The Osher Günsberg Podcast show

The Osher Günsberg Podcast

Summary: A weekly conversation with someone remarkable that will leave you truly inspired. Excuse the accent, I'm bi-coastal. Authenticity is the new black. Come join us.

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 Ep 193: Donita Menon | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:08:52

Donita Menon is the Grief and Bereavement coordinator at the Leukaemia Foundation Australia, her job is to talk both with people diagnosed, and with families before and after the death of a loved one. She has a brilliant story and I can’t wait for you to hear it. It is fortuitous that we spoke on this day, as we’d had the podcast scheduled in for months in advance - My Mum was in partial remission and was still living independently when we booked it in. But by the time we came around to recording this - as you may know mum has passed away. We didn’t have a therapy session - but what you’ll hear is a conversation about death, dying and living that is very real for both Donita and myself. Thanks for listening and enjoy this conversation with Donita Menon.

 Ep 192 - Brendan McClean | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:22:54

Brendan Maclean is an Australian singer/songwriter/performer/unicorn who first came on this show about three years ago but suffered at the hands of the great file loss of 2015. He has been kind enough to return and boy do we have a lot to talk about. Brendan’s about to have a new EP come out in August 2017 and a new album in the works for early 2018 so a great time to have him on. Find him on twitter and Insta for more @macleanbrendan. This is a conversation for anyone who’s let fear hold them back from expressing themselves. And expressing himself is something Brendan does with exceptional ability. His live energy is something to behold - as is his recorded work which you can find at brendanmaclean.Bandcamp.com. A fair amount of this conversation revolves around the music video that Brendan put out in the last few months - the video for the song House Of Air. I must warn you with all the warnings I can warn you with. If you choose to go and watch this video yourself you will see rather graphic depictions of many sex acts between two men. You’ll see close up shots of genitals and you’ll even see penetration. If you want to see such a thing, it’s up to you to watch it - I’m not going to say watch it or don’t. But if you do - be aware that you’ll see what you think you’re going to see when you hire professional gay porn actors to make a film in the style of a visual accompaniment to a written thesis observing the habits and cultures of a subset of gay men. In this conversation you’ll hear me watch the video - which you can see at houseofair.info - and I try my best to give benign descriptions of what I’m seeing. But again - only watch this video if you’re interested in seeing something that freaked a lot of people out. I thought the video was great, it is so perfect, and really does what it sets out to do - I’m so happy that Brendan is the kind of guy to make this kind of film. I know I certainly am not brave enough to create art like that - and I’m thrilled he was in my house and able to talk about it with me. Having said that, Brendan got really raw about his adventures in the world of art and performing and it’s an honour that he chose to share these things with me. I urge you to support Brendan in any way you can - financially or through spreading the word about his work. We’re lucky to have him. Let him know you heard him on online - handle is @macleanbrendan Please enjoy this conversation with Brendan Maclean.

 Ep 191: Bruce Jeffreys | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:28:57

Bruce Jeffreys is an entrepreneur from Sydney Australia. He is a cofounder of two successful businesses - GoGet and Dresden optics. This is a brilliant conversation about creating a disruptive business, and the lessons learned from just bloody going ahead and starting while figuring it out as you go. It’s a great chat with a fascinating man - who’s heart is in a great place and aligns his businesses with his passion.

 Ep 190: Sophie Hardcastle | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:29:30

Sophie Hardcastle is an artist, author and all-around adventurous soul from Sydney Australia. She shot to fame when she published her first book - Running Like China, a memoir of a life interrupted by madness. It chronicles her struggle with coming to terms with her own mental illness and life with a brain that operates differently than others. Her second book is a young adult novel called Breathing Underwater. Sophie is also an exceptionally talented artist, currently studying at Sydney College of Art - and she’s just been awarded a $100,000 scholarship to continue her studies for a year at Oxford University. She’s a remarkable, thoughtful, funny, and strikingly smart young woman and I’m so happy she came around to share her story with me this week. You can follow her on Instagram sophie_hardcastle, let her know you heard her on the show. A trigger warning up top - we do discuss self-harm in this episode so about twenty minutes after we start the interview you’ll hear us talking about the northern beaches - if you skip forward until you hear me talking about my hearing damage, you’ll have emerged safely on the other side. Come enjoy a cup of coffee around my beautiful Parker Table, in the super-comfy Eames chairs - with Sophie Hardcastle.

 Ep 189: Nathan Cavaleri | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:40:31

Nathan Cavaleri is an Australian musician, who you can follow at nathancavaleri.com or on Instagram at Nathan_Cavaleri. Nathan first came to the attention of Australia when he was still a kid - he had been diagnosed with leukaemia and the Starlight Foundation sent him over to the UK to Jam with the lead guitar player of the biggest band in the world at the time - Mark Knopfler from Dire Staits. Nathan was a prodigious guitar player, and the footage quickly captured the hearts of Australians - soon enough Nathan - this incredibly talented and charismatic ten year old - was on stage with some of the world’s greatest musicians. From Jimmy Barnes in Australia to Booker T & The MG’s, BB King - even Michael Jackson. Nathan was an absolute superstar - a household name. But what happened next is where the real story starts. As Nathan explains on his blog at Nathan Cavaleri.com he went through some dark times, and today he shares some of those dark times with me. I really can’t thank Nathan enough for this - I always feel it’s a great gift to us when someone opens up about their struggle, as it can help those struggling to know they’re not alone. So before we go any further if there’s anything you hear in this chat that resonates or makes you feel unstable, please don’t hesitate to call lifeline on 13 11 14. Ok, put the kettle on and enjoy an afternoon chat with wonderful human, incredible guitar player and fellow cavoodle owner - Nathan Cavaleri.

 Ep 188: Great Moments with Comedians | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:48:00

This week's episode is a best of, mixtape, audible burrito with the lot all focused on comedy. This podcast has hosted many great comedians, and here are just a few. Peter Helliar is an Australian comedian best known as the bloke on the end of the desk every night on the news program “The Project”. He’s also a producer, a director, a writer and an actor. I asked Pete about the first time he got an inkling that he might end up doing what he now does so well. Next up we have Alice Fraser - a comedian, writer, and ex-lawyer from Australia. She's also host of the wonderfully cerebral podcast "Tea With Alice" which I'm happy to have been a guest on. Alice has a very interesting story, a story about following what you believe in, finding your truth - and what monetary rewards balance against that truth or even the joy of that journey. We do get a little philosophical here, but not before discussing, in depth, the topic of swearing. This chat is best enjoyed out of the company of sensitive ears! Chas Licciardello is part of the incredibly successful Australian satire collective The Chaser. For over 15 years they've been calling out hypocrisy, lies and general bloviating by our public figures and making us either laugh or be outraged while they do it. Never one to shy from commitment to a joke, Chas has been arrested numerous times, received death threats and has even been assaulted in the street - all for the sake of satire. I asked him here whether his fearless approach to comedy has been tempered in any way since having kids. Tommy Little is a comedian, radio guy and TV host from Melbourne, Australia. You can catch him regularly in Australia on The Project on a Friday Night, on radio as the 'Tommy' half of 'Carrie and Tommy', and he's always touring around the nation doing standup. Here we discuss what he was like as a teenager, and what got him started in comedy. Our final snippet in this episode is from an exclusive podcast - this one only went out to Patreon subscribers to this podcast. It's with Adam Richard, an incredibly funny Australian comedian, TV guy, broadcaster and wonderful human. He's made a living out of being funny for a while now, and so we talk about the craft and the business of comedy. So please enjoy this compilation of great moments we've shared on the show with some of Australia's finest comedians.

 Ep 187: Origins of Success Stories | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:51:06

This week's episode is another mix-tape of some great conversations I've had on the podcast. This time we're focusing on people who managed to turn the thing that they love into reality, and what it took to make that happen. First up is Ben St. Lawrence, an Australian middle-distance runner, a two-time Olympian and an all around interesting guy. Ben’s not the first Olympian I’ve had on the show, however his story - his particular triumph over adversity and refocus of his life is one worth hearing. After Ben we'll hear from Jane Lu, the founder and CEO of mammoth fashion startup Showpo.com. This is easily one of my favourites - because everyone loves a story of triumph. Of closing the door on something in order to open unknown other doors, leading to the life you really want to live. Next is Taylor Steele, one of the most iconic and prolific surf film makers of our time. Through his film Momentum, released in 1992 - a then twenty year old Taylor captured a new and dominating style of surfing that hadn’t really been seen before as he filmed young surfers that would go on to become household names in the surf world: Shane Dorian, Rob Machado, Taylor Knox and of course Kelly Slater. Finally is the amazing Dr Glen Richards. Glen is a vet, entrepreneurial mega-success and a shark on the Network Ten hit show Shark Tank. It's Dragon's Den in the UK and Shark Tank everywhere else. He grew Greencross from a single vet practice to an ASX-listed company with clinics and pet stores all over Australia. So please enjoy this mega-episode of the show, about the origin stories of great successes. May it give your day some uplift, and maybe even inspire you to create something amazing.

 Ep 186: Overcoming Adversity | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:11:15

This week's episode is a supercut, a compilation, a best of, a mix tape! It features some of the best moments of the show over the last year or two that share the theme of overcoming adversity. We start with the Hon. Leeanne Enoch, Minister for Innovation, Science and the Digital Economy and Minister for Small Business in the seat of Algester in Queensland. Leeanne is the first Aboriginal Australian Woman to be elected into the Qld Parliament, a woman who grew up On Country in North Stradbroke Island and then in Woodridge housing commission on the southern fringes of Brisbane. She shares here how, as a kid, she made sense of her relatively low socioeconomic circumstances. We then move on to Deng Adut. In his recent book “Songs of a War Boy” Deng describes in chilling detail the life of a child soldier - which includes horrific first hand accounts of battle, torture, death, and the kind of barbaric brutality that only humans inflict on other humans. When he was twelve, he was rescued by his older brother and smuggled out of Sudan into Kenya where he met an Australian couple that helped him and his brother come here to start a new life - and that new life is what we talk about here. Carly Findlay is next; Carly is an appearance activist, blogger, and writer who was born with Ichthyosis. This basically causes her skin to renew itself at an incredibly fast rate, leaving her susceptible to dryness, inflammation, itchiness, and gives her a noticeably red complexion - which is also shiny because she has to constantly apply paraffin to her skin so as to alleviate the pain and discomfort. We then hear from Lola Berry, a nutritionist, author, blogger, speaker and advocate for happiness. She even wrote a book about happiness. She's a woman who has inspired hundreds of thousands of people all around the world to be kinder and more caring to themselves through food and nourishment - not just of their bodies but of themselves as a whole. A trigger warning at the top here. Sexual assault is a part of Lola's story and she talks about that today. I hope you get some value out of this special episode, dedicated to the challenge of overcoming adversity.

 Ep 185: Eric Barker | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:00:01

Eric Barker is a screenwriter, blogger and author from Los Angeles California. His successful blog is at bakadesuyo.com that’s also his Twitter handle @bakadesuyo. Eric reached out to me and asked if he could come on to talk about his latest book “Barking up the wrong tree” The surprising science behind why everything you know about success is (mostly) wrong. We spoke last week over Skype and he offered a real insight to a few nuggets of wisdom that will hopefully help you find success either in your own personal venture, your home life, your family life, or even your work for someone else’s business. Either way, his work seems rooted in finding happiness as a part of success - rather than collecting money as a goal of success. He’s a great guy and I’m stoked he had the time to chat with me. If you dig it make sure you reach out to him and tell him you heard him here.  Enjoy this chat with Eric Barker.

 Ep 184: Bridie O'Donnell | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:02:43

Bridie O'Donnell and I have known each other since our high school days. She has gone on to become a Doctor and a world record breaking professional cyclist. Bridie has some great things to say here about elite sport, becoming motivated and staying healthy. I'm grateful to be able to bring this conversation to you, because it's not someone I've just met, with me getting to know my subject as I interview them - this is me and someone I go way back with who happens to be a very interesting human being. If there's anything Dr Bridie says in this podcast that really motivates you, I'm sure she'd love to hear about it - you can catch her on Twitter at @bridie_od. Please enjoy this Skype conversation with the brilliant Dr Bridie O'Donnell.  

 Ep 183: Matt Draper | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:15:54

Matt Draper is an Australian photographer who’s work centers on capturing aquatic animals in their natural patterns of behavior. You can follow him on Instagram at @MattDraperPhotography. I wanted to chat to him not only because I love to scuba dive and I’m fascinated by the ocean and all in it - but also because he’s a man who’s figured out how to get paid to do what he loves to do. If there’s something that you’re incredibly passionate about, and you’d love to make it your career - listen to the path that Matt took to get to where he is. Listen to the steps he took, the back and forth from working to make money for equipment and travel to shoot, to finally taking the leap to going full time. His journey may not be on the same axis as yours, but I’m sure the arc of it will be inspiring. I loved talking to Matt, he’s a great human and he’s completely made me want to get the mask and snorkel on and get wet again. I’ll say this up top: Matt describes free diving experiences and breath-holding concepts that require a lot of training and are highly skilled things to do. Don’t attempt the kind of stuff he’s talking about. Don’t do what I did and hold your breath, then go down to ten metres like I describe here. Apparently that’s a dangerous and stupid thing to do. But do pull a mask and snorkel on, and do go and get wet, do go and have a look at the environment that encompasses more of this planet than the environment we live on and in. I hope you enjoy this conversation that I had over Skype with Matt Draper.

 Ep 182: Dan Ilic | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:17:06

@danilic is a writer, director, comedian and satirist from Australia who is currently the Executive Producer at Fusion in the US, he’s done a heap of work in Australia notably “A Rational Fear” and all his work on the ABC & SBS. He’s worked for Al Jazeera in the US as well and is a very smart and funny man in a new world of exciting digital broadcasting. He’s a returning guest on the show so we get straight into it, but if you’re interested in his background check out the first time he visited my house back in 2013 - we get into it a lot then. Dan and I spoke via Skype while he was in Canada sorting out some Visa issues, which we get in to as we go along - but I have to tell you, the bathrobe he was in looked like the best bathrobe in the world. If you like what you hear make sure you follow him on twitter @danilic and let him know. So come to my office in Bronte that was able to connect via Skype to the other side of the planet with the extraordinarily smart and funny Dan Ilic.

 Ep 181: Jack Heath | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:12:43

Jack Heath is the CEO of SANE Australia, where I am fortunate to sit as a director on their board.   Jack started with a career in politics while the Labour government was in power here in Australia, and after a tragic incident where his cousin died by suicide - Jack started the Inspire foundation in 1997. Now known as Reach Out, It was the world’s first online mental health service for young people.   After over a decade there, and successfully launching Reach Out in Ireland and in the US - Jack now is the CEO of SANE Australia, which works to help the nearly four million Australians affected by a complex mental illness.   There’s been a great amount of work done in our community around awareness and destigmatization of Anxiety and Depression, and indeed we now live in a different world in regards to both of these illnesses.   However, there’s nearly 700,000 Australians that live with a Complex Mental Illness diagnosis. This includes Bipolar Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, Eating Disorders, and schizophrenia.   This week in Australia it’s schizophrenia awareness week.   Whatever you think about when you think about schizophrenia, I’m asking you to open your mind to be changed. Schizophrenia is not a death sentence, there is help and treatment available and indeed a rich and fulfilling life is still available.   I guess the biggest misconception about schizophrenia is that a diagnosis means you’ll be a danger to yourself and others. In fact the latest research out of Sweden shows that the possibility of someone with schizophrenia being violent is far less likely that previously thought, which is a finding that allows both medical personnel and indeed law enforcement to focus their limited resources on the very few patients that do pose a risk to themselves and others.   Now a trigger warning right up here at the top.   Jack’s story involves talking about the death by suicide of his cousin, and Jack discloses incidents of sexual abuse that happened to him while he was still a child.   Again if you need to speak to someone - please hit pause on this and call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or SANE Australia on 1800 18 7263   Ok. This is a heavy conversation, but it’s an important conversation.   You ready?   OK. Come to my kitchen, sit at my vintage parker table in my super-comfy Eames dining chairs, and enjoy this cup of tea and a chat with CEO of SANE Australia Jack Heath.

 Ep 180: Taylor Steele | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:10:58

Taylor Steele is one of the most iconic and prolific surf film makers of our time. Find him on instagram @taylorsteele. Through his film Momentum, released in 1992 - a then twenty year old Taylor captured a new and dominating style of surfing that hadn’t really been seen before as he filmed young surfers that would go on to become household names in the surf world: Shane Dorian, Rob Machado, Taylor Knox and of course Kelly Slater. As a film, it documented a complete shift in style and propelled these surfers into absolute idol status among fans. Fast forward 25 years later, and Taylor has a new film out called Proximity featuring some of the surfers that he featured back in that first film. It comes out May 12th in Australia for a limited release and will then be released digitally - but I must urge you to catch it on the big screen. I’ve seen this film twice now, once on my desktop and once on the big screen and I have to say it’s easily the most beautiful surf film I’ve ever laid eyes on. If you’ve never surfed, or always wondered about what would drive someone to compete in the world of professional surfing or indeed dedicate their lives to traveling the world and seeking out the most rare and untouched waves they can find - this is a fantastic film. Pairing surfers from different generations together and sending them on journeys to the four corners of the globe in the midst of the four seasons of the year, Taylor has documented again what it means to surf, what it means to compete as a surfer, and what it means to put your life on the line in the search to ride in harmony nature itself. I can’t recommend this movie enough if you’ve always been curious about surfing - you could watch it and then consider yourself schooled about why people would do it. Taylor is a remarkable guy, by his own admission shy and quite specific, I can’t thank him enough for the hour that he gave me in his hotel room earlier this week. He even let me rearrange the furniture so that I could get a better position to suit the microphones. So come now to the tenth floor of the QT hotel on Market Street right in the middle of Sydney, a long way from where both of us were born - for a look into the mind of someone who has always lived a life he loves, a live of creating, and a life that plays a huge role in the surf industry today -  because he essentially wrote the theme song to an entire generation of surfers.

 Ep 179: Dr Mark Cross | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 01:18:40

​Dr Mark Cross (@DrMCross) is a psychiatrist, author, television presenter and fellow board member of SANE Australia. For many years he ran the youth ward at Campbelltown Hospital in Sydney, however he’s moved on from that to focus on other things. He’s best known in Australia for his SBS TV show “Changing Minds”, which worked to destigmatize community attitudes to mental illness - and he produced a book of the same name. Mark and I sit together on the board of SANE Australia which works to help more than 4 four million people in Australia who are affected by complex mental illness including OCD, borderline personality disorder, bipolar, PTSD, eating disorders and schizophrenia. I’m grateful to be a part of the board there, and relish working alongside Mark and other board members to help change attitudes in our society about complex mental illness, and help show that a diagnosis does not necessarily mean you’re a danger to yourself and others - and that a rich and full life is indeed still available for you. Mark has a fascinating story, and I’m grateful he took the time to speak with me and indeed to be so open with his story. Come and sit as Mark and I pick away at the last of the catering left after a board meeting, and enjoy a chat in a boardroom in Paddington Sydney on a blue autumn afternoon.

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