Principles

We’ve developed three flywheels (and counting). Played with many mental models. Dozens of principles. This is a taste of what’s underpinning how we work.

We used Jim Collins’ methodology to build our own flywheel. In ours, culture enables purpose. Purpose generates impact. Impact reinforces culture. This model informs many of our decisions, as individuals and as a team.

The philosophy which holds it together – do the right thing, help others do the same – is our ‘why’, which we arrived at having read, and reflected deeply on, Simon Sinek’s Start With Why. This sentiment is at the core of who we are as people, and it pervades our every action.

We built the Cognitive Capital Flywheel to map how protecting thinking space creates better outcomes. Protected cognitive space enables deep thinking. Deep thinking delivers exceptional results. Results generate trust and resources, which lets us protect thinking space even more.

The principle: people first equals clients first. Our only assets are our teams’ brains. Looking after them isn’t indulgent – it’s strategic.

The Cognitive Corrosion Spiral maps the opposite pattern – what we actively avoid. Constant interruptions cause depletion. Depletion produces shallow solutions. Shallow solutions erode trust, creating more urgency and interruptions – accelerating the spiral.

The warning: endless availability equals eventual inadequacy.