Reflections on the Trials To Triumphs Series

Reflections on the Trials To Triumphs Series

Warwick Fairfax

April 26, 2024

As we reflect on the Trials to Triumphs Assessment and the related podcast series, we might wonder what the key takeaways are and how do we indeed go from Trials to Triumphs. Just to recap, the assessment was based on surveys of more than 11,000 people. Additionally our thinking has been influenced by the more than 120 interviews on our podcast with men and women who have not only bounced back from their crucible moments but have bounced forward to lead lives of significance, lives on purpose dedicated to serving others.

One of the important insights we have observed is that for most of us, our journeys from trials to triumphs are not easy, in fact they can be a bit bumpy. We might move forward and make some progress only to hit a speed bump or another crucible. We recover from that and move forward to at times face other challenges. The key is are we moving forward, are we learning lessons from each speed bump and crucible? Do we have the mindset that the crucibles and challenges happened for us, not to us. Perhaps we even see gifts in the crucibles, as many of our guests on the podcast have. Do we have a resilient mindset, choosing to move forward and not dwelling in the past?

Another insight we learned from the podcast series in particular is not only is the journey from trials to triumphs not easy, but we can actually hit more than one waypoint on our journey. For instance, it is quite possible to go from Stuck at the Starting Line (someone who has not processed their crucible, and is stuck; they are living in the past with anger and hurt) to being Afraid to Trip (someone who while they may have accepted and processed their crucible at one level, and has a vision for the future, but they feel cautious about moving forward; something is still holding them back). So a person can move forward from one waypoint, in this case Stuck at the Starting Line, but then find themselves with challenges at another waypoint, Afraid to Trip.

As we discussed each of the six profiles on our podcast series, I shared my personal reflections for the profiles that I had experienced. Remarkably, I found myself having gone through each of the six profiles. I moved forward, I tried to learn the lessons of my crucible and the lessons of the challenges along the way. The path forward was not easy, and it was painful at times. But I kept moving forward, and tried my best to not wallow in bitterness and anger, forgiving myself and others as necessary.

It was eye opening for me, charting my path and my growth over the years, since in my case I spent time at each of the waypoints that the profiles of the assessment identify. To be clear, you don’t have to go through each profile as I have done to go from trials to triumphs. But you may go through more than one waypoint, more than one profile and the road may get bumpy at times. You may have times of rapid forward movement and times where you feel like you are hardly moving forward at all.

So long as you have your eyes looking ahead, and you are finding ways to not let the past hold you back – which might mean there are seasons of some processing and reflecting on the past in order to move forward – then you will find a way to move forward. You will find a way to triumph, which we believe is living a life of significance, a life on purpose dedicated to serving others.

To let you know my journey, I will share with you the waypoints, the profiles, I experienced in my journey to Hitting my Stride, to leading a life of significance.

– I started out On a Different Track. I grew up in my family’s 150-year-old family media business in Australia. My life was one of duty and obligation. I was living someone else’s vision, the vision of my great-great grandfather, John Fairfax. I was not on my own track with my own vision. I was living someone else’s life.

– Then I went to On a Mad Dash. I launched my $2.25B takeover in 1987 to change management and bring the vision for the company back to the ideals of the founder. In the months leading up to the announcement of the takeover and the years until the company had to file for bankruptcy in 1990 because of all the debt we had and the deep recession in Australia, I was certainly in a Mad Dash. There were numerous refinancings and lots of activities to try to keep the company afloat.

– From there I was Stuck at the Starting Line. After my takeover bid ultimately failed in 1990, I was certainly not moving forward. My whole life I had prepared myself to fulfill my duty to go into the family business. Now that life was over. What was I going to do now? I had quite a few years of feeling stuck, reflecting on the pain I had caused others, family members and employees of the company, and the pain I was feeling.

– Then I had a Running in Place time in my life. We moved to the U.S. and I got a job in the late 1990s for a few years in an aviation-services business in Maryland, where we now live. While I did fine, I felt that I was not using all of my skills and abilities. I was surviving and not thriving.

– I had an Afraid to Trip period, too. In 2008 I gave a talk in my church about what I had been through in the family business and the failed takeover. I spoke about the lessons I had learned from this. Somehow the people in the congregation seemed to be able to relate to my story. So the idea was birthed within me to write a book about my journey, Crucible Leadership, and about what I had learned about bouncing back from crucibles. But progress was slow. It took me years to write the book and years to get it published. It was painful to write about what I had been through. There was progress, but at times it felt glacial.

– Finally, I feel like I am now in a period of Hitting My Stride. As mentioned I have my book Crucible Leadership, I have a podcast Beyond The Crucible; along with speaking and writing. I am focused on leading a life of significance, a life on purpose, dedicated to serving others.

The key point is that I kept moving forward. I tried to learn the lessons of my crucible and not wallow in bitterness and anger. I tried to live a life on my terms in line with my gifting, abilities and passions, not those of my ancestors in the family business. I tried to live a life in line with my beliefs and values. I kept thinking and praying about what is the next right step. For instance, in 2003 I felt like I was not using all the gifts and abilities that from my perspective God had given me. So I went to an executive coach who did mid-career assessments, who said I had a good profile to be an executive coach myself. And so I pursued coaching.

The important point is that when I felt led to take a step I did. I kept moving forward. When I started writing my book, it was slow because it was so painful to reflect on my past experiences and hard won lessons. But I kept moving forward, writing one chapter at a time. Challenges would come up. I felt the best shot I had of getting my book published was to pursue Australian book publishers. While they were intrigued, for a variety of reasons they said no. But I kept moving forward. One publisher suggested that I needed to have a brand, so that there would be a community that would be interested in my book. So I focused on building my brand, which ultimately led to our podcast, writing and speaking.

Moving from Trials to Triumphs is usually not easy, and almost inevitably there will be challenges and perhaps more crucibles along the way. You have to have resilience. You have to process and understand the lessons of your crucibles. You have to forgive yourself and others. You have to learn and grow and live your life, not someone else’s. You have to pursue a vision that you are indeed off-the-charts passionate about — a vision that is about others, a vision of purpose that leads to a life of significance.

That is the way forward. The journey is not always easy, but it is a journey of hope and service to others.