Walkabout Elevations Podcast

About Walkabout Elevations Podcast

Walkabout Elevations is a bilingual podcast hosted by Paul Allen Benavides and Ami Ho, featuring leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, academics, creators, and professionals from Vietnam, Asia, and beyond. The show explores ideas, stories, and experiences that elevate how we think about business, leadership, culture, communication, and personal growth. Conversations move beyond polished success stories to examine failure, difficult decisions, changing perspectives, relationships, opportunity, and the lessons people carry forward from the experiences that shape their lives and work.

Publisher

Walkabout Pathways

Category

business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

26 Mar 2026

Latest episode

14 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

28 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   14 Oct 2026

   Traveling to Every Country on Earth | Ric Gazarian

   This interview blew my mind!**190 countries visited. Three left to go. And Ireland is being saved for last.**My guest on this episode of Walkabout Elevations is Ric Gazarian, founder of the Extraordinary Travel Festival and host of the *Counting Countries* podcast, where he interviews some of the world's most traveled people.We met at HORECFEX Vietnam 2026 in Da Nang, and within the first few minutes of our conversation, I realized that Ric operates in an entirely different world of travel than most of us.Ric has visited 190 of the 193 United Nations member countries. He's traveled through destinations that rarely appear on traditional tourist itineraries, including Libya, Eritrea and Afghanistan, and he's spent roughly 17 years pursuing the goal of visiting every country on Earth.But what makes his story particularly interesting isn't simply how many places he's been.It's what he's learned along the way.We talk about the remarkable community of extreme travelers, the places that surprised him most, and why some of the world's least-visited countries have given him his most memorable experiences.Ric also shares a story about a conversation in Moscow that challenged his understanding of international politics and reminded him that our own perspectives are not necessarily shared by everyone else.And then there's Ireland.Of all the countries he could have chosen to complete his journey, Ric has deliberately saved Ireland for last. His reasoning is simple, and I think rather brilliant: after spending so many years chasing an extraordinary goal, why not finish somewhere you can celebrate with friends and a Guinness?We also discuss the Extraordinary Travel Festival, the remarkable people who attend, and the strange realization that even traveling the world can eventually feel restrictive when you're working toward a list.**In this episode:**- What it takes to visit every country on Earth- Why Ric has saved Ireland for last- The countries that surprised him most- Travel beyond the 193 UN member countries- Antarctica and the world of extreme travel- How travel changes our understanding of other cultures- A surprising conversation in Moscow- Why completing a travel goal can mean regaining freedom- Living between Thailand, Chicago and Boston- The Extraordinary Travel Festival and its remarkable travelers- Why Vietnam remains one of Ric's favorite destinationsAfter traveling to 190 countries, Ric has plenty of stories to tell. But I particularly enjoyed hearing what those experiences have taught him about perspective, curiosity, and the way we see the world.Recorded at HORECFEX Vietnam 2026 in Da Nang.**Walkabout Elevations** is presented by Walkabout Pathways.Walkabout Pathways: https://www.walkaboutpathways.comExtraordinary Travel Festival: https://extraordinarytravelfest.comCounting Countries Podcast: https://countingcountries.com

2. 

   11 Oct 2026

   From Sandhurst to Vietnam: Leadership, Purpose & Reinvention | Daniel James

   What happens when you achieve financial success at a young age, lose everything, rebuild your life through military service, and eventually discover that success means something entirely different?In this episode of **Walkabout Elevations**, I sit down with Daniel James, a former British Army officer, entrepreneur, and co-founder of Centrepoint, a people-focused leadership and wellbeing consultancy he runs with his wife, Lily, in Vietnam.Daniel's story is anything but conventional. In his twenties, he built a jewelry and precious metals business in England that was turning over more than £1 million annually. Then, following a devastating business betrayal, he lost everything and spent months living in his car while working multiple jobs.His journey eventually took him into the British Army, through the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, and into training with the Royal Marine Commandos. But after more than eight years of military service, Daniel began questioning the relationship between leadership, personal values, organizational culture, and the wellbeing of the people he was responsible for.Today, Daniel and his family live in Hoi An, Vietnam, where he and Lily have been building Centrepoint around a philosophy that people are more than metrics.Our conversation moves through business success and failure, military leadership, the importance of trust in organizations, and why collecting employee feedback means very little unless leaders are prepared to act on it.We also explore a more personal side of Daniel's journey: fatherhood, marriage, modern masculinity, men's circles, the importance of vulnerability, and what it means to rebuild an identity after leaving the military.Having served in the US Air Force myself, I found plenty of common ground with Daniel, but also some very different perspectives on leadership, discipline, service, and the transition into civilian life.We discuss:- Building and losing a million-pound business- Homelessness, resilience, and redefining success- Sandhurst and Royal Marine Commando training- Servant leadership and organizational culture- Why employees are more than performance metrics- Employee surveys, trust, and the cost of turnover- Why work-life balance may be the wrong goal- Masculinity, vulnerability, and men's circles- Building a business with your spouse- Raising a family and starting over in Vietnam- Finding purpose beyond money, rank, and statusOne of my favorite moments comes near the end, when I ask Daniel which version of himself was the happiest: the successful businessman, the soldier, the commander, or the entrepreneur.His answer says a great deal about the journey that brought him here.**Walkabout Elevations** is presented by Walkabout Pathways, exploring the people, ideas, and experiences that shape how we live, lead, and work.Learn more about Walkabout Pathways: https://www.walkaboutpathways.comDaniel James and Centrepoint: https://centrepointlifestyle.io

3. 

   1 Oct 2026

   A Legendary Hotelier on the Future of Hospitality in Vietnam | John Gardner of Optimum Hospitality

   Few people have watched the evolution of hospitality in Vietnam from the vantage point John Gardner has. With more than four decades in the industry, John's career has taken him from New Zealand and Australia across the Asia-Pacific, including senior hotel leadership roles with Accor and IHG. In 2007, he arrived in Vietnam to become General Manager of the iconic Caravelle Saigon, later becoming General Director of the hotel's owning joint-venture company. He would spend more than 15 years helping lead one of Saigon's landmark hotels. Today, John is Founding Partner and CEO of Optimum Hospitality, bringing that experience to hotel owners, developers and operators across Southeast Asia. I had the opportunity to sit down with John at HORECFEX Vietnam 2026 in Da Nang and ask a fairly simple question: after everything he has seen during his career, where does hospitality go next? We talk about AI and why John believes it could actually make hospitality more human, the growing divide between standardized and experiential hotels, the industry's struggle to attract the next generation of talent, and the opportunities and risks facing Vietnam as hotel development continues. John also makes a compelling case for something deceptively simple: Vietnam doesn't need to imitate other destinations. Its greatest tourism advantage may be Vietnam itself. As John puts it: “People come to Vietnam to experience Vietnam.” A conversation with a veteran hotelier who has spent decades operating hotels, developing people, navigating change and watching this industry evolve from the inside. Recorded at HORECFEX Vietnam 2026 in Da Nang. Walkabout Elevations is presented by Walkabout Pathways.

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