In this episode of Connect with Confidence, I’m joined by Tim Walmsley - recently named 2025 Defence Executive of the Year.

What unfolds is a conversation about impact, perspective and how both can shift when you step away from the familiar and into something that asks everything of you.

Tim shares the work he’s doing to connect Australia’s defence industry through new digital portals - alongside the “heart work” that runs in parallel: supporting This Story Australia to capture veterans’ stories before they’re lost and helping deliver practical support to vulnerable veterans through the Vulnerable Veterans Solar Program.

And then we head to Papua New Guinea.

Tim takes us onto the Kokoda Track, a trek he assumed would be straightforward (100km over eight days) until day two arrived with heat, humidity, steep jungle mountains, and a very quick reality check. What changes everything is the moment he stops pushing and starts watching; learning from the local porters who take tiny, steady steps that allow them to move for hours without exhaustion.

Along the way, we explore:

• ​what hardship reveals about people and how groups help one another through it
• ​the deep spiritual responsibility many Papua New Guinean porters feel for the track and its history
• ​Tim’s powerful remembrance on Brigade Hill, honouring his grandfather and the “unfinished” story he carried
• ​an unexpected moment of clarity - a reset that shifts his priorities at home, at work, and within himself

This episode is a reminder that sometimes the biggest perspective shifts don’t come from grand gestures.

They come from tiny steps, taken steadily, in the company of others, through places that hold history, sacrifice, and meaning.

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Find Tim here -

Website: ⁠https://www.benchon.com/

LinkedIn:⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-walmsley/

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What if the most powerful communication skill isn’t knowing what to say, but knowing when not to fix?

In this episode of Connect with Confidence, Kerrie is joined by former emergency services crisis negotiator James Taylor to explore why so many conversations miss the mark and how learning to truly listen can transform relationships at work, at home, and in leadership.

Drawing on years of high-stakes negotiation, James shares why people in distress don’t want advice; they want to feel heard, acknowledged and understood. Together, Kerrie and James unpack the cost of rushing to fix, interrupt or perform and what becomes possible when we slow down, pause, and stay present.

This episode explores:

• ​Why most conversations are people waiting to speak
• ​The listen – pause – respond model
• ​How presence and body language build trust
• ​Why validation matters more than solutions
• ​How to have meaningful conversations without fixing

A powerful reminder that connection doesn’t come from solving problems — it comes from making people feel seen.

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Find James here -

LinkedIn:⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-taylor-53573018a/

Find Kerrie here -

Website - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://kerriephipps.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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What does learning look like when there’s no syllabus, no classroom and no exams?

In this special in-person episode of Connect with Confidence, Kerrie returns to Coimbatore, India, to reconnect with educator and changemaker Dr.K.K.Ramachandran (Dr KKR) five years after their last conversation during the global lockdown.

Together, they explore what has changed in education, technology, leadership and learning and what matters more than ever.

This conversation weaves together:

• why curiosity matters more than grades
• how learning now happens everywhere, not just in classrooms
• what students are capable of when given trust and responsibility
• the power of social labs and community-based learning
• how focus, breath and habits outperform raw talent
• why education is ultimately about making lives, not just careers

Dr KKR shares moving stories of students creating real-world impacts from transforming orphanages with art, to caring for street dogs, to designing safer communities through simple, thoughtful innovation.

We also hear a powerful personal story, a quiet moment with Sachin Tendulkar and what elite performance can teach all of us about pressure, presence and focus.

This is a conversation about learning as an act of hope and education as something that belongs to all of us.

Loved this episode? Support us to create more podcasts by buying our producer a coffee - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bmc.link/kerriephipps⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Find Dr KKR here -

Website: ⁠https://brandthinkmarketingdo.com/⁠

LinkedIn:⁠ https://www.linkedin.com/in/drkkr/

X: ⁠https://twitter.com/drkkr⁠

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KKRmindstudio

Find Kerrie here -

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