Leading in the wellbeing era: grow forests, not factories

Opinion Piece: Kevin Yates, CEO Snap Fitness EMEA

I want to take you on a journey through three moments that changed how I lead and how I see the future of work. None of this is theory. These are real experiences; hard-won truths from decades spent building businesses, leading teams, and learning from the moments I got it wrong. 

Because here’s the truth: for too long, leadership has been built on control, hierarchy and fear. It’s a system that might deliver short-term performance but causes long-term damage, to people, to culture, and to business. Thankfully, that era is ending. We’re stepping into something new: what I call the Wellbeing Era, an exciting time when leadership is defined not by control, but by care; not by titles, but by trust; not by perks, but by purpose. Wellbeing is no longer an HR initiative. It’s a leadership responsibility. And how we lead now will define not only the health of our people, but the health of our businesses for decades to come. 

These are the lessons that shaped that belief. and the three actions I think every leader can take to build teams that don’t just perform but thrive. 

The corridor: the day I saw leadership go wrong

One of my earliest lessons in leadership came not from a boardroom, but from a corridor. In my twenties, I landed a promising role at a large leisure company. It was my third job in fitness – I was proud, ambitious, smartly dressed in a suit and tie, ready to make an impression. When I arrived at HQ, I asked the receptionist where the toilets were. She pointed to a corridor – then stopped me. “Sorry,” she said, “that one’s for executives only. Staff facilities are on the other side of the building. This corridor is for senior leadership.” A corridor. Reserved. For executives. 

That one sentence told me everything I needed to know about that company’s culture. It wasn’t about toilets. It was about territory. About power, separation, and hierarchy. 

The longer I stayed, the clearer it became. Access-controlled lifts. Executive kitchens. Closed-door meetings about people who weren’t in the room. Feedback only travelled one way; down. No one felt safe to challenge or question. No one was thriving. They were surviving. That business doesn’t exist anymore. Its own rigidity destroyed it. It was too controlled to adapt, too hierarchical to listen. 

That corridor however, became my compass. From that day, I made a promise to myself: I will never lead through fear or superiority. I will build organisations where trust matters more than titles, where challenge is a compliment, and where everyone, from intern to executive – feels they belong. Because leadership isn’t about what corridor you walk down. It’s about how you make others feel when they walk through the door. 

Trust outperforms control

Control can deliver consistency, but it rarely delivers brilliance. 

Too many businesses still smother initiative with layers of sign-off and permission. They say they want creativity, then crush it under process. They ask for ownership, then take it away. But trust? Trust is a force multiplier. It doesn’t make things softer; it makes them stronger. It turns accountability from something enforced into something embraced. 

I once gave full responsibility for a major product launch to a junior team member. On paper, they weren’t the obvious choice. But they had hunger, curiosity, and integrity. I cleared roadblocks, gave them autonomy, and backed them publicly. They didn’t just succeed, they grew. That’s what trust does. It gives people space to stretch, to fail safely, to become the best version of themselves. And yes, sometimes trust is misplaced. But control fails too, it guarantees sameness in a world that rewards originality. 

If you want to lead in the wellbeing era, start here: 

• Stop managing people. Start trusting them. 
• Stop assuming the worst. Start believing in the best. 
• Stop chasing control. Start creating conditions. Because trust builds what fear never can – commitment. And committed people don’t just do their jobs. They transform your business. 

A lesson from nature – the redwoods: how to grow strength that lasts

A few years ago, I stood in Muir Woods, surrounded by ancient redwood trees; quiet giants that have stood for over a thousand years. They don’t shout for attention. They simply grow, because the conditions are right: light, water, time, and the right soil. 

That forest changed how I think about leadership. Because redwoods don’t grow alone. Their roots are shallow but wide, stretching out and intertwining with their neighbours. They literally hold each other up. That’s what real culture looks like. Not a set of slogans or posters, but an ecosystem; a living network of trust, care, and shared responsibility. 

In the strongest teams I’ve built, people didn’t just show up for the job; they showed up for each other. When one person struggled, the network held. When one succeeded, everyone felt it. You can’t build that with slogans. You build it by design. 

• Soil: clear values, lived daily — not laminated. 
• Light: meaningful purpose that connects people to why their work matters. 
• Water: feedback, coaching, and care, not once a year but every week. 
• Space: autonomy and psychological safety — so people can think, challenge, and grow. 

When those conditions exist, people don’t need permission to contribute. Culture becomes weather, felt everywhere, sustained by everyone. The redwoods taught me that leadership isn’t about being the tallest tree. It’s about building the forest that holds everyone up. 

The myth of the “work family”

We’re like a family here.” It’s something you hear in so many workplaces, and yet, when people struggle, they’re often managed out rather than supported. No one joins a company wanting to fail. When someone falls behind, they don’t need a performance plan; they need a hand. That’s what leadership in the wellbeing era looks like: showing up for people when they’re at their lowest, not just when they’re performing. Care isn’t weakness. It’s strength. Because when people know they’re supported through failure, they bring more courage to the work that follows. 

The best businesses I’ve led weren’t built on perfection. They were built on permission – to be human, to recover, to learn. 

Wellbeing is the most undervalued growth strategy

Let’s be clear: wellbeing isn’t a perk. It’s a performance strategy. 

If your people are tired, burnt out, or financially stressed, even the best business plan will stall. But when your people are well – physically, mentally and emotionally, everything changes. They show up fully. They solve better. They stay longer. They build more. And yet, in too many companies, wellbeing is still treated as a “nice-to-have”. Something that gets cut when budgets tighten. But wellbeing isn’t soft, it’s structural. It’s energy, focus, safety, and purpose. 

That’s what defines the wellbeing era. It’s not beanbags or slogans. It’s leadership that understands people aren’t resources to be managed, but human beings to be trusted, supported and grown. 

Three actions to start tomorrow

• Make safety visible – Don’t just say people can speak up; show them. Share your mistakes. Reward questions. Celebrate healthy challenge. 
• Design your culture like a garden – Create rhythms, not rules. Weekly check-ins, open conversations, small rituals of recognition. Build the conditions, then trust the process. 
• Be the leader you once needed – Think back to your hardest day. Who showed up for you? Be that person – for someone else. 

Grow forests, not factories

The future doesn’t belong to those who control the most. It belongs to those who cultivate the best in others. 

That’s my vision for the future – the next era of leadership, to have less noise, more trust. Less fear, more connection. 

Because the real measure of leadership in this wellbeing era isn’t how tall we stand. It’s how strong we grow – together.