Ian Stringer | Trauma, Resilience, and Finding Context After Loss

This episode of Beyond the Boardroom podcast with Aleksandra, welcoming sports broadcaster and former Apprentice contestant Ian Stringer, offers a deep, honest conversation about career, media scrutiny, and the profound personal traumas that ultimately built his incredible resilience. Ian opens up about his mother's struggles with alcoholism, witnessing domestic violence, and how finding context allowed him to forgive and move forward.

The Reality of Addiction and Forgiveness

Ian Stringer revealed that he believes he carries his late mother's "trait of addiction," which for him manifests in an all-or-nothing approach to sugar. He found counselling helpful in dealing with the trauma, particularly in understanding that his mother's alcoholism was a disease, not a choice. This perspective allowed him to forgive the person, but not the addictive drug.

"Alcohol kills more people than every class A drug put together. But it's okay 'cause it's legal... And once you've realized that it's a disease, you can start to forgive the person. And that's been the important thing for me."

Witnessing Domestic Violence as a Child

Ian spoke candidly about witnessing domestic violence against his mother by her partner. He recounted being around ten years old, hearing a violent altercation, and grabbing his sister before running to a neighbour's house. Memories of him seeing his mother "be headbutted" at the front door still lie with him; the shock of this caused him to misdial 999 because he was "shaking so much".

This trauma left "pretty big scars" resulting in Ian at age 13, making the difficult decision to leave his mother's care and move in with his father, being heartbroken that he couldn't take his younger brother and sister with him. Having overcome these struggles in early life, he hopes his mother realises that he was able to learn from the ordeals he was put through and that it has made him a "better person and a better parent".

The Power of Context and Resilience

Despite the severe personal hardship, Ian emphasized the importance of context in coping with adversity. Comparing his legal challenges and professional difficulties to others facing life-and-death struggles, he stated that his problems are "not a matter of life and death". Ian feels as though his experience in media and life has been a "resilience building" exercise. Instead of wallowing in misery, he chooses to "pick yourself back up and try and learn". In particular, his commitment to running—having completed 20 marathons—is his healthy release and allows him to work through his daily stresses.

Key Takeaways

1. Context is King: Always maintain perspective; most professional setbacks are not matters of life and death.

2. Addiction is a Disease: Viewing alcoholism as a disease can be key to emotional acceptance and forgiveness.

3. Find Your Release: Ian’s healthy addiction is running, which he calls his "drug" and uses to test his resilience.

The full episode and so many more are now available on the Aleksandra King YouTube Channel or read more about Ian Stringer's time on The Apprentice UK and his following career.