This episode - ‘How to find resilience and healing in times of tragedy and uncertainty’ - will veer from our usual format on The Resilience Files. Today I will not be conducting the interview - but instead, will be the interviewee. 

Andrew Morris - friend, advisor and supporter of both Resilimy and iheart, will be the one asking the questions.  

Business leader, entrepreneur, philanthropist and author, Andrew has an incredibly rich and accomplished professional and personal history. He was a leading figure in the media and events industry for over 30 years, and launched the innovative Business Design Centre in Islington in London which became the most successful boutique venue in the UK. His impressive CV includes leading the management buy-in of Earls Court & Olympia, followed by CEO of the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, one of the largest events venues in Europe, where he transformed the culture from ‘council’ to ‘commercial’. He is also the former owner and CEO of the Academy for Chief Executives, is the Chairman of a highly impactful charity and a published author of two books. 

I have been interviewed by Andrew once before in a different context. So I know that he will ask tough questions, though will no doubt be fair and considered in doing so. 

The subject matter of this episode  is both sensitive and highly relevant in light of recent events in Israel and Gaza, and the impact it is having on us here in the UK and around the world. Many of us feel confused and overwhelmed by the scale of human loss and suffering that we have witnessed. It has touched  a raw place in most of us. How do we feel hope amidst so much pain and loss? 

When we come across the worst and best of humanity, it can be difficult to locate a North Star, an anchor. But we need that anchor if we are to progress through this. Not only to get through it, but to emerge as better people. 

I don’t have all the answers. And some of my answers will no doubt feel inadequate. But I, like so many of us, am learning from and during this time. I’m sharing the little I know and hoping that together we can become more aware of the light and fortitude within us, and at the same time, more willing to challenge the darkness and confusion that threatens to obscure it. 

I hope you find this meaningful and helpful at such a challenging time for so many.

We have all been stunned, in light of the recent tragic events in Israel, by the barbaric brutality and extreme lack of humanity displayed by the Hamas terrorists. As our minds grapple to try to make sense of actions that are beyond human comprehension, it seems as if we have no words.

Yet words are important to attempt to integrate what happened - and is still happening. Trauma is often a response to pushing away events as a protective mechanism, rather than integrating. We will address this in our discussion today. 

This podcast was quickly and spontaneously arranged as a way to begin to psychologically and spiritually anchor ourselves in this confusing and uncertain moment; to attempt to uncover our own resilience, even as we hurt deeply. And we thought the perfect person to have this dialogue with is Rabbi Yaakov Klein. Though young, he is wise beyond his years. 

Rabbi  Klein is an author, musician, and lecturer devoted to sharing the inner light of Torah and chassidic wisdom through his books, music and lectures. Along with his wife Shira and their two beautiful children, Yaakov moved to the UK to join Jewish Futures as the founding director of Eilecha, a new organisation focused on creating opportunities for spiritual growth and experiential education in the local community and beyond

Before we begin, I want to emphasise that in keeping with the theme of The Resilience Files podcast, the purpose of this conversation is to focus on investigating resilience in the face of extreme challenges. Therefore, we will not be commenting on the specific events that occurred and are still occurring. 

03:39 - Our feelings on hearing the news for the first time
13:26 - Limiting how much media we watch
21:02 - Embracing feeling lost and scared
25:42 - This is a moral conflict
36:36 - Conquering darkness with light and love
50:03 - Dealing with transient and confusing feelings

My guest today is Mitesh Sheth, MBE, the  Chief Investment Officer at Newton Investment Management. Mitesh was suggested as a podcast guest by various colleagues of mine after delivering a resilience training programme at Newton, which Mitesh himself attended.

Mitesh obviously made an impression and when I met him a few weeks ago, I understood why. Not only is he an incredibly smart and accomplished individual, but he is a person who despite - or perhaps because of - some very significant challenges he experienced in his early life, is committed to learning, evolving and bettering himself and the world around him. That said, Mitesh is a wonderfully understated, humble and unassuming leader. He is what I would call: “A gentle changemaker.”

Mitesh qualified from the London School of Economics with a BSc in Actuarial Science. After graduating, he spent a year in India studying at a monastery/school of philosophy. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries and a member of the Diversity Project’s advisory board. Mitesh has been recognised for creating one of the industry’s most open, innovative and inclusive workplace cultures and for putting diversity at the top of the agenda when he was the CEO of Reddington. As a result, in part, of Mitesh’s efforts in this area and his committed leadership, Reddington was one of the first companies in financial services to close its gender pay gap in 2019. Unsurprisingly, Mitesh received an MBE in 2022 in recognition for his contributions.

This conversation spans a childhood in environments as diverse as Bolton and India; being a member of a gang; spending a year in a monastery struggling to belong and be comfortable in your own skin; grappling as a teenager with mental health challenges; and being an impactful senior business leader in a successful financial institution. 

00:00 - Introduction
03:16 - Not fitting in during childhood
15:32 - Desperation and finding faith
24:39 - Learning to live simply
36:45 - Spirituality as a foundation for life
47:10 – Supporting, rather than burdening children
01:03:45 - Opening up and revealing yourself
01:14:47 - Allowing children to experience their lives