To say I’ve been around the block a bit would be something of an understatement.  So much so that to share everything would be like performing the complete works of Shakespeare in sixty minutes.  Below is a very brief synopsis.

After serving an apprenticeship as a Development Engineer, I changed direction and pursued a career in the construction industry.  In a little over a decade, I had progressed from Tradesman to Senior Site Agent to Contracts Manager to Vice President of a Saudi company in Saudi Arabia (which saw me increase turnover from $8 million to more than $38 million in three years).

Upon returning to the UK in the early 80’s, I began designing and delivering a wide range of training initiatives nationwide (formal and informal).  In the 1990’s my business partner and I won the National Training Award.  Since then, I have continued to deliver award winning training at home and abroad (including USA, Canada, Middle East, the Caribbean, Denmark, Switzerland). The main subjects I cover are Leadership & Management (Behavioural, Tools & Techniques), Team Development and Talent Management.

In addition to having had a highly successful career within the commercial world, at a senior executive level, I have devoted a large part of my life to helping individuals overcome issues with self-image, self-esteem, self-confidence, stress and anxiety.  As great as the extrinsic rewards have been, when working in the commercial arena, they can never compete with the intrinsic rewards that come from helping people; as they seek to navigate their way through testing times, conquer irrational fears or discover their worth.

After being taught hypnosis in nineteen seventy, by an established UK based hypnotherapist, I went on to be briefly mentored by Beverly Hills based William S. Kroger; (an eminent doctor and acclaimed author of the book “Clinical & Experimental Hypnosis”).

Although over the years I have helped many individuals lose weight, or stop smoking, my main focus has been to help people within a clinical framework; especially in regard to mental and emotional wellbeing.

The idea of The Listening Planet project was conceived shortly after my brother (Martyn Stewart) was informed that his cancer had metastasised to his bones; after having already battled several forms of cancer for many months.  Martyn has been a world-leading nature sound recordist since 1975, recording in over 50 countries and capturing over 3500 species of birds, countless insects, amphibians and mammals. He has made it his life’s mission to record the world one species at a time.

The Listening Planet Library is now one of the most important private collections of nature sounds that exists in the world; with over 30,000 hours of nature sounds and soundscapes, more than 90,000 individual sounds and as many intimate stories from the natural world.  The foundation will not only preserve his life’s work, but also serve as a lasting legacy.

As a trustee, Martyn has asked me to think of ways to highlight the benefits that an immersive experience in nature can have on a person; especially in respect of mental health and mental wellbeing.