{"id":35221,"date":"2026-06-12T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/?post_type=article&p=35221"},"modified":"2026-07-16T13:39:33","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T12:39:33","slug":"the-best-teams-dont-choose-between-outcomes-and-growth-they-create-systems-where-growth-drives-outcomes","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-best-teams-dont-choose-between-outcomes-and-growth-they-create-systems-where-growth-drives-outcomes\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The Best Teams Don\u2019t Choose Between Outcomes and Growth \u2013 they Create Systems Where Growth Drives Outcomes\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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\n 12 Jun 2026 <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>Articles<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

\u2018The Best Teams Don\u2019t Choose Between Outcomes and Growth \u2013 they Create Systems Where Growth Drives Outcomes\u2019<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n \n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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As performance specialist Darren Shand explained, teams and leaders must learn when to lean into both outcomes and growth.<\/p>\n \n \n \n

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By John Portch<\/h6>\n
\u201cAre we trying to win the next match or are we trying to build an environment that keeps winning for the next decade?\u201d<\/h6>\n

Performance specialist Darren Shand, the former General Manager of the New Zealand All Blacks, posed this question at a recent Leaders Virtual Roundtable.<\/p>\n

He continued: \u201cI know if you hold a leadership role, it\u2019s probably a conflict that you fight pretty regularly as you go through a season or a campaign because they can sometimes pull against each other, these two competing priorities, and depending on the type of leaders you have within your organisation, it can create a tension.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Leaders Performance Institute members in attendance were invited to think about where they sit on the spectrum between performance outcomes and performance growth.<\/p>\n

Teams, as Shand explained, tend to oscillate along the spectrum. \u201cTraditionally, early season tends to be growth-focused and, as we get further into campaigns, outcomes tend to take over.\u201d<\/p>\n

This presents a series of risks. \u201cIf there\u2019s too much focus on outcomes alone it often creates fear, short-term thinking, and sometimes even stagnation caused by that fear. But if you\u2019ve got too much focus on growth only, you start to dilute standards.\u201d<\/p>\n

He is in no doubt that \u201cchampionship environments require both\u201d and, over the course of 30 minutes, delivered a presentation to provide the members in the virtual room with practical ideas to strengthen their approaches to building sustainable, high-performing teams.<\/p>\n

Aspire or inspire? Prove or improve?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Shand illustrated what he sees as the distinction between outcomes and growth.<\/p>\n

\u2018Outcomes\u2019 is what one aspires to win or achieve, while \u2018growth\u2019 is based on the desire to improve and develop (or \u201cinspiration\u201d, as he put it).<\/p>\n

Both are essential. \u201cThe best environments don\u2019t choose one \u2013 they learn when to lean into each,\u201d said Shand. \u201cThey ask what\u2019s the appropriate time and moment in a campaign, a season or an event.\u201d<\/p>\n

He posed two questions: \u201cWhich philosophy dominates your environment when the pressure increases? As expectation, scrutiny and pressure rises, where do you go?\u201d<\/p>\n

Teams under pressure tend to focus more on outcomes and, as such, they risk falling into what Shand called the \u201coutcome trap\u201d i.e. the negative consequences that come with an excessive focus on outcomes.<\/strong><\/p>\n

It usually starts when success is defined by results, trophies and external expectations. He noted a series of signs of which to be cognisant:<\/p>\n