Habits are easier to start alone, but they only flourish in community. On your own, a habit is a choice. Together, habits become culture.

Culture is not crafted in glossy boardroom strategies or laminated value statements. It is forged in the unseen, those moments when no one is watching. It shows up in how mistakes are handled, how credit is shared, and how people behave when the pressure is off and the spotlight isn’t on them.

he All Blacks are the most successful team in sport, with a win rate of around 75% over more than a century. Their success cannot be explained by talent alone. It rests on a culture that makes performance habitual.

When I set out to write my book Reimagining Luxury, published in early 2024, I wanted to draw lessons not only from boardrooms and brands but from environments where performance under pressure is everything. That is why I interviewed Dan Carter, widely regarded as the greatest fly-half in rugby history and a central figure in the legendary New Zealand All Blacks.

An orchestra is one of the most powerful symbols of what it means to perform at a high level. Dozens, sometimes hundreds, of musicians, each a master of their craft, come together not to showcase individual brilliance but to serve a collective sound.