UK Health Radio Podcast
UK Health Radio Podcast
162: The Good Listening To Show with Chris Grimes - Episode 162
162: The Good Listening To Show with Chris Grimes - Episode 162
162: The Good Listening To Show with Chris Grimes - Episode 162
Saturday 28th March 2026
Motivational speaker Nigel Risner shares animal metaphors, health scares and why “being in the room” can change how you work, relate and live.
47 minutes
Inspiring
Informative
Authentic
Hopeful
Encouraging
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Mindfulness & Emotional Wellbeing
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Get the buttons here!From Zookeeping to Boiling Point: Nigel Risner on Being Fully In The Room
Episode Overview
- Recognise that “people are different, not difficult” and adjust how you communicate, rather than blaming others for not responding.
- Aim for consistent 2.11 days (very good performance) while staying open to occasional 2.12 “boiling point” days where everything aligns.
- Be fully present: “If you’re in the room, be in the room,” instead of splitting attention between regret, worry and the people in front of you.
- Keep life and work simple: focus on clear agreements, respect others’ time, and deliver what you promised, then step off stage.
- Live by redefined values: drink from knowledge, steal time to help others, swear to make today count, and lie down grateful for your dreams.
If you’re in the room, be in the room.
What can we learn from those who have battled addiction? On this occasion, the focus is on communication, presence, and life after serious health scares, all told through sharp humour and animal metaphors.
The Good Listening To Show brings in motivational speaker and “chief zookeeper” Nigel Risner, as host Chris Grimes invites him into “The Clearing” to unpack why, as Nigel puts it, “people are different, not difficult.” Nigel’s famous animal framework runs through the conversation: lions, dolphins, monkeys and elephants as stand‑ins for different communication styles. He jokes that he’s “the monkey in the jungle” who needs things simple, while pegging Chris as “a dolphin with elephant tendencies.” The point?
If you keep serving steak to giraffes, dolphins and elephants, don’t be surprised when only the lions are happy. You’ll hear how Nigel has spoken in nine countries in just two months, addressed audiences from three to three thousand, and shifted from chasing applause to chasing results. His 2.11 vs 2.12 metaphor for performance (“211 is great… but occasionally you hit boiling point”) offers a memorable way to think about those rare, magical days when everything clicks.
There’s a raw section on health too: Nigel candidly shares having a brain aneurysm that left him repeating the same story seven times in one afternoon, and how COVID unexpectedly forced him to slow down. He also mentions, very simply, “I don’t drink. I just drink Diet Coke and water,” which may quietly resonate with anyone reconsidering their relationship with alcohol.
Family, tennis, and legacy weave through the chat, from coaching junior players at Wimbledon to learning from his dad’s small‑business habits and his son’s cerebral palsy. Nigel’s signature line sums up the heart of the episode: “If you’re in the room, be in the room.” If you’re curious about how tiny shifts in how you show up can change relationships, work, and health, this one might spark some useful questions for your own journey.