I’m sure most of us can think of an inspirational teacher who helped to guide us in our journey from childhood to adulthood. Mine was Mr Rutland, my enigmatic physics teacher who revelled in turning complex concepts into memorable moments. He also started me on my journey in public speaking, teaching me and my friends the skills required to be impactful speakers and driving us up to London in the rickety school minibus to hear thought leaders of the day debating at the English Speaking Union in Mayfair.

But we also heard glimpses of another life. Tutoring a young prince who would become a king. Travelling to the mountain kingdom of Bhutan where the country measures its progress not by Gross Domestic Product but by Gross National Happiness.

We hadn’t spoken for almost three decades, but when we reconnected recently it was as if no time had passed at all.

Michael Rutland has lived in Bhutan now for a quarter of a century, became the first Honorary Consul of Bhutan to the United Kingdom and then the first Honorary Consul of the United Kingdom to Bhutan. In 2005 he was awarded an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II for services to British-Bhutan relations and is also a holder of Bhutan’s Order of Merit .

I can’t wait for you to hear his perspectives on the search for fulfilment, for happiness and for balance, and of course to explore the Unlock Moments of remarkable clarity he experienced along the way. This is an extraordinary conversation covering topics as diverse as the search for contentment, the skill of a master public speaker and how decades of change is also no change at all.

Note on sound quality: we did the best we could with a patchy internet connection between rural England and deepest Bhutan so bear with us on the occasional glitch - the conversation is completely worth it!

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Michael Rutland - Find Your Fantastic Beasts in the Kingdom of Bhutan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsGY2A0wZxA

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The Unlock Moment podcast is brought to you by Dr Gary Crotaz, PhD. Downloaded in over 120 countries. Sign up to The Unlock Moment newsletter at https://tinyurl.com/ywhdaazp Find out more at https://garycrotaz.com and https://theunlockmoment.com