podcasts on taking conscious breaks from work. In this episode, Petro du Pisani speaks to Thea Weeks who shares her transformative journey of taking three significant career breaks. In her breaks, Thea worked for an NGO for 5 years, focused on her new baby, and had to adapt to life and work after losing hearing in one ear. Thea offers deep insights into the motivations behind each break, how she prepared, and the challenges she faced both personally and professionally. Throughout the conversation Thea highlights the importance of listening to your body's signals and knowing when to pause. She emphasizes the invaluable support from mentors and coaches and she shares the lessons learned on adaptability and maintaining a support network. Thea also emphasises the value of taking smaller breaks regularly to avoid burnout and incorporating work-life balance practices like hybrid work environments. More about Petro du Pisani a

Health First: The Power of taking a Career Break for Self-Care. Episode 4 of a series of podcasts on taking conscious breaks from work. In this episode, Petro du Pisani speaks to Ntseiseng Lephole about her experience of taking a career break to focus on health issues and to further her studies. Ntseiseng highlights the importance of self-care, reflection, and finding a work-life balance. She emphasizes the need to listen to one's body and prioritize health over work demands. After her break, Ntseiseng returned to the workforce but faced challenges in managing stress levels again. She eventually found a better balance by incorporating healthy habits like exercise, journaling, and meditation into her routine. The conversation underscores the value of taking breaks for personal growth, rejuvenation, and reassessing priorities. More about Petro du Pisani and On Change here · Connect with Petro · Solid Gold Podcasts · Solid Gold Podcasts

The transformative power of a sabbatical. Episode 3 of a series of podcasts on taking conscious breaks from work. In this episode, Petro du Pisani speaks to Hermien Uys, a corporate lawyer in the mining industry. Hermien took a sabbatical in 2017-2018. She discusses her motivations for taking the break which include a desire for travel and personal enrichment. During her sabbatical, Hermien traveled to India, volunteered with underprivileged children, took a wine course, and spent time reading and reflecting on mindfulness and meaningfulness. The key takeaway is the value of taking a career break for personal growth and finding fulfilment beyond professional success. More about Petro du Pisani and On Change here · Connect with Petro · Solid Gold Podcasts · Solid Gold Podcasts

Self-care, adventure, and realignment to purpose. Episode 2 of a series of podcasts on taking conscious breaks from the rat-race. In this episode, Dr. Lizette Spangenberg shares her experiences of taking two sabbaticals from work. The first sabbatical was for a month in 2017 to climb Mount Kilimanjaro and travel through Kenya and Tanzania. The second sabbatical was for three and a half months in 2022 after completing her PhD, during which she took a break from work, traveled, planned her wedding, and reflected on her career path. Lizette emphasises the importance of self-care and seeking professional help when needed. The interview also touches on her passion for design, healthcare, and helping others through her work. More about Petro du Pisani and On Change here · Connect with Petro · Solid Gold Podcasts · Solid Gold Podcasts

Rediscovering balance between meaningful work and personal fulfilment. Episode 1 of a series of podcasts on taking conscious breaks from the rat-race. Fatima Collins, Women in Mining Project Manager (Sibanye-Stillwater), shares her experiences of taking four different breaks throughout her career for different reasons, including travel, self-discovery, studying, and grieving. She emphasises the importance of introspection, finding meaningful work, and maintaining a balance between work and personal fulfilment. The conversation explores the motivations, challenges, and benefits of taking breaks, as well as strategies for reintegrating into the workforce afterwards. Key takeaways include the value of self-reflection, the pursuit of purpose, and the ability to design a life aligned with one's values. More about Petro du Pisani and On Change here · Connect with Petro · Solid Gold Podcasts

Three innovators talk about their experiences in mining innovation. In this episode, host Petro du Pisani speaks to Elaine Hattingh (Exxaro Resources) and Sandiso Sibisi (COOi Studios) about innovation and technology in the mining industry. This conversation follows on from a panel discussion at the 2023 Mining Indaba in Cape Town which explored models on how to deploy innovation in the mining industry. Key topics covered in this podcast include whether and why the mining industry needs innovation given its long history, how to decide which technologies to invest in, the potential of open innovation collaborations, and views on the most promising and exciting future technologies like AI, IoT, robotics, and remote operations. Elaine mentions that the main reasons for innovation in the mining industry are usually to improve efficiency, productivity, sustainability, safety, and business expansion. The discussion emphasizes the need for collaboration between companies, startups, research institutions, and loca

A lesson on how to navigate in a male-dominated mining work environment. In this episode, Petro du Pisani speaks to Dr. Patience Mpofu, who is a multi-award winner as one of the most influential women in Mining, and a former Vice President of an Australian listed company. She is a global mining sustainability thought leader (ESG) an IWF fellow alumni, executive leadership coach, and STEM advocate. In this episode Dr. Mpofu gives an overview of her personal history, a story of grit and determination... and how she ended up writing her No. 1 International best seller "Unleashing my Superpowers," which teaches women how to navigate and succeed in a male-dominated mining work environment. Find Dr. Patience Mpofu here · Peak Performance with Patience

A learning journey conversation with a fellow EMBA student. I recently completed an Executive MBA through the University of Cape Town's Graduate School of Business. With classes moving on-line (in 2020 and 2021) due to the covid-19 pandemic there wasn't enough time (for me) to connect with fellow students and hear about their research projects. In this episode, I speak to Karen Nadasen, CEO of PayU. Her research project focused on the relevance of open bank and how to assess whether open banking should be used. Karen patiently explained open banking to me, a non-finance technical person. Her study resulted in her theory of open banking, whether open banking is useful (i.e. would it make a difference if this model is applied) and how this could be applied to the South African banking system. Learn more about the UCT GSB's EMBA programme here · Reach out to Karen Nadasen here

A learning journey conversation with a fellow EMBA student. I recently completed an Executive MBA through the University of Cape Town's Graduate School of Business. With classes moving on-line (in 2020 and 2021) due to the covid-19 pandemic there wasn't enough time (for me) to connect with fellow students and hear about their research projects. I decided to interview my fellow students to learn about their research. In this podcast I speak to Jordan Ludlow, who is the managing director of Tradereach. In his research project Jordan explored the role of shared leadership to improve the flow of strategy development and execution. In enabling strategic coherence he had three major findings: 1. Shifting from command-and-control to shared leadership; 2. Understanding social constructs (i.e. the underlying story of an organisation); 3. The importance of human agency. Reach out to Jordan Ludlow on LinkedIn · Learn more about UCT's EMBA

A learning journey conversation with a fellow EMBA student. I recently completed an Executive MBA through the University of Cape Town's Graduate School of Business. With classes moving on-line (in 2020 and 2021) due to the covid-19 pandemic there wasn't enough time (for me) to connect with fellow students and hear about their research projects. I decided to interview my fellow students to learn about their research. In this podcast I speak to Dr. Mauritz Venter, CEO and co-founder of AzarGen Biotechnologies about his desire to be a biotech entrepreneur. Being an entrepreneur is risky, and Mauritz wanted to explore why even in spite of uncertainty, risk and anxiety there was nothing else he would rather do. This study followed on from the intense reflective practice which is part of the EMBA course. Delving deeper into his desire to be a biotech entrepreneur he found that this desire was a result of trying to be true to his values in finding a meaningful orientation that would lead to creating a better wor

A learning journey conversation with a fellow EMBA student. Over the past two years (2020-2021) we have been working towards our Executive MBAs through the University of Cape Town's Graduate Business School. With classes moving on-line due to the covid-19 pandemic there wasn't enough time (for me) to connect with fellow students and hear about their research projects. I decided to interview my fellow students to hear about their research. In this podcast I speak to Desereé van den Berg (RBS | HR Executive) about her research project which explored the link between remote work and organisation design. Remote or hybrid work is a hot topic as most of us have experienced the shift to remote work over the past couple of years, a trend accelerated due to the covid-19 pandemic. Desereé tells me more about why she chose this topic, how she did the research and what her major findings were. She also shares how this research changed her and the way she has applied her research in her workplace. Desereé found that a

A learning journey conversation with a fellow EMBA student In this episode Petro speaks to fellow UCT EMBA student, Chris Smith (Freelance Consultant in Project and Business Management). Over the past two years (2020-2021) we have been working towards our Executive MBAs through the University of Cape Town's Graduate Business School. With classes moving on-line due to the covid-19 pandemic there wasn't enough time (for me) to connect with fellow students and hear about their research projects. I decided to interview my fellow students to hear about their research. In this podcast I ask Chris about his research, which focused on improving happiness at work, what leaders can do...and why they should do it. Chris tells me more about why he chose this topic, how he did the research and what his major findings were. He also shares how this research changed him and the way he thinks about finding happiness at work. Chris found that happiness at work is not necessarily based on rewards and financial gain, but tha

A learning journey conversation with a fellow EMBA student. In this episode Petro speaks to fellow UCT EMBA student, Gordon Wilson (Achievement Awards Group) Over the past two years we have been working towards our Executive MBAs through the University of Cape Town's Graduate Business School. With classes moving on-line due to the covid-19 pandemic there wasn't enough time (for me) to connect with fellow students and hear about their research projects. I decided to interview my fellow students to hear about their research. In this podcast I ask Gordon about his research, which focused on how purpose is a driver for human behaviour. Gordon tells me more about why he chose this topic, how he did the research and what his major findings were. He also shares how this research changed him and the way he thinks about purpose. Find out more about Gordon Wilson · Find out more about UCT's EMBA programme

A learning journey conversation Sean Lewis (UCT GSB | Lecturer) This episode is part of a series of learning journey conversations Petro du Pisani is having, as a result of meeting inspiring people as part of doing her EMBA through UCT's Graduate School of Business. In this episode Petro speaks to Sean Lewis who is a part-time lecturer for the UCT EMBA. He is also a past student of the programme. Sean teaches evidence-based management and systems thinking, and he is also interested in integrative thinking. Sean balances his lecturing with a full-time corporate IT role, and still finds space to spend quality time with his students. Sean has pursued knowledge his entire life. He is a strong, independent thinker, who naturally thrives in an environment where he is empowered to achieve organisational and personal development goals. In this conversation we hear about Sean's story and how he continuously strove to find ways to study and grow. Connect with Sean on LinkedIn · Find out more about the UCT

A learning journey conversation Chris Breen (UCT GSB) In this episode host, Petro du Pisani, speaks to Emeritus Professor Chris Breen (UCT GSB) about his life, the transformations he has seen in others and himself, and some of the concepts he teaches in his course on Personal Leadership in Complex times. Chris has a carefully crafted teaching style which he describes as follows: 'In my sessions I try to disrupt our taken-for-granted assumptions and unconscious behavior by setting the class up as a real-life, real-time micro-laboratory where each participant gets a glimpse into themselves in action. I am looking to enhance the awareness of each participant as they develop their own personal leadership qualities necessary for carrying out their daily lives with wisdom and appropriate actions that are aligned with a commitment to adding to the strength of the human spirit both in their homes and in the work place.' In this episode Chris brings wisdom and lessons from his own life, and we also talk about 'L

A learning journey conversation Kosheek Sewchurran (UCT GSB | Associate Professor) In this episode host Petro du Pisani speaks to Associate Professor Kosheek Sewchurran, who is the programme director for the University of Cape Town (UCT) Graduate School of Business (GSB) executive MBA. As Petro embarks on her EMBA, she will speak to some of the amazing human beings she will encounter along the way. Associate Professor Sewchurran has designed this programme in such a way as to nurture and create executives who are able, in their actions and their being, to lead authentically. In this episode we talk about Kosheek's journey, some of the major transformations he has seen in people and what the burning questions are that keep him excited every day. We talk about 'everydayness', living in the moment and how we can create worlds through conversation." Music : Deliberate Thought | Kevin MacLeod (YouTube Music Library) Find out more about the UCT GSB EMBA · Connect with Associate Professor Sewchurran o

In this episode Petro du Pisani speaks to Tracey Swanepoel, Bernard Swanepoel and Lisa Shippey from Thinkspiration. They explore how storytelling can be used to explain business strategy and how to connect with people at various levels in an organisation. Storytelling is a skill that everyone can learn - it helps people to understand each other and the organisations they work in better. Thinkspiration is a company that helps leaders to tell stories, so that their strategy is easy to understand. This results in improved employee engagement, motivation and produces improved results. This episode is full of personal life-changing stories and helpful tips and tricks on how to incorporate storytelling in your work-life. Music Used : Umlungu | https://johnbartmann.com Visit Thinkspiration's website · Storytelling for Leaders

This is another special edition end-of-year book-review On Change podcast. In this episode Riaan Wolmarans (my BFF) and I talk about books about travel. Books that made us want to travel somewhere (or not). Books that we read, or were recommended to us while traveling. Books about places, real or invented. Join us on a journey around the world and through genres. We also reveal what we will be reading over the holiday season. Connect with Riaan on LinkedIn

In this episode Petro speaks to Jo Rust, Personal Life Coach, Motorcycle adventurer and author of the book "Woman Alone Around Africa." Jo holds the record as the first woman to have circumnavigated the entire African continent on a motorcycle, solo. Jo is now studying psychology and is a practical life coach. This episode explores why Jo felt the need to ride around countries and continents on two wheels, and what she learnt about herself in the process. Music Used : Sunny looks good on you, by Midnight North found at Youtube's Audio Library Connect with Jo