THE HIDDEN COST OF
RELENTLESS
HIGH PERFORMANCE
Transform your relationship with help. From carrying pressure alone to excelling together.
Worked with
The Challenge
LEADERS ARE FACING UNPRECEDENTED PRESSURE.
YET TOO MANY STILL BELIEVE THEY HAVE TO CARRY IT ALONE.
And don't realise this belief is part of the problem.
In a world of relentless change, uncertainty and increasing demands, high-performing leaders tell themselves they should have all the answers, solve the problems and keep delivering.
But the greater the pressure, the more likely they default to carrying more alone.
8 in 10
CEOs experience loneliness at work. Research strongly links loneliness with poorer performance, higher burnout and ultimately leaders walking away.
$1.8bn
And when the pressure takes its toll, organisations pay the price: PwC reports a forced CEO departure costs an average $1.8 billion in shareholder value.
Resilient, healthy leaders build resilient, healthy businesses.
The myth that leaders should handle pressure alone puts both at risk.
Today, far too many are at breaking point.
Until we break the myth of going it alone,
tomorrow more will be broken.
The Different Idea
RETHINKING HOW WE BUILD RESILIENCE
What if resilience isn't about getting better at carrying more alone?
The central idea is simple: many leaders think their value comes from having the answers. The best leaders know how to access the best answers. To make the best decisions.
Through relatable storytelling, audience interaction and immediately usable tools, Ashley shows leaders how to ignite the intelligence, experience and support already around them.
Because asking for help isn't a weakness.
It's a leadership strength, a skilland a source of resilience
Why Ashley?
A LIFETIME OF HARD-EARNED LESSONS IN RESILIENCE
Why Ashley?
A LIFETIME OF HARD-EARNED LESSONS IN RESILIENCE
Ashley has spent 30 years in high-pressure senior roles and environments spanning advertising, global businesses, consultancy, startups and entrepreneurship.
He is a Human Skills Instructor with Simon Sinek's The Optimism Company, a Techstars founder mentor, and has taught his approach to asking for help and interdependence to 400+ leaders and teams.
But his work is deeply personal too.
After losing his mother aged five, experiencing periods of career burnout and later facing a life-threatening cancer diagnosis, Ashley confronted a belief he'd stubbornly held since childohood:
“I’ll manage. I’ll be okay. I don’t want to be a burden. I need to be independent”
Learning to ask for and receive help transformed his relationship with resilience, and led him to start the The Gift of Help. A movement with the mission to change how we think about help - as a strength, skill and something that benefits us all.
More about Ashley →“Asking for help can be really hard... it's something we all need to do in order to grow and thrive. That's why I'm so excited we at The Optimism Company have teamed up with the brilliant Ashley Usiskin.”
Simon Sinek
Founder, The Optimism Company
The Change
From carrying it alone to excelling together.
Ashley's keynotes give leaders a different way to respond to pressure. Not by simply becoming better at handling more, but by getting better at accessing the help, intelligence and experience around them.
Audiences leave better able to
- 01 —
Handle pressure, uncertainty and change with greater resilience.
- 02 —
Ask for what they need with confidence, clarity and courage.
- 03 —
Access the collective wisdom and experience around them.
- 04 —
Build stronger trust, connection and collaboration.
- 05 —
Make smarter decisions with less unnecessary strain.
The result: leaders and teams equipped to excel together, rather than struggle alone.
In the Room
THOUGHT-PROVOKING.
CHALLENGING CONVENTION.
PRACTICAL.
Ashley combines relatable storytelling, powerful reframes and immediately usable tools to change how leaders see help and unlock more of the value that's already around them.
Rather than simply telling audiences they should ask for more help, Ashley gets them talking, changing old habits and confidently tapping into the intelligence, experience and support already in the room.
An experience that makes people rethink what strength looks like, ask more openly and make better use of the wisdom around them.
Available as a keynote or interactive session, tailored to the audience, event and time available.
READY TO HELP YOUR LEADERS CARRY LESS AND EXCEL TOGETHER?
Let's talk about what your leaders, teams or audience need.
Enquire about a keynote