Love Wins … But Only Always Last weekend I was in London for the final module of Ankush Jain’s Coaching Career School (AJC).
To say it was one of the most impactful weekends I’ve experienced as a coach would be an understatement.
41 coaches from all over the world.
41 people deeply committed to their work … to their clients … and to the impact they are here to make.
41 people who are with and for each other in a way I have never experienced before.
No competition … just compassion … encouragement … love.
It was hugely inspiring.
I’ve come home with insights that will make me a better coach. But not just that … a better husband, a better dad, a better leader.
To be honest, there isn’t a part of my life that won’t be touched by that weekend.
It was that powerful.
But there was one moment that stands out above all the others.
One of the themes of the weekend was the power of love.
Ankush introduced a new word … lovement .
I’m not entirely sure how he would define it, but to me it felt like love in action. Not just something we feel … something we do.
Part of that was the idea of seeing and speaking to the highest version of the person in front of you.
Not as a concept.
But as a practice.
So, as he always does, Ankush made it real.
We broke into our mentoring groups and were given a simple task.
Take it in turns to sit in front of the group … and receive.
Receive as others saw and spoke to the highest version of ‘you’ they could see.
Your only job?
Sit. Listen. Receive. Say “thank you.”
Not long after, I found myself sitting in front of seven of my peers … and Ankush.
These weren’t strangers.
These were people I had spent six months getting to know.
People I respect deeply. People I admire. People I love.
People I had felt insecure around at the start. Unsure if I really belonged.
If I’m honest, some of them are still on a pedestal for me.
And there I was … sitting in front of them.
Receiving.
One by one, they spoke.
Words of love.
They spoke about me in ways I have never thought about myself.
And yet … I could feel that they meant every word.
There was a moment of resistance.
They don’t really mean that.
But it passed.
Because what I felt, more than anything, was this:
I felt seen.
And as the acknowledgements continued, I felt the weight of it.
The weight of their words.
By the end, I was blinking back at them through tears.
I also got to acknowledge each of them.
Beforehand, I had all the usual thinking.
Will I get it right?
But in the moment, none of that mattered.
I slowed down, looked each of them in the eye.
And spoke to the greatness I could see in them.
Sometimes with emotion.
Always with truth.
Something shifted in the room when the groups came back together.
You could feel it.
The energy changed.
The connection deepened.
The belief people had in themselves grew.
And with that … new possibilities started to open up.
Some of what people began to see for their lives over the next couple of days was extraordinary.
Things that had felt impossible … suddenly didn’t.
I’m not sure I’ve ever been in a room of people so committed to each other.
So supportive.
So full of love.
A room where what looked impossible … became possible.
It got me thinking.
What would happen if we led like this more often?
If instead of leading with judgment or criticism, we led with love?
What if we started to see and speak to the highest version of the people in front of us?
In our families.
What would shift?
What would become possible?
What would people start to believe about themselves?
How would they begin to show up?
What would be created that we can’t even see yet?
I don’t know exactly what will come from that room of 41 coaches.
Time will tell.
But I have a strong feeling that something shifted that weekend that won’t shift back.
And that the people who come into their orbit are going to feel that.
What if love like this really can change the world?
What if love wins …
But only always.
Much love