Steve Clayton is Chief Communications Officer at Cisco and the former Chief Storyteller at Microsoft, where he spent 15 years helping shape how one of the world’s most influential companies communicates with the world. In this conversation, Steve joins Chris Hare for a thoughtful and surprisingly personal discussion about storytelling, creativity, identity, and the moments that quietly shape a life.

At the center of the episode is a simple but powerful idea: storytelling isn’t first and foremost a professional skill—it’s a human instinct. As Steve reflects, when people gather—whether in a pub, a living room, or around a table—they naturally start with, “Let me tell you…” What follows isn’t information. It’s meaning. It’s how we make sense of what we’ve experienced and share it with others.

That lens shows up in Steve’s work. He talks about the shift at Microsoft from telling product-centric stories to telling stories grounded in customer impact—and how that single change reshaped not just the narrative, but the way the company connects with the world. It’s a reminder that the most powerful stories aren’t about what we build, but what they make possible for someone else.

But this episode is also about something more personal: the tension between the stories we tell professionally and the ones we carry privately. Steve has spent a career helping others tell their stories, but as he shares here, telling his own doesn’t come naturally. What unfolds is a rare moment where that line blurs—where the person behind the role starts to step into view.

Along the way, Steve reflects on growing up in Liverpool surrounded by natural storytellers, nearly pursuing journalism before finding his way into technology, and the unexpected turns that defined his career—including the now-famous “wrong Steve” story that led to his job at Microsoft. He also shares the discipline behind writing every week for nearly two decades—not because it’s easy, but because it’s how he continues to refine his craft.

This is a conversation about storytelling, certainly. But even more, it’s about the gap between the role and the person—and what happens when that gap begins to close.

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• Why Steve sees storytelling as a human instinct, not a learned skill—and how it shows up anytime people gather and try to make sense of what they’ve experienced.
• How Microsoft shifted from product-first to customer-first storytelling—and what happens when you focus on signal instead of noise in how you communicate.
• The idea of isolating the “source of the signal” in a story—and why clarity often comes from removing distortion, not adding more.
• The early influences that shaped Steve’s creative instincts, growing up in Liverpool surrounded by people who told stories for the sheer joy of it.
• The discipline of writing every week for nearly two decades—and why treating storytelling as a craft, something you return to and refine over time, still matters.
• The story behind the “wrong Steve” and what it reveals about opportunity, readiness, and the unpredictable paths that shape a career.

Gilad Tiefenbrun is the second-generation CEO of Linn, the iconic, heritage hi-fi company founded in Scotland in the early 1970s. In this conversation, Gilad joins Chris Hare for a rich discussion about engineering, succession, culture, and the deeper human values that shape great leadership.

At the center of the episode is a deceptively simple Linn principle: lose less. It began as an audio insight about preserving more of the original signal, but over time it became something much larger, a philosophy for product design, manufacturing, sales, stewardship, and leadership. Gilad shares how that idea shaped Linn’s approach to modular, upgradable products, long-term customer relationships, and the company’s resistance to the waste created by so many modern businesses.

But this episode is also about what it means to love more. Gilad talks candidly about entering a company culture marked by stress, conflict, and fear, and helping reshape it into something healthier and more collaborative. He reflects on the enduring influence of his father, the complexity of succession in a family business, what he learned from his years in engineering at Symbian, his collaboration with Jony Ive, and why the deepest measure of a life is not possessions or even experiences, but people, interactions, and love.

This is a conversation about the magic of premium hi-fi, certainly. But even more, it is about how to get to the end of life having lost less: less signal, less integrity, less time to fear, less humanity to conflict, and less of what matters most.

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• How Linn’s founding principle of lose less shaped not only its products, but its thinking about waste, longevity, and value.
• What Gilad found when he entered the company, and how he helped move the culture away from confrontation and toward healthier collaboration.
• Why fixing process, not perks, is what actually improves morale and helps teams feel they are winning.
• What Gilad’s collaboration with Jony Ive reveals about what he values most
• Why Gilad believes life is ultimately about people, interactions, and love, not experiences, status, or accumulation.

Earlier this year, I traveled to Rockport, Texas to chase redfish with legendary fly fishing guide Alvin Dedeaux and his crew at All Water Guides. The first day was tough fishing. Really tough. Why?

Besides the fact that I’m not great at fly fishing, there was next to no sun, a whole lot of clouds, and a whole lot of shadows. And if you’ve fished there before, you know that you need a lot of light just to spot the fish, let alone cast to them and catch them.

But one of the things you notice when you’re out there with Alvin is that he seems happy, regardless of the conditions. And that seems to apply to his life beyond fishing as well.

Alvin has lived a storied life. From discovering his passion for fly fishing as a kid to becoming frontman for a rock band with a record deal (Nirvana actually opened for them), and from meeting the love of his life and building a life together to establishing himself as one of the top fly fishing guides in Texas.

But last summer, the shadows hit all of a sudden when he lost his wife Lenée to cancer. The cancer came out of nowhere and she was gone within about a month of getting the news from the doctors.

Shortly after, I booked a call with Alvin to talk about a fly fishing trip and on the call learned that he had lost her. He was right in the middle of it and was trying to figure out the path through it, something I can't even imagine trying to navigate. Then in December and February I had the privilege of spending time with him down on the Gulf.

A few months back, I had the privilege of interviewing Alvin. Sure we talked about his journey but this really became a conversation about Lenée’s legacy and the transformational impact she had on him, their kids, their company, and their community.

What struck me about Alvin is the joy that he has in the face of all he’s been through over the past year, in spite of the shadows he’s been walking through.

Please give this one a listen and you’ll quickly see what I mean.

There’s a lot of laughter, some extraordinary stories, a powerful exploration of Alvin's narrative, and yes, there are some tears.

Thanks for telling your story, Alvin. You have taught me and inspired me. And I know your story will continue to help a lot of other people find joy in the journey, wherever they are.