Mark Heywood on The Stories We Tell About Ourselves

What parts of yourself have you learned to hide in order to be taken seriously? My guest on this episode is Mark Heywood, a friend of the show, returning guest and someone I've collaborated with on a number of projects. Episode Summary & Guest ProfileMark has spent more than twenty years working in crisis management and operational resilience, while simultaneously building a successful career as a bestselling novelist, screenwriter and, more recently, stand-up comedian.On the morning we recorded this conversation, Mark published an article marking his fifty-first birthday. In it, he reflected on the pressure many of us feel to present only one version of ourselves professionally, arguing that his creative and corporate lives were never really separate. As he puts it, they were 'not two jobs, but one obsession wearing two different lanyards.' That simple idea becomes the starting point for a much wider discussion about the stories we tell ourselves, and the stories organisations tell themselves.Along the way we explore:Why "stay in your lane" may say more about other people's expectations than your own potential.Why organisations often encourage people to bring their whole selves to work, while rewarding conformity.What interviews, dress codes and organisational culture reveal about human behaviour.Why stories often influence behaviour more effectively than rules, policies and frameworks.What films can teach us about operational resilience, cybersecurity and crisis management.Why the Titanic remains one of the most powerful lessons in organisational failure.How imagination is a strategic capability rather than a soft skill.Why thinking through "severe but plausible" scenarios requires organisations to become better storytellers.LinksMark's birthday article: "A Birthday Declaration from Someone Who Spent Over Twenty Years Pretending to Be Half of Himself" (LinkedIn)Mark's Behind The Spine podcastThe Writing SalonBehind The Spine podcastMark on LinkedInMark's previous appearances on the show talking about The Creative Industries under COVID, and Human Risk in the Creative IndustriesFilms, Stories & People MentionedDie Hard  Apollo 13 The Martian The Odyssey (Christopher Nolan)Don't Look UpSnakes on a Plane Sharknado Noah's Ark RMS TitanicRachel Heyhoe Flint Jeremy King AI-Generated Timestamped Summary00:00 – Why do we hide parts of ourselves to be taken seriously?03:40 – Mark explains why he stopped separating his creative and corporate identities.08:00 – Which hobbies and outside interests are considered professionally acceptable—and why?10:30 – Job interviews, authenticit