From the boardrooms of Google X to the depths of unimaginable grief, Mo Gawdat’s journey defies every conventional narrative about success and loss. The former Chief Business Officer, who helped launch Google’s operations across half the planet, lost his son Ali in 2014 to a routine operation gone wrong – a tragedy that could have broken him forever. Instead, it became the catalyst for an extraordinary mission: to make one billion people happier.

Armed with a mathematician’s mind and a mystic’s heart, Mo has transformed personal devastation into global purpose. He spent 12 years researching happiness with his son Ali and created a formula that now underpins his bestselling books – Solve for Happy, Scary Smart, and That Little Voice in Your Head – as well as the #OneBillionHappy movement, which has already reached nearly 100 million people. His podcast Slo Mo is a regular #1 Mental Health show in the UK.

Whether he’s advising governments on tech ethics, writing about AI’s sentience in real time, or helping people engineer their way out of despair, Mo is living proof that happiness isn’t just wishful thinking – it’s a learnable, repeatable skill that can reshape the way you live your life.

LESSONS YOU'LL LEARN

1. Death is transformation, not termination. Mo's mathematical approach to consciousness reveals that our physical form is just an avatar – the real you exists beyond space and time.
2. Emotions are visitors, not residents. Feel them, acknowledge them, embrace them – then ask what action you can take. Wallowing in misery brings no one back and helps no one forward.
3. Follow the happiness flow chart. Three questions can take you from despair to clarity in seven seconds: Is this thought true? Can I fix it? If not, can I accept it and make tomorrow better?
4. Pride is pointless, gratitude is everything. When you recognise how much of your success came from blessings beyond your control, humility becomes your superpower and service becomes your calling.
5. Your crisis is not your conclusion. The worst moment of Mo's life became the launching pad for the most meaningful work he's ever done – proving that rock bottom can be the foundation for everything that comes next.

----

Host: Andy Coulson

CWC team: Jane Sankey, Hana Walker-Brown, Mabel Pickering and Rex Fisher

With special thanks to Ioana Barbu and the brilliant people at Global

For all PR and guest approaches please contact – podcast@coulsonpartners.com

Alix Popham took hundreds of thousands of hits on the pitch – but the biggest came years after retirement. His is a story of crisis and clarity. Of choosing purpose over bitterness. And of how the mindset that wins matches can also save lives.

Here is Alix's Crisis Compass.

—————–

This podcast is brought to you by Crisis What Crisis? Productions and Coulson Partners.

Host: Andy Coulson

CWC team: Jane Sankey, Hana Walker-Brown, Mabel Pickering and Rex Fisher

With special thanks to Ioana Barbu and the brilliant people at Global

For all PR and guest approaches please contact – podcast@coulsonpartners.com

Grand Slam-winning rugby hero, Alix Popham took hundreds of thousands of hits on the pitch – but the biggest came years after retirement. Diagnosed with early onset dementia and probable CTE, he’s now leading a powerful campaign to expose the truth about brain injury in sport to ensure its safety and longevity for generations to come. Still proud of his career, Alix is using that same warrior mindset to fight for change, purpose and the lives of others.

This is a story of crisis and clarity. Of choosing purpose over bitterness. And of how the mindset that wins matches can also save lives.

1. Control what you can. Let go of what you can’t. Alix refuses to dwell on lost memories – and focuses instead on shaping a better future.
2. Pain with purpose = power. He’s turned personal trauma into a mission to reform the sport he still loves.
3. Your mindset in crisis is shaped long before it begins. The “next job” mentality that drove his phenomenal career now fuels his recovery and activism.
4. Anger burns fast. Purpose lasts longer. Alix refuses to let rage define his fight – instead, he leads with calm resolve and truth.
5. Even when the odds are stacked, you still get to choose your response. From experimental treatment in Mexico to completing an Ironman, Alix refuses to be defined by diagnosis.

This podcast is brought to you by Crisis What Crisis? Productions and Coulson Partners

Host: Andy Coulson

CWC team: Jane Sankey, Hana Walker-Brown, Mabel Pickering and Rex Fisher

With special thanks to Ioana Barbu and the brilliant people at Global

For all PR and guest approaches please contact – podcast@coulsonpartners.com