decide / decision-making under pressure

TLDR
For leaders and teams who need to make sound decisions when stakes rise and time compresses. Using real operational footage from high-risk military environments, this immersive programme places participants inside unfolding scenarios to explore how judgement, clarity and composure hold up under extreme pressure.

This immersive training programme explores how leaders think, decide and act when environments become fast-moving, uncertain and high-consequence. It draws directly on Stuart’s operational experience commanding missions during two tours of Afghanistan, using real helmetcam footage from live operations as the backbone of the learning experience.

Participants follow a real high-risk operation as it unfolds. They are required to interpret incomplete information, assess emerging risks, weigh competing priorities and make rapid decisions in moments where consequences are immediate and significant.

By placing participants in situations far removed from everyday office settings, the programme strips decision-making back to its fundamentals. It exposes how pressure affects situational awareness, communication, bias, confidence and team dynamics.

The learning then translates directly into organisational life. Participants reflect on how they respond to pressure in their own roles, where hesitation, procrastination or overconfidence appears, how risk is interpreted and how clarity can be strengthened when ambiguity increases.

The result is a perspective shift that stays with participants long after the workshop ends. Decisions feel clearer, intent is communicated more decisively and pressure is experienced with greater control and awareness. By stepping momentarily into environments where stakes are absolute, leaders return to their organisational roles with sharper judgement, stronger composure and a renewed confidence in the decisions they make every day.

    • Understand how pressure shapes judgement, awareness and team communication.

    • Explore decision making models drawn from high consequence operational environments.

    • Work through live dilemmas, trade offs and escalating risks.

    • Build awareness of personal decision-making patterns and leadership responses.

    • Strengthen composure, clarity and pace when stakes rise.

    • Greater confidence making decisions in fast moving environments.

    • Stronger personal insight into judgement and risk interpretation.

    • Practical tools that transfer directly into organisational settings.

    • Improved team alignment around priorities and escalation.

    • Clearer communication of intent and direction.

  • Full-day core workshop (in-person or virtual)

    Follow-up virtual meetup (2 hours, 1 month later, OPTIONAL)

    • Review commitments and progress

    • Share embedded practices and lessons learned

    • Identify any new support or development needs

  • 09:30 – 10:00
    Welcome, introductions and context setting
    Programme overview, objectives and psychological safety framing.

    10:00 – 11:15
    Operating under pressure
    How pace, consequence and uncertainty shape leadership thinking and communication.

    11:15 – 11:30
    Break

    11:30 – 12:45
    Case study immersion – phase one
    Real operational footage. Participants interpret information and make time critical decisions.

    12:45 – 13:30
    Lunch

    13:30 – 14:30
    Case-study immersion – escalation
    Evolving risks, competing priorities and command judgement.

    14:30 – 15:15
    Decision-making models
    Operational frameworks translated into organisational leadership settings.

    15:15 – 15:30
    Break

    15:30 – 16:00
    Personal reflection
    Individual decision-making patterns, risk appetite and clarity of intent.

    16:00 – 16:30
    Commitments and close
    Application planning and follow-up session overview.

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Decide - a Teamshaper training module