One Minute to Go and Nowhere to Hide

It’s been an exciting week, as I had the privilege of delivering my Mental Resilience talk at the Nottingham City Business Club Lunch.
 
Standing there as the speaker was a surreal moment for me. I vividly remember attending my first NCBC lunch back in 2014 as a complete novice, simply hoping to network and build connections as I began my business journey.
 
At that time, I was still working as a painter and decorator, earning £70 a day for 10-hour shifts. I was deeply in debt and, at 60 years old, living with my mum in Nottingham.
 
Fast forward to this week, and I was honoured to be invited as the speaker for the June Lunch, where I shared my story and practical mental resilience techniques. The NCBC, founded in 1924, has hosted many outstanding speakers over the years, so it was truly humbling to be among them.
 
 
It has been an arduous journey.
 
The journey from those difficult days to where I am now has been a challenging one. It was a hard, often lonely road, and it demanded enormous mental resilience.
 
To go from being in serious debt and working as a decorator to becoming an international speaker, trainer, coach, and published author of two books feels like a remarkable turnaround. However, I firmly believe that anyone can achieve a similar transformation with the right tools and mindset.
 
Today, I’m fortunate to work with incredible clients like Rolls-Royce, Siemens, and NSG Pilkington Glass. I’ve also had the joy of speaking on two cruise ships—the latest being Cunard’s Queen Mary 2, sailing to New York. Julie and I enjoyed this unforgettable cruise of a lifetime, courtesy of my speaking work.
 
Sometimes, I have to pinch myself. But my purpose now is to help others reach their goals, just as my mentors once helped me. Through my coaching, I’m passionate about guiding people to achieve their dreams and build resilience for whatever life throws their way.
 
 
Possibly my biggest challenge to date.
 
Speaking of resilience, this week brought me one of the biggest tests of my mental resilience in recent memory.
 
I had the privilege of being selected to deliver a one-hour online webinar for Vistage. For context, Vistage is the world’s largest CEO coaching and peer advisory organisation. They’re dedicated to helping managing directors, CEOs, business owners, and senior executives make better decisions, strengthen their leadership, and achieve sustainable growth.
 
I’ve been working with Vistage for several years, delivering my masterclasses to groups of managing directors from a wide range of organisations. I love the challenge, and recently, I developed a second masterclass, The Productivity Breakthrough, which has been receiving excellent reviews.

 
I was excited.
 
So when I was asked to deliver my Productivity masterclass this week, I was thrilled. We logged on at 11:30 a.m. to check that everything was working smoothly before going live at noon. That half-hour window usually allows plenty of time for tech checks, a quick cup of tea, and a moment to prepare for the session.
 
Everything seemed fine until we tested the sound on my five key videos—and discovered the attendees couldn’t hear a thing. The team brought in technical experts, but as the minutes ticked away, we were making no progress.
 
By 11:45, there was still no sound. 11:50 came and went. Then 11:55. We tried everything, but nothing worked. At 11:59, they said, “Sorry, you’ll have to go live without your videos,” and disappeared off-screen.
 
 
This was the moment of truth.
 
There I was, staring into the camera, with a virtual audience waiting for me to begin. Usually, my videos provide not only valuable content but also a brief pause for me to catch my breath. Now, I was facing 55 minutes of nonstop speaking, with no breaks, and no videos.
 
Instead of calmly making a cup of tea and pouring a glass of water, as I’d intended, I was left with a cold cup of tea, no water, and had to start completely cold turkey.
 
I took a deep breath, smiled into the camera, and said confidently:
 
“Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for attending today’s masterclass on Productivity.”
 
Then I launched in and gave it my absolute everything. Before I knew it, it was 12:58, and I had wrapped up the session without using a single one of the videos I’d planned.
 
The best part? The host, who had watched the whole thing, told me afterwards that it was fantastic. That was all the validation I needed, and I have since had further positive feedback.
 
 
What did I learn from this?

• This experience shows that even when you plan everything carefully, things can still go wrong at the last minute. When that happens, it’s essential to remain calm. 
• Being flexible is very important because it lets you change your plans quickly and still do a good job. 
• Having confidence helps a lot. Starting with a calm and friendly greeting set a good tone, even though things were going wrong behind the scenes. 
• It also proves that your words, energy, and presence matter most. You don’t always need videos or slides to give a great talk. 
• Technical problems don’t have to ruin your presentation—you can still succeed. Challenging moments like this help you build mental strength for the future. 
• It’s essential to prepare not just your slides and videos, but also your mind, so you’re ready for surprises. 

 
Thoughts for the week. 

1. How would you respond in a situation like this?
2. Have you ever experienced a similar issue?
3. How did you respond?
4. What keeps you calm under pressure?
5. This week, think about your resilience and ability to cope under pressure. 

 
Well, that’s it for this week. Have a wonderful weekend and keep believing.
 
Warm regards

John


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