#121: Myles Downey - The Sessions and Why Genius is Dangerous
Myles Downey’s new book, The Sessions, marks a transition, a metamorphosis in his influential body of work. And that becomes the theme of this, his third appearance on The Coach’s Journey Podcast.
What happens when it is no longer sustainable to remain what you have been? What is it like to have an idea - like Myles did with The Sessions more than 30 years ago - and not be able to let it go?
And for Padraig, the protagonist of The Sessions, what is it like for someone to step into their own shoes, becoming a leader, becoming oneself as a leader?
That is just the start, though, in a wide-ranging conversation about Myles’ work, his new book, and what he has coming up next as part of what has already been an incredibly influential and impactful career, which started working closely with Sir John Whitmore in the early days of coaching in the UK and passed through The School of Coaching, his bestselling book Effective Modern Coaching and his powerful work on genius, which culminated in the book, Enabling Genius.
In particular, we talk about:
Whether it is our duty and responsibility to express ourselves.
Poetry, prose, fiction, non-fiction, and Myles’ relationship to reading and writing (and what this has to do with coaching).
Myles’ passion for human nature, creativity and how human beings should be more of themselves, not less of themselves.
The close relationship between genius and being seen as mad, and why some leaders and CEOs see genius as dangerous.
One of the most powerful coaching exercises Myles did with Robbie when he was Robbie’s coach.
And at the end, Myles tells a moving story about the influence of his wife, Jo, on The Sessions and his wider work, and gives a tantalising trailer for what might be his next book: The Inner Game of Leadership - what it takes to express oneself, configured around the notion of leadership.
To listen to Myles’ first appearance on The Coach’s Journey Podcast, visit https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-31-myles-downey
To listen to his second appearance on the show, visit: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/69-myles-downey-what-is-effective-coaching-performance-coaching-when-to-be-directive-changing-clients-maps-of-reality-and-more
For more information about Myles, visit www.mylesdowney.com or find him on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/mylesdowney
For more information about Robbie Swale, visit www.robbieswale.com.
Read more about The Coach's Journey at www.thecoachsjourney.com.
Music by My Good Man William: listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4KmeQUcTbeE31uFynHQLQg
To support the Coach's Journey, visit www.patreon.com/thecoachsjourney and to join the Coach's Journey Community visit www.thecoachsjourney.com/community.
Things and people we mentioned (that you might be interested in):
Myles' previous appearances on The Coach's Journey Podcast: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-31-myles-downey https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/69-myles-downey-what-is-effective-coaching-performance-coaching-when-to-be-directive-changing-clients-maps-of-reality-and-more
The Sessions by Myles Downey: https://thesessions.online/ and https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sessions-tale-leadership-Dublin-pubs-ebook/dp/B0GKCWPD4B/
The Inner Game of Tennis by Timothy Gallwey: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Inner-Game-Tennis-ultimate-performance/dp/1447288505/
Myles’ books: Effective Modern Coaching, The Enabling Manager, Enabling Genius: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Effective-Modern-Coaching-principles-successful/dp/191595116X/
The fantasy novels where Robbie learned why poetry matters was The Long Price Quartet by Daniel Abraham: https://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Long-Price-Quartet/dp/B074CFZ29B
Joseph Campbell: http://robbieswale.com/the-12-minute-blog/2024/10/9/the-insecure-way-is-really-the-secure-way
Strong Ground by Brene Brown: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Strong-Ground-Leadership-Tenacity-Vermilion/dp/178504320X
Roberto Assagioli: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Assagioli
BIOGRAPHY FROM MYLES
Myles Downey is a recognized authority on Performance, Coaching and Leadership and the author of three classics in the coaching and performance arena: ‘Effective Modern Coaching’, (330,00+ books sold); ‘Enabling Genius – a mindset for success in the 21st Century’; ‘The Enabling Manager – how to get the best out of your team’.
Myles is one of the leading executive performance coaches in Europe, with global experience (Europe, North and South America, Asia-Pacific, UAE). He has worked across the C-suite in many prestigious organisations over the past 35 years, in a wide variety of industries, including Banking and Financial Services, Manufacturing, Oil and Gas, Professional Services, Tech, the Public Sector and Sports.
Myles was the founder of The School of Coaching (1996 to 2012), at the time the premier institution for coach training in Europe.
Myles has deployed his performance coaching programs with the Senior Coaches of the England Rugby Team and with the New Zealand Elite Rugby Coaches.
Myles has been a speaker at many leadership conferences, including the BBC’s Conference for its top 400 senior executives, the McKinsey Global Partners Conference in Singapore and the ICF Global Conference in Malmo, to name a few. After 33 years living in London, Myles now lives in Norfolk, England. He was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1959. Myles plays for Norfolk Veterans Tennis and competes occasionally on the ITF Masters Tour.