and so to close

It’s all over

Well.  I’m sitting in the sun, drinking coffee and eating croissant, gazing out to sea from a friends terrace.

I’m not too sure where I am or who I am….

My last memory is of Nicola and I driving out of Bore Place, foot to the floor and screaming with exhilaration at our release.  An extraordinary time, not quite real and not quite a dream.

Does Caroline Sami actually exist?  Did we see the real Kevin Spacy or was it in fact Jack Lemon? Did Jude Kelly throw some mysterious switch in us, to set us off on a path of Olympic glory? Are we all disciples of the Kaiser?  Was Roy Claire really an Admiral?  Was Pelham Allen actually an Avotar, was he seeking to turn us all into him?

Is Chris Smith really M?  Does that make Sue Hoyle Miss Moneypenny? Then whose Bond?

Here’s what I have learnt –

We are never more powerful, more focussed, and more connected than when we are deeply and clearly ourselves, and we must know ourselves to be ourselves.

From this place comes authenticity and from this flows inspiration.

We can use a deep sense of purpose to find a vision and if we can paint that vision clearly for people then we are all artists and all leaders.

If we can let go of the ‘doing’ and inspire others with hope, love, and clarity to deliver the vision we can release the multiplier effect as each person we inspire will go on to be at least as effective as us if not more so.

To do this, we have to stop scrabbling in the dirt, we have to learn to care less about instant success, less about how we are perceived, less about who will fund our dreams or give us permission to realise them.  And we have to care more about our people, the depth of the partnerships and relationships we form and keep polishing the vision.

We do have to plan clearly and completely with possession of all the facts and we have to plan with consensus and rigour.  We must start with something that is good to begin with and build from there.

We must monitor progress honestly and confront the brutal facts of our real performance.  Or activities are in the service of the organisation and the vision, if people are not on the journey with us we need to address this with honesty and understanding.

A legacy is not built it is left.  It is something that is created in our wake not in our hands.

Until the next time……

Comments

[Annie]

Good summary Tom! It feels like all the things I learnt and thought about during the 2 weeks at Bore Place are still swimming around in my head. I'm guarding my notebook with my life! My hope is that my scribbled notes hold the key to making those swimming thoughts become a bit more solid.
It was strange coming back to work on Monday. I joked that it's easier to talk about work than actually do it. But that wasn't really why it felt strange. I think Bore Place gave us the space to look at the horizon, and now I'm looking at my fingers typing on the keyboard on my desk... How to reconcile the two? That's what's getting me thinking right now.