Jamil Qureshi, Speaker, Entrepreneur, Author, Business Owner
Jamil Qureshi is one of today's foremost practitioners of performance-enhancing psychology and is an expert in high-performing teams. Jamil has enjoyed working with a rich diversity of the world's most talented business and sports people and teams, helping six individuals get to World Number 1.
In 2006, captain Ian Woosnam appointed him as the first-ever official psychologist to work with the European Ryder Cup team. They made history by winning by a record-equalling margin. Jamil has worked with 22 golfers inside the top 50 in the world, including Lee Westwood, Paul McGinley, Graeme McDowell, Darren Clarke, Paul Casey, Thomas Bjorn, Sergio Garcia and two world number one's.
Ranked among the most influential figures in British sport in 2009, Jamil was voted in the top 100 most powerful men in golf in 2008 by his international peers. In addition, he has worked successfully with three English Premiership football clubs, one of which reached a record position from its halfway point in the season.
“Passion and purpose are both significant multipliers of human potential.”
Jamil Qureshi
Jamil Qureshi, LinkedIn, Twitter, Jamil Qureshi and The Growing Coaches
Two F1 drivers and the 2009 England Ashes-winning cricketers. In business and industry, Jamil has worked from CEO and board level to middle management in various sectors... He has worked with business leaders and companies in over 24 countries, helping teams fulfil their potential by orchestrating change and performance programmes.
He has developed and delivered management and leadership programmes at the board level for Coca-Cola, Hewlett Packard, Emirates Airlines, Serco, Marks and Spencer, and Royal Bank of Scotland. In addition, he has worked across Lloyds Banking Group on their 'Journey to World Class'.
He has led teams responsible for change management in several high-profile areas, such as Lloyds Banking Group's substantial integration strategy and with The Post Office to create The Post Office Way as they separated from Royal Mail.
Jamil is also a world-recognised speaker on all aspects of the psychology of performance, psychology of leadership, leadership attitudes, improving people, cultural change techniques, and team performance. Interestingly.
He is one of only a few external psychologists ever to be allowed to study astronauts in the 2008 NASA Space Programme.
Jamil has talked to an audience that included two former US presidents at the K Club in Ireland!
Jamil's versatility is illustrated by the fact he has talked at NASDAQ in Times Square, where he shared a stage with General Peter Pace, Head of Joint Chief of Staff, the highest-ranking military officer in the US armed forces. And the next day did stand up in front of a celebrity audience at the Groucho Club!
What is your favourite social media platform, and why?
LinkedIn is my favourite social media platform. I don't know why, but I think it's the awkwardness of the way in which it sits between business conversation and irelevant rambling. I scrolled through today to find an interesting article on media ownership, then saw a poll on whether the lined paper is better than plain... brilliant!
Tell us about you and your current role or area of interest.
At the moment, I am enjoying doing lots of talks for business teams about the psychology of success. Some virtual and some in-person, but all of them are about how we can think differently to do differently.
What do you like about your career or area of focus?
Variety. I'm abroad twice a week again, which is great. I love a variety of places and people. I could be doing a workshop for board members of a bank or working the next day working with one of the best sportspeople on the planet.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
Life is about timing. One thing I've learnt is that the best things are never rushed or sought. Instead, they reveal themselves to you. So, chase your passion more than your pension, and opportunities arise.
What inspires you, motivates you, or helps you to move forward?
Making a contribution. I love to find out what people do and help them to do it better. Being a coach or speaker is being able to change the way someone thinks, feels or acts. It can open the door to discovery for people. It's not about giving people new skills but rather new perspectives.
What are you proud of in your life so far?
I didn't make bread during the lockdown and have never voted Tory.
What is your preferred way to meet new people/network?
Face-to-face chance encounters are best. Randomness and serendipities are where we find most opportunities. I believe success is about making the connection between two things previously unconnected. This applies to ideas coming together but also to people connecting with those they usually wouldn't. With a good argument, debate, and sharing of wisdom and knowledge, both parties can create something bigger and better than what they would on their own.
What skills or qualities do you feel have helped you?
Openmindedness has probably helped. Life, success, and career are all a game of continual adjustment. The ability to reinvent, repurpose and reimagine is critical.
What do you wish you had known when you started out?
How much the world rewards you for being you. Being successful in a role is not about seeking to impress. It's about seeking to express. Being ourselves in the context of our work.
Who do you most admire in business, academic or creative circles and why?
Johnny Marr for his creative abilities. Again, all about self-expression and reinvention. In business and academia, I am always impressed by someone who focuses on what they can be rather than what they can have. Anyone who talks about sustainable success by making a difference to others is admirable.
Outside of your professional/work area, what hobbies or interests do you have or what other areas of your life are of real importance to you?
I collect Gretsch guitars and love music. I am a big fan of The Smiths (the best band ever), so I enjoy playing their tunes (all a bit too tricky, but I have fun anyway). I like reading books which are outside of my technical knowledge. Something completely different to anything I know is best. I have three young children, who are a constant source of enjoyment and learning. I am now adept at pulling pants from little trousers that have been flung on the floor inside out.
Has the pandemic had a positive or a negative effect on you and/or your business, and how have you managed it?
Very positive. I used to do only in-person events, which limited how many I could do. I can now mix virtual and in-person, meaning I can now do five talks in a day. I am currently averaging 12 talks a week, which was unheard of before.
Do you have a mentor, or have you ever mentored anyone?
No. I've coached people, which I feel is different. I think new opportunities come from new perspectives, so I'm more in the provocation and prodding place.
What advice would you have for someone looking to get into the same area of work or interests?
Get doing it. You can't learn to swim by reading a book. Just get coaching and get doing talks. You'll learn as you go. Feedback is the breakfast of champions. Coco pops are good too.
What do you feel is the most common reason for people failing or giving up?
Not being purposeful. The purpose is never achieved; it's attained on a daily basis. Targets, goals, and aims will make you successful. The purpose is different. It's the reason you get up in the morning. Passion and purpose are both significant multipliers of human potential.
Is there a phrase, quote or a saying that you really like?
"You can't trust the future to anyone who champions the past."
What companies, brands, or institutions do you like or do you think are getting it right?
I think reputations haven't been made in the last two years. I think reputations have been revealed. We see it in brands, organisations, and leaders. We see it with governments. I think Toms Shoes is a great business and was the pioneer of the 'buy one, give one' philosophy.
How do you define success, and what lessons have you learned so far that you could share with our audience/readership?
I think success is all about the continued accomplishment of goals which are personal to the individual. People make the mistake of looking at success as a comparison to others. I've learned
Help enough people get what they want, and you'll get what you want.
Attitude is more important than facts.
Blame looks backwards, and responsibility looks forwards.