“But I will tell you this. You can't deal with it unless you decide to deal with it. You can't just do it on your own. You can't just bump through life just going for a run when you feel stressed out or just, you know, having a glass of wine. There is stuff that needs to be dealt with; stuff that needs to be worked on. And so you need to go and work on it. And that's going to take some dedicated time for yourself. And if my story is meaningful to anybody, in any sort of way, then I'm be incredibly happy to know that somebody could then have the bravery to go and search out some of these modalities” William Laitinen - Founder & CEO Exige International Produced by Felix Northover and recorded via Zoom, during these incredibly challenging times, we ask the question; what does it take to thrive in a world of both challenge and opportunity and most importantly, how do we build the resilience and leadership skills to get us there. In this unprecedented time of global chaos and uncertainty, now more than ever we, as leaders, entrepreneurs and change makers need to dig deep and draw on our innate abilities to problem solve, innovate and instil a sense of calm, to lead with confidence. We need to get clear on facts; differentiating between what’s real and what’s hype and building common sense conversations around the truth, to make the best decisions for those relying on us. And now, more than ever, we need to bring our focus back to our own mental health and wellness in order to bring our skill sets to the table & to continuing thriving. When it comes to running your business, finding good people can be challenging, especially when competition is fierce for top talent. But, above all other needs, attracting A players; the industry elite, to your organisation is key. My guest today is William Laitinen; the chief headhunter and CEO of Exige International; an executive recruitment company, founded in 2001. From their base in Devon, the team places the finance industry’s elite candidates across Europe. When William founded Exige; almost 20 years ago, he began with one, clear, ambitious goal in mind; to change the face of recruitment. Today’s conversation will delve into his key observations, over a twenty year career, and explores his own journey of enlightment. His curiosity as to the outer limits of human potential has seen him explore areas of transformational breathing, meditation and stoicism; harnessing rare and occasionally controversial states of consciousness to solve critical challenges and reach enlightenment. Huge thanks to Felix and to William for pulling together and getting this recorded and out during a time of intense global & personal pressure, and for helping to capture a poignant moment in history. Thanks for listening to my conversation with William. Contact links are below, along with links to all the material referenced in the episode. If you enjoyed the episode and have a chance, please rate and review and hit subscribe to keep up with new episodes and pass it along to a friend. I hope you’ll come back next Friday for more and in the meantime, you can check out our coaching sessions and previous filmed episodes at www.exetereal.com William Laitinen https://www.exigeinternational.com References A Guide to the Good Life - William B Irvin A Man’s Search for Meaning - Victor Frankil Meditations - Marcus Aurelius & Gregory Hayes Tim Ferriss - Letters of Seneca Sam Harris - Podcast Exeter Real Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/exeterreal/ Web - www.exeterreal.co.uk Felix Northover Web - https://www.felixnorthoverphotography.com Interested in sponsoring the podcast? Please drop an email to tracey@exeterreal.co.uk