We all need a place we can return to – a feeling of safety. For me, it’s the apple orchard I grew up on, and where I live now. The taste of the fruit, the sight of the trees, smell of the blossom, the sound of kookaburras and tractors. That’s my ‘home base’.
In New Zealand, they’ve got pineapple lumps. (Don’t knock it till you’ve tried them – delicious pineapple nougat dipped in milk chocolate.) Pineapple lumps take Kiwis straight back home, metaphorically if not literally.
These things might seem simple, even silly. But they carry emotional weight… And neurological power. Because when we feel connected, when we feel safe, we perform better. Not just emotionally – biologically.
Research shows that when people feel excluded, the brain reacts as if it’s in physical pain. Our clever prefrontal cortex (responsible for problem-solving, empathy, regulation) starts to shut down. We get defensive. We lose access to our best thinking. All because we don’t feel safe.
That’s why connection isn’t a soft skill. It’s a strategic leadership move.
Great leaders help others find their version of safety in the chaos. They create familiarity in the foreign. Calm in the pressure. A human anchor in a jungle of uncertainty.
So here’s my question to you: What’s your version of apples or pineapple lumps? What gives you a sense of connection and safety, and takes you ‘home’?
And more importantly – how are you helping your team find their apple?
Go Fearlessly
Corrinne
PS These images are from a recent Fearless Leadership keynote, where the audience enjoys an Armour’s Apple as they contemplate their home base.
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