Sick Leave

Connor and I chat about the pressures of account management in the coffee industry, the lasting effects and impact of suicide, and Connor shares the purpose of his mental clarity initiative - Grave Runners. WARNING: This episode contains discussion around suicide.

Jamie Robert Johnston AKA Sauce Boss Head Chef at Everybody Eats shares his experiences with depression and anxiety, experiencing foster homes and adoption as a child and the benefits of counseling.

Sophie wrote an awesome article in The Spinoff titled "Hospitality is broken and the Covid-19 crisis gives us the chance to fix it. We discuss the many great points raised in this article, and 'blue-sky' what the future could look like.

There are resources and help out there for hospo business owners. James Bennie is the Business Growth Manager for Wellington NZ and shares some valuable information about some of the resources that are available. We also talk about the transition for businesses from level 4 to 3; HR considerations, contactless ordering and much more...

Great korero with Renee Coulter about pre and post lockdown, what the next 6 months may look like, and the robustness of the hospitality industry leading up the pandemic.

Sean shares some positivity with us musings about what's around this lockdown corner. He also shares some sage advice for operators navigating the current landscape.

Musings about what the future may hold with Matt Lamason - Founder of Peoples Coffee, Wellington, NZ.

You are now quarantined with Al Keating and myself, in our pyjamas, isolated-hard, creating our way out of the storm.

First of hopefully many episodes from isolation. No guest on this one fam, just me rambling, hopefully some lols and sage. Kia kaha. Shaun K

Greg Cornes, owner-operator of Goodness Gracious cafes in Auckland shares his experiences around opening and managing a multi-site business, opening cafes in the midst of family tragedy, and the pressures of managing and leading your team whilst dealing with what life throws at you.

Al Brown - Chef, Author, Restaurant Owner, TV Presenter - discusses the reality of running multiple businesses and the effect it has on family life and mental health. Al discusses the benefits of psychotherapy, the importance of looking after your teams and early cheffing life. 

CEO of Coffee Supreme, Al Keating joins me to talk about the pressure of running a successful coffee company and its affects on mental wellbeing. Al also drops some sage advice and learnings from many years spent serving in Hospo.

Jackie Lee Morrison - British Chef and Owner of Lashings - brownie bar in Wellington, NZ joins me to talk about her struggles with Graves disease, the stress of the kitchen and its affects on her mental health.

Owner of Staple Espresso (Wellington) - Nik O'Connell - joins me to chat about managing ADHD and anxiety, the realities of hospo-life, and benefits of being open about our struggles with mental health. 

Damaris Coulter - Co Founder of Coco's Cantina and Founder of The Realness joins me to talk her roots in hospo, the stress of running a restaurant on Auckland's 'K Rd' in the early days, and reading people's minds. 

Samantha Dinsdale joins me to talk about the realities of being a Michelin star winning Chef, being scouted by Gordon Ramsay and Josh Emett at such an early age and the affects of working in elite kitchens on mental health. 

Laura Greenfield - Owner, Chef at Field and Green in Wellington joins me to share her back story to cooking, how early childhood experiences shaped thinking and managing depression in the midst of a busy professional life. 

Hannah McMenamin, Owner & Operator at Forage and Bloom organic tea company, and trained Naturopath joins me this week to talk about the stresses of operating a growing business on your own, the resulting panic attack she experienced from the stresses of business, and the natural treatments Hannah prescribed herself to now maintain a healthy balance.  

Jessica Godfrey - NZ Specialty Coffee Association outgoing President joins me this week. Jess shares her experience with illness onset depression after a cancer diagnosis, and how she journeys through.

Sean Golding, owner/operator at Goldings Free Dive and Shepherd restaurant in Wellington, New Zealand - joins us today to share his experiences with dealing with anxiety, building positive team cultures and so much more. WARNING - In this episode we share our thoughts and feelings around the recent passing of Anthony Bourdain. If you need to speak to someone urgently about these issues, please call the good people at depression.org on 0800 111 757. 

Asher Boote - Chef, forager, and Owner of Hillside Kitchen, Tinakori Bistro, and The Ramen Shop, chats with me in this third episode about dealing with anxiety in high pressure environments, the mindset and culture of the kitchen brigade, and growing up beyond the bridge to nowhere. 

Matt Lamason, Founder of Peoples Coffee joins us to talk about dealing with servere anxiety while running a growing coffee company, handling panic attacks, nutrition, tupperware and much much more.

Mathew Fitzgerald, owner of Madame George bar & restaurant (Auckland) talks about his journey with depression and anxiety, the importance of exercise, and channelling aliens.