By Business & Finance 
Colin Farrell, Pendulum Summit. Photo: Conor McCabe Photography
Pendulum Summit continues with theme of Leadership across sports, business and entertainment
Boris Johnson, John Cleese, Colin Farrell and Baroness Karren Brady were some of the speakers at the two-day Pendulum Summit at the Convention Centre Dublin this week.
Pendulum Summit, created by former rugby player, Frankie Sheahan, in 2013, has hosted some of the biggest names in self-empowerment and leadership from around the world, including Tony Robbins and Richard Branson.
Gratitude and humility keep Colin Farrell grounded
Regardless of discipline – sports, business or entertainment – there was a recurring theme of the power of hard work, discipline, humility and gratitude across a range of industries, throughout almost all the speeches including final speaker of day one, Colin Farrell, in conversation with Miriam O’Callaghan. Telling the audience that ‘fame is just another thing that can be checked off the list of something that doesn’t make you happy’ he spoke at length about the gratitude that he feels every day and that keeps him going through the hard times.
It’s a man’s world…
Baroness Karren Brady. Photo: Conor McCabe Photography.
Baroness Karren Brady spoke on being a woman holding the door open for other women into the male-dominated arena of football, and former RAF fighter pilot Mandy Hickson also spoke of the challenges of breaking into such a traditionally male arena. Both stressed the importance of being part of a team and the commitment required to make vision a reality.
Boris Johnson and the Brexit backstop
Boris Johnson on the main stage at Pendulum Summit. Picture Conor McCabe Photography.
Former British foreign secretary Boris Johnson spoke about ‘Opportunity in Uncertainty’ and compared himself to the Mayor in Jaws who made a ‘good business decision’ to keep the beaches open, which ‘didn’t work out for him’ but for Johnson himself, his risky decisions – such as ignoring the advice of his Safety Council to encourage more cyclists in London – have worked out well for him because he is, and he believes all politicians should be, ‘robust’.
On Brexit, during a conversation with Bryan Dobson, Johnson said he believe ‘nobody wants a hard border. No one will accept it.’
Creativity and the unconscious
John Cleese at Pendulum Summit. Picture Conor McCabe Photography.
Final speaker of the two-day summit, John Cleese, spoke about the importance of play and quiet – creating space – for ideas and creativity to flourish, which he believes is being destroyed by technology and the incessant disruption into ordinary life – an idea which a number of the speakers reiterated.
Electronic media is by and large destroying normal life.
Referencing Einstein and Edison, Cleese expounded on the importance of allowing play to arrive at ideas that ‘may not be great’ but could lead to something great when critical thinking is added.
