Get Off The Bench Podcast
Self-Improvement
About
Get Off The Bench podcast showcases people who have backed themselves and are having a go, in the hope that others will be inspired to ‘get off the bench’ and do the thing they’ve always wanted to do.
Episodes
- Tom Finn - Initiating the Shift Effect
After 30 years of coaching leaders, something extraordinary stood out to Tom - people were thinking in extremes and limiting their opportunities to make progress. Once Tom developed The Shift Effect, leaders starting moving ahead with time…
- Matthew Cicanese - Wired Wonderful
At a very young age Matt Cicanese was diagnosed with meningitis, which left him a deaf/blind child. Matt also has ADHD and is on the spectrum. While some might see these challenges as negative, they have helped Matt discover a whole other…
- Sahrit Freud-Weinstein - Roller-coasters, fear and mermaids
We are all afraid of something, but to what degree do we let that control our lives? Sahrit was paralysed with fear about everything, and a job opportunity in Greece helped her address the fear of flying. She then took on roller-coasters,…
- Chris Avery - Running from fear to mission
Chris Avery believes you can’t outrun the past, but you can definitely run toward a better future. After dealing with adversity as a child, and embracing dugs as a young adult, Chris decided that ownership was the only way forward. He took…
- Todd Bertsch - igniting the spark for action
In his early 20’s, Toss Bertsch was completely derailed after his rock-bottom habits took a turn for the worst. At that point he had a choice - continue the life he was living, or find a way to let his personal agency lead him down a new p…
- Leah Garcia - Cowboys, fitness and beauty products
Starting her athletic career as a rodeo champion, then switching the saddle to mountain bikes, Leah Garcia soon earned solid accolades - 3 x World Champion Qualifier, North American Champion, Basque National Champion (Spain), and the only…
- Jill Chalsty - Delivering Packages of Hope
When Jill Chalsty founded Overcoming Obstacles in 1992, she wasn’t planning for the grief she would encounter 30 years later. Dealing with breast cancer, lung cancer, and the death of her beloved husband, Jill decided ‘Travelling with Purp…
- Dalene Allen - Networking Naturally
For many people, networking events are more scary than public speaking - but all that can change with just a few simple tweaks. Dalene Allen is the founder and CEO of Networking Naturally, and she says that listening, curiosity and generos…
- Bishop Kevin Foreman - Harvesting the best of humanity
When you’re raised in the rough end of Memphis, Tennessee, your life could go one way or the other. But when you know you were born to be a leader, you can change the cycle and change the world. Bishop Kevin Foreman knows life is always on…
- James Oliver - Becoming a protein bar giant
When James Oliver took a trip to China and was worried about where he would get his protein from, he created a couple of hundred protein bars top sustain him. Little did he know this would be the start of a protein bar journey that would o…
- Drew Norton - Building everyday confidence in sales
Drew Norton had a rude awakening when his 6 month old baby required CPR from his wife. He then had another moment when he realised his current job was leaving him feeling empty. Drew then leant hard into the mantra ‘life is too short’, and…
- Ryan Christensen - Engineering the optimal belief system
Ryan Christensen spent 23 years in the US Marines working as a Russian Linguist, which led him to become a counter-terrorism contractor with the CIA. Embracing a diagnosis of ADHD, Bipolar, and Autism, Ryan began to questions why he could…
- Matt Parker - disrupting human trafficking
Around 15 years ago, Matt Parker was offered a job in Northern Thailand, managing a children’s home with 48 girls aged 8-18. He accepted due to his humanitarian and philanthropic beliefs and principles. What he uncovered would lead him to…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Taking time to re-focus
I haven’t done a podcast for 4 months, and some other things had to fall by the wayside this year due to tiredness. Turns out it was more about re-fusing and trying to figure out what really matters. Sometimes we still don’t get the answer…
- Rick DellaRatta - Jazz for Peace
Long known as one of the world’s finest Jazz Pianists and singers, Rick DellaRatta is also the founder of Jazz for Peace. Born as a result of Rick witnessing the devastation of 9/11 first hand, Jazz for Peace has lead to over 850 concerts…
- Aisha Alim - From crisis to confidence
The Victorian region of Latrobe Valley is home to some of the highest rates of domestic violence and unemployment in the state. Aisha’s passion to reduce these figures, is fuelled by her own story of escaping domestic abuse and having to r…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Himalayas, tradition and humanity
Would Nepal be a great place to host a women’s retreat? Logistically, no. Nepal surprised me by being the catalyst to a volcano of emotions and mental anguish. The snow capped Himalayas cracked open my container of humility and gratitude,…
- Stuart Wade - World Championships & Mind Coaching
Starting in martial arts at just 6 years old, Stuart Wade failed his first black belt attempt at 8 years old. He knew he never wanted to feel the pain of that again so put his will and determination to the test and spent the next 30 years…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Changemaking and rural leadership
What happens when you sit around a table with strangers who all have good intent, but different interpretations? Language matters and it matters a lot. What’s more important is how you choose to show up and what you choose to contribute to…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Get Off The Bench
What happens when you submit your manuscript with zero expectation of the outcome? All I can say is wow!! I’d forgotten I’d written some of this stuff and it makes me wonder how many people are out there constantly looking forward and forg…
- Jeffrey Morgan - From armed robbery to community leadership
Jeff Morgan shares his transformative journey from a life of crime to becoming a life and mindset coach, emphasising the need for emotional intelligence and self-awareness. He highlights the impact of early trauma and the importance of rol…
- Elleesha King - Transforming CPR outcomes with Pulse Tile
Elleesha King, a paramedic and registered nurse for 10 years, discusses her entrepreneurial venture, Pulsatile Innovations, and its flagship product, Pulse Tile. The device aims to improve cardiac arrest outcomes by providing clear instruc…
- Kerryn Vaughan - 2025 the year of simplicity
Last year presented many challenges for us, and so in an effort to reduce stress and manage much easier, we are implementing small changes that will dramatically improve the time we will have to spend together and to do the things in life…
- Kyle Smith - The power of words, stories and breath
Kyle smith, a clarity consultant and developer of Neuro Linguistic Somatic Experience, discusses the importance of mindset and language in personal development. He emphasises the shift from a victim mentality to a victor mentality, highlig…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Retreating to Cambodia
We tend to take a lot of things for granted when we live in developed countries. Well at least this of us that have some type of privilege. Spending time in Cambodia is a sure fire way to check in with that and appreciate the things and pe…
- David Roden - Ten year overnight success
David Roden weighed 400 lbs by the time he was 18 years old. Raised in the perfect household with a father in the medical field and a mother who loved him unconditionally, David still battled with despair as he saw no way to shed excessive…
- Andy McCarthy - Here Comes The Sun
Andy McCarthy, founder of Gippsland Solar, discusses his journey from a troubled youth to building a successful renewable energy business. He emphasises the importance of finding one's passion, and highlights the challenges of starting a s…
- Tiffanee Cook - Finding truth in the Himalayas
When you spend your life taking literal punches to the face it’s easy to forget who you are or where you’ve come from. But for Tiffanee Cook, the boxing ring was the catalyst to embracing authenticity. When she was asked to trek her way of…
- Ben Corcoran - Living without limits
Having many triumphs and challenges throughout his life, Ben Corcoran is on a mission to equal the playing field for people living with disabilities. Living with a cognitive disability, Ben understands the setbacks that arise when seeking…
- Gavin McCormack - Educating with love
With over 20 years of experience as a Montessori-trained teacher, Gavin McCormack knows the true essence of education and how little it takes to make students feel valued and connected. He is a best selling children’s author and has built…
- Cherie Smirl - Empowering through One Love Tanzania
After her very first trip to Tanzania, Cherie Smirl decided she couldn’t sit back and watch people’s opportunities being squashed by unfair systems, so she founded One Love Tanzania in the hope she could make a difference. Starting with on…
- Nicky Miklos-Woodley and Vanessa Medling - Inspiring healthy hustle
After many years of running solo businesses, Micky and Ness tick a leap of faith to join forces to help businesses cut through the grind and thrive, while taking the time to ensure that the ‘life’ side of things is thriving as well. Their…
- Rosalind Cardinal - Shaping change for leaders
After a successful battle with cancer, 20 years in corporate human services, and her fascination with human behaviour and neuroscience, led Ros in a new direction where she now hops to transform leaders.
- Lauren Murphy - Capturing the gold in emotive moments
Lauren Murphy goes very few places without one or two cameras attached to her hip. After her grandparents lost everything in the Ash Wednesday fires, Lauren knew that capturing moments was the true essence of harnessing humanity and commun…
- Audra Agen - Bringing women to the arena
After decades in the corporate sector and feeling exhausted by trying to emulate men, Audra Agen decided to show up as herself. Realising many women were either being taken for granted or overlooked, the ‘Women In The Arena’ podcast was bo…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Switching guilt for rest
There’s a great saying - “Would you rather disappoint others or disappoint yourself?”. Obviously the best answer would be not to disappoint yourself, but are we good at saying no and putting ourselves first? Not always - until we are.
- Tiffanee Cook - Piffing the small talk
A crazy decision to step into a boxing ring several years ago was all Tiff Cook needed to get a real life punch in the face, and realise that the mask she was wearing had no chance of protecting her. That mask was of course a metaphorical…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Drawing the line
This metaphorical line we often talk about can provoke feelings of guilt and shame if we find ourselves slipping below the line. But as we are human, and therefore emotional beings with baggage we can’t always shake, it’s impossible to sta…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Finding happiness in a box
We spend way too much of our lives pleasing others and living up to the expectations of others. We say ‘no’ when we should say ‘yes’, and we say ‘yes’ when we should say no. But what if we realised we actually have control over our own liv…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Identity and authenticity
So often our identity is the extension of the expectations of others. We show up to meet the belief of what we think others think we are. But what we think they think is based purely on our interpretation of our perceptions. So why live up…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Exploring emotions
Emotions are a normal part of the human experience but too often we allow them to control us and we take regretful action. Other times we do our best to control our emotions thinking we’ve succeeded, but have we? Suppressed emotions will a…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Challenging the fear of failure
We don’t always succeed at the things we try, but does not succeeding always equal failure? Not necessarily. What if failure is simply giving us feedback that something we are doing isn’t working and that we should try something else. Mayb…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Zen outside of the comfort zone
When we don’t know what to expect we can become quite stubborn and play into the hands of avoidance. Belting down rain is not an incentive to strip down to the bathing suit and strut around in the freezing cold. But had we not found a way…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Just behave yourself
Where do behaviours come from, and how do we get to do the finger pointing to determine good or bad behaviour. What if we added empathy, understanding and compassion into the mix? If our needs aren’t met, we will express it the best way we…
- Justin ‘Jonesy’ Jones - Daring to live the dream
A dream is no good silently tucked away in the back of your mind. Living to fulfil his dreams, adventurer Justin Jones has kayaked the length of the Murray River, across Bass Straight, across the ditch of the Tasman Sea, and has ski’d to t…
- Kellie Eddy - Finding purpose in weddings and funerals
How do you just switch on, even when your heart is breaking or your anxiety goes through the roof? As a Civil Celebrant and MC, Kellie Eddy has to find that switch and in this episode, Kellie shares how mental health issues have impacted h…
- Kerryn Vaughan - Setting boundaries around self-love
How do we begin the journey to self-love? It’s really hard to state what we deserve if we believe we don’t, but it is much easier to recognise and express what we don’t want in our lives.
- Mitch Nivalis - Equalling the Contest for gender diversity
As a film maker and photographer, Mitch Nivalis was looking for a deeper story to tell. A trip to the local supermarket raised Mitch’s awareness about a women’s and gender diverse footy club, and this was the catalyst to Mitch producing th…
- Karina Murray - The art of backing yourself
Starting a family and staying home to raise children can always leave a dent in a woman’s self confidence when it’s time to return to work. Karina Murray embraced courage, and went all in to back herself and follow her heart’s calling.
- Lisa Ireland - From dream to fiction publication
Lisa Ireland started her career in law, but soon moved to education and leadership. In the background she wrote her first novel, which took 10 years to get published, which finally catapulted her into the world of fiction authorship.