The Exchanges

Q So you're doing that, and how did you come across Andy? I mean, at that time, he's teaching meditation in, in the city in London. Um, did you hear about him from someone else?

A Yeah, so the, the, one of the, there's a guy called Adam Breeden who had a business called All Star Lanes, and he had asked me to help him out with some marketing, so I was helping him. We'd become good friends, and I was open about, you know, how anxious I was feeling, and just how that was getting progressively worse, and he'd been getting one-on-one lessons from Andy, um, and he suggested I should go and meet Andy, like Andy had this clinic, and he'd wanted some help with it, so it was this skill swap. You know, I met Andy, and he had the clinic. And so he said, look, why don't, you know, I'll put you through the clinic experience, and I think I can help you, and maybe you can help me with some ideas for the clinic.

AI assessment note: “he'd been getting one-on-one lessons from Andy, um, and he suggested I should go and meet”

Q But I'm, I mean, I'm wondering, I mean, did you tell him, you know, oh, we're gonna have events, and people are gonna buy tickets, and you know, we're gonna create a sustainable business that way, or was there more like, I don't, I mean, how would he have seen a return on his investment?

A At the time, it was purely just the events, and we felt that we could build a business from that, and that was the business that my dad, quite rightly actually, in hindsight, said would never make a good business, and it didn't. Um, but the thing that I would say is, one, he never ever once asked for any shares in the business, or any return for any of the money that he gave us. And to the point that actually when we finally did do A fundraise in 2015, like our first proper fundraise, that was when we kind of forced him to take shares for the amount that he'd invested in the early days, but he never genuinely, he said to me, I was never expecting to see any of that, that money back.

AI assessment note: “he never ever once asked for any shares in the business, or any return”

Q So, you're meeting regularly, and you're kind of brainstorming, and at what point Did the two of you say, hey, let's do something together? Was, was it the feeling from the beginning, or, or did that evolve?

A Well, I think, yeah, I don't think it, right from the beginning, I definitely didn't think that that was going to be the thing. I thought I was genuinely just helping Andy, and I just felt very grateful that I was getting help with my anxiety, and so I just thought it was genuinely like a skill swap, but the, I think the moment it kind of became clear was when we were talking about What it could be. And we got a sense of that kind of shared understanding. And Andy actually said to me, would you come and, would you like to work with me? And I thought he was saying, it's my business. Would you like to come and work for me? And I was like, yeah, sure. He said, well, I can't afford to, to kind of pay you. Um, but would you do it? And I was like, yeah, of course. And it was at that point that Andy said to me, no, I like as a. Like I want, I want, let's start this thing together. And that was the first time genuinely that I thought, oh, he actually wants to do a business with me.

AI assessment note: “I don't think it, right from the beginning... And that was the first time”

Q But I'm, I mean, I'm wondering, I mean, did you tell him, you know, oh, we're gonna have events, and people are gonna buy tickets, and you know, we're gonna create a sustainable business that way, or was there more like, I don't, I mean, how would he have seen a return on his investment?

A At the time, it was purely just the events, and we felt that we could build a business from that, and that was, The business that my dad quite rightly actually in hindsight said would never make a good business and it didn't. Um, but the thing that I would say is one, he never ever once asked for any shares in the business or any return for any of the money that he gave us. And to the point that actually when we finally did do a fundraise in 2015, like our first proper fundraise. That was when we kind of forced him to take shares for the amount that he'd invested in the early days, but he never genuinely, he said to me, I was never expecting to see any of that, that money back.

AI assessment note: “At the time, it was purely just the events, and we felt that we could build”

Q cured and there's a vaccine and we're back to living a version of normalcy, um, what do you, what do you want to learn from this moment? I mean, that applies to To you personally and professionally, and the two of you as leaders and your company, what do you want to take away from this to say, that's what I learned during this time? First, first to you, Rich.

A I hope that we can look back at our, this situation as a, as a kind of start point for looking at mental health as, as important as physical health. We've always thought that mental health kind of, they, they're inextricably linked, but I think the situation has accelerated that conversation way, way quicker than, than it would have otherwise, and so I think the thing that I would hope is that this is in schools, this is in businesses, this is, you know, we are taking the conversation of mental health As one of the most important conversations that we can be having as a global society. And I think that would be, that would be an incredible thing if that could come out.

AI assessment note: “start point for looking at mental health as, as important as physical health.”

Q and you met him when you were going through kind of a crisis in your life more than a decade ago, about a decade ago, and you are obviously a practitioner as well. How has it helped you just get through this moment? Has it kind of prepared you and, and allowed you to kind of cope with it in a way that you might not have 10 years ago?

A Yeah, for me personally, I think without a doubt. And I think when I see other folks going through the same experience, I see that they're, they're really struggling with the resting in uncertainty and not kind of knowing, and I struggle with that myself. It's not like I've, I've definitely got a lot of work to go there, but I think it's really helped me not try and plan too much for the future and not worry about what I think might happen. And I think that's where, for me personally, that's my own personal struggle that I'm always trying, you know, over the last 10 years to be trying to, trying to work through. And I feel that if I could just bring it back to what I'm doing right now, you know, the future is going to kind of take care of itself in a way.

AI assessment note: “Yeah, for me personally, I think without a doubt.”

Q Yeah. Rich, um, I mean, just from a business perspective, I mean, you guys have a team, you know, you're constantly making new, new stuff. So how is that Happening. How are people, for example, recording things?

A Everyone, I think, felt an even greater sense of purpose, and I think everyone really felt like, wow, the thing that we're putting out there, people need more than they've ever needed it, and it's just been amazing to see the team kind of rally, and they've all got their own personal situations at home that they're dealing with, like all of us, and some of them are extreme, and some of them are kind of, you know, they're doing well, and you've got people on their own, you've got people with sick family, you've got people that lost jobs, like, The ecosystem around our team is really varied, the experience that they're having. Um, in terms of, like, the practical, like, the team actually, within about 24 hours, the company was working online really, really quickly. In terms of recording, you know, Andy's actually in his recording studio at the moment, and in our team, like our video team, they've had to just get really creative. Like, we put out a daily video product every single day, and so they have to completely restructure the way that they produce that content, and they've done it, and they've kept up with it, and the same with the audio. They've just, I think it's, I can't speak for anyone else, but I think internally our team of I've almost become more creative.

AI assessment note: “In terms of recording, you know, Andy's actually in his recording studio at the moment”