Echo Systems

Is your work in the transaction game or the transformation game?? I love seeing transformation and helping people and teams get there.? Why?? Transformation connects people and communication and creativity!? The three ‘power-zones.’??

High performance (sport, business and home) is a communication and people game.? Every time.? And that is why in my work I remind people to bring high performance home, and test it there.? Where there is no role, no titles and no medals awarded.? When we bring high performance home and back to work, I find we have softened the edges a bit to deepen and lift our people and communication game.

I love the book The Living Company by Arie de Geus.? De Geus found that long-lasting companies succeed not by focusing solely on performance/financial metrics, but by operating as a "living organism" to learn, adapt, and evolve - an Ecosystem.? And from my experience the championship-capable high performing systems lift one more level to become Echo Systems.??

They amplify success, and it echoes through the people, their system and their networks and connections...long after we’ve moved on.

High performance isn’t just about what we do; it’s about the environments we build and the ripples left behind. Echo systems come from the habits, standards, and cultures we create—systems lift and reinforce themselves daily.

We were at a remote still lake on an early morning bike ride recently and dropped a big boulder into it from the banking and on our ride we could still see ripples from the boulder 30 minutes later crossing the lake.? We put an echo into that lake.

As Brené Brown said, “What we leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others.” Our echoes.??

Leadership is about creating these echoes: the environments that keep empowering, aligning, and inspiring long after we’ve stepped away.? The echoes we create by what we do, what we say, the standards we inspire and how we connect.

I have worked with many incredible leaders, coaches and experts and I find the best have learned the art of ‘echo-systems.’??

A coach I worked with during three Olympics developed this further with me.? Every interaction they had, every word they chose, every ritual they introduced wasn’t just about the present moment—it was about creating ripples that would last.? Meetings were concise and purposeful. The language they used was about their shared identity and vision. The rituals were rhythms that synchronised the team like ripples in the lake spreading outwards.

Sustained performance requires this level of transformative impact…and this is measured in ripples…one ripple at a time.? The best leaders aim for resonance over results.? Like a great coach told me ‘Connection before Correction.’ ? The results catch up.

Here is a simple diagnostic to explore:

1. The "Bring It home" challenge

Diagnostic: How well do your leadership habits hold up outside of work?

• Are you as patient and intentional at home as you are with your team?
• Do you communicate and align at home with the same clarity you expect at work?

Action: Take one high-performance habit (e.g., active listening, clear priorities, setting expectations etc.) and practice it at home first. A habit that works in the close, title-free environment of home will be even stronger in your workplace.

2. The "Connection before correction" rule

Diagnostic: When addressing a challenge, do you focus more on fixing mistakes or reinforcing connection?

? Connection first: You’re building long-term resonance.

? Correction first: You may be in transaction mode and limiting trust and buy-in.

Action: Next time you give feedback, start with alignment and shared purpose first. The best connection ripples come from here.

Leaders who find their echo find their true power to empower!

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#Leadership #HighPerformance #EchoSystems #CultureMatters #TeamCulture #HighPerformanceSport

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