Pressure shows up at the front door in broad daylight, stress lurks in the shadows of your own mind. One is the world’s expectation. The other is your own resistance to it.

In this episode, Jake and Damian unpack the crucial difference between pressure and stress, and why understanding it can transform how you handle challenges. Drawing insights from guests like Tom Aspinall, Steve Hansen, Barry Hearn, and Alistair Campbell, they explore how top performers prepare for pressure, ground themselves in high-stakes moments, and reframe fear into freedom.

With practical tools and powerful stories, this episode is a guide to staying centred when life speeds up, listen in as Jake and Damian share how to turn pressure into progress and stress into strength.

Listen to episodes mentioned:

Tom Aspinall:https://pod.fo/e/2d3d2e

Steve Hansen: https://pod.fo/e/1ecdda

Barry Hearn: https://pod.fo/e/157c60

Alistair Campbell: https://pod.fo/e/f40aa

Mo lost his son, Ali, in a tragic and avoidable surgery. It’s the kind of grief that could break anyone. But instead of shutting down, he turned toward the pain, with honesty, logic, and a question that changed everything: Can we train ourselves to be happy, even after heartbreak?

One insight stood out: the 90-second rule. According to Mo (and backed by neuroscience), our emotions only physically last 90 seconds. What happens after that? That’s on us.

In this episode, we explore how to ride that first emotional wave, how to challenge the stories our brain creates, and how three simple questions can help us shift from reaction to intention.

This isn’t about pretending everything’s okay. It’s about learning how to respond when it isn’t.

If you’ve ever felt hijacked by your emotions, or just wanted a way to move through them with more clarity, this one’s worth your time.

Listen to the full episode with Mo Gawdat: https://pod.fo/e/140b32

Here is more information on the studies referenced:

1. 90 Second Emotion Rule (Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, 2006), My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey

2. Space Between Stimulus and Response (Viktor Frankl, 1946), Man’s Search for Meaning

Sam Allardyce is one of English football’s most seasoned and straight-talking managers, known as much for his no-nonsense attitude as for his deep understanding of the game. With a career spanning decades, he’s led clubs like Bolton, West Ham, and Everton, and even had a brief but infamous spell as England manager.

In this episode, Big Sam opens up about what it really takes to build a football club from the ground up. From keeping your job long enough to make lasting changes, to scouting better players and improving performance fast, he lays out the reality of trying to grow while constantly under pressure.

He also reflects on his time in charge of England and the regret over how that chapter ended, showing a more reflective and human side to his story. The conversation also dives into Allardyce’s more forward-thinking strategies, like bringing cryotherapy into football before it was cool, and using player data to back up tough decisions.

This episode offers an honest, behind-the-scenes look at what football management is really like, tough, complex, and full of lessons you won’t find in a textbook.

🚨 Partners

AG1 👉 Join Jake and top performers using AG1. Click the link and get an offer worth £68: https://hppod.co/ag1

HP Foundation 👉Do you want to kick-start an evolution that will change the lives of millions of children? Find out more about the High Performance Foundation: https://hppod.co/foundation

HP Corporate Events 👉Click here to book High Performance Events: https://hppod.co/corporate-events

Explore offers and discounts through our other partners:

https://hppod.co/partners