September 2025 - Freedom after the sharks

I recently had the fortune of staying with a good friend and business partner and his wife, who is a successful author and entrepreneur living in the Portland area of Oregon, in the United States.

Mark Herbert has always been a very big inspiration to me across my writings: from ‘Freedom after the Sharks’ through to book number 7, where Mark became the co-author of ‘The Trust Paradigm’, and a true mentor. Mark is the Senior Principle and Founder of New Paradigms LLC.

We always have meaningful conversations around legacy and history, after all there is a great deal of historical knowledge around today. We are awash with books on history, massive biographies, and philosophy on historical figures. Information on history is much broader than ever before, but there is very little historical thought across both spectrums in the business world.

As a famous lord, Lord Acton, once said: ‘Historical thought is far more important than historical knowledge’.

Historical thought is using the lessons of history to understand the present and to make decisions for the future.

Can or should we be using history as an analytical tool and making use of the lessons of history?

If we were to draw lessons from the Roman Empire and experience it in our everyday existence, as human nature never changes, similar circumstances will always produce similar events. Churchill did change history and this should act as a guide and impediment to understanding the present, so that we can change the future.

We did have a few logistical issues, but a book that Mark recommended to me arrived: “It’s your Ship’’, by Captain D. Michael Abrashoff.

“It’s Your Ship” takes the everyday successful practices of great managers and shows that no matter where they are applied, even on a $1 Billion warship, you can deliver exceptional results.

The book takes you on a cruise around the world of how good management delivers spectacular results. Commander Abrashoff tells a wonderful story of how he changed the behavior of every officer and sailor on the USS Benfold, even when it faced the political and military challenges of preparing for ‘combat readiness’, where lives are on the line.

He does this in a relaxing manner that allows the reader to absorb these concepts as if you were listening to good friend telling you about a day in his office. “It’s Your Ship” is simple to read and understand since it comes to you from an milieu you are totally unfamiliar with.

“It’s Your Ship” gets you out of the office or factory of management, and drops you in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Many of the practices that Commander Abrashoff used were the same principles and ideas written in other management books.

His story is unique for it showed that these concept work regardless of the environment. He allowed his crew to reach their fullest potential in an organization of rules and policies, where mistakes could cost lives and waste taxpayers money.

Commander Abrashoff is truly a ‘Level 5 Leader’ as defined in “Good to Great”.

He has a ‘Culture of Discipline’ and once he got the flywheel moving, he never let up. It went faster and faster. Throughout “It’s Your Ship” he tells real world stories that most of us never hear about from within our ‘secret’ military.

This book is a refreshing read that allows you to reconnect with some of the most common and effective management skills you have learned, while motivating you to apply them to your situation, no matter what you do or where you do it. It makes me want to have been on that ship!

There is a great quote:

“The sky is not the limit, it’s just the beginning.”

Mark and his wife Jackie introduced me to their wine cellar and the local Pinot Noir. Pinot Noir is one of the oldest grape varieties used for making wine. Ancient Romans knew this grape as Helvenacia Minor and vinified it as early as the first century AD. It is recognized worldwide as a great wine grape.

We always have a positive experience watching the sunrise, sunset or even watching the full moon. Apart from enjoying Mark’s and Jackie’s amazing company in the beauty of Oregon, I could not help but think about the wine process which lead me on to the process of ideas, preparation, design and development, implementation and execution of a sequel to “The Trust Paradigm”.

The very nature of adverse variables in a the execution and delivery of a good wine is very similar to that of a new book.

There is an entrepreneurial quote by Eric Ries that states: “I would say, as an entrepreneur everything you do – every action you take in product development, in marketing, every conversation you have, everything you do – is an experiment. If you can conceptualize your work not as building features, not as launching campaigns, but as running experiments, you can get radically more done with less effort.”

I believe “The Trust Paradigm” really changed our lives, the architects of trust; Stephen MR Covey, Patrick Lencioni and Simon Sinek conveyed their individual approaches and methodologies, the facts are everywhere we turn, trust is on the decline. Trust in our culture at large, in our institutions and in our governments, companies and communities is significantly lower than a generation ago.

Consider the loss of trust and confidence in the financial markets today. Indeed, trust makes the world go round – and right now we’re experiencing a crisis of trust.

In the words of Tom Peters – American writer on business practices: “TRUST, not technology, is the issue of the decade.”

In any normality trust is paramount, but given current world events and war, never has there been more need for increased trust.

It has been an overwhelming experience to receive emails and phone calls from people across all walks of life wanting to share their experiences, their story. Government officials, politicians, entrepreneurs, business people, students, children, and charitable causes have approached me for key note sessions, general advice, and inspiration leadership.

We have been overwhelmed with inquiries, but will continue to expand and express the journey that each and every one of us deserves, within our heart-motivated purpose in life, because there is life after ‘The Trust Paradigm.’

Every audience has a different dynamic, a different rhythm, and a different reaction. The audience wants, needs, and expects pertinent, real-life information to enhance and support their lives and importantly what they’re facing.

I believe it was my destiny in life to push things to the limit. You only get one chance to make an impression. We gave The Trust Paradigm every opportunity I had of the events and experiences that took place for what we believed to be right and true.

It’s your quiet inner drive and tenacious disciplined focus that will set yourself apart from those who seemingly
fall by the way side. This may sound a little strange but when I’m asked about the key to my success, it has always been that guttural ignorant persistence. You do more, you give a little more of yourself in everything you do until it becomes a natural part of your lifestyle, it is also important to be a mentor to those who need help, encouragement and share.

“The Trust Paradigm” drew on the hard-won truths of Mark and on our deep personal lessons from life and business practice, and our efforts to distil those lessons into principles that lead towards a more purposeful life.

The book was intended to be both a holistic overview of what generates and builds trust, and a hands-on guide to how that can be done. A wide range of tips, models and techniques that will help to build strong and effective trust solutions in today’s business world are combined with a range of insights into the topical subjects of the day.

The term ‘trust’ has been overused forever and, during the last decade, considerably devalued. In our book, our aim was to take the concept back to its essentials and to re-evaluate how real, meaningful trust can be incorporated into management and leadership.

We have always been passionate about business professionals and individuals dealing with the great challenges of today’s disruptive and disrupted business world, management now have renewed responsibility for what business does best: they must innovate, invest and grow their organizations.

Change and transformation can be radical and painful, yet many wait until circumstances force their hand even when they know that change must, and should, come. Whether change has been forced upon you, or whether you are openly seeking and embracing transformation, this book will arm you with tips, advice and techniques to spark fresh thinking about the status quo and inspire the innovation your circumstances demand for the creation of a better business environment.

“The Trust Paradigm”’s lessons are relevant far beyond the business world. They can support clearer understanding of institutional behaviour for all kinds of people: students, budding entrepreneurs, volunteers, social enterprise organizers – quite simply, anyone who aspires to do better.

In the age of managed credibility, performance and authenticity are not mutually exclusive. It must be matched by substance.

Leaders cannot avoid performing trust. In many cases, the performance is what allows progress to begin. But performance should be treated as a bridge to proof and not as a destination. When perception is aligned with perspective, trust becomes a renewable form of capital, one that can weather scrutiny, adapt to change, and outlast individual tenures.

The most dangerous question in leadership is not: “Do people trust me?” It is: “Do they trust me for the right reasons, and will they still trust me when they see everything?”

After all “trust is a tangible equity” and not some fluffy concept of ideas.