We recently hosted 130 senior leaders from across the UK and beyond at our annual conference. The day was structured around the greatest challenges we face when looking to make a fundamental shift in how a business operates, changing the expectations and mindset for what is now required. We hugely enjoyed welcoming, challenging and supporting delegates on the clarity of their vision, the buy in from “employee 365” and the performance culture they can create as leaders.
In the below article co-founder and CEO Ben Hunt-Davis shares his top takeaways from the conference discussions:
- Clarity of Direction – The power of asking ‘Wouldn’t It Be Amazing If…’
- The Pertinence of Self Reflection – Becoming greater than the sum of our parts
- The Infinite Mindset
1) Clarity of direction - The power of asking ‘Wouldn’t It Be Amazing If…’


A clear, compelling goal provides focus and unites teams behind a shared purpose. It has to come first. Back in 1998 the crew and I continually placed 7& 8th and knew we needed to change before the Sydney Olympics. We knew putting more effort into the same things was not going to get us to where we wanted to go. Change became an imperative that everyone needed to embrace if our Crazy Goal was to be achieved. We had the vison of “Wouldn’t it be amazing if…we won gold at Sydney” but we needed to align every decision and action behind what was going to get us there. Therefore, we started to review EVERYTHING we did, we asked the really simple question of “Will It Make The Boat Go Faster?”.
For businesses, the same principle applies. Client success stories relate back to having a clear and compelling goal that everyone can rally behind. In time individual clarity on how each person’s role is playing a part in overall success becomes an imperative. Done well, employees stand to demand the outcomes of their work in relation to the goal….has it made a difference?
How much clarity does your organisation have? Are you focusing on what is most important in making your boat go faster? If we came into your organisation today and gave you 90 seconds to summarise what others would say about your company’s goals and what’s important, what would you hear? A question we love to ask is: “What would employee number 365 say it is?”
If you’re noticing misalignment, low engagement or simply a lack of good progress, it may be time to reassess how you communicate your goals. Ask yourself:
- Is the company goal clearly defined and communicated?
- Do individuals and teams know how their daily actions contribute to the bigger picture?
- Are there clear, actionable steps that everyone understands to reach that goal?
In your own business, you can take these immediate actions to address clarity:
- Revisit your company or department goal and ensure it’s specific, measurable, and motivating.
- Create clear communication channels to continually reinforce this goal.
- Regularly check-in with employees to assess whether they understand how their work supports the overarching goal.
2) The Pertinence of Self Reflection - Becoming greater than the sum of our parts
We had the privilege of being joined by Steve Trapmore. my former teammate from the Sydney 2000 Olympics, and now the coach of the gold medal-winning GB crew at Paris 2024. Steve’s journey from Olympic gold in Sydney to leading teams through Tokyo 2021 and Paris 2024 is nothing short of remarkable.
Steve shared insights into the evolution required to achieve such extraordinary success. By simply repeating what worked in 2000, the team would not have achieved the result they did in Paris. The team that won gold in Paris also wasn’t the same team from 2021 despite there being more power and capability in that crew. The key difference and why a change was needed? A relentless commitment to adaptation, learning, and growth so they could become more than the sum of their parts.


There was so much to take from the conversation with Steve but perhaps what resonated most with me was on Self-reflection: Finding opportunities to improve.
Steve very candidly said he often reviews his own performance and asks the question, how can I do better?
“I now record my briefings; this gives me a sense of clarity and holds myself accountable to being able to reflect and ensure I am focusing on what is most important for getting us to where we want to go.”
As a senior leader, how can you look inwardly to review your own performance as well as that of your team. End of a day, end of a week, end of a quarter, are you creating the time and space to step back, reflect, seek opinion and understand what you take forward next time? You can start by asking yourself our simple three performance review questions.
- Where am I performing well?
- Where could I be performing better?
- What will I do differently tomorrow?
This reflective process fosters continuous improvement and ensures focus on the most important goals.
3) The Infinite Mindset
I will leave the last word for Cath Bishop’s session which closed the conference so wonderfully. The concept of the infinite mindset was the build on much of the day and how you create an ongoing high performance culture where better never stops. There was so much ground covered but the below steal from one of Cath’s slides sums it up better than I ever could. I hope it captures the essence of the day as well for you as it does for me.


If any of the topics surrounding our event on “What Got Us Here… Won’t Get Us There” feel relevant to you, do get in touch. We would love to have a no-strings attached conversation to help you and your team getting to where you want to go.
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