The 2% Podcast

We continue our chat with Louis Bollard, Founder of Play Away, Stay Away by discussing some personal challenges. We chat about his recent health challenge with a brain aneurysm min-pandemic and how post-recovery he was able to pitch PASA to the Peter Jones Foundation. We cover building resilience to situations you can't control. Pitching and refining your offer. This episode is a must for those chasing their 2% and if you're struggling to cope during COVID - Louis' perspectives have really helped us. See you in the episode!

Business isn't about reinventing the wheel. You do the same thing better, you've got a chance. You combine similar things differently than anyone else and you've got a great shot. Especially if you do it in a new place or market. That just about sums up this week's guest's attitude and business idea. Meet Louis Bollard and his business PlayAwayStayAway (PASA). PASA exists to connect sports fans and create friends. It is a community of likeminded fans, focusing currently on Rugby and Football, that facilitates fans' meeting and staying at each others' accommodation for away games. Making it a cheaper and more meaningful game day experience. Louis is PASA's Founder and also Co-Founded Vive Foods, a healthy protein start-up. Dive into the episode to hear more about Louis, his journey building PASA and the lessons he's learned so far.

We're joined once again by Rijul Arora. A self-described recovered technology addict, Rijul has seen both sides of tech; from addiction to recovery and health. Besides his job with EY working on technological transformation, Rijul gives workshops on digital wellbeing. Unpacking the relationship you have with technology, particularly social media and other more invasive technologies and dismantling how they impact your wellbeing. We're delighted that Rijul is giving us a peek under the hood of what his workshops are like in this condensed taster session. We hope you enjoy it. [This part will be updated when the video is available on our YouTube :)] You can connect with Rijul here - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rijularora/ And find one of his TED talks here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qf-XOC1F5cQ

In this episode, we're joined by Rijul Arora. A self-described recovered technology addict, Rijul has seen both sides of tech. He's a millennial who's been addicted to technology, left it cold-turkey and now uses it in a healthy way. Part of that relationship to technology is through his work with EY on end-to-end technology transformation. Personally, he uses his journey to help others with technology and digital addiction and self-management through workshops (he'll give us a taster workshop in the next episode!). Excited for you to hear this one - see you there! You can connect with Rijul here - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rijularora/ And find one of his TED talks here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qf-XOC1F5cQ

Cam Kalare joins us this week. Otherwise known as StraightUpHippo on YouTube. Cam mixes his love for gaming, cars and comedy and has amassed over 50K followers on YT. In this episode, we start off with a cracking word association game which promotes some exciting and even philosophical chats about having YT as a 'government'. Branching out beyond YouTube to his DJing. He talks about the importance of finding and creating community, both within his subscribers and his fellow YouTubers. "If you do what you're passionate about, people will appreciate it." Catch Cam's channel here - https://www.youtube.com/user/StraightUpHippo

Cam Kalare joins us this week. Otherwise known as StraightUpHippo on YouTube. Cam mixes his love for gaming, cars and comedy and has amassed over 50K followers on YT. Cam tells his journey of making content for 10 years including alongside school and living in public. We discuss creator burnout and the perceptions associated with being a creator. (He uploaded every day for 3 years and describes his recent burnout experience). Tune in to hear his advice for upcoming creators and chats through his mindset to achieve creative fulfilment. Catch Cam's channel here - https://www.youtube.com/user/StraightUpHippo

Welcome back everyone to The 2% Podcast - today we bring you the second half of our chat with Graham David. In this, we start off with the word association game and progress on to talk about his recent obsession and viral success with TikTok. We discuss the challenges and benefits of running your own business (Graham has 5). A serial entrepreneur, we get Graham's insights into asking for discounts in shops and why people don't do it, discuss financial literacy of Gen Z and the impact of tech on the future of work - plus loads more. See you in the episode :)

This week, we're excited to be joined by Graham David. Graham is a serial entrepreneur and owner of multiple businesses including a Learning and Development training company. In this, the first half of our chat, we discuss the impact of COVID and how Graham coped and had to adapt to losing all of his booked work for a year in March & the journey of building back once the uncertainty eased slightly. We chat through Graham's approach to value and why his businesses are outcompeting across unrelated industries, going viral on TikTok and building a following and much more. See you in the episode!

Hey everyone, today we're super excited to be sharing the second half of our chat with Christine Michaelis. Christine has founded multiple businesses including the Creative Start-Up Academy and the EU Start-Up Association. She advises founders and startups all over the world to grow and expand their businesses. In this half of our chat, we continue with practical value and top tips. Still themed around starting up your own side-hustle or business (yes, even in a pandemic!)but this time focusing on networking, goal-setting, being yourself, getting the basics right in business and more. See you in the episode!

PRACTICAL START-UP AND SIDE HUSTLE ADVICE! Welcome back to the 2% Podcast everyone, today we're super excited to be talking to Christine Michaelis. Christine has founded multiple businesses including the Creative Start-Up Academy and the EU Start-Up Association. She advises founders and startups all over the world to grow and expand their businesses. In this half of our chat, we get practical. We talk about the creative start-up academy and Christine's previous career and what inspired her to change to the work she does now, how she made that transition and get her advice on how we and *you* can too. We all want to be doing work we enjoy and Christine helps people create that dream for themselves. A fantastic episode with loads of value if you're thinking of starting up your own side-hustle or business (yes, even in a pandemic!) as well as some notes and advice from her personal journey. You're going to want to tune in ;) See you in the episode! Ryan

Do you know your purpose? Luke Burrows joins us today in the second half our chat. Dive in with an insightful word association game as we explore further the idea of individual purpose and how he finds his purpose each day. We talk about leading with authenticity, overthinking and how to create content at scale. Luke is the founder of millennial self-growth community, Grow2Gether. @grow2gether on insta

This week we are excited to be joined by Luke Burrows, founder of Grow2Gether, serial podcaster and someone committed to the personal growth journey. He talks to us about his story from dropping out of college, attempting and hating a 9-5, to then rediscovering a love for entrepreneurship and building a community of like minded millennials - all going through the self-growth journey. We discuss developing a growth mindset, purpose and the people and moments that have been influential for him.

In part two of our chat with Tzuka founder, Tom Jelliffe we chat about what motivates him and has driven his journey so far. We discuss entrepreneurship and whether success defines the word, routine and the importance of doing something you enjoy everyday. Whats next for Tzuka? Find out by giving this a listen!

Introducing Tom Jelliffe, Founder of Tzuka - soon to be the world's most durable earphones. After breaking 9 pairs of earphones in the gym in his final year of university - Tom knew something had to change. And so, Tzuka was born. In this first half of our chat, we discuss Tom's journey in founding Tzuka, the value of networking and how he has found navigating raising investment in the start-up world. Check it out >> Tzuka are still pre-launch and have just closed their second investment round in only 6 days. You can, though, connect with Tom on LinkedIn by searching Tom Jelliffe.

In this second part of our chat with Mark Ryan, we discuss what leadership means to him and whether everyone has the ability to lead. We get his thoughts on tech changing the education sphere and future-proofing yourself to seize the opportunities that new technology will present for those who are ready.

This week we are thrilled to be joined by Mark Ryan. Mark talks us through his education from undergrad in the US to an MBA in the UK, to becoming an educator in China. Mark now has his eyes set on developing as a leader in the business world. He tells us how constant change has helped him keep learning, stay curious, and get a well-rounded understanding - to be able to know a little about a lot. In this first part of our discussion we talk about education as doing, the difference between education and learning, and whether switching lanes many times throughout life is for everyone.

In the second part of our chat with Olaolu and Julian, we discuss the importance that music has had on their journey so far, plans for the future, and developing a resilient mindset. We chat about having goals and how to use those end goals to keep going.

The week we are delighted to have Olaolu and Julian from Raise a Voice sharing a frank chat with us about what it means to be young in this day and age, social media, and what effect it is having on us. We also discuss expectations and having the confidence to start.

The start of something new. We've linked up with Aaron and Rio from the Gen Z Journey to bring you a collaborative chat. The start of a semi-regular series we'll focus on a different topic each time. In this first episode, we focus on overthinking. Why we do it, how to overcome it and navigate your own trials with overthinking. Whether it's your friendships, relationships, goals personal or professional - we're here to help. Let's get it. Find the Gen Z Journey on YT and Insta @genzjourney and https://genzjourney.com/

In this second part of our chat with Lewis Alexander Baxter, we discuss public speaking, why he doesn't consider himself an entreprenuer and shaking away the shackles of a suit. Is the charity model fit for Gen Z and a post Covid world? And why pushing boundaries matters.

Lewis Alexander Baxter is a storyteller, mental health advocate, and founder of The Blurred Line Group, a mental health-focused funding hub for local community projects and services. He is also the founder of Chit-Chat, a charity connecting the nation through conversation. We talk about his own personal journeys; both personal and professional. Including managing his organisations and his personal mental health experiences. Support networks - how to use them and grow yours. Hear what life is like running Chit-Chat and making the workplace fun.

This week we're hyped to be joined by solopreneur comedy agent Daisy Francis. Daisy is a comedy agent meaning she represents comedic talent helping them to get work. It's an interesting field and a great chat. In this, the second half of our chat, we focus on her first job with 'The Improverts' and how she took on lots of managing responsibility quickly. We talk about her year abroad and how that offered different perspectives and dive into how London-centric (for good or ill) the comedy and creative industries are. You can connect with Daisy here - Twitter @DFComedyAgent www.daisyfranciscomedymanagement.co.uk

This week we're hyped to be joined by Daisy Francis. Daisy is a comedy agent meaning she represents comedic talent helping them to get work. It's an interesting field and a great chat about chasing your passions, taking risks and we also find out about how she came to do this type of work. You can connect with Daisy here - Twitter @DFComedyAgent www.daisyfranciscomedymanagement.co.uk

This week, we're excited to be chatting to Max Klymenko. Max is an Economics and Tech Researcher for Accenture; he runs his own marketing agency - Klym&Co. and has risen to social media fame on TikTok and Instagram focusing on educational and entertaining content blending humour with learning. Earning nearly 2 million TikTok followers in the process, he's clearly doing something right. In this second half of our chat, we discuss communicating his identity as a person to a large audience, showing people who you are rather than telling them, we ge the low down on his popular persuasion trick series and delve into the mental health crisis (especially around young people) in the UK and discuss the differences between the UK and Ukraine. Let's go! >> You can connect with Max across platforms. TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@maxklymenko?source=h5_m Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/maxoklymenko/?hl=en LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxoklymenko/?originalSubdomain=uk

This week, we're excited to be chatting to Max Klymenko. Max is an Economics and Tech Researcher for Accenture; he runs his own marketing agency - Klym&Co. and has risen to social media fame on TikTok and Instagram focusing on educational and entertaining content blending humour with learning. Earning nearly 2 million TikTok followers in the process, he's clearly doing something right. In this half of our chat, we discuss balancing TikTok with a corporate job and Klym&Co. and the demands and expectations they bring. We spoke about the rise of TikTok and how the platform has changed, as well as the demands of big brands to go viral when entering TikTok as a new platform. We hope you enjoy and thank Max for taking the time to have such an insightful chat with us :) Let's go! >> You can connect with Max across platforms. TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@maxklymenko?source=h5_m Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/maxoklymenko/?hl=en LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxoklymenko/?originalSubdomain=uk

This week we speak to Jesse Pihkanen and Joonatan Halonen, students who share their experience as BBA students in Finland. We explore the difference between Finnish and British business education and how theirs is a more practical, hands-on experience in the world of business as opposed to the academic nature of British university. We talk start-ups with 20 people and they provide an insight into their business ventures so far.

In the second half of our chat with Alex and Charlotte from Endeavours Student Adventures, we dive deeper into their motivations to disrupt the student raising and giving travel market. As well as how they work together to create and maintain a positive outlook and environment. Something increasingly hard in the COVID era. Loads of value and motivation here - enjoy! Check their Insta here: https://www.instagram.com/endeavoursadventures/ and their website here: https://www.endeavoursadventures.com/

This week, we are excited to be joined by Alex and Charlotte from Endeavours Student Adventures - a new and disruptive startup in the University Raising and Giving (RAG) space. We talk about breaking into this market, why they started the business (especially with COVID happening) and discuss their relentless passion for travel. We hope you enjoy the chat as much as we did! You can connect with Endeavours on Insta here: https://www.instagram.com/endeavoursadventures/ Alex here - https://www.instagram.com/alextxylor/ Charlotte here - https://www.instagram.com/char_hodg/

Sanjana continues in this second part of our chat to discuss her project, You Humanity. Collecting 1000 stories of kindness and shaping a different narrative around the pandemic. In this episode, a key focus is asking what the difference is between passion and purpose and defining a vision for a passion project.

How often do you consider your common humanity? Probably not that often, right? This week we are joined by Sanjana from You Humanity. She is on a mission to collect 1000 stories of kindness and to show another side to the COVID pandemic. We talk about finding positivity in negativity, meeting yourself where you are, working full-time whilst managing passion projects and more. Connect with Sanjana @youhumanityofficial and @iamsanjananarang on Instagram. Lots of love for this chat, we hope you enjoy! R&J x

Continuing our chat with Mesh, we dive into why purpose over profit is a key positional factor for a business. We talk about the loneliness of entrepreneurship and how it can be romanticised as a career in culture. Loads of value here, we hope you enjoy :) R&J x Umesh is a serial entrepreneur who has founded 4 startups in recent years. He is a freelance innovation consultant who has worked with some of the largest companies in the world with clients including National Grid, Unilever, P&G, SXSW, Cushman & Wakefield, and Accenture. He is the Co-Founder and Chief Connector, at Twist Club, an experience led supper club and invite-only global members club. He is also the Host of Big Ideas with Mesh! A new podcast dedicated to interviewing dreamers, pioneers, visionaries, and people who challenge the status quo. He delves into their story, their dreams, and ultimately their vision for the future. He has previously held positions as CEO of Pace Ventures, a consultancy practice that bridges the gap between the corporate and startup world, and Co-Founder/COO at Edvent, an online training platform that transforms the student body of colleges and universities into highly employable young leaders. Alongside running these startups, Umesh has mentored with a range of UK based accelerator and startup programmes such as Techstars, Mass Challenge, Virgin Startups, European Pioneers, and The Accelerator Network. This is part 2 of a 2-part sit-down. Check out the first half if you haven't seen it already & we hope you enjoy and as ever, check out our Instagram @twopercentpodcast :) Here are loads of ways to connect with him and what he's up to: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meshkumar Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mesh_kumar Twitter: https://twitter.com/Mesh_Kumar For more information on Big Ideas With Mesh! Please follow the dedicated podcast pages. Website: https://www.bigideaswithmesh.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigideaswithmesh Twitter: https://twitter.com/ideaswithmesh

This week we're joined by Umesh Kumar. Umesh is a serial entrepreneur who has founded 4 startups in recent years. He is a freelance innovation consultant who has worked with some of the largest companies in the world with clients including National Grid, Unilever, P&G, SXSW, Cushman & Wakefield, and Accenture. He is the Co-Founder and Chief Connector, at Twist Club, an experience led supper club and invite-only global members club. He is also the Host of Big Ideas with Mesh! A new podcast dedicated to interviewing dreamers, pioneers, visionaries, and people who challenge the status quo. He delves into their story, their dreams, and ultimately their vision for the future. He has previously held positions as CEO of Pace Ventures, a consultancy practice that bridges the gap between the corporate and startup world, and Co-Founder/COO at Edvent, an online training platform that transforms the student body of colleges and universities into highly employable young leaders. Alongside running these startups, Umesh has mentored with a range of UK based accelerator and startup programmes such as Techstars, Mass Challenge, Virgin Startups, European Pioneers, and The Accelerator Network. This is part 1 of a 2-part sit-down, we hope you enjoy and as ever, check out our Instagram @twopercentpodcast :) Here are loads of ways to connect with him and what he's up to: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meshkumar Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mesh_kumar Twitter: https://twitter.com/Mesh_Kumar For more information on Big Ideas With Mesh! Please follow the dedicated podcast pages. Website: https://www.bigideaswithmesh.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigideaswithmesh Twitter: https://twitter.com/ideaswithmesh

Today we are joined by Presence. Presence hosts the 'It Starts with Action' Podcast. We chat about going through anorexia, depression and alopecia and deciding to take action on her dreams. We chat about facing your fears, chasing what you dream about, being happy, perfectionism and so much more. Would love you to join us! Ryan x

"This is the most fun I've ever had on a podcast" - Scott about us! We had an awesome time chatting with Scott about his SEO background and experience. We also dive into the process and benefits of hiring a virtual assistant to outsource some of the podcast work for his podcast 'Entrepreneurs Can Party'.

We are really excited to be joined this week by Scott Stockdale from the 'Entrepreneurs Can Party' podcast. His podcast has featured in the Apple Top 10 listing and is all about how building businesses, chasing your passions and being an entrepreneur can and should be fun. He interviews guests from all over to hear their stories of making entrepreneurship fun. If you've been thinking in lockdown "I must start a podcast" or have always wanted to - this is the episode for you. We hear about how Scott found his inspiration for ECP and how he tries to hack the system to get his podcast heard and ranking higher. We hope you enjoy. Follow Scott on Instagram @entrepreneurscanparty or connect on LinkedIn

Hey hey, welcome back to The 2% Podcast. Today we bring you the second half of our awesome chat with Liv and Grace from modern secretarial solutions company, Go-PA. We continue the conversation around how they came to form their business during lockdown but go deeper into how the COVID-19 crisis is accelerating the adoption of digital technologies and chat about future-proofing your business through virtual capabilities.

The COVID crisis has been challenging, heartbreaking and unprecedented but today we're delighted to be sharing with you the beginning of a fantastic story which has started because of it. We chat to Olivia Holroyd and Grace Cusack about their modern secretarial solutions business. Go-PA has started at a time when many are sceptical of the opportunities out there, uncertain of the future. We ask why, now? Grace and Liv, say, why not? We chat about what they're doing differently and how you can benefit from personal and virtual assistant services - especially during this time as we discuss their different take on secretarial work. Lots of value for those a bit stuck in this difficult time, potential founders and those who need a kick into action! Check out the Go-PA website here. And LinkedIn here. Connect with Liv and Grace here.

We've finished University. Wow. So we thought we'd sit down, reflect, chat and bring you some value based on our time. Was uni worth it? What was our best bit? What did we learn? + loads more - we hope you enjoy. There are a few exercises throughout and lots of thoughts, so it's not just our reflections. But if you're here for that too, you'll get our thoughts on our time at Loughborough University School of Business and Economics 2016-2020. What a ride. Onwards! We mentioned: Fear Setting Exercise from Tim Ferriss

This week Josh and I are delighted to be joined by Mya Krishnakumar, founder of The Crisis Project. The project is a community of changemakers who's flagship project, Letters to the NHS, works with a network of over 700 volunteers to write bespoke handwritten letters to key workers during the COVID-19 crisis. We chat about founding The Crisis Project, the inspiration for Letter for the NHS, the pros and cons of following your passions and her experiences of living with and recovering from perfectionism and anorexia. It's a powerful episode and one we really enjoyed recording. Connect with Mya on insta @soumyaxox Connect with Letters for the NHS, sign up as a volunteer and more @thecrisisproject (insta)

Art dealership isn't something Josh and I find ourselves thinking about too often. But when the opportunity came up to interview Leo from The Rafiki Gallery we knew we wanted to. 2% is a mindset that can arise anywhere and Leo certainly has it. We discuss the tenacity of his journey starting and running his own art dealership and gallery. Found out what it's like to represent artists and even got a bit philosophical on what art means to us. We'd love you to join us. R&J x

Today we're joined by the team from Happier Souls, Isa and Gurupma as they talk about going about making the world a happier place. Happier Souls is a project creating a community who want to be happier and more fulfilled; they're doing this by blogging and sharing personal stories. By answering provoking questions like 'What connects happy people?' and 'What does individual happiness mean?'. Join us as we discuss what inspired them to set up the project, how we can cultivate our own happiness in COVID-19 lockdown and much more. Catch Isa and G at the Happier Souls website here: https://www.happiersouls.com/ or connect with them on Instagram here: @happiersouls_

A random question for these random times. But is someone that successful, that admired and financially well off happy? Josh saw a clip asking this exact question and it provoked us to chat about it. What factor does money have? Can someone with such large-scale ambitions be happy now? Super interesting chat on happiness, mindset and perspective. We hope you'll join us :) Stay safe, R&J x

We could say that Darcy is a Philosophy and Theology student at Oxford but is she is so much more. We could say that she's Head of People at Prospect100, a youth movement by Future Labs. We could say that she's a founding member of Black Head Students' Network connecting Black Head of Schools across the UK but, again, we'd only be scratching the surface. In this ep, we talk discipline, hard work, leadership, inspiring others, managing lots of passions and much more. An awesome chat you don't want to miss. Stay Home and Stay Safe everyone. Show Links: On Insta: @prospectonehundred @blackheadstudentsnetwork @mousetreaptp @Mu4official @spcoutreach @chitchatbritain

Dean has been in retail for 5 years from working in a coffee shop to New Look and then onto Dunelm where he has secured a grad role. He shares his story of falling in love with serving customers and how he forced himself to become more commercially aware from his time in New Look at 17. We talk about doing more than your job description to be noticed and how to chase opportunities down.

James is a 19 year old student and a director at The Warwick Incubator, Warwick Uni's start up incubator. We chat about what it's like running it, hear about his time representing his university over in Canada on a Consulting Competition and hear about his the many different internships he's done including KPMG and Rolls Royce; giving his advice on how to scout and take advantage of opportunities!

This episode is a debate around cancel culture. We discuss the attitude we have to celebrity and how we are often quick to 'cancel' people. But then do people have a right to be forgiven? Do we underestimate the trolling that happens online and the effect that can have on the individual? We discuss. Let us know where you stand!

Hey hey and welcome to our first main episode of season 4 as we are joined by Varun Balsara. Varun is a student over at Warwick University and runs ConnectUs - a student programme to bring people together over shared interests. He is also co-host of The Human Entrepreneur Podcast which takes a look under the lid of entrepreneurship like nothing else, focusing on the vulnerable, human side and uncovering the stories you don't see in the news. We find out what being a busy student founder is like whilst studying at a top uni, hear the stories behind his podcast and discuss some topical news, of course with the word association game in the middle. Also hear what Varun had to say on Ben Hughes' question from last time!

Well hello stranger, it's been a while! Josh and Ryan here, we're back on the pod game after being away for the mic for a while with our final year coursework and exams. Hear about the pressures of exam season, what personal projects we've been up to and what we have in store for Season 4!

How exactly can we thrive in our daily lives? That's what the 2% mindset is all about. How can we accept and move towards the challenges we face? How can we have better conversations with ourselves to achieve what we want to and sustain that? All this and more in today's session as we talk to Ben Hughes. Ben is passionate about mental health, especially in sport, and studys all things sports, coaching, performance and psychology for his Masters at Loughborough. As part of his course, Ben has written a blog and mentions everything we talk about there - if you'd like a read.>> Read Ben's detailed blog on thriving, sustaining performance and looking after your mental health here: https://benhughessportpsychology.wordpress.com/2019/12/24/__trashed/ Plus check out his cool infographic if you don't fancy a read: https://create.piktochart.com/output/43351151-elite-athletes-thriving-in-mental-health-and-performance

Hey hey, Josh and Ryan here, welcome to the second half of our chat with Gavin Evans, CEO of Future Youth Zone. We dive straight in with the word association game and go on to talk about the life of a CEO and wearing lots of hats at one. We then talk about the wider perceptions of young people, the good and bad, and the importance of mental health in youth work. We hope you enjoy the episode! R+J

Welcome back all, this is the first half of our chat with Gavin Evans. Gavin is the CEO of Future Youth Zone in Barking and Dagenham which is part of the OnSide Youth Zone network of state of the art youth centres. We chat about working in his area of passion, what it means to be a CEO of a youth zone and to work with young people. Check out OnSide here: https://www.onsideyouthzones.org/