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Home > Women Emerging Podcast > 170. Leadership Insights I Wish I Had Known at the Start – Alison Coburn
Podcast: Women Emerging Podcast
Episode:

170. Leadership Insights I Wish I Had Known at the Start – Alison Coburn
Category: Education
Duration: 00:29:21
Publish Date: 2025-06-18 08:00:00
Description:

In this episode of the Leadership Insights I Wish I Had Known at the Start series, Julia is joined by Alison Coburn, environment leader at Common Purpose leader with over 30 years of experience guiding teams through complex change, often in some of the world’s most challenging settings.

Alison shares nine fundamentals she wishes she’d known before she started leading. Starting with this vital truth: don’t do it alone, build a support network. From building your own “survival kit” of support and stability, to learning the art of delegation, Alison’s insights are thoughtful, honest, and deeply grounded in real-life leadership.

She also unpacks hard-won lessons like the need for a “hard streak,” the importance of leading upwards, and why communication isn’t just a part of leading; it is the very act of leading. Her reflections reveal how moral courage, containing emotions, and picking the right team members shape a leader’s impact far more than any textbook theory.

Alison’s list will make you pause and ask, “What would be on mine?” Tune in, reflect, and perhaps even start your own list of what you wish you’d known at the start.

About the Guest:

Alison Coburn is one of the founding team of Common Purpose which started in the UK in 1989 and now has over 130,000 alumni globally. She currently leads Common Purpose’s environmental programmes.  In 2020 Alison founded Sky Blue, a campaign to support leaders around the world who are tackling the environmental crisis.  She is passionate about inspiring and supporting leaders to work collaboratively for a sustainable future. She started her career in the arts, then joined the BBC Radio making programmes on social and environmental issues. She is an Ambassador for the Tutu Foundation UK and a Trustee of Well Grounded. 
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