What can we achieve together, but not alone?
It feels like a simple question. But in busy, stretched organisations, it is also a deeply practical one.
In complex, changing organisations, connection is not a nice-to-have. It is part of how work gets done brilliantly.
In our research at King’s College London, one of the strongest messages from teams has been that human connection matters, not as something soft or separate from performance, but as a powerful resource that helps people make sense of work, collaborate across boundaries, innovate and sustain energy.
Teams have consistently shared that they need to feel connected enough to share information, speak honestly, ask for help, challenge well and make sense of complexity together.
But the answer is not simply “more connection”.
More meetings, more messages and more availability can quickly become another demand.
What matters is the quality and purpose of connection.
So when we say, “We don’t have time to connect properly,” we wonder if the more useful question is:
What are we saying yes to that is getting in the way of the connection we need?
→ Sometimes it is unclear priorities.
→ Sometimes it is meetings with too little purpose.
→ Sometimes it is habits we have outgrown.
→ Sometimes it is a reluctance to pause and ask what is really adding value.
Better-quality connection often requires us to stop, simplify or say no to something else.
What do we need to say no to, so we can create better-quality connection where it matters most?
By Cass Coulston