What happens when extreme ambition meets an unregulated nervous system?In this episode of Anatomy of a Leader, Maria sits down with John Skelton — co-founder of cult concept store LN-CC, former buyer at Selfridges and Harrods, and founder of mental health project Hearted — to explore what really happens behind high-performance careers.John shares how he rose fast inside the fashion industry, helped reshape menswear, tripled turnover at Harrods, and built one of London’s most influential retail concepts — while quietly accumulating pressure, burnout, and emotional overload.This is a conversation about:Extreme talent. Extreme pressure. Identity collapse. Addiction as coping. And the slow, uncomfortable work of rebuilding capacity. Not a comeback story. A reconstruction story.In This Episode, We Cover:00:00 What extreme success does to your nervous system02:07 How John rose through Selfridges and helped reshape menswear at Harrods25:31 The creation of LN-CC and the reality behind building a cult retail brand43:53 Addiction as self-soothing rather than weakness50:34 Why “white-knuckling” recovery doesn’t work51:51 How fitness, discipline, and self-awareness helped John rebuild from the ground up54:33 The long timeline of recovery — and why quick fixes don’t work59:11 Why high performers often avoid emotional processing01:03:51 Reconnecting with his children after years apart01:17:17 The philosophy behind his new project Hearted01:21:47 What leadership looks like when you stop performing and start rebuildingWhy This Conversation MattersWe live in a culture that rewards speed, output and visibility — while ignoring emotional capacity. John’s story exposes the hidden cost of that model. It’s about what happens when identity becomes fused with achievement. When performance replaces presence. When ambition outruns regulation. And when rebuilding becomes the real work.This episode is for anyone who has:Built success but felt emptyBurned out silentlyUsed work, substances or distraction to copeHit a personal breaking pointOr is rebuilding after collapseAbout John SkeltonJohn Skelton is a fashion industry veteran, co-founder of LN-CC, former buyer at Selfridges and Harrods, and the founder of Hearted — a project focused on emotional recovery, mental health awareness and honest storytelling.IG: https://www.instagram.com/_h_e_a_r_t_e_d_/🎧 Listen now to one of the most raw conversations yet on Anatomy of a Leader.Follow host Maria HvorostovskyIG: https://www.instagram.com/anatomyofaleader/IG: https://www.instagram.com/mariahvorostovsky/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariahvo/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariahvorostovsky/Website: https://www.anatomyofaleader.com/Artwork and video by https://www.londonbeautyphotographer.com/

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