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Accidentally Brilliant

Accidentally Brilliant

Written by: Sampu
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Accidentally Brilliant is a Be Broadcast original podcast that explores one big question: How did you get into what you do?

Most of us don’t follow a neat career plan - we stumble into opportunities, discover strengths we never expected, and build lives around solving problems in surprising ways. Host Josh Wheeler shares open, personal conversations with leaders and creatives from PR, media, and beyond.

From chance encounters to career-defining pivots, each episode reveals the quirks, challenges, and lightbulb moments that shape extraordinary careers. No jargon. No script. Just honest stories that are as funny as they are useful.

Copyright 2025 All rights reserved. Careers Economics Marketing Marketing & Sales Personal Success
Episodes
  • 13. Why Freelancers Are PR’s Hidden Force with Nigel Sarbutts

    13. Why Freelancers Are PR’s Hidden Force with Nigel Sarbutts
    May 15 2026

    Freelancers now make up one of the biggest forces in PR - so what is happening in that space?

    In this episode of Accidentally Brilliant, Josh Wheeler speaks with Nigel Sarbutts, founder of The PR Cavalry, Structured Mediation, and co-founder of the Independent Impact 50.

    Nigel has spent years working across agencies in London, Manchester and Leeds. Today he sits in a different position inside the industry, helping agencies, brands and freelancers find specialist talent, resolve disputes, and rethink how independent practitioners are valued.

    The conversation covers the shift from retainers to project work, why agencies are relying more heavily on freelance specialists, and why many experienced PR professionals are leaving traditional agency structures behind.

    Josh and Nigel also discuss:

    • Why freelancing has become a “megatrend” in communications

    • The pressure AI and procurement are putting on fees

    • Why some clients still misunderstand the value of PR

    • How independent practitioners collectively rival the scale of major agency groups

    • Why freelancers are often invisible in awards and recognition systems

    • The thinking behind the Independent Impact 50

    • Burnout, conflict and resentment inside agency culture

    • Why mediation is becoming more important in communications businesses

    • The emotional cost of workplace disputes

    • What agencies can learn from industries like film and engineering about flexible talent

    There is also a wider conversation running through the episode about ego, pressure, recognition and how people work together when the industry feels stretched.

    Nigel speaks very openly about agency life, competition, stress, leadership and the importance of continuing to do good work when things feel uncertain.

    00:00 Intro

    00:42 Why freelancing is becoming a megatrend

    03:18 What freelancers are dealing with right now

    06:37 Unrealistic client expectations and fee pressure

    07:32 Why freelancers still lack recognition in PR

    09:50 The thinking behind the Independent Impact 50

    13:10 Why impact matters more than campaign vanity

    17:11 Why freelance communities feel different to agencies

    20:57 Awards, attribution and invisible contribution

    24:06 Why agencies should stop hiding freelancers

    31:18 The reality of conflict inside comms teams

    33:34 Why workplace mediation matters

    35:45 Burnout, pressure and resentment in PR

    40:11 How mediation actually works

    44:00 What to do when communication breaks down

    46:53 What makes Nigel feel “accidentally brilliant”

    Follow Nigel Sarbutts: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nigelsarbutts/

    Follow Josh Wheeler: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshwheelerbroadcast/

    Follow Be Broadcast: https://www.linkedin.com/company/be-broadcast/ https://bebroadcast.co.uk/ #PR #PublicRelations #FreelancePR #Communications #AgencyLife #Leadership #Freelancers #MediaRelations #PRIndustry #Burnout #WorkplaceCulture #Mediation #IndependentConsultant #Podcast
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    51 mins
  • 12. Luck, Courage and the Long Game with Andy Nairn

    12. Luck, Courage and the Long Game with Andy Nairn
    Apr 29 2026

    This episode of Accidentally Brilliant is about what it really takes to build something that lasts.

    Josh Wheeler sits down with Andy Nairn, co-founder of Lucky Generals, one of the most consistently effective creative companies of the last decade.

    Andy didn’t set out with a perfect plan. Lucky Generals started with three friends, no clients, no funding, and a decision to turn down work that didn’t feel right. That moment shaped everything that followed.

    What comes through in this conversation is a very clear philosophy. Play the long game. Back your values. And understand that luck is not something to dismiss, it is something you create.

    We get into how Yorkshire Tea became one of the most effective campaigns in the UK, why humour still works when brands are brave enough to use it properly, and why most agencies think about effectiveness too late.

    Andy also talks about Go Luck Yourself, why luck is misunderstood in business, and why he uses the book to support working-class talent trying to get into the industry.

    There is a wider thread running through this as well. Leadership, standards, and what happens when those standards start to slip. The influence of tech culture, the shift in tone across business, and why holding your nerve matters more than ever.

    We also cover AI, what it is actually useful for right now, where it falls short, and why relying on it too heavily could weaken the very thing that makes great work stand out.

    This is a conversation about creativity, effectiveness, values, and the reality behind building a successful agency.

    00:00 Intro

    00:58 Meet Andy Nairn, Lucky Generals

    01:15 Starting an agency with no clients or funding

    02:22 The failed merger that led to Lucky Generals

    03:28 Why bad moments can force better decisions

    04:15 Holding your nerve in the early days

    05:22 Turning down work that did not align with values

    06:12 The first big breaks and early momentum

    08:50 Why reputation is the long game

    09:20 What the industry gets wrong about effectiveness

    10:29 Why effectiveness should start at the beginning

    11:46 The Yorkshire Tea case study and consistency

    13:20 Why humour still works in advertising

    14:36 Amazon, Alexa and taking the brand less seriously

    16:12 Why most brands are too risk-averse

    17:56 Confidence, clients and choosing who you work with

    19:43 Finding the real problem behind a brief

    21:12 Why strategy starts with better questions

    22:34 Go Luck Yourself and the reality of luck in business

    24:28 Why people resist talking about luck

    25:37 How luck actually works as a system

    27:33 Why business is still a numbers game

    28:29 Supporting working-class talent through Commercial Break

    30:16 What has changed in strategy and what has not

    31:27 Why human behaviour matters more than trends

    32:15 AI, change and uncertainty in the industry

    33:28 How to actually use AI in creative work

    34:39 Why copying AI outputs is a mistake

    36:42 The risk of losing creative instinct

    38:25 Where AI helps and where it does not

    39:33 Over-reliance on technology and what we lose

    41:07 Leadership, standards and behaviour

    42:26 The impact of toxic leadership styles

    43:15 Why values still matter in business

    44:49 Has the industry gone too far the other way

    45:57 Can you grow a business and keep principles

    47:05 Final thoughts on change, luck and perspective

    47:39 What makes Andy “accidentally brilliant”
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    49 mins
  • 11. Building Unshakeable Confidence with Advita Patel

    11. Building Unshakeable Confidence with Advita Patel
    Mar 6 2026
    This episode of Accidentally Brilliant is one of the most personal conversations we’ve had on the podcast. Josh Wheeler speaks with Advita Patel, founder of CommsRebel and the former President of the CIPR. Advita has spent more than twenty years working in communications, helping organisations build cultures where people feel they belong and can thrive. The work she does today grew from a difficult moment in her own career. In 2018, her confidence collapsed. She began questioning her place in the profession and whether communications was the right path for her at all. That period forced her to step back and understand who she was, what mattered to her, and how confidence actually works. The conversation moves well beyond personal confidence. Advita talks about representation in the communications industry and why she helped create A Leader Like Me and the Asian Comms Network. These spaces exist because many people in the profession still feel they have nowhere to talk openly about race, identity and belonging. We also discuss the wider events shaping those conversations. The global response to the murder of George Floyd. The protests and tensions seen more recently in the UK. The emotional impact these moments have on people working in communications and the silence that often follows in the industry. Advita reflects on the responsibility communicators hold. We help shape narratives, advise leadership teams and influence culture inside organisations. That responsibility becomes very real when difficult issues affect the people around us. This episode covers: the confidence crash that changed Advita’s careerthe link between identity, confidence and imposter syndromerepresentation and belonging in the communications industryhow racism and political division affect people in the professionwhy many professionals struggle to speak up about difficult issuesthe small actions that can make someone feel seen and supported At its heart this is a conversation about confidence, courage and responsibility. It is also about something simple that many of us forget to do. Checking in on people and asking how they are really doing. 00:00 Intro 00:04 Meet Advita Patel, CommsRebel and CIPR President 01:16 Confidence, vulnerability and showing up on LinkedIn 01:41 The 2018 confidence crash that changed everything 02:25 A difficult conversation that forced a turning point 03:32 Researching confidence, imposter syndrome and inner critics 04:01 The influence of Shonda Rhimes and “The Year of Yes” 04:56 Why worrying about other people’s opinions holds us back 05:57 Competing with others vs competing with yourself 06:04 Advice for anyone facing a confidence crash 07:22 How other people shape our identity growing up 07:50 “Who am I really?” — unpicking expectations 09:01 Why understanding yourself is the foundation of confidence 10:21 Mental health, therapy and learning to look after yourself 10:37 When work becomes your identity 11:54 Treating yourself with the same compassion as others 12:24 Adapting to belong without breaking yourself 12:42 Why connection and empathy are disappearing 13:44 Cognitive diversity and avoiding echo chambers 13:53 Fear, vulnerability and sharing online 14:47 Representation and creating spaces for belonging 15:03 Why Advita co-founded A Leader Like Me 16:22 The impact of George Floyd on diversity conversations 17:46 Why the Asian Comms Network was created 19:14 Lived experience and the reality of microaggressions 20:23 Why conversations about racism are often avoided 22:22 Power, politics and uncomfortable industry conversations 23:34 Why politics affects the people we work with 24:46 Speaking up, allyship and finding your voice 26:16 Why we’ve lost the ability to connect and debate 27:32 The fear of getting things wrong in public conversations 28:35 Why communicators must understand opposing views 29:09 Community, identity and checking in on people 30:24 Why humans naturally gravitate towards similarity 31:38 Bias, safety and how our brains work 32:26 The power communications professionals hold 32:47 The emotional impact of recent events on communities 34:07 Living with fear and the daily reality for many people 35:02 Hope over fear and using your privilege to help others 36:06 Becoming the first person of colour to lead the CIPR 37:14 Using privilege to create space for others 38:03 Why intent matters in difficult conversations 39:19 When mistakes happen — and how to respond 40:24 “Where are you really from?” — navigating everyday bias 41:31 Curiosity as the starting point for allyship 42:58 Different ways to show allyship 43:39 The simple power of checking in on someone 44:32 Why difficult topics often get avoided 45:02 One action everyone can take tomorrow 46:04 Confidence as a ripple effect 46:50 The thread through Advita’s career: confidence and inclusion 48:08 An “accidentally brilliant” moment — Couch to 5K 49:18...
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    50 mins
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