Leadership for a Complex World: Reflections from the WYSE International Leadership Programme in Brazil

I’ve just returned from an incredible start to my year — serving on the faculty of the WYSE International Leadership Programme in Brazil. It was 12 days of deep connection, courageous inquiry, and cross-cultural leadership learning with 24 emerging leaders from around the world. What struck me most wasn’t just the richness of the programme itself — but how urgently this kind of leadership development is needed in today’s world. 

WYSE International is a global educational charity, affiliated with the United Nations, that has been supporting young people to develop leadership grounded in human values for over 30 years. Its flagship International Leadership Programme brings together people from many cultures, religions, and socio-economic backgrounds in an intensive 12-day journey of exploration — into self, into leadership, and into the systems that shape our shared future. 

Why this matters now

We live in a time of paradox: remarkable innovation and connection, but also widening inequality, social fragmentation, and environmental uncertainty. Leaders are being expected not just to manage change, but to shape it with courage, clarity, and compassion. However, often we are seeing the opposite leading to a rise in conflict and more inequality.  The ILP’s intentional design — diverse perspectives held in community, structured reflection, and embodied learning — cultivates exactly the kind of leadership required to address the global context we are in.

Participants come not merely to learn skills, but to reimagine leadership itself:

• What does it mean to lead from a place of purpose rather than ego?

• How do you hold complexity without shutting down?

• How do you co-create solutions when the problems we face are systemic, not isolated?

These are not theoretical questions. They are lived realities for a generation inheriting unprecedented global challenges — from climate breakdown to fractured democracies — as well as unparalleled possibilities to mobilise collective intelligence across borders.

A community, not just a classroom

What makes WYSE’s approach remarkable is the human dimension. The programme weaves experiential learning, personal reflection, and dialogue across difference into a fabric that fosters trust, curiosity and adaptive thinking. Participants don’t just absorb frameworks — they live them. 

And it doesn’t end when the 12 days are over. WYSE offers a six-month alumni coaching programme designed to help graduates apply their insights back home — working with personal objectives, project goals and real-world challenges. This post-programme coaching is not an add-on: it’s a bridge from inspiration to impact. 

Leadership that starts from within

At the heart of WYSE’s philosophy is a simple but profound insight: before you can lead others, you must learn how to lead yourself. That means understanding your values, knowing your strengths and limitations, and holding a clear sense of purpose — even when answers aren’t obvious. This is exactly the kind of leadership the world urgently needs.

What I brought back — and what we all can take forward

From Brazil, I came home reminded that leadership isn’t a title, a position or a checklist. It’s a practice of presence, grounded in curiosity, courage and care. It’s about creating spaces where people can show up as their best selves and contribute to the collective good — wherever they live and work.

As leaders — whether in health systems, communities, organisations or networks — we face daily complexity. What if we held that complexity not as a burden, but as an invitation to listen deeper, act with intention, and lead with both head and heart?

The ILP reminded us that leadership is not a destination — it’s a lifelong journey. And when we walk that journey together, the potential for positive change becomes exponentially greater.

If you would like to find out more about the program or explore coaching on how to lead yourself in a complex system – please contact me.

The Invisible Weight of Leadership for Women in Healthcare

Most women leaders in the NHS carry a weight that isn’t written in any job description. It’s not listed on the organisational chart, it’s not counted in workforce data, and it’s rarely acknowledged in performance conversations — yet it shapes every part of their working lives.

It’s the invisible weight of being the person everyone turns to.
The one who keeps the team steady.
The one who absorbs tension, listens deeply, steps in, smooths things over, and holds everything together so patient care doesn’t unravel.

While men also carry pressure, studies from The King’s Fund, NHS England and the Health Foundation show that women in healthcare leadership disproportionately take on emotional labour, team coordination, pastoral care, and the “glue work” that keeps services functioning. This labour is essential — but it’s often unseen, unmeasured and unrewarded.

Over time, this invisibility becomes its own burden.
Women leaders describe feeling responsible not just for their own workload, but for the morale, wellbeing and stability of everyone around them. They step in because they care deeply — and because their teams trust them. But the system rarely creates space for those who carry this emotional load to rest, reset or replenish. Instead, their ability to cope becomes the expectation.

The weight grows heavier in environments where staffing gaps are normal, change is constant, and demand always outstrips capacity. While official roles focus on targets, performance and service delivery, the day-to-day reality often requires balancing difficult conversations, supporting distressed colleagues, navigating organisational politics, and absorbing the emotional fallout of clinical pressure.

None of this appears in leadership frameworks.
But it shapes how women leaders feel every single day.

One senior woman I worked with described it perfectly:
“My job title says ‘manager’. But most days, it feels like I’m holding up the emotional architecture of the department.”

That invisible architecture is vital — but without recognition, it becomes exhausting.

The impact isn’t only emotional.
Research shows that when invisible labour goes unacknowledged, leaders begin to doubt their influence and question their effectiveness. They feel tired without understanding why. They wonder why others seem to cope “better,” not realising they are carrying more than their peers — often because they are the trusted, steady presence the team relies on.

The solution isn’t to harden, suppress or “toughen up.” Women leaders don’t need to become less caring. The real shift comes from naming the weight, recognising its value, and redistributing leadership so responsibility doesn’t sit silently on one pair of shoulders.

In coaching conversations, this begins with permission — permission to acknowledge what you carry, to value the emotional labour you provide, and to explore where boundaries, capability and shared ownership can be strengthened within your team.

Because the truth is this:
You are not exhausted because you’re not good enough.
You are exhausted because you have been carrying more than anyone sees.

When women leaders begin naming this weight, something powerful happens. Their confidence returns. Their voice strengthens. Their boundaries become clearer. They start leading from a place of grounded authority rather than relentless emotional strain.

And, importantly, they stop confusing being overwhelmed with being inadequate.

Naming the invisible weight doesn’t make it disappear — but it does make it manageable, shareable and no longer silently carried.

Firefighting vs. Leading: Why NHS Leaders Feel Stuck in Survival Mode

Most NHS leaders don’t set out to firefight. They start with vision, purpose and commitment. But somewhere along the line, the spark fades. Days become a blur of meetings, rota gaps, operational pressures, and urgent crises that leave little space for strategic thought. You end the week exhausted and oddly unsatisfied — as though all that effort hasn’t really changed anything.

This sense of “stuckness” is not a personal failing. It’s a symptom of a system in flux.

The NHS Long Term Plan and the subsequent NHS England Workforce Plan (2023) have set in motion one of the biggest structural shifts in decades — moving care from hospitals to communities, digitising services, and focusing on prevention rather than treatment. These are bold, necessary ambitions. But structural reform on this scale takes time, clarity, and leadership bandwidth — three things in short supply when most leaders are simply trying to get through the week.

At the same time, financial pressure is tightening. In 2024, the Health Foundation reported that NHS budgets, when adjusted for inflation, have effectively fallen by around 2% in real terms, while demand continues to rise. In practical terms, this means fewer resources, frozen posts, and an expectation that “efficiency” will fill the gap. It’s no surprise, then, that 44% of NHS staff report feeling unwell from work-related stress (NHS Staff Survey, 2023) — the highest figure since records began.

When the system runs on thin margins, firefighting becomes the default mode. It feels necessary, even noble: responding quickly, fixing problems, keeping the show on the road. But firefighting, by its nature, is reactive. It doesn’t create space for learning, innovation or culture-building — all the things that actually make services sustainable.

A BMJ Leader study in 2022 found that NHS managers spend nearly 70% of their time on meetings and operational problem-solving, leaving little scope for reflection or team development. Yet the King’s Fund (2023) found a strong correlation between leadership cultures that prioritise coaching and reflection and those with better staff retention and patient outcomes. In short, the more time you spend leading — rather than reacting — the better your team and your service perform.

But creating that space takes courage. The NHS has long equated visible busyness with dedication. The leader who blocks thinking time, cancels unnecessary meetings, or takes time for their team’s development can be misunderstood as “not pulling their weight.” In reality, they’re doing the hardest thing of all: protecting capacity to think and lead.

If you want to break the cycle, start small. Block one hour a week for strategic reflection — and defend it fiercely. Review your diary: which meetings truly need your presence? Which could be shortened, delegated, or replaced with a written update? Invest time in coaching your team so they can take on more responsibility and stop every issue bouncing back to you.

Firefighting might keep things afloat, but it won’t move them forward. The NHS needs leaders who can lift their gaze above the flames — who can step back long enough to shape the systems, culture and strategy that stop the fires starting in the first place.

Because in a time of structural reform and shrinking budgets, what the NHS needs most isn’t more urgency — it’s more leadership.

Why Working Harder Isn’t Getting You Further

Why Working Harder Isn’t Getting You Further in the NHS

Most NHS women leaders I coach tell me the same story. They’re working harder than ever, racing from one meeting to the next, firefighting problems, replying to emails late into the night. Yet despite this relentless effort, they end each week wondering what difference they’ve actually made.

It’s a paradox many recognise: the harder you work, the less progress you feel. And it isn’t simply about personal time management or motivation—it’s about the system you’re operating in.

Research consistently shows that NHS staff are at higher risk of burnout than the general population. A survey by NHS Employers found staff were 50% more likely to suffer from chronic stress than people in other sectors. Burnout doesn’t just drain energy, it also reduces effectiveness. In fact, psychologists call this the “diminishing returns of effort.” Push harder, and each extra hour produces less value than the one before.

This is compounded by the way the NHS measures and rewards its leaders. According to The Broken Ladder report (Investors in People, 2025), 80% of NHS managers are promoted for technical expertise, not leadership ability. The result is a culture where “doing more” is valued over “leading better.” In practice, that means leaders are buried in tasks rather than developing people, shaping strategy, or creating space to think.

To make matters worse, many leaders never receive formal training in how to lead people in such a complex system. A Financial Times analysis recently revealed that only one in five NHS leaders has had senior management training in the last five years. Without support, leaders default to what feels safe: working harder, putting in extra hours, and saying yes to everything. But those behaviours rarely lead to recognition or promotion.

And yet, the women I work with also carry another set of unspoken pressures: the need to prove themselves, the fear of being judged, the discomfort of taking up space. These internal voices combine with systemic pressures to keep women trapped in a cycle of overwork, invisibility, and exhaustion.

So if harder isn’t working, what will?

The answer lies in shifting from effort to impact. That doesn’t mean slacking off. It means recognising that the best leaders aren’t the ones who carry the most, but those who create the conditions for others to succeed. It means being brave enough to delegate, to prioritise, and to protect time for thinking.

A few simple practices can help start the shift. Try ending each day with five minutes of reflection: what went well, what drained me, and what will I do differently tomorrow? Map your team’s strengths, and delegate tasks that play to those abilities—this not only lightens your load, but helps your staff grow. And most importantly, protect your energy. Boundaries around rest and family time aren’t indulgent; they are essential for effective leadership.

The truth is, the NHS doesn’t just need women who work harder. It needs women who lead with clarity, influence, and purpose. And that starts when you stop equating effort with impact, and begin working in ways that truly move the needle.

Celebrating investment in leadership development

March 26th 2025 was the celebration day of the end of a year long program for system leaders working in a range of organisations that support health.  Two cohorts came together who work at different levels.  The day was about reflection of learning, celebrating achievement and networking.  An absolutely essential part of a leadership program that sometimes may not be seen as necessary.  These were just some of the reflections that demonstrate the impact of investment in leadership development:

“I am now more conscious about my career and how to take more control over where I want to go”.

”The course has helped me understand who I am and who I want to be”.

”I have been able to deliver things that would have been difficult in the past and others have noticed”.

”I was aware of the theory but the program helped me understand how to apply it in my work”.

”I understand my values and how they impact who I am as a leader”.

”I am more confident about who I am and what I want”.

”I have moved from feeling “less than” to feeling “equal to”.

Listening to this feedback was a joy and it was a privilege to have facilitated on this program.

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