The 4Networking founder on losing a £2m business overnight, the BBC Panorama and Channel 4 stalking case, and the four seconds that nearly ended it all.

Brad Burton, the founder of 4Networking, bestselling author and Britain’s self-styled No.1 motivational business speaker, returns to In Conversation with Richard Alvin for one of the most unflinching interviews Business Matters has ever published.

In 2020, Burton watched his £2.3 million face-to-face business networking empire go to zero in a single afternoon as the UK went into lockdown. He pivoted 4Networking onto Zoom in days, exited the company in 2022, and then lived through what came next: a four-year online stalking campaign by a woman he had met for 30 seconds at an event in 2019.

That campaign, roughly 500 false posts across LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and X, including accusations of death threats, poisoning her cat and harassing his family, became the subject of BBC Panorama’s My Online Stalker in March 2025 and episode two of Channel 4’s Social Media Monsters. In October 2025, Sam Wall was sentenced to 28 months in prison at Minshull Street Crown Court for a “prolonged, deliberate and calculated” campaign the judge called “breathtaking”. Fewer than 2% of UK stalking complaints reach a conviction.

In this episode, Richard Alvin and Brad Burton cover:

• How to rebuild a business when turnover collapses overnight

• The 24/24/24 decision-making framework Brad uses under pressure

• Why LinkedIn’s reporting tools, in his view, “are not a solution”

• What he would say to the Secretary of State and LinkedIn’s UK MD

• The four seconds at his desk that nearly ended his life

• The Online Safety Act, platform accountability and the gap between law and enforcement

• His new UK-built business network, Motivational Business Network, and why he is building it slow

• Practical advice for any founder facing online harassment: what to document, who to call, and why none of it moves quickly

Essential listening for founders, marketers, SME owners, HR leaders, motivational speakers, networkers and anyone who has ever wondered what really happens when a professional platform stops protecting its users.

Hosted by Richard Alvin, CEO of Capital Business Media and Editor-in-Chief of Business Matters — the UK’s leading SME magazine.

Read the full written interview at bmmagazine.co.uk.

Watch the BBC Panorama episode on BBC iPlayer

Social Media Monsters on Channel 4 on demand.

Subscribe to In Conversation: The Business Matters Podcast for weekly interviews with the UK’s most interesting entrepreneurs, investors and operators.

Brad Burton, 4Networking, online stalking UK, BBC Panorama My Online Stalker, Social Media Monsters Channel 4, Sam Wall, LinkedIn harassment, Online Safety Act, motivational speaker UK, business resilience, SME podcast, Richard Alvin, Business Matters magazine, In Conversation podcast, Motivational Business Network, entrepreneur interview UK

In this episode, we’re joined by Gary Moffatt, Managing Director, and Lesley Leach, People Director at Chubb Fire and Security UK & Ireland.

They share how Chubb Fire and Security UK's leadership philosophy is empowering every employee—from apprentice to executive—to lead with integrity, confidence and purpose.

Discover how Leader Labs, mentoring, and a values-first culture are transforming performance, boosting engagement, and shaping the future of the business.

Plus, hear the inspiring career journey of COO Dave Dunnigan, who started as an apprentice and rose to the top.

In this episode, Richard Alvin speaks with Sara Sabin, a transformational leadership coach, about the importance of emotional mastery and intuition in leadership. They discuss how emotions influence decision-making, the significance of emotional neutrality, and practical techniques for leaders to process their emotions effectively.

Sara emphasizes the role of intuition as a skill that can be developed and its grounding in neuroscience. The conversation also covers the connection between communication, influence, and emotional awareness, as well as Sarah's journey from accountancy to coaching.

Takeaways

• Emotional mastery is about achieving emotional neutrality.
• Leaders must be aware of their internal emotional states.
• Emotions can drive decisions, impacting outcomes.
• Emotional neutrality helps in making rational decisions.
• Simple techniques can help shift emotional states quickly.
• Intuition is a skill that can be trained and developed.
• Intuition is grounded in neuroscience, not just gut feeling.
• Effective communication requires understanding emotions.
• Storytelling can enhance influence and communication.
• Leaders should prioritize self-care to regain clarity.