How Do You Win From Here?

At the Wanderers in 2006, Australia piled up 434 runs and the South African dressing room sunk into despair.

Then Jacques Kallis walked in and deadpanned, “Bowlers, great job, Australia are 15 short.” Laughter broke out.

The tension eased. It gathered the group and focused them on what was to come next. That single line flipped the room from panic to possibility. What followed was one of, if not the wildest chase in 50 over cricket. 

Moments like these hold a lesson for leaders. When things go wrong, the natural instinct is to relive every mistake and replay every decision that led here. While there is value in learning from the past, it can also trap you in a cycle of regret and blame.

The only question to ask is: how do we win from here?

This question reframes the situation. It turns the target from a threat into a challenge. Narratives change behaviour before numbers do. Just as “15 short” changed the mood in that dressing room.

Winning from here does not always mean a dramatic turnaround. Sometimes it means a small but meaningful step that creates momentum. It could be one conversation that clears the air and gets everyone moving again.

The best leaders I have seen are those who do not let a rough patch define them. They do not dwell on what should or could have been. They don’t beat themselves up. They rally their teams around what can be. They strip away noise, choose a few things that really matter, and commit to doing them well.

If you are in a tough spot today, ask yourself and your team:

• What does winning look like in the next 30 days?

• What are the one or two things that will move us closer to that outcome?

• What can we let go of so that we focus all our energy on what matters?

The path forward will rarely be perfect, but clarity and action build confidence.

No matter how far behind you feel, the question is the same: how do you win from here? 

Name the fear, flip the story, commit to the next step. 

The act of moving forward is how you start winning again.