B.U.I.L.D.® LEARN

In our last article, Implement, Lara and I explored how to move from insight to action by embedding new mindsets and behaviours into everyday practices and the development of successful customer value propositions.   But behaviour change, and maintaining a positive, growth mindset, is not a one-off exercise.
Without continued learning, even the most successful initiatives can lose momentum. Habits fade. Motivation dips. Results plateau.

That’s why the Learn stage of the B.U.I.L.D.® framework is so important.
It’s not a full stop. It’s a specific and deliberate pause to take stock and further build on what’s already in motion.

Why Learn Matters

Many organisations launch change programmes with energy and optimism, but sometimes, a few months later, we are told again and again that they find themselves wondering: “Why aren’t we seeing the impact we expected?”
And then, we identify it’s because they didn’t take enough time to stand back to LEARN and take a measured view, really asking

  • What is, and isn’t, working?
  • What needs to change?
  • Where could we go from here?

Learning isn’t just about reflection. It’s about realignment. It helps create the clarity and awareness needed to make smart, timely decisions, moving from activity to genuine, additive, progress.

What Learning Looks Like in Practice

At this point in B.U.I.L.D.®, we work with individuals and teams to review progress, surface insights, and adjust strategies. This might include:

  • Progress Tracking
    One client began with a Positive Intelligence (PQ) score of 52, meaning she responded positively about half the time. It was a coin toss whether a difficult email or meeting would trigger self-doubt or calm resilience. Through weekly micro-practices that helped rewire her thinking, she increased her score to 75, the recognised tipping point for sustained wellbeing and performance. She became the steady voice in meetings, and a leader who supported growth in others too. She could feel the difference her efforts had made, but quantifying her progress helped her celebrate her growth and continue to apply what she had learned.
  • Regular Reviews and Reports We helped one team formalise a rhythm of regular commercial check-ins and individual reflection sessions to focus on learning and growth. By reviewing progress with direct questions like:

On the commercial side

  • How has our understanding of our customers and prospects improved?
  • Are we still certain about our proof points? And our key North Star?
  • How are we doing on the KPIs in our marketing funnel?
  • What are our current challenges and next immediate actions?

On the individual side

  • How do you feel your operating rhythm, and that of the team, has been?
  • Have you moved from good intentions to regular positive small steps each week?
  • Are you now spending more time on high impact areas?

…these foster a culture of purposeful reflection and shift a team’s focus from activity to impact, supporting performance without compromising wellbeing.

  • Employee Engagement
    The marketing and sales teams in a lead country for one client were working in silos, mainly as the marketing team focussed on multi-country global campaigns and the sales team mainly on home country tactical activations. When the company decided to pivot to a new strategic direction, the leaders of each team recognised the potential benefits of closer collaboration, to learn from each other. To identify the key tasks ahead, we moderated a 2hr interactive online workshop with 4 targeted questions around wishes, reasons why customers would want the new services, information needed for decisions emerging and what success would look like next year. A simple exercise, sparking improved communication and clear goals.

“We found a great set of actions to progress from listening and learning from everyone. This workshop helped us set a clear course and gave us the confidence to move forward together”,

For Individuals: Insight for Intentional Growth

Learning isn’t just about actions, metrics and targets, it’s also about self-awareness. We help individuals reflect on:

  • How do I respond to pressure now?
  • What patterns have shifted?
  • What kind of leader am I becoming?

Using tools like PQ scores, 360 feedback, and self-reflection exercises, clients uncover what’s working and where to focus next.

A typical feedback:
“I went from feeling completely stuck and overwhelmed to discovering both an inner resolve and the value of being more open to the ideas and views of others. It wasn’t just about changing my, or our, circumstances overnight, but about changing how I showed up every day and experiencing how the reflection process had reduced conflict between colleagues.”

For Teams: Making Success Repeatable

The Learn stage helps teams pause, reflect, and understand what’s really happening so they can make informed adjustments.

We support this by:
Listening actively with surveys and engagement tools to capture shifting sentiment
Reviewing trends through structured reflections and quarterly reports
Spotting what’s working and identifying issues early, before they escalate
✔  Tracking progress through updated assessments and revisiting initial goals

As one team put it:
 “We used to just react to everything. Now we reflect first, then respond with purpose.”

What Comes Next?

Once learning becomes part of the rhythm, the way forward becomes clearer. That’s when we move into Develop: sustaining progress, scaling success, and building for the long term.

📩 Ready to make space to learn from your recent progress?
Download our B.U.I.L.D. ® info pack or book a call here

In our last article, Baseline, we explored how to uncover the invisible barriers that hold individuals and teams back, from self-sabotage and outdated beliefs to systemic blockers that quietly drain performance and wellbeing.

Once you know what is getting in the way, the next step is clear: build the capacity to move beyond it. This is where Upskill comes in.

Why Upskill Matters

In today’s complex working environment, where AI disruption, hybrid teams, a challenging business environment and tougher expectations combine, it is not just technical skills that determine success.

What matters just as much is the ability to stay clear-headed, confident, and creative in high-pressure moments. But without the mental muscles to adapt, collaborate and lead through uncertainty, change doesn’t stick.

You cannot delegate self-awareness. You can’t innovate or easily be creative if your saboteurs restrict you from taking positive steps. And you certainly cannot collaborate effectively if your team is stuck in defence mode, afraid to fail, quick to blame, slow to trust and unable to work through these fears and pressures to find positive solutions.

That is why we focus on teaching these skills as part of the Upskill stage in our B.U.I.L.D.® framework.

How we help you and your teams to Upskill

In this stage of B.U.I.L.D.® we use the Positive Intelligence (PQ) approach. This is a science-backed method that helps individuals and teams shift from reactivity and self-sabotage to greater clarity, resilience, and creativity.

Individual participants build the mental muscles to:

  • Interrupt unhelpful habits such as perfectionism, overworking, or people-pleasing
  • Respond to challenges with empathy, curiosity, and confidence
  • Show up consistently with more calm, clarity and courage

Teams learn to

  • Collaborate more effectively and creatively
  • Hold one another accountable for standards / actions
  • Work together under a unifying team purpose and vision
  • Engage in healthy conflict resulting in win-win resolutions

What Does Upskilling Look Like in Practice?

There are a number of ways we can support you or your team in the Upskill stage

The full PQ training programme
Runs over six weeks via a simple app, with short daily practices, weekly reflection, and coaching support. Taking just 15 minutes of activity per day and supported by weekly 1:1 or group sessions with Lara, a certified PQ Coach

Leadership Coaching and Development
Personalised coaching to build self-awareness, shift mindset, and strengthen leadership impact – either 1:1 or for Teams

Mindset Talks and Workshops
For larger teams we can offer interactive talks and workshops to generate fresh thinking, motivate teams, and create lasting mindset shifts

For Individuals: Building Confidence and Self-Mastery

“Before this, I thought I had to be in control all the time. But I realised that urgency and control were my saboteurs—and they were exhausting me and my team.”

This senior leader learned to recognise these patterns, pause, and respond differently. The result was stronger team relationships, more balanced decision-making, and increased energy for strategic priorities.

For Teams: Breaking Through Cultural Stagnation

An insights agency team was experiencing poor collaboration following years of structural change. Saboteurs were fuelling negative behaviours – one team member was micromanaging everything as a result of their ‘Controller’ saboteur – which activated another team members ‘Pleaser’ saboteur that said “yes” to every little change or request posed. Neither was happy and in fact they often were both dismayed by the others requests and way of working – it was having a detrimental impact on the rest of the team….

Through the introduction of shared language and PQ mindset tools, the team began to rebuild psychological safety and creative flow. Conversations became more open, feedback more honest, and ideas more frequent and braver. The result was not only improved client delivery, but greater engagement and cohesion.

What Comes Next?

Once individuals and teams strengthen their mindset muscles, we move to Implement—the next stage of the B.U.I.L.D.® framework. This is where learning becomes embedded in daily routines, and insights translate into sustainable action.

Would you like to explore how Upskill could support your team, function or career?

Download our B.U.I.L.D. ® info pack or book a call here