Do fish know what water is?

🐟 𝐃𝐨 𝐅𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈𝐬? Probably not.

They live in it, depend on it, and are shaped by it - but they don’t see it.

It’s invisible, because it’s 𝑎𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑡𝘩𝑒𝑟𝑒.

Only when the water changes, when it becomes murky, turbulent, or they find themselves briefly out of it, do they realise what they’ve been surrounded by all along.

As leaders, we’re often swimming in our own water. That water might be our culture, our beliefs, or our habits, the unspoken patterns that shape how we think, behave, and lead.

Because it’s constant, we stop noticing it.

We accept it as “just the way things are.”

But sometimes, that same water has become cloudy, full of old assumptions and unnoticed ripple effects.

And that’s when coaching becomes 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥.

Great 𝐂𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 helps you see the water you're in, creating space for awareness and helping leaders:

✅ Step back and see the culture and mindset they’re immersed in.

✅ Notice the ripple effects of their behaviours.

✅ Challenge assumptions that may be holding them back.

✅ Redefine what clear water could look like.

“What’s invisible to you controls you. What you can see, you can change.”

- T. Harv Eker

I use the 𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑣𝑒 from New Level Results with many of the leaders and businesses I coach, because it makes the 𝑖𝑛𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞.

It’s a simple, powerful, one-page framework that combines:

🪞 Awareness

⚙️ Action

📈 Accountability

Through the Curve, leaders:

✅ Clarify their current reality (What water are you swimming in?).

✅ Define their vision (What would clear water look like?).

✅ Identify Key Behaviours (KBIs) to change the flow.

✅ Track progress (watching the water become clearer with each reflection and conversation).

𝐅𝐢𝐬𝐡 don’t know what water is until they’re out of it.

𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 don’t see their culture or behaviour until they pause to reflect on it.

Coaching helps you see your water.

The Curve helps you change it.

What “water” might you be swimming in right now?

Thanks for reading.

Please share and comment below, and do let me know how I can help.