Kat Rae is an artist who works across an incredible variety of media. Her confronting work, Deathmin, was recently recognised as winner of the 2024 Napier Waller Art Prize and represents the fourth time Kat has been shortlisted for this prestigious award. In this podcast, Kat talks about her artistic journey, including her first career within the Australian Army during which time she met her husband Andrew. Tragically, it was Andrew’s death that inspired her prizewinning piece and Kat very bravely talks to this devastating event and how she channelled this grief and frustration into Deathmin.

06:30 Kat’s background and early years – how she got into art….and the Army!

07:15 Some of Kat’s artistic inspiration included the ‘Angry Penguins’ – many of whom had completed military service

07:40 Art and Army – does that mix?!

11:30 Kat’s time at ADFA – the Australian Defence Force Academy

15:00 The Royal Military College Duntroon – not as much fun as ADFA….

16:00 Into the big world of Army – Kat’s military career, including a stint within the prestigious Australian Federation Guard

23:00 The tragic death of Kat’s husband Andrew

29:00 Kat discusses her Napier Waller prizewinning piece, Deathmin

36:30 So what is the Napier Waller art prize? And a little about Kat’s previous entries, including…

40:30 Cloud Slide, Coming Home and Reckoning

48:00 How did it feel to win on her fourth submission?

51:00 With all that she’s experienced – positive and negative – how does Kat now feel when she looks at the Australian Army?

1:02:40 What’s next for Kat – including within the art space?

External Links

Kat’s website – katrae.net

Kat’s Insta - @kat_a_rae

Kat’s 2024 prizewinning Napier Waller submission

Contact Us

www.unforgiving60.com

Email us at debrief@unforgiving60.com

Instagram, Twitter: @Unforgiving60

Music …. With thanks to:

The Externals – available on Spotify

This week we host Bill Lennan who will teach us how to be 40% better! He was a kit who was introverted and had social anxiety.. so Bill built his own toolkit.

As Bills tells his story...

• Friend: How'd you get that role?
• Me: Talking with strangers.
• Friend: What? Talking with strangers is a gateway skill. It enables you to talk with team-mates, stakeholders, leaders, execs, and clients. It also makes interviews way easier.

Let’s get into it

04:50 Bill growing up… and Tim needs to grow up (according to Ben)

06:15 Bill working on cars- Ferraris and more….

07:30 More beautiful car ever made?

Ferraris or Lamborghini?

10:15 Life after playing with supercars

12:00 Introversion and anxiety- Bill’s toolkit

13:45 Everything is a system…. And so understand the mental models

15:00 Dialectical behavioural therapy

20:40 Getting use to discomfort- that is about growth!

22:50 Critical thinking skills- is this unsafe or not. How do you look at scary things?

24:30 The value in physical risk

29:20 Talking AI and software. The future?

33:11 The phones not the problem. It’s the absence of alternatives that is the problem!

34:20 Risks and growing up

36:00 Farming and how rural setting change our focus

38:15 Leaders- system, reps and recipes- ‘latticework’s’. The big models for leadership development

44:15 What is kaizen and why does it work?

46:30 Talking people and performance

52:20 Making tough and unpopular decisions- how to do it if we are overly familiar?

55:50 What’s in Bill’s library

1:00:00 Bill’s Powersong!

External Links

Bill on Linked In

Contact Us

www.unforgiving60.com

Email us at debrief@unforgiving60.com

Instagram, Twitter: @Unforgiving60

Music …. With thanks to:

The Externals – available on Spotify

Tim and Ben love breathing. Not just for the fact that it keeps them alive (although that is undoubtedly a strong benefit…) but also for the opportunity it gives to tap into the body’s autonomic nervous system and impact its emotional state. In this episode, they speak with Martin McPhilimey – someone who was researching the impacts of breath long before it was cool - and find out how the differences between some popular breathing techniques and when these are best applied.

07:30 Breath as the ‘core of the dynamic interplay’ between mind and body

08:30 Martin’s background – how he got interested in stress, breathing and sleep

10:30 The link between breathing and sleep

15:00 The importance of being a scientist and a practitioner

16:00 How Martin starts with a new client

21:00 The impacts and requirements for oxygen and carbon dioxide within the body

22:00 What is air hunger, why is it so powerful and what triggers it?

28:50 The benefits of increasing our air hunger tolerance

33:20 Using wearables to monitor and improve your breathing

36:15 Martin’s take on the utility and applicability of some of the more popular breathing techniques, including:

37:00 Box (or combat!) breathing…

38:30 …4-7-8 breathing…

40:25 ..and could 4-7-20 be better than 4-7-8?!...

41:00 …the physiological sigh, and…

43:45 Wim Hof or tummo style hyperventilation techniques

47:30 What Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu can teach you about breath

51:00 Tips and trick for increasing our tolerance to air hunger?

54:30 Martin’s business – Performance Through Health

59:15 The Performance Through Health breath science certification

1:01:30 How to incorporate breathing techniques for children

1:04:00 What does Martin do for Martin? (Including his jiu-jitsu practice with Ground Control Jiu-Jitsu)

External Links

Performance Through Health

Martin’s Insta – some great stuff on here, give him a follow

Martin’s LinkedIn

Contact Us

www.unforgiving60.com

Email us at debrief@unforgiving60.com

Instagram, Twitter: @Unforgiving60

Music …. With thanks to:

The Externals – available on Spotify