Pivot Points podcast: John O'Brien, Anthropy Founder

Episode seven

The Anthropy story: lessons from military service to shaping Britain’s bright future with Founder, John O'Brien MBE

Before creating Anthropy, one of the largest gatherings of future makers in the UK, John O’Brien MBE has had an incredible career path, from serving as an army officer to leading major initiatives with the Prince of Wales' charities.

He has now embarked on an ambitious mission to bring together over 2000 leaders from across sectors to help build a better Britain.

Join us as we dive into John’s perspective on creating new platforms, purpose and impact, adaptability, transferable skills, and the pivotal moments that have shaped his journey.

“If leadership and a vision for the country doesn't come from where we've traditionally looked for it, which is Westminster and parliament, then it needs to come from somewhere else, and I'm a great believer that it must come from the leaders of the businesses that are actually doing things in this country.”

John O'Brien

Founder, Anthropy

Key takeaways from this episode:

The many major turning points in John's career, from leaving banking for the Army, to unexpected redundancy and finding new paths.
How skills and experiences gained in the military became invaluable in John’s later career.
John’s ability to inspire and mobilize diverse stakeholders for noble causes.
Navigating challenges and setbacks, and how John was able to reframe and learn from those experiences.
The overarching goal of Anthropy, and John’s hopes to bring together leaders and work towards a more positive future for the UK.

To tune in, head here:

“The thing that transformed my ability to be effective in the rest of my life was actually the specific military training I had. I was trained to go, at short notice, into really volatile, complicated situations, make a rapid assessment of that situation, formulate a plan, communicate that plan effectively, and then lead it to fruition.”

John O'Brien

Founder, Anthropy