November brings Movember, encouraging men to speak more openly about their health, including their mental wellbeing. Both remind us that our ability to perform depends, in part, on how well we look after ourselves.
By Luis da Silva, CEO of Healthbridge
I recall a mid-winter morning at 5 am, sitting in my lounge in the dark, still in my running kit. I had headed out, but about 500 metres down the road, something in my mind said: stop, turn back. So I did. I came home, sat down and listened to what I was feeling rather than forcing myself to carry on.
I thought about that moment as I prepared for the Kaapsehoop Marathon in early November. October was my peak training month, but also one of the busiest periods in my business calendar, with 2027 budgets, strategy, Board meetings, and our annual Company Day all demanding my attention. It would have been easy to see training as just one more commitment in an already crowded schedule. Yet running is often what helps me manage everything else.
I’ve completed 12 Comrades and 15 Two Oceans marathons, so turning back does not come naturally. But life has taught me that pushing through is not always the answer. Sometimes, we need to be kinder to ourselves, acknowledge how we feel, and trust that difficult periods will pass.
Endurance running has taught me that resilience is about knowing when to push, when to ease off and when to stop. That lesson has shaped how I lead, deal with setbacks, and think about mental health.
The value of stepping away
Being a CEO is an enormous privilege, but it comes with considerable pressure. You are accountable to the Board, must navigate uncertainty, and give your best to your team and other stakeholders. It can be a lonely role, so finding ways to manage the demands and sustain your ability to lead effectively, matters.
For me, running has become one of those ways.
During the week, I usually run alone. Sometimes I have a specific training goal; other times, an easy run gives my mind room to wander.
Weekend runs with my club are different. We spend hours talking, laughing, and sharing our lives. For that time, I am not a CEO, husband, father, son, or brother. I am simply a club mate. There is real value in being part of a group where the conversations move beyond work and where men can talk about things they might otherwise keep to themselves.
I no longer see running as an indulgence or another demand on my time. It replenishes my emotional capacity, and I return with greater patience, perspective, and energy, better able to meet the demands of leadership while remaining present for those dear to me.
Resilience is not simply about pushing through
During Comrades, when you have covered around 60km and still have 30km to go, the finish can feel impossibly far away. You break the distance into manageable pieces: the next landmark, water point, or step. A child’s high-five or encouragement from another runner can lift your spirits.
A difficult patch lasting 20 or 30 minutes can feel endless in a ten-hour race. You learn to focus on what is in front of you rather than becoming overwhelmed by the distance in front of you.
But there is danger in telling people simply to keep going. Runners have died in ultramarathons after pushing beyond what their bodies could safely manage. I’ve withdrawn from races days beforehand because I knew I was not healthy or fit enough. It was deeply disappointing, but it was the right decision.
A principle that captures this balance for me is total commitment, total surrender: commit fully to the goal but accept what is outside your control. Have the courage to change course when circumstances demand it.
Business requires the same discipline: ambitious goals, patience, and the determination to persevere when things get difficult. But sustained pressure, without adequate recovery, eventually takes its toll. Commitment should never mean ignoring warning signs.
Most of the journey should be enjoyable
Many people assume running is supposed to be painful. I think that puts many people off, and beginners who go too hard, too fast for too long understandably end up hating it.
But running should be enjoyable. Most of the time, you should run at a comfortable pace and finish feeling better and more refreshed than when you started. Even with challenging goals, I would say 90% of the time, running should feel easy, comfortable, and fun.
Life is similar. We cannot avoid difficult periods, and sometimes we need to struggle to discover what we are capable of. But struggle should not become our measure of success. The aim is to build a life in which difficult moments are manageable, and the journey remains worthwhile.
Recovery is part of performance
In business, we sometimes celebrate busyness; long hours and the perceived heroism of being constantly available. But busyness is not effectiveness.
Training for a long-distance race is about more than accumulating kilometres. Strength work, sleep, nutrition and recovery contribute to performance. Push too hard for too long, and the body eventually breaks down.
McKinsey’s Bob Sternfels and Daniel Pacthod observe that elite athletes and successful CEOs manage time and energy intentionally, making recovery a priority. Nicholas Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic and an ultrarunner, has spoken about setting “non-goals”: accepting that some worthwhile things cannot receive your attention because other priorities matter more.
For a CEO, recovery means deliberately creating moments when you are not the CEO, deciding what genuinely matters, making room for reflection and accepting that not every task deserves the same energy. Constant activity crowds out quiet thinking in which connections are made, and better decisions emerge.
It also means noticing when a colleague is struggling. If someone’s performance changes, don’t simply demand more. Have an honest, sensitive conversation and help them work out what they can change, while leaving them with ownership of their responsibilities.
Mental health is a leadership responsibility
Mental health still carries stigma. Whether someone feels safe enough to say, “I’m not okay”, depends on the culture leaders create and the signals we send, sometimes without realising it.
We need to build relationships grounded in genuine care, check in without prying, and listen properly. If people do not feel heard, even necessary feedback is unlikely to land well. Leaders must also recognise they don’t have all the answers. Vulnerability does not mean abandoning responsibility; it means recognising the human being carrying it.
At Healthbridge, much of what we do is focused on helping doctors manage the demands of their practices through technology, making their working lives more manageable and improving their work-life balance. We need to apply that same thinking to our own people, recognising that their mental wellbeing is just as important as the work we ask them to do.
I’ve never forgotten something Adrian Gore said at a Board meeting. He walked in, looking pensive, and told us: “I’ve just realised my biggest responsibility to our shareholders is to look after myself.”
It was a simple but powerful observation. Looking after ourselves is not separate from our responsibility to others. Instead, it makes that responsibility sustainable.
Knowing when to let go
One lesson I’m still learning is not to become too attached to the things that define us.
I watched my father, at 89, struggle with the possibility that a slipped disc might mean he would never move freely again. When something we rely on is suddenly taken away, it can feel as though we have lost part of ourselves.
I’ve decided that Comrades 2027 will be my last. Running has given me extraordinary experiences, friendships and confidence, but I don’t want to keep going simply because I cannot imagine letting it go. I’ll find other goals and ways to challenge myself.
On 7 November, I lined up at Kaapsehoop. Whatever the clock said, the journey mattered: the training, the setbacks, the early mornings and the moments when I had to adjust my expectations.
If you’re going through a difficult stretch of your own, remember what running has taught me. It will end; this will pass. Commit to what matters, but do not break yourself trying to prove you can endure everything.
And if it is not passing, say so. Let someone run beside you for a while.
