Together. Go Far, Fast!

Where is everyone?

‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together’

This is an old African proverb that I use quite often with my coaching. When I’m working with Leadership Coaching clients, this is something we focus on when planning how to develop their team for high performance that will improve business results. A group of well motivated individuals, working together is greater than the sum of it’s parts (to adapt slightly from Aristotle!)

So, as always there is the exception to the rule! This past weekend is a perfect case in point. I raced in an event called ‘Battle of the Beach’, at Pembury in Wales. The 26 mile race involves an over 3 mile drag up the beach and then back through off road routes and woods, three times! I chose to race on my mountain bike. It’s not an aerodynamic riding position but I thought it would be quicker for all the other parts of the race. I just needed to make sure I was in a good group to share the load for the beach part of the race.

That was the plan. As this picture shows,things didn’t go as expected! Lap 2, I was left hanging in the wind, all by myself. I used far too much energy and lost a lot of time and it certainly didn’t feel that ‘go alone’ was fast. If you are interested, I managed lap 3 much more effectively and made up a lot of places but the damage was done.

On reflection, my experience on the beach reinforces the message that I use. Individually, working harder, risking burnout will only work for a short amount of time but results may deteriorate. It’s always about having a good team which are well motivated and will deliver sustainable high performance and consistent results. 

That’s why investing in Leadership skills coaching will pay off and improve team performance and  deliver better results for your business. 

If you would like to know more about Leadership Coaching and building a high performing team, book a discovery meeting HERE and let’s talk