Many organisations have a vision and values, but only in the best does that vision truly galvanise its people and result in better performance. Why? Because often that vision either isn’t compelling enough, or leaders fail to act consistently with the goal they have set out. In Mel Gibson’s stirring though… Read More »Why Braveheart’s clarity of vision can help every leader
War is the most unforgiving environment for a leader, with every decision affecting both your own life and that of others. It’s an environment vividly painted in Black Hawk Down, Ridley Scott’s re-telling of the US military’s ill-fated incursion into Mogadishu in 1993. Based on Mark Bowden’s absorbing book, Black… Read More »Leading under pressure: Black Hawk Down
Whenever I tell people that The Shawshank Redemption is one of my top leadership movies, I often receive blank looks. Where’s the recognised leader, the rousing speeches to followers? But for me, it’s the perfect demonstration of a different kind of leadership: a demonstration that leadership is a state of… Read More »Top 5 leadership movies: The Shawshank Redemption
I remember the 1995 Rugby World Cup very clearly. It was at the height of my passion for the game, and the memory of New Zealand wing Jonah Lomu brushing white English shirts aside like rag dolls still burns brightly in my memory! The tournament also produced one of rugby’s… Read More »Top five leadership movies: Invictus
There were some misty eyes around the world recently – including mine – at the release of the final Harry Potter movie. I’ve loved both the books and the films, and Deathly Hallows Part 2 was a fitting finale to a movie series that got better and better. But can… Read More »What can we learn about leadership from Harry Potter?