We all start life curious. Asking questions. Exploring. Wondering why.

Yet somewhere along the way — especially at work — curiosity can begin to fade. Not because we stop caring, but because we’re rewarded for certainty, speed, and having the answers.

In this episode of Sticky From The Inside, Andy Goram is joined by leadership strategist, researcher, and TEDx speaker Dr Debra Clary to explore why curiosity isn’t a “nice-to-have”, it’s a leadership superpower.

Drawing on decades of experience inside global organisations like Frito-Lay, Coca-Cola, Jack Daniel’s, and Humana, Debra shares why curiosity can be learned, measured, and deliberately strengthened. Together, they unpack how curiosity drives performance, engagement, trust, and better decision-making — and why leaders who stop asking questions often unintentionally shut others down.

They also explore Debra’s research-backed Curiosity Curve, the four drivers of optimal curiosity, and why curiosity matters even more in a fast-moving, AI-driven world.

If you care about building teams where people feel seen, heard, and able to contribute, this conversation will change how you think about leadership.

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• Curiosity is learned, not innate. Debra’s research shows curiosity can be developed, measured, and strengthened at every level.
• Certainty kills contribution. When leaders prioritise speed and answers over questions, they unintentionally shut people down.
• Great leaders play the long game. Asking questions builds confidence, capability, and future leaders — not just short-term efficiency.
• Curiosity is a human advantage in the AI age. AI delivers answers; humans still need to ask the right questions and apply discernment.

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The key moments in this episode are:

01:11 – Why curiosity is natural — and why it matters at work 07:57 – “Can curiosity be learned?” The question that changed everything 10:54 – What an Italian train journey taught Debra about certainty 13:36 – “Curiosity killed the cat” — the part we all missed 17:41 – Why disengaged employees feel unseen and unheard 26:15 – The Curiosity Curve explained 34:30 – Why senior leaders score higher on curiosity 38:51 – Curiosity, AI, and discernment 42:49 – Debra’s 3 Sticky Notes for curious leadership

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Get the full transcript of the episode here

Leadership training is rarely short on inspiration, but it’s often short on impact.

In this episode of Sticky From The Inside, Andy Goram is joined by Dr Jenn Yugo, Managing Director of Corvirtus and an industrial–organisational psychologist, to explore why so much leadership training fails to create lasting behaviour change.

Jenn explains that the problem isn’t motivation, effort, or even the quality of the training itself. It’s that organisations treat behaviour change as a one-off learning event rather than a system supported by environment, habits, identity and social reinforcement.

Together, Andy and Jenn unpack what the science of behaviour change actually tells us, from the forgetting curve and feedback loops, to the powerful role of values, authenticity and team involvement. This conversation challenges the idea that leaders need to “do more”, and instead reframes leadership growth as doing things differently, consistently, and together.

If you’ve ever wondered why great leadership intentions fade once people return to the day job, this episode offers a grounded, human, and evidence-based answer.

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• One-off learning moments aren’t enough. The forgetting curve shows how quickly knowledge fades without reinforcement.
• Leadership training isn’t a motivation problem, it’s a behaviour change problem. Jenn reframes development as sustained behavioural shift, not information intake.
• Environment beats willpower. Feedback loops, systems and social support matter more than personal discipline.
• Lasting change is social, not solo. Leaders who involve their teams in their development see far greater impact over time.

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The key moments in this episode are:

01:11 – Why Leadership Training Creates Energy but Rarely Lasts 03:52 – Introducing Jenn Yugo and Her Work in Behavioural Psychology 06:20 – Moving from Academia to Business: Applying Behavioural Science at Work 09:15 – Leadership Development as a Behaviour Change Challenge 13:10 – The Science Behind Why Training Is Quickly Forgotten 16:40 – Why Leaders Blame Themselves When Change Doesn’t Stick 20:05 – The Role of Environment, Feedback Loops and Daily Systems 24:10 – Values, Identity and Authenticity in Leadership Behaviour Change 28:40 – Involving Teams in Leadership Development to Reinforce Change 32:55 – Open Learning, Peer Connection and Cross-Organisational Insight 37:15 – Designing Leadership Development as a Journey, Not an Event 42:10 – Sustaining Behaviour Change Through Habits, Nudges and Measurement

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Get the full transcript of the episode here

What if the real reason we’re overwhelmed isn’t the volume of work we’re facing — but the fact we’ve lost sight of what really matters?

In this episode of Sticky From The Inside, Andy is joined by coach, author and founder of On The Up Consulting, Julia Wolfendale, to explore the rising tide of overwhelm affecting leaders, teams and everyday life. Julia has coached hundreds of leaders, and her book Five Ways to Focus feels more relevant than ever in a world that’s always on, overstimulated, and full of competing demands.

Together they unpack why overwhelm hits even the most capable people, how fear quietly drives busyness, and why we often underestimate our capacity while overestimating the workload ahead of us. Julia introduces her powerful Five Motivational Drivers: freedom, fulfilment, fellowship, finance and kudos; a simple lens that helps people understand what they’re really seeking, and what they should prioritise next.

If you’re feeling stretched, stuck or fizzing with that nervous-system overload Julia describes, this conversation offers a calm, practical reset. Five ideas. Five drivers. And a way of getting life and leadership back on the up.

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• Overwhelm is less about volume and more about clarity. People often know what needs doing but lack the focus to start. Overwhelm grows when we lose sight of our capacity and what truly matters.
• Fear quietly drives busyness and self-worth gets tied to doing. Julia highlights how fear-based behaviour makes people equate being busy with being valuable, trapping them in cycles of overwork.
• The Five Motivational Drivers help us re-centre our priorities. Freedom, fulfilment, fellowship, finance and kudos offer a simple way to understand what you’re really seeking and why certain tasks feel heavy or draining.
• Time expands when we regain perspective and shrinks when overwhelmed. Julia’s Five Time Frames tool (2 hours, 24 hours, week, month, 3 months) helps recalibrate our sense of time and focus on what’s actually achievable.

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The key moments in this episode are:

1:10 – Setting the Scene: Why Overwhelm Is Everywhere Today 3:53 – Meet Julia Wolfendale & Her Mission to Tackle Overwhelm 5:18 – The Overstimulated, Always-On World We’re Struggling to Navigate 8:28 – What Overwhelm Really Feels Like: Capacity, Volume & Nervous-System Load 11:39 – Fear, Busyness and the Self-Worth Trap 15:02 – Introducing the Five Motivational Drivers 20:59 – When Intentions Don’t Match Behaviour: Freedom vs Control 24:23 – How Overwhelm Warps Our Sense of Time 27:29 – Scheduling Everything: A Practical Way to Regain Focus 29:03 – Ideas vs Actions: The Two-List Clarity Tool 33:00 – Momentum, Micro-Actions and the Power of Breaking Things Down 43:59 – Julia’s Three Sticky Notes for Beating Overwhelm

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Get the full transcript of the episode here

In a world where AI can write, speak and even imagine on our behalf, what does it really mean to understand human stories?

In this episode, Andy Goram is joined by James Warren, founder and CEO of Share More Stories and the team behind SEEQ, a platform that helps organisations read, interpret and quantify the emotional depth inside customer and employee experiences.

James argues that stories aren’t just communication, they’re how we form relationships, build community and create meaning. They’re emotional code. And if leaders can learn to listen properly, stories reveal the truth people often can’t or won’t put in a survey.

Together, Andy and James explore how AI can help leaders understand thousands of stories at scale without replacing or sanitising the human heart behind them. They get into the nuance of emotional data, connection, belonging, trust and the danger of letting machines fabricate “ideal employees” through synthetic responses.

It’s a conversation about preserving humanity in an increasingly machine-shaped world and why the future belongs to leaders who combine technology with vulnerability, deep listening and genuine openness to the stories their people share.

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• Stories reveal emotional truth leaders can’t get from surveys. Stories contain emotional “code” that shows what people value, fear and hope for.
• Connection creates a shared “we”, the foundation of real change. Without connection, organisational change becomes something leaders do to people, not with them.
• AI can scale human understanding, but it must not replace humans. SEEQ helps reveal emotion in stories at scale, but synthetic data crosses an ethical line.
• Human nuance matters more than ever in an AI-shaped future. Imperfection, emotion and authenticity are trust signals machines can’t replicate.

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The key moments in this episode are:

0:01:26 – Stories in a machine-shaped world 0:03:39 – Meet James Warren 0:05:16 – Why stories explain the “why” behind experiences 0:06:06 – Storytelling as human survival & connection 0:08:14 – Humanity, belonging and collective wisdom 0:11:59 – Navigating change with empathy and clarity 0:18:24 – Connection and the power of “We” 0:19:49 – SEEQ and quantifying emotional data 0:32:59 – The meaning layer: why emotion matters 0:34:24 – Imperfection, realism and trust 0:41:52 – AI, nuance and future guardrails 0:44:15 – Synthetic data and ethical boundaries 0:46:42 – James’s 3 Sticky Notes of advice

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Get the full transcript of the episode here

When you’ve lived through Hollywood blockbusters and Silicon Valley start-ups, you collect a few lessons about focus, fear and meaning.

In this episode, Andy Goram talks with Steven Puri, founder of The Sukha Company, about the link between creativity, purpose and deep work. Steven’s career has spanned DreamWorks, Fox and tech ventures — but today his focus is on something subtler: helping people find ease and meaning in what they do.

This conversation isn’t about hacks or hustle. It’s about what really drives us — why we work, how fear holds us back, and how we can find the calm, creative flow that comes when purpose and focus align.

Warm, honest and deeply human, it’s an episode about living — and working — with Sukha.

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• Purpose gives depth to performance. Before chasing productivity, ask why you want to perform. Meaning drives mastery.
• Leadership is about drawing out greatness. Managers track tasks; leaders help people shine.
• Fear blocks flow. Psychological safety frees creativity and purpose.
• Sukha means alignment, not effort. Ease and joy appear when you’re doing the work you’re meant to do.

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The key moments in this episode are:

0:01:17 – Purpose, Fear and Flow: An Unplanned Conversation 0:05:01 – The Story Behind The Sukha Company 0:08:25 – The Customer Who Defined Sukha 0:14:45 – Leadership and Drawing Out Greatness 0:17:48 – Fear, Failure and the Role of Psychological Safety 0:21:09 – Lessons from Spielberg: The Best Idea Wins 0:25:01 – Meaning, Emotion and Purposeful Work 0:33:12 – Living with Intention, Flow and Focus 0:44:55 – Steven’s Three Sticky Notes of Advice

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Get the full transcript of the episode here

From a bamboo house in rural Indonesia to the boardrooms of Asia, Dona Amelia’s journey is nothing short of extraordinary. Now an international keynote speaker, Harvard-trained leadership specialist, and co-founder of EGN Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia, she brings a rare blend of performance, psychology, and purpose to the way she helps leaders grow.

In this episode, Dona joins Andy Goram to explore holistic purpose-driven leadership — a style that balances high performance with humanity. She shares how her early life shaped her belief in service, generosity, and resilience, and how those lessons now inform her work helping senior leaders stay authentic, grounded, and connected — even in high-pressure, high-stakes environments.

Dona also explains her own DONA Framework, which blends Purpose, Presence, People, and Performance, and the role of vulnerability in transforming leadership cultures from the inside out.

It’s an inspiring reminder that great leadership isn’t just about what you achieve — it’s about who you are while achieving it.

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• Leadership starts with purpose. Dona’s journey shows that clarity of purpose gives strength and direction in every challenge.
• Serve before you lead. True leadership is about helping others succeed — not just performing well yourself.
• Vulnerability is strength. Being open about struggle builds trust and invites authenticity in others.
• Presence and people go hand in hand. Balancing focus on performance with genuine care for people creates lasting success.

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The key moments in this episode are:

0:01:10 – From Bamboo House to Boardroom: Meet Dona Amelia 0:03:37 – Early Lessons in Purpose, Resilience and Service 0:10:27 – What Childhood Taught Her About Giving and Gratitude 0:15:07 – The Entertainment Years: Learning Performance and Presence 0:22:30 – Pivoting from Stage to Leadership Coaching 0:34:29 – The D.O.N.A. Framework (Dreams, Opportunity, Never give up, Action). 0:37:31 – “4P+E” (Pray/centre, Prepare, Practice, Perform + Evaluate) & “action 200%”. 0:40:02 – What holistic leadership looks like in practice 0:46:09 – Balancing people care and KPIs: why performance follows wellbeing. 0:47:42 – Dona’s 3 Sticky Notes of Advice

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Get the full transcript of the episode here

Change is rarely just a rational process — it’s an emotional journey.

In this episode of Sticky From The Inside, I’m joined by John Fisher, business psychologist, constructivist thinker, and creator of the Fisher Change Curve. His model goes beyond the Kubler-Ross grief curve to capture the messy, shifting emotions people actually experience during change, from anxiety and fear, to guilt, confusion, and eventual acceptance.

We explore why organisations so often mishandle change, the crucial difference between self-initiated and imposed change, and the role of emotional triggers like SCARF. John also shares practical ways leaders can support their teams and themselves through uncertainty, plus his three Sticky Notes of advice for navigating change with confidence and compassion.

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• Change is emotional, not just rational. People experience fear, guilt, and confusion — not just a neat process plan.
• Kubler-Ross isn’t enough. Grief stages don’t capture the nuance of organisational or self-initiated change.
• Small wins create momentum. Celebrating quick wins helps rebuild confidence and reduces resistance.
• Leaders must engage with honesty. Open conversations, empathy, and clarity move teams from compliance to commitment.

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The key moments in this episode are:

0:01:10 – Why change is never just a process problem 0:05:57 – Meet John Fisher: from radar systems to psychology 0:08:22 – Why the emotional side of change matters 0:11:35 – Constructivism and interpretation in change 0:14:22 – Do we treat change differently at work than in life? 0:17:05 – Self-initiated vs imposed change: why control matters 0:21:09 – Why Kubler-Ross isn’t enough for organisational change 0:24:03 – Introducing the Fisher Change Curve 0:27:58 – Stages of the curve: from anxiety to acceptance 0:34:53 – Quick wins, small steps, and sustainable change 0:36:39 – SCARF triggers and why leaders misjudge readiness 0:41:36 – Practical advice: honesty, engagement, and WIIFM 0:45:28 – John’s three Sticky Notes of advice

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Get the full transcript of the episode here