Leading Under Pressure: 5 Lessons from Sarah Furness
Former RAF Squadron Leader Sarah Furness spent 21 years leading missions where the margin for error was minimal. In a live Raise the Bar session with over 500 professionals, she shared what it really takes to lead when the pressure is on. These are the lessons that landed hardest.
Practice scared
Sarah’s personal mantra is two words, and it was the message that stayed with the room longest. Push yourself just outside your comfort zone every day. Not to the point of being overwhelmed, just enough to be uncomfortable.
Treat every experience as practice. Not as an excuse to give less than 100%, but as a way to take the learning from it. That is how leadership under pressure is built to last.
“Practice makes permanent, not perfect. The more you practise it, the more instilled it becomes, and that means you can fall back on it when you’re under pressure.”
Make a considered call
Under pressure, the brain moves into fight or flight mode. The aim is a considered decision made with the information available, followed by honest reflection. Every decision adds to the library your gut instinct draws on next time.
“Perfect doesn’t exist. A decision is better than no decision, and that decision might be to do nothing.”
High performing cultures learn loudly
Where mistakes could cost lives, sharing them openly was a moral obligation. The teams that improve fastest examine what happened and share the learning widely. A strong debrief culture is one of the most direct investments a leader can make in performance.
“We have a moral duty to share our mistakes. How can you afford not to debrief?”
Tactical patience
In the Joint Personnel Recovery cell, launching rescue missions, Sarah learned to sit with ambiguity and wait for information to be corroborated while the room pushed for action. Knowing when to hold is a learnable skill and a clear mark of leadership maturity.
“Just because it’s uncomfortable doesn’t mean you’re doing the wrong thing.”
Build a well rounded team
Moving from technical expert to leader starts with being clear about your strengths and where they end. Then build the team around the gaps. The best leaders Sarah has worked with know exactly who they need alongside them.
“You don’t need to be a well rounded leader. You need a well rounded team.”
