The High Performance Podcast

The more outrage the internet creates, the more money platforms make. But what happens to the people caught in that cycle? Award-winning journalist and bestselling author Jon Ronson joins Jake and Damian to examine how algorithms reward conflict, push creators towards increasingly extreme content and punish those who choose nuance.

Through the story of a creator who amassed 13 billion views before seeing the damage caused by chasing the algorithm, Jon explores the human cost of online success. He also turns the lens on himself, reflecting on his own fear of becoming irrelevant and the relentless search for purpose.

This is a conversation about the battle between attention and integrity, and what we risk losing when outrage becomes the easiest way to be heard.

Jon’s latest book The Castle: Adventures in a World of Unravelling Men is out now: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/455289/the-castle-by-ronson-jon/9780241754771

GoHenry 👉 Build smart money habits that last a lifetime at https://www.gohenry.com/uk/ with 1 month free to get started!

Vitality 👉 We've partnered with Vitality because our philosophies align perfectly: healthy habits build high performance and can lead to a healthier, longer life. Find out more about health and life insurance with Vitality: https://highpfrmc.com/vitality-hpp-au

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Jenson Button won six of the first seven races of 2009, then nearly talked himself out of a world title. This is Jenson at his most candid about what really goes on behind the visor.

Originally released in 2021, he takes us back to the start: parents who split when he was seven, a dad who spent every penny in his account on a go-kart, and a mum who tried to stop him racing before becoming his biggest supporter. Then the early Formula One years — a boss who told the world he was a playboy, a team that never backed him, and the move to BAR that he calls the best of his life.
And 2009: the pressure he piled on himself, the headlines, the physio who finally said “just talk to me,” and the pint with his dad the night before Brazil.

Moments that will stay with you:
The car journey home from Scotland, and the words he kept from his dad until he became world champion
Flavio Briatore’s yacht jibe, delivered while Jenson’s hands were blistered from a power-steering failure
The bad-race ritual: write it down, put it in your pocket, move on
Breaking his hand on a bar drum in Tokyo days before the Japanese GP, then strapping it to the steering wheel to race
Why he thought he was “too much of a man” to ask for help
Driving to what you feel, not what you see

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Released by Arsenal, shipped out on four loans, and described by his own academy as the “runt of the litter”, Harry Kane was never the obvious one. So how did he become the first Englishman since Michael Owen to win the Ballon d’Or? Mauricio Pochettino, Jesús Pérez, Gareth Southgate, Alex Inglethorpe, Geir Jordet, Kieran Trippier, Justin Cochrane and Andy Cole, who all saw him up close at different stages of the climb, help Jake and Damian answer that question.

Alex Inglethorpe reveals the Spurs youngsters who hid footballs in the bushes for secret afternoon sessions, and why turning a blind eye was some of his best coaching.
Mauricio Pochettino & Jesús Pérez explain the striker signing that never happened, and the public statement they refused to make, to show Kane they trusted him.
Geir Jordet explains why Kane is the best penalty taker in the world, and the moment he tore up the technique that got him there.
Gareth Southgate and Kieran Trippier describe the standard Kane set in the dressing room
Justin Cochrane reflects on the youth-team player he first coached in 2009
Andy Cole shares what moving from a team built around him taught him about “we, not me”.

Along the way, Jake shares what Norwich’s players made of their new loan striker, and the BBC boss whose belief changed his own career. Damian brings in the research on late bloomers, the “mundanity of excellence”, the power of a single sentence of feedback, and why people with high status talk about themselves less.

They finish on Kane’s acceptance speech: no goals, no stats, just his family and the coaches who helped him rise. If this has changed how you think about talent, share it with someone who needs to hear it.

Listen to the full episodes:

Full episodes links for the guests featured:
Alex Ingelthorpe https://pod.fo/e/23d965
Mauricio Pochettino & Jesús Pérez: https://pod.fo/e/38b65d
Gareth Southgate: https://pod.fo/e/358861
Kieran Trippier: https://pod.fo/e/17a67f
Justin Cochrane: https://pod.fo/e/4181af
Andy Cole: https://pod.fo/e/264cb8
Robert Lewandowski: https://pod.fo/e/372653

GoHenry 👉 Build smart money habits that last a lifetime at https://www.gohenry.com/uk/ with 1 month free to get started!

Vitality 👉 We've partnered with Vitality because our philosophies align perfectly: healthy habits build high performance and can lead to a healthier, longer life. Find out more about health and life insurance with Vitality: https://highpfrmc.com/vitality-hpp-au

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“Just keep on rowing.” It’s the simple advice Lewis Moody’s father gave him, and a philosophy that has stayed with him through some of life’s hardest moments. Now living with a terminal MND diagnosis, those words have taken on a new meaning.

The former England rugby captain explains how he’s approaching the uncertainty ahead, why he’s determined to use his experience to make a difference for others, and how his perspective on adversity has changed. For Lewis, positivity isn’t about pretending things are easy. It’s about choosing how you respond when they aren’t.

This is a different perspective on what it means to keep moving forward when the path ahead is unknown.

Fronting Up by Lewis Moody is published by Headline in Hardback and Ebook on the 5th November available to buy online and in store: https://linktr.ee/LewisMoody

GoHenry 👉 Build smart money habits that last a lifetime at https://www.gohenry.com/uk/ with 1 month free to get started!

Vitality 👉 We've partnered with Vitality because our philosophies align perfectly: healthy habits build high performance and can lead to a healthier, longer life. Find out more about health and life insurance with Vitality: https://highpfrmc.com/vitality-hpp-au

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week's episode is presented by Stripe, and features Co-founder of Arcade the entertainment company behind some of Europe’s biggest creators including Fallow Chefs, Max Fosh and The Sidemen.

Jordan opens up about why the traditional model of influencer marketing is fundamentally broken, how modern algorithms allow a creator with 10,000 followers to achieve more reach than someone with a million, and why faceless legacy media institutions are facing an existential crisis against personality-led publishing. He also reveals how his company helped The Sidemen to scale from a single employee into a multi-company empire with 75 full-time staff.

But behind the rapid growth and high-stakes valuations lies a deeper reflection on entrepreneurship: why every sustainable business requires both a "head and a heart" to survive, and why true peace comes from refusing to make your work your identity. What emerges is a masterclass in modern media and a reminder that in today's world, thinking like a creator gives anyone an outsized opportunity to win.

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