Introducing … Sam Greenwood

Where are you now?

I’m working from home in Maidenhead, Berkshire in the UK.

Tell us a little about your career to date:

I have been office-based for much of my working life, which included being a brand manager, and a director of marketing but also spent time working in the field early on in my career.

I started my career initially as a research scientist for GlaxoSmithKline. I was lucky enough to secure a clinical lab role, which took me to the US, but finding the work solitary, I moved back home to the UK and into pharma market research.

At the time my wife began working in medical sales, initially as a stop-gap, and I soon realised that moving into the commercial side of the industry was where I wanted to be. I was fortunate to move quickly up through the ranks and eventually into a global marketing position with one of the biggest pharma companies.

You decided to take a career break, why was that?

Up until the pandemic, my career had always been about me. During the lockdowns I had a lightbulb moment where I thought about what I was doing with my life. I remember watching a documentary and seeing nurses and teachers at breaking point, which made me reflect on what I wanted to achieve with my career.

Up until that point I had just been ‘head down’ focused on moving up the career ladder and I realised I wanted to find a deeper passion and look back on a career that I could be proud of. I couldn’t shake that thought, so I eventually resigned and took a year off.

How did you spend your time?

I spent a full year as a stay-at-home dad. It gave me the time to reflect on my strengths and what I really enjoy. I realised how much I love spending time with my daughter who was two years-old at the time and how I’d missed out on many experiences early on due to my roles. I learnt more about myself in that year than through any course or training I had been on during my entire career.

The time off also allowed me to reflect on what I’d enjoyed during my career and that going into training, personal development and leadership consultancy are where strengths, passions and purpose align really well.

How did you hear about OTD?

I met Chris during my time in pharma and have been through training programmes with him. I reached out to him and told him that I love what OTD is about and asked whether he would consider bringing me on board? Chris was a big part of it for me, he has such enthusiasm and passion for what he does.

How has parenthood prepared you for the work you’re doing now?

Being a parent has been one of the biggest lessons I’ve had in my life. Much of it is about having a growth and resilient mindset, tackling challenging situations and thinking creatively in how to solve them.

The more I’ve moved into leadership consultancy, the more I realise the overlap between parenting and leadership. Essentially it’s the same role with the same skill sets in terms of awareness of self and others, and being authentic. Parents are the original leaders and very often great parents are great leaders.

Tell us more about your leadership consultancy work?

Over the last six months I’ve been accredited specifically on a leadership framework and tool, with access to a system and programme to take leaders through. It’s about building bespoke programmes that tackle specific areas of leadership, but also having a framework to hinge them on – much like OTD.

Specifically it’s focused on resilient leadership and being the best leader you can be in times of uncertainty. My commercial experience showed me that some leaders are amazing when times are good but you see a leader’s true colours in difficult times. I want to help leaders to understand what they’re good at, what they’re not and how they can build during the good times to help them during times of uncertainty.

What country would you like to visit next?:

I would love to get a chance to go back to Japan. I went there a long time ago and it’s the most incredible culture and society and is the one place I’d always love to go back to! The only caveat is that travelling has really affected my conscience since the birth of my daughter. I have to decide whether I can justify the journey in terms of the environmental impact it will have.

Tell us a meal from your country that we should try:

I can’t cook! Unlike me, my wife can look inside a cupboard and create an incredible meal from whatever ingredients she can find. Instead, I’d make you a coffee. It’s my passion and I have two qualifications from the Speciality Coffee Association. It will be the best coffee you’ve ever had!

Who or what inspires you?

My wife is a huge inspiration for me. She believes that if she wants to do or achieve something, she can. Without her I may never have enjoyed the experiences or opportunities that I have had in my life.

It’s a cliché, but my daughter is my greatest teacher. As we get older, it’s easier to be less curious about life but children are always curious. They have no concept of time, they live in the moment, which encourages me to enjoy the great life I have now.

The world would be a better place if …

We made the effort to intentionally try to build a greater sense of self.

Our external shell and behaviours are what we convey and ultimately what motivates our behaviour is driven by whether we’re feeling threatened or comfortable and confident. The more work I do in the space, the more I am convinced that a poor awareness and sense of self is responsible for much of the world’s pain.

We often judge ourselves by our intentions but others by their actions. If people reflected more on their sense of self and apply that to other people, it would have a big impact on how that external shell and  behaviour is communicated to the world!