Matthew Addison-Black
About
Matthew Addison-Black commissioned into the Royal Gurkha Rifles through The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 2012. He served on operations around the world, qualified as a jungle warfare instructor, and later spent five years as a senior officer in a specialist counter-terrorism and hostage rescue unit in Singapore.
At 23 he was diagnosed with cancer. He declined a medical discharge and returned to active duty, having lost 20 per cent of his lung capacity. Six further major operations followed. Those experiences forced him to confront what happens when the role, performance or identity you have relied on is no longer enough.
Today he is Associate Professor and Lead for the Psychology of Leadership at The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, a doctoral researcher at the University of Liverpool, and an ICF Professional Certified Coach. His first book, Identity Under Pressure, is represented by JFM Literary.
Origin
The coaching industry is crowded and noisy. Very little of it prepares people for the pressure of high-stakes work. I founded Veritas High Performance to close the gap between leadership theory and what actually holds when it matters.
Mission
The greatest risk to leadership isn’t external pressure. It’s not knowing who you are when that pressure arrives. My work helps people understand their identity clearly enough to adapt, decide well and lead without losing themselves.
Ethos
Veritas is Latin for truth. The emblem, a Spartan shield inverted to form a V, represents the protection that truth provides. γνῶθι σεαυτόν. Know thyself.
Memento mori
Remember you must die
