Finishing Strong: Olympian Derek Redmond on mental resilience, leadership and the power of never giving up

As one of the most recognisable Olympian speakers, Derek has transitioned from record-breaking sprinter to respected mental resilience speaker, leadership consultant and corporate trainer. Drawing on his journey through injury, adversity and elite competition, he empowers organisations and individuals alike with insights into high performance, mindset and overcoming setbacks.

In this exclusive interview with The Champions Speakers Agency, Derek reflects on the psychological foundations of resilience, the key elements of high-performing teams, and why today’s leaders must treat mental wellbeing as a strategic priority.

Q: In your view, what are the most crucial psychological traits individuals need to cultivate genuine mental resilience—especially in high-pressure environments?

Derek Redmond: “Wow, great question. So, key traits to building mental resilience—for me, the first one is self-belief. You really do need to believe, whatever it is that you're trying to achieve, that you can do it, because there are going to be times when you're challenged. And sometimes the only thing you've got to fall back on is that belief that you can achieve it.

“I think having good people around you is really important—talking things through with people, having people understand what it is that you're trying to achieve.

“Having minor goals heading towards that major goal—so, don't just think, “This is where I am, that's where I want to be, and that's my next milestone.” Sometimes having smaller milestones in between really does help, because that builds confidence.

“You've got through day one—great. How did you do? What were the highs from that day? What can you take from that day? Day two, day three, day four—having these milestones really does help, I believe, develop mental resilience.

“Surrounding yourself with positive people—massive, massive one here. You want people that you can look up to, that you can talk to, that you admire. My dad once said to me as an athlete, “Success breeds success.” So I used to kind of surround myself with guys who were quicker than me, and funny enough, they dragged me along with them.

“Education—it's always good. Reading things, listening to things—whether it be podcasts—and looking at people who are where you want to be, trying to understand what they go through, what they do, can really help.

“There are some obvious things—looking after yourself, better sleep, eating well. These might sound really corny and they might sound like things you've heard before, but how many people actually put them into practice?

“I often get asked, “Can you develop and build mental resilience?” The answer is yes. There are these things and lots of others. I do believe it is something that you can improve on—I have over the years. And believe you me, not everything has gone the way that I've always wanted it to.”

Q: Drawing from your experience as Group Performance Director at Thomas International and as an elite athlete, what are the core ingredients of a truly high-performing team?

Derek Redmond: “Factors of building a high-performance team—I think the main one for me is team engagement. That is kind of the umbrella answer to the question. And then I guess you're asking: what does team engagement look like?

“It's having a group of people that not only understand themselves but understand others and how other people in the team operate. We all operate in different ways, and it is very easy to say and do things that might not resonate with the way people say or do things.

“Do exactly the same things, and their perception of you might be completely different. But if you have an understanding of them, an understanding of yourself, actually, you're able to modify your behaviour to enable you to work more cohesively as a team. That’s really important.

“Having a voice—making sure that everybody in that team, that organisation, has an equal voice. If I look back at the 4x400 metre relay, we all weren't exactly the same when it comes to speed. There were some that were quicker and some that were slower—we were all very quick, obviously—but the quickest person wasn't automatically the captain of the team.

“We had a bit of a saying in the 4x4: everybody had an equal say to what goes on in that relay. Whether it was training, whether it was picking the order—whatever it may be, who runs the heats, who doesn't run—it was something that we all decided on, regardless of where you were ranked in the world.

“So, having a voice is really important. I believe, certainly in the workplace, having the ability to progress—I think that's a big thing for people. Knowing that they're not going to be stuck in one position, they've got that opportunity to grow and progress within an organisation—is really important.

“Empowerment—being able to be empowered by people. So, whether it's the boss, the CEO, the chairman—one of the things I always say when it comes to people who are in charge: the best way to get the best out of the individual is to make sure that they feel like leaders as well. The leader—his or her job—is to make other people feel like leaders. Give them that empowerment, because then they will really want to work for you in the organisation.

“Transparency is important—really, really important. Be honest. If things are going well, say it. If things are going bad, say it. If one wins, you all win. If one loses, you all lose. Transparency is really key.

“These are the sort of things that develop great engagement. And to me, great engagement promotes great performance. And that's really what you're looking for.

“So, a long-winded way in saying it, I think the most important ingredient in a high-performing team is team engagement.”

Q: With mental health becoming a growing concern in the workplace, what proactive strategies can business leaders implement to support their teams effectively?

Derek Redmond: “There's a number of ways that this can be done. The first one—and the obvious one—is giving them the opportunity to speak openly and freely. Easier said than done in some circumstances, but the most important thing is people being able to have conversations with people.

“A lot of work that I've done that's revolved around mental health—one of the biggest, it's not the only, but one of the biggest issues—is people bottling up things and not feeling they've got anyone to talk to, number one.

“And if they do, those people aren't really listening to them—they might be judging them. So, giving employees an opportunity—a stage, if you like—to be able to talk openly and freely with no comeback on them. Because what they're trying to do is get things off of their chest and out of their head—or maybe into their head, whatever the case may be.

“Allowing that—one of the things that I say is a real cool thing to do—is introducing a buddy system, where employees buddy up with someone. And they have to work out who the right person is so they can bounce ideas and have those conversations with someone. There's a good old saying: “A problem shared is a problem halved.” So putting in little initiatives like that is a really good thing.

“Something I've already spoken about today—transparency. Being open, being honest about things. Because again, sometimes a lot of people's issues isn't what's said—it's what hasn't been said. And it's what that person has perceived that the management team or the CEO or the MD is thinking, and they could be so far from the truth.

“Sometimes your own imagination can actually run wild with you. And generally, we think the worst rather than thinking the best in certain situations. So, transparency for me could be a real key to stopping these mental issues actually starting. I mean, the list goes on, but there's a few things that I think could make a huge difference to organisations.”

This exclusive interview with Derek Redmond was conducted by Chris Tompkins of The Motivational Speakers Agency.

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