On the early grasslands, we carried obvious physiological disadvantages over other animals but from this brutal reality the super strength of Homo sapiens emerged: the ability to form strongly-bonded and highly effective groups. Sustaining success is very difficult from a hormonal point-of-view. Our dopamine system is anticipatory. We receive bursts in the pursuit of a goal rather than on the attainment of it. These bursts increase when the outcome is uncertain as opposed to guaranteed.

Whakapapa: how Māori belief is helping England find team

When our Us story is weak, we are weak. We should talk about how to do tasks, but it’s integral not to forget the what and why too. That diversity is a massive strength, he says. “In that when the English people look at the team, they are seeing an expression of the diversification of the country. And you’re seeing them as people who respect and care about each other, they celebrate each other’s success, they are joyous being one. Gareth has spoken about that, this is somewhere for English people to look at what our identity as a country looks like and feel proud about it.” One of the wisest books about winning you'll ever read...Powerful lessons beautifully expressed.' - James Kerr In BELONGING Owen Eastwood reveals, for the first time, the ethos that has made him one of the most in-demand Performance Coaches in the world. Drawing on his own Maori ancestry, Owen weaves together insights from homo sapiens' evolutionary story and our collective wisdom. He shines a light on where these powerful ideas are applied around the world in high-performing settings encompassing sport, business, the arts and military. Initially a navigator’s strength came from their ability to simultaneously carry in their hands both a grand vision and an intimate understanding of the detail. For Eastwood’s ancestors the grand vision was new land, and the intimate understanding of the detail was the sun, the stars, and the constellations - all of which were used to navigate at the time.

While the book and Owen are largely oriented around sport teams and situations, ‘Belonging’ is as significant (if not more so) in the realms of the workplace, home and wider whānau (family). Every year people who wear that shirt create history and leave a benchmark for the next generation to aspire to” It’s got to be done and curated very carefully. And that is what aligns everybody, that’s what everyone signs up for and that’s what paves the way for success. I still find it quite incredible that a lot of elite teams or still not 100% clear on what they’re trying to do. They know they want to win, but the actual depth and richness of the vision isn’t there. The brutal reality of his work This reliance on groups is evidenced by the fact we now know that after a cardiac arrest that strength of a social network is a greater predictor of survivability than exercise, nutrition or medication. Before the Industrial Revolution we mostly worked with family members and people we knew. We often performed a variety of tasks. There was no such thing as “work life balance” because life was whole.

Belonging, by Owen Eastwood – Pocket Wisdom Belonging, by Owen Eastwood – Pocket Wisdom

A copy of Eastwood's new book, Belonging , was given to every England player when they reported for duty at the European Championships' - Telegraph A couple of months ago, Suzi sent me a copy of Owen Eastwood’s book, Belonging: The Ancient Code of Togetherness. She thought it would give me insight into many things we talked about while we worked on her book. The book did a lot more than that. This induction is the most critical time as an individual is most open to this new experience - our first experiences have a long-lasting impact on our sense of being part of this team. The Industrial Revolution changed that. Now many of us leave home to go to work some distance away. Job descriptions and performance metrics guide what we do. Our job and our home are separate. We’re concerned about work-life balance.Our ancestors deeply understood our primal need to belong, and now we’re beginning to see psychology and nueroscience begin to gather the proof for their instinct.

Book Review: Belonging Three Star Leadership | Wally Bock | Book Review: Belonging

One of the joys of working as a book writing coach is that I get to talk with smart, passionate people as we work on their books. When I worked with Suzi McAlpine on her book Beyond Burnout, many of our conversations were about New Zealand and Maori culture.An understanding of the environment and its impact on people is more important than charisma and passion. Plus clarity of thinking. “Humans flourish in environments where the leadership is consistent and composed; they don’t tend to thrive in environments where there are wild mood swings and inconsistency of behaviour.” Whakapapa is a Maori idea which embodies our universal human need to belong. It represents a powerful spiritual belief – that each of us is part of an unbroken and unbreakable chain of people who share a sacred identity. Owen places this concept at the core of his methods to maximise a team’s performance. Whakapapa is a Maori idea which embodies our universal human need to belong. It represents a powerful spiritual belief - that each of us is part of an unbroken and unbreakable chain of people who share a sacred identity. Owen places this concept at the core of his methods to maximise a team's performance. A completely different angle on what makes perform at their best. Great stories of how Owen has shaped the identity stories for the group's he has worked with and insights into his own life and culture that has shaped this understanding from his own heritage.