David Wilkinson Coach

It’s ALWAYS special, and this year was no different.

2026 Make Or Break event was absolutely brilliant. 10 people started this 2 day personal development course as individuals…They finished it as a team.

The bonds, experience and stories this group share, will be there forever! That’s actually words from the participants.

For me, this course is special. I always look forward to it every year, love being part of the team that delivers this and everyone else involved.

But seeing the breakthroughs that people have throughout it and at the end is very rewarding.

Thank you to each and every participant, you were amazing and as I say, you make me grow as a coach and a person. We now share this experience as part of all of our journey 💙🙏

What an amazing 4 Days in Guernsey.

An opportunity came up after a year of discussions to do some work with Guernesy FC 1st team and their High Performance Football Acadamy.

Applying what I do as a mental performance coach to coaches and the players, was honestly, a dream come true for me.

This experience was one of the best I’ve ever had professionally, made all the more special by all the amazing staff, coaches and players I met who made me feel incredibly welcome. I cannot thank them enough.

The real gift was spending the time learning and listening to the players, getting familiar with the club and counties culture. It’s not about me telling or fixing, none of them need that. It’s through the power of trusted connections and conversations with each other, where insights, awareness and learning comes from and where appropriate, I added something in to that mix.

Yesterday I spoke about Performance Under Pressure!

I was asked by to speak at Queensway Dental Laboratory conference, the focus was on performing under pressure. The dental lab designs, creates, and delivers dentures for everything from cosmetic to life-changing prosthetics.

The aim of the talk was to explore how we can handle stress, pressure, worry, and expectations in an environment where the highest standards and quality demands are expected.

It was a pleasure to talk in front of such a welcoming and engaging audience.

High performance can be linked to many businesses and working environments. Reach out if you’d like a bespoke talk that could fit your business and team.

Do you have capable people but…

Are they second-guessing themselves?

They’re staying quiet in team meetings?

Playing it safe instead of taking creative risks?

It’s easy to label that as a capability issue, but more often than not, it’s a “trust” issue.

Developing layers of trust within a clients business and team was the topic of conversation in their sessions yesterday. He understands the value of this…

And something really profound stood out around the depth of this.

Trust isn’t just, “Do they trust me as a leader?” Or “Do I trust them?”.

It works in layers.

Firstly, do I trust them?

✅ Have I built trust and confidence in them?
✅ Do I create room for mistakes?
✅ Am I clear on whom I’ve hired and why?
✅ Do I know how to help them reach their potential?

Next, do they trust me?

✅ Do they believe it’s safe to experiment, to get it wrong, to grow?
✅ Do my actions align to what I say?
✅ Do they believe I have their back?

Finally, do they trust themselves?

✅ Do they back their judgment enough to speak? Challenge? Contribute?
✅ Do we support their personal growth beyond industry CPD?

When self-trust is low, people stay quiet. When relational trust is low, people protect themselves. And when that happens, collaboration drops, and performance dips.

So if your team isn’t stepping up,

It’s not a case of telling them to be more confident or more proactive.

It’s asking whether the environment we’ve created allows and enables them to trust themselves and for us to trust each other.

When I first started working with Onyx Health and previous Managing Director, Trevor Pill, the work wasn’t about “performance” in the way people often think.

It was about helping a growing team understand each other better. How they communicate, how they show up, how they lead and how they get the best out of one another under pressure.

We worked across the business, both in group sessions and in one-to-one sessions. The focus was on increasing awareness, shifting perspective, developing confidence and fostering better conversations.

The business was going through a period of transition, and with that came the usual challenges of uncertainty, bigger decisions, and the weight that sits with leaders when people are looking to them for direction.

Through the process, confidence grew. Direction became clearer. Leadership became less about having all the answers and more about leading in a way that felt authentic and sustainable.

Trevor later shared that the work helped him see what he’s capable of as a leader, define his leadership style, and become more self-aware, benefiting both the business and himself. When leaders look after themselves, everyone benefits.

Drop me a message to find out more about how my group coaching sessions for teams could benefit your business!

Business Leadership and Date Nights!

Last night Helenlee and I went to the book launch for Sustainable Brand Leadership, written brilliantly by .mosaic I’m looking forward to reading it.

But you also get your child free nights where you can 🤣 so myself and enjoyed a cheeky date night with some food before hand.

Having a business taught me a lot, but working on my inner game changed everything.

Although my job (which I love by the way) is to help others with their performance, that doesn’t mean I don’t need a coach of my own.

Running a business comes with a lot of pressure, stress and uncertainty (to name a few) but it’s doesn’t have to break you, your relationships, health or mental wellbeing in the process.

Being everyone’s person to go to comes at a cost.

Pressure. Stress. Uncertainty.

If you are interested in knowing more, Drop me a message to find out about how my mental performance coaching can support business founders and CEOs.

High performance isn’t about working harder. It’s about thinking clearly.

It’s rarely the market, the competition, or the external pressure that derails performance. It’s your own doubt, distractions, and emotions. Founders and leaders often get caught up in what competitors are doing, the noise of the team, self-doubts or past mistakes that haven’t been fully processed.

When that happens…
🧠 Worry takes over.
🧠 Overthinking increases.
🧠 Focus narrows in the wrong direction.
🧠 Performance drops.

This isn’t because you’re not capable, but because your internal mind is overloaded. For high performers, the ability to manage what’s happening inside your head is a competitive advantage. Every leader feels pressure and carries expectations and when those emotions are pushed down or ignored, they don’t disappear.

They show up at the worst possible time: in key decisions, board meetings, negotiations, or moments where clarity is essential.

My performance coaching gives leaders a confidential space outside the noise of business to:

• Handle pressure with greater emotional control
• Rebuild confidence after setbacks
• Improve focus and mental clarity
• Reduce overthinking and decision fatigue
• Perform with consistency (even under high stress)

If you’re a founder or leader who wants to strengthen your mental performance, drop me a message to find out more about my mental performance coaching 🙌