Thoughts

“Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth.” John F. Kennedy   Early in my career in Perth, I worked as a Chartered Accountant for one of those big consulting firms. This was back in the day when you couldn’t leave the building without your suit jacket on. You always wore a […]

Over the summer break, I’ve managed to get through a good number of books. The topics cover leadership, organisational culture, the future of work, identity and purpose – all things I’m thinking about right now. I reckon these books are all useful, thought-provoking reads for any leader, change-maker or restless go-getter who’s searching for inspiration […]

  Last week I was part of a panel at which final year MBA students presented their career strategies for their post-MBA life. This was their final hurdle to completing their MBA at the Auckland Business School, and part of a course called ‘Coaching For Change’ that I’ve delivered there for the past eight years. […]

On my recent windsurfing trip in Western Australia, I noticed an interesting social dynamic. One evening, our crew were sitting and chatting around the campfire. From memory, we were talking about the gay marriage debate that was raging in Australia a couple of years ago. Not a light subject, to be sure. There were two […]

For years, Nike’s tagline has been ‘Just Do It.’ It encourages us to act, not wait. The promise is that we’ll be better off having acted decisively rather than having waited tentatively. Nike’s message is a good one. If you want to make anything happen, you’ve got to act. You’ve got to have agency. I’ve […]

Do you spend the first week of your holidays just recovering? Do you get sick when you step off the merri-go-round of day to day life? If so, you’re not alone. Most people are in this boat. We use our holidays to ‘get back to baseline’. There’s another option. That’s to make your time out […]

How often have you wished other people would ‘get’ the future that you see possible? Yesterday I was with a client who was expressing his frustration that his managers and teams just didn’t get the importance of operating differently. It’s a common challenge, right? You’re out there leading into a new future, while others furiously […]

I’ve been on some great leadership courses throughout my career. I’ve had great teachers. I’ve been exposed to brilliant ideas. And through the shared experience of a course, I’ve developed a rich network of colleagues, many of whom I still connect with today. But none of those courses can compare to the best leadership course […]

I’ve been trying out a new windsurfing move lately. I’ve been windsurfing for so many years that you’d think I’ve have the sport nailed. But, no, not by a long shot! Windsurfing, especially in the waves, is super-technical. I reckon it’s one of those sports that you can never fully master. There’s always something more […]

If you’re on a mission to make an outsized difference, you’ve signed up for an exciting journey. And also a challenging one. It’s exciting because you’re doing something worthwhile, something with purpose, something that’s going to really make a dent in the universe. And it’s challenging because you’ll come up against inertia. Including those people […]