Jim Lawless

Biography

Jim Lawless is an author and expert on transformation, human change and strategy execution. His foundation is that adapting fast to deliver strategy is emotionally demanding and requires courage, clarity and discipline from both individuals and the leaders guiding them. All of these things are achievable with the right tools – tools he has applied to challenge himself and organisations around the world. His work addresses a fundamental gap that whilst organisations teach strategy and share it through decks and presentations, they rarely provide people with the process and mental map to navigate uncertainty, or the leadership environment to move confidently into it.

These ideas underpin Jim’s DARE Loop framework and his Second Strategy architecture, which help leaders and organisations shift from uncertain and unclear to ownership and action. The DARE Loop is the mental model for adopting a growth mindset, designing from the ultimate goal backward, and taking accountability for results in the face of self-doubt and ambiguity. The Second Strategy addresses what happens after a strategy is rolled out but nothing changes. It examines the relationships and systems that either enable or stall human courage, willingness to change, and action.

Testing these concepts to the extreme, Jim became the deepest freediver in British history, descending to 101 metres on a single breath, and going from novice to record-breaker in just eight months. The foundation of his work originally saw him go from never having ridden a horse to being a jockey in a televised race in twelve months. He undertook these challenges, with time constraints, conflicts and pressures, not as stunts, but as proof that the principles he shares deliver real, transformative results.

Jim has worked with over 300 international organisations including Apple, Microsoft, Diageo, Bayer, BAE Systems, Novartis and the Volkswagen Group, helping to steer boardroom, organisational and personal transformation. He has spoken to audiences of over a million people across five continents, whilst his bestselling Taming Tigers – Do the Things You Never Thought You Could explores these themes in detail. Jim also leads Symmetry, his own advisory working with every organisational level to create cohesive, accountable communities with shared identity, agreed standards, and the language to realise successful transformation. 

Jim explores how organisations can create the conditions for rapid, successful transformation, examining the gap between stated strategy and experience. He addresses the relationships that enable or stall human courage, capability and action, challenging leaders to reflect on how they lead. He explains that transformation is not typically a people problem but a systems problem, that change and uncertainty need to be normalised, and leaders should be equipped with fresh mental models and the confidence to own decisions and take action in the face of ambiguity.