122: The Healthy Debate Show with Dr. Belynder Walia - Episode 122122: The Healthy Debate Show with Dr. Belynder Walia - Episode 122
UK Health Radio Podcast
Dr. Belynder Walia talks with Lt. Col. Oakland McCulloch about leadership grounded in trust, courage and resilience. Their conversation blends intense military stories with reflections on faith, family and the kind of person someone chooses to be beyond their title.
44:21•9 Oct 2026
Leadership, Fear and Trust with Lt. Col. Oakland McCulloch
Episode Overview
- Leadership is fundamentally about people and trust, not rank or titles.
- Accountability, authority and responsibility must be treated as distinct, rather than used interchangeably.
- Self-doubt is natural, but becomes harmful when it stops you acting; doing nothing is usually the worst choice.
- Resilience means accepting mistakes, learning from them and always looking for one more constructive action.
- Real leadership invests in people’s futures, supporting their career and life goals beyond immediate tasks.
“I believe leadership is about people and trust. End of story.”
Curious about how others find courage when life piles on pressure, fear and self-doubt? This Healthy Debate Show episode brings together leadership, humanity and humour through an honest conversation between Dr. Belynder Walia and Lt. Col. Oakland McCulloch. Oakland draws on decades of military experience to talk about what leadership really means once titles and rank are stripped away. He insists, "I believe leadership is about people and trust.
End of story," and unpacks why accountability, authority and responsibility are three different things that many leaders muddle up. If you've ever worked under someone who grabbed the credit and handed out blame, you'll recognise the behaviours he challenges. You’ll hear gripping stories from peacekeeping missions in Kosovo, including a tense stand-off at a Russian checkpoint where a machine gun is pointed at him.
Oakland admits he was scared, yet shows how staying calm for his soldiers mattered more than pretending fear didn’t exist. That theme runs through the conversation: courage isn’t the absence of fear, it’s how you act while it’s sitting right beside you. For anyone battling self-doubt, his take is refreshingly realistic.
He accepts that even experienced leaders question themselves, but warns that doubt becomes dangerous only when it stops you making decisions: "At any moment where you have to make a decision, you have three options... and doing nothing is always the worst option." He also shares practical ways to use the wisdom of more experienced colleagues without letting ego get in the way.
Away from uniform and medals, Oakland talks about faith, family, being a husband, father and grandfather, and his personal goal to "make a positive difference in somebody's life every single day." If you're trying to lead at home, at work or in your own recovery, this conversation might have you asking: what kind of person do I actually want to be?
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