Pragmatic Thinking

Pragmatic Thinking We help organisations with leadership and culture; the two biggest drivers that engage people in their work. That’s our tribe. We call them ‘Difference Makers’.

We deliver a host of programs around leadership, culture and feedback. Whether it’s a one-day experience for your team or an all-of-organisation multi-year program, we’re ready. We even do bespoke programs tailored specifically to different organisational needs so we can work with you to find the right solution. Chances are you’ll spend a third of your life at work. Any way you measure it, that’s

a fair chunk of your time…

So given work is this huge chunk of our lives, it makes perfect sense to make it the best possible experience it can be, right? Even entertain that work could be an extraordinary experience? Well that’s why we’re here. 
To create extraordinary work cultures. As a behaviour and motivation strategy company we find ambitious leaders and their teams and we become their secret weapon. These leaders are the people in your organisation that can (and want to) effect change. Big thinking, ambitious folk who chase after better tomorrows. Making a difference to these few is what drives us every day. Through psychology, biology, sociology and anthropology (and a few other ‘ologies) we bring a science-based approach to our work, looking for contemporary and practical ways to make change happen and drive cultural shifts inside organisations.

18/02/2026

“Live each day like it’s your last” is terrible advice for sustainable performance.

I’ve worked with hundreds of high-performing leaders over the years, and the ones who burn out fastest are the ones trying to bring maximum intensity to every single day. They’re trying to make every day glorious, every moment significant, every interaction profound. It’s exhausting and ultimately unsustainable.

The leaders who sustain high performance over decades understand something different. Most days are repetitive. Most days look similar to the day before. And that’s not a problem to solve - it’s a reality to design around.

The real question isn’t how to make every day extraordinary. It’s how to make your ordinary days good enough that repeating them 300 times a year doesn’t drain you. What systems, habits, and rhythms can you build into those repetitive days that make them sustainable and even enjoyable?

What does a good ordinary day actually look like for you?

16/02/2026

I’m writing the final report for Wine Future Leaders and one experience keeps coming back to me.

We took the 15 participants abseiling as part of exploring how leaders navigate uncertainty. They didn’t know it was coming, which was deliberate - uncertainty you’re warned about…well, it isn’t really uncertainty, is it?

And of course, nature decided to turn up. It bucketed down with rain while we were out on the escarpment.

What struck me wasn’t that people handled it well. It’s that they found genuine joy in it. Laughter, connection, experimentation - even while wet and uncertain and doing something completely outside their comfort zone.

When we debriefed afterwards, the learning was clear. When you face uncertainty, you can fall into overwhelm - “I don’t know what to do, this will never work” - or you can find threads of opportunity. The participants who leaned into curiosity rather than control discovered capabilities they didn’t know they had.

That’s the difference between those who get paralysed by uncertainty and others who rise through it. Some see threat, others sees possibility.

09/02/2026

When teams are in the middle of major change, they can sometime lose perspective. When this happens the current disruption starts to feel permanent and all-consuming.

You can help them zoom out. This change we’re working through is temporary, not a fixed state. Things will normalise on the other side, even if that normal looks different.

The teams that navigate change well understand it’s a phase, not a destination. They build resilience by maintaining perspective rather than treating each disruption as catastrophic.

How are you helping your team see beyond today’s chaos?

02/02/2026

Most leaders move through their entire day without checking in on their own energy state, then wonder why interactions feel harder than they should.

You’re running on empty - maybe a three out of ten - but you push into that difficult conversation anyway because it’s scheduled in your calendar. Or you’re at an eight, slightly amped up, and you bring too much intensity to a situation that needed calm presence. Either way, your energy is affecting outcomes, but you’re not managing it intentionally.

This creates a pattern where your leadership effectiveness becomes inconsistent. Some days you’re brilliant in conversations and decisions. Other days you’re reactive or flat. The difference often isn’t the content - it’s the state you brought to it.

The shift is building awareness of where you’re actually at across your day and week. Quick check-in: where’s my energy on a scale of 1 to 10 right now? If you’re at a six and you’ve got something important coming up, what would help you get to a seven or eight? A short walk, some water, a few deep breaths, a moment of reflection?

You don’t need to be at ten constantly. But you do need to be intentional about your state before key moments. Your energy is contagious - the people around you feel it whether you’re aware of it or not.

29/01/2026

Leading is hard enough on the best days. It’s nigh on impossible if your brain is scattered.

Here’s what too many hard-working leaders do: Back-to-back meetings. No transition time, just jumping from one thing straight into the next.

Then they wonder why they feel reactive, scattered, or like they’re just showing up on autopilot.
Leadership performance isn’t just about what you know or what you say. It’s about your state when you walk into the room.

Before a big conversation, presentation, or decision - give yourself a few minutes. Center yourself. Connect to what matters in this moment.

Visualise how you actually want to show up.

High performers do this. They give themselves permission to craft transition moments instead of rushing task to task. It regulates their nervous system, improves focus and creates composure.

Permission might be your best performance tool in those big moments in 2026.

23/01/2026

Two books I recommend to leaders every January:

1) 4000 Weeks by Oliver Burkeman

2) Atomic Habits by James Clear.

Why these two? Because they address the questions most goal-setting frameworks miss. 4000 Weeks forces you to confront the reality that if you live to 80, you get roughly 4000 weeks. That perspective helps you identify what you genuinely don’t want to let go of this year versus what you’re doing out of obligation. Atomic Habits connects your systems to your identity - who you need to be, not just what you need to do.

How to use them? Read 4000 Weeks first for perspective on what matters. Then use Atomic Habits to build systems that reinforce the identity required to protect what matters. They work together - one gives you clarity on direction, the other gives you structure for sustainable progress.

Next step: If you’re setting up your year, start with these two questions. What are you not willing to let go of? And who do you need to be to protect that?

Once you’ve done that, I’d encourage you to check out my podcast with James Clear

James shared his journey from writing blog posts to creating a comprehensive guide on habits, which has helped millions of people worldwide transform their lives through small, consistent changes.

21/01/2026

What’s worse - making the wrong decision or not making a decision at all?

Most leaders think it’s the wrong decision, so they delay. They wait for more data, more certainty, the perfect answer before they’re willing to commit and move forward.

I’ve seen this countless times working with leaders over the years. They’re smart, capable, experienced - but they’re stuck in this loop of trying to get it absolutely right before they make a call. They think they’re being strategic or considered, but what they’re actually doing is creating paralysis for themselves and their teams.

Here’s what happens while you’re sitting there waiting for perfect clarity. Your team stalls because they can’t move forward without your decision. Progress stops. And over time, that delay starts to create real demotivation because your best people are losing momentum just waiting on you to make the call.

But here’s what I’ve learned about decision-making through working with hundreds of leaders. Even wrong decisions give you something incredibly valuable - they give you data. Think like a scientist. We have a hypothesis and our job is to see if it’s proven or not yet proven.

So even if you make a call, you start moving, and then you realise the trajectory is off. So you pull back, you adjust based on what you’ve learned, and you go again with better information than you had before.

That’s actual progress. That’s using data to drive progress and success.

Progress beats perfection every time. Movement creates learning. Delay just creates stagnation.

So be honest with yourself - what decision are you delaying right now?

14/01/2026

These are our focus areas for 2026.

Every year we take time to get clear on what matters most - personally and professionally. It helps us lead with intention instead of just reacting to what comes our way.

19/12/2025

2025 - you were a heck of a rollercoaster weren’t you?

What does your mate 2026 have in store? Well let’s look at that after a wee break.
From all the crew at PT, we’re wishing you well and thanking you kindly as you (hopefully) have a few days off over the holiday season.

For those keeping the lights on and working right through: we’re in awe, and thank you.

18/12/2025

Energy drives impact. Most leaders don’t check theirs before they lead - and then wonder why conversations feel off or decisions don’t land well. Pausing to ask “where’s my energy right now?” and taking a micro-reset before engaging changes everything.

17/12/2025

Behind the scenes in the PTV studio delivering digital leadership for our Lead the Way program for the incredible team at Kinetic working alongside their People and Culture department led by the force of nature that is Madonna Hegarty. Such an awesome group of people.

Lead the Way is not only building leadership capability but also exploring how leaders can leverage AI tools and look critically at the tech stack at their disposal to behaviourally integrate systems with people to lead their businesses into the future

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