By Leenna Jayachaandran, CEO & Founder of Transdefy
“Sometimes, life's most profound business lessons arrive when business is the last thing on your mind.”
Leenna Jayachaandran
Mike’s Note: How true! In 2001, while bicycling, I was hit head-on by a speeding motorcycle and spent 21 days in the hospital. Many insights she shares here, I found as l went from crisis to recovery. Leenna’s sales message here is wise and profound. May her loved one fully recover.
Last week, life reminded me how quickly everything we take for granted can change.
Someone very close to me, one of my strongest allies, suffered a massive brain stroke.
One moment, life was moving at its usual pace. Conversations, plans, commitments, and the little things that make up our everyday existence.
And then, without warning, everything changed. Suddenly, the things that seemed urgent yesterday became irrelevant. The only questions that mattered were: What do we do? Who can help? Are we making the right decisions? Will he recover?
When something like this happens, you don't have the luxury of preparing yourself emotionally. You simply find yourself in the middle of a situation you never imagined having to navigate. Over the last several days, I have witnessed fear, uncertainty, helplessness, extraordinary kindness, remarkable teamwork, and the incredible strength of the human spirit. And somewhere through this journey, I found myself observing something else.
The parallels between saving a life, rebuilding hope, and building a successful business are far deeper than I had ever imagined.
I want to share a few lessons that have stayed with me. Not because I read them in a book or learned them in a workshop, but because I experienced them when life put everything to the test.
Lesson 1: The Crisis You Never Prepared for Is the One That Tests You Most
We all know that adversity is part of life. Yet, somewhere deep within us, we carry the belief that the worst will probably never happen to us. Until it does. When the stroke happened, the first challenge wasn't just the medical emergency. It was the uncertainty surrounding everything that followed. Who should we call? Which hospital should we go to? What decisions needed to be made immediately? Whose advice could we trust? In moments like these, even intelligent, experienced, and otherwise composed people can feel completely lost. And that is when I realized something.
Preparation doesn't eliminate uncertainty. It gives you the ability to respond when uncertainty arrives.
We cannot prepare for every possibility life may throw at us. But we can become better equipped by learning from other people's experiences, asking questions, sharing knowledge, building relationships, and understanding the options available to us.
The Sales Parallel
How often do sales professionals walk into an opportunity believing they have everything under control? The customer relationship is strong. The proposal has been accepted in principle. The decision-maker is supportive. The forecast looks promising. And suddenly, the customer announces a budget freeze. Or a new stakeholder enters the decision-making process. Or a competitor changes the commercial dynamics. Or the person championing your solution leaves the organization. What looked like a predictable opportunity becomes a crisis.
The difference between an average salesperson and a prepared salesperson isn't that one encounters fewer surprises. It is that one has anticipated more possibilities.
In sales, this means continuously asking:
What assumptions are we making about this opportunity?
What could derail this deal even if the customer likes our solution?
Who else needs to be involved before the decision is made?
What is our contingency if the customer's priorities suddenly change?
A forecast is not a guarantee. A relationship is not a risk-management strategy. And confidence is not a substitute for preparation.
The more perspectives we seek, the better equipped we become to respond.
Lesson 2: Your Ecosystem Is Your Greatest Insurance Against Adversity
As the seriousness of the situation unfolded, something extraordinary happened.
Phones started ringing. Friends reached out. Acquaintances became sources of invaluable support. People offered contacts, medical guidance, practical assistance, and reassurance.
Some helped us find the right people. Others made calls, followed up, or simply stayed beside us.
Nobody asked what was in it for them.
Nobody calculated the return on their time.
They simply showed up.
And in those moments, I realized that relationships are not measured by how frequently we meet or how long we have known someone. They are measured by the willingness to stand beside one another when circumstances become difficult. I have always believed that when we ask for help with the right intention, people are often far more willing to support us than we imagine. This experience reinforced that belief. We didn't have all the answers. But collectively, we had access to people who could help us find them. And that made an enormous difference.
The Sales Parallel
We celebrate individual sales achievements far more than we acknowledge the ecosystem that makes them possible. A salesperson wins a major contract and receives recognition.
But what about the technical specialist who spent hours validating the solution? The finance colleague who helped structure a workable commercial model? The operations manager who found a way to accommodate an unusual delivery requirement? The leader who stood behind the salesperson when the negotiation became difficult? Or the customer champion who helped navigate internal resistance? Behind most significant sales victories is an ecosystem of people who chose to contribute. Yet, the real test of this ecosystem comes when a deal starts falling apart.
Do colleagues come together to find a solution?
Or does everyone begin asking whose mistake it was?
Does leadership create the confidence to escalate problems early?
Or do salespeople hide uncomfortable truths because they fear being blamed?
The strength of a sales organization is not measured only by how effectively its people celebrate victories, but by how confidently they come together when things go wrong.
In life, we call this unconditional support. In business, we often call it collaboration. The principle is the same.
Lesson 3: When Empathy Meets Process, Extraordinary Things Happen
One of the most emotionally challenging parts of this journey was navigating the initial hospital experience. When someone you love is fighting a serious medical condition, you are not thinking like a rational customer evaluating a service. You are frightened. You are vulnerable. You are looking for someone who can tell you what is happening, what comes next, and whether you are doing the right thing. During the initial emergency admission, we experienced the reality of a busy healthcare environment. There were procedures to follow, protocols to complete, decisions to make, and several people attending to different responsibilities. Some individuals went out of their way to help. Others appeared focused primarily on completing the process. And I found myself wrestling with a difficult question.
When people encounter emergencies every single day, does someone else's crisis eventually become their routine?
For a healthcare professional, it may be the tenth emergency of the day. For the family standing in front of them, it may be the most frightening day of their lives. Neither reality is insignificant.
Medical professionals operate under enormous pressure. Processes and protocols exist for important reasons, including patient safety. But I couldn't stop thinking about the difference between following a process and helping someone navigate that process.
A simple explanation.
A reassuring sentence.
A moment of patience.
Someone taking ownership of a question rather than directing you to another counter.
These actions may take only seconds, but their emotional impact can last much longer.
This experience left me with a powerful realization:
Empathy without process can create good intentions without reliable outcomes. Process without empathy can deliver outcomes while leaving people feeling abandoned. Excellence requires both.
The Sales Parallel
Consider a customer whose critical system has failed after implementation. The service team says a ticket must be raised. The account manager says the matter has been escalated. The technical team says it is following the agreed SLA. The customer hears all of this while their business continues to suffer. Technically, everyone may be doing their job. But is anyone taking ownership of the customer's experience? This is where customer centricity is truly tested.
It is not about abandoning processes to please customers. It is about ensuring processes never become an excuse for indifference. A customer should never have to understand your organizational structure to receive the support they need.
Your customer doesn't experience your departments. They experience the consequences of how well those departments work together.
That distinction is fundamental.
Lesson 4: The Right Environment Changes Everything
As the situation progressed, we began working toward moving him to a specialized stroke-care facility. Calls were made. People were contacted. Options were explored. There were moments when we genuinely didn't know which direction to take. Eventually, we reached the stroke ICU at City Hospital. And I remember the feeling. The anxiety hadn't disappeared. The medical situation was still serious. We knew there was a long journey ahead. But something changed almost immediately.
The way we were received.
The calmness with which people communicated.
The care with which they approached the situation.
The confidence that came from being surrounded by professionals working within a specialized environment. It felt as though the tension we had been carrying in our bodies finally had permission to ease. Not because we knew the outcome. But because we felt we were in an environment equipped to give him the care he needed. Two healthcare environments. Two very different experiences. And one important realization.
The right expertise matters enormously. But the environment in which that expertise is delivered can profoundly influence how people experience uncertainty.
The Sales Parallel: Why Your Ideal Customer Profile Matters
This experience made me think about something I frequently discuss with sales organizations: the importance of choosing the right customers. Sales teams often become so focused on winning business that they forget to evaluate whether they are genuinely equipped to serve that business successfully. They pursue opportunities outside their core expertise. They accept delivery conditions their organization struggles to meet. They promise capabilities that require extraordinary internal effort to fulfil. And then everyone wonders why the relationship becomes difficult after the contract is signed. The right customer is not simply someone willing to buy.
The right customer is someone whose needs align with your organization's capabilities, expertise, delivery model, and ability to create measurable value.
Imagine a technology company with deep expertise in complex enterprise integrations pursuing a small customer whose primary expectation is the cheapest possible standard solution. Or a business offering standardized services accepting a highly customized project without the operational capacity to support it. Revenue may be generated. But will value be created sustainably? The same organization that delivers an exceptional experience to one customer may struggle to meet another customer's expectations because the fit is fundamentally wrong.
Customer selection is not merely a sales decision. It is a promise about the experience your entire organization can realistically deliver.
That is why Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) discipline should never be reduced to industry, company size, or revenue potential. It must also consider your ability to deliver the experience the customer deserves.
Lesson 5: Behind Every Recovery Is an Army of People
Once the medical team began coordinating his treatment, I started noticing something that has stayed with me. No single person was responsible for everything. The doctors brought their knowledge, judgment, and expertise. The nurses provided continuous care, observation, and reassurance. The specialists evaluated different aspects of his condition. The medicines and treatments played their prescribed roles. The family provided encouragement, presence, and emotional strength. Friends continued checking in, offering support, and helping us navigate the days. And somewhere beyond everything visible, there were prayers. So many prayers.
From people near and far, some of whom had never even met him.
Each contribution was different. Some were clinical. Some were practical. Some were emotional. Some were spiritual. And although these contributions cannot all be measured in the same way, they reminded me of the extraordinary strength of collective effort.
No one person could do everything. But every person had something meaningful to contribute.
The Sales Parallel
We often attribute revenue success to the salesperson who closes the deal. But look closely at a complex B2B sale.
The salesperson identifies the opportunity.
The presales team helps shape the solution.
The technical team establishes feasibility.
Finance evaluates commercial viability.
Legal manages contractual risk.
Leadership supports strategic decisions.
Operations delivers the commitment.
Customer success protects the relationship.
Every function plays a role in the customer's eventual experience. Yet, in many organizations, these teams operate as separate islands. Sales blames delivery. Delivery blames sales. Finance blames unrealistic commitments. And customers end up absorbing the consequences. What if we started treating every major opportunity as a shared organizational commitment rather than an individual sales target? What if recognition extended beyond the person who secured the signature? What if the measure of success was not simply the contract value, but the collective ability to deliver what was promised?
The salesperson may open the door to revenue. But the organization determines whether that revenue becomes a lasting relationship.
Lesson 6: The Physiotherapist May Be the Most Underrated Person in the Recovery Journey
As the journey moved toward rehabilitation, another realization began taking shape. The emergency team works to stabilize the patient. The doctors establish the treatment plan.
But the journey toward regaining everyday abilities requires something different.
Repetition.
Patience.
Persistence.
Encouragement.
And an extraordinary amount of effort. This is where physiotherapists and rehabilitation professionals play such a vital role. Their job is not simply to guide exercises. They help people attempt movements that may suddenly feel unfamiliar or difficult. They encourage progress when progress is slow. They challenge patients within safe limits. They celebrate achievements that others might consider insignificant.
A movement.
A supported step.
A little more balance.
A small improvement in strength.
Things most of us perform without thinking can become important milestones. And the rehabilitation professional must keep showing up with the same commitment, even when progress isn't immediately visible. Recovery after a stroke is complex and varies greatly between individuals. No professional can guarantee a complete recovery. But skilled, timely, and coordinated rehabilitation can make a meaningful difference to a patient's functional progress and quality of life. That made me think about one of the most underestimated functions in business.
The Sales Parallel: Operations Is the Physiotherapist of the Customer Relationship
In sales, we celebrate the signed contract. The purchase order arrives. The salesperson updates the CRM. The opportunity moves to Closed Won. There is applause, recognition, perhaps even a celebratory dinner. But for the customer, the real journey may only be beginning.
Now the promises must become reality.
The solution must be implemented.
The teams must be onboarded.
The service must work.
The customer must experience the benefits they were promised.
And this is where the operations and implementation teams take over. Just like rehabilitation professionals, their work requires patience, discipline, consistency, and the ability to navigate setbacks. Consider a company that sells an enterprise software solution.
The salesperson has done an exceptional job understanding the customer's needs and securing a substantial contract. But during implementation, timelines slip. Communication becomes inconsistent. The customer has to repeatedly explain the same requirements.
Issues are escalated but ownership remains unclear. What happens next?
The customer becomes frustrated.
Confidence begins to erode.
The relationship becomes transactional.
Future opportunities become harder to secure.
And suddenly, the sales team is spending more time repairing trust than developing new business. Now imagine the opposite. An implementation team that communicates proactively. Anticipates challenges. Keeps commitments. Explains setbacks transparently. And stays focused on helping the customer achieve the intended outcome. That customer doesn't simply receive a solution. They gain confidence in the organization. And confidence creates the conditions for retention, expansion, and advocacy.
A signed contract is evidence of customer expectation. Successful implementation is evidence that the expectation was justified.
The difference is enormous. In healthcare, rehabilitation is not an afterthought to treatment. In business, implementation should never be an afterthought to selling. Because what happens after the sale often determines whether the next sale ever happens.
Lesson 7: Recovery Is Not Just Physical. It Is a Battle of Mindset.
Perhaps the deepest lesson from this entire experience is the role of mindset. A stroke can change a person's abilities, independence, and daily life in an instant. The road ahead may be uncertain. Progress may be slow. There may be good days and difficult days.
And no amount of positive thinking alone can replace medical care, rehabilitation, or the biological realities of recovery. But the emotional environment surrounding a person matters.
The encouragement they receive.
The dignity with which they are treated.
The patience people demonstrate.
The belief that small steps are worth celebrating.
The willingness to keep trying, even when the results are not immediate.
As I watched this journey unfold, I began to appreciate that recovery is not simply about returning to what existed before. Sometimes it is about learning, adapting, rebuilding, and discovering what is possible now. And this requires strength not only from the patient, but also from everyone supporting them.
The Sales Parallel
How often do salespeople allow a difficult quarter to define their capabilities?
A lost deal becomes a personal failure.
A rejected proposal becomes evidence that the market is impossible.
A missed target begins to erode confidence.
And gradually, their behaviour changes.
They stop prospecting with conviction.
They hesitate to approach senior decision-makers.
They become defensive during price discussions.
They avoid difficult conversations.
The problem is no longer just the lost opportunity.
It is the belief that develops around that loss.
This is why sales performance improvement cannot focus only on skills and processes.
Mindset matters. But mindset must be supported by action. A salesperson cannot simply believe they will improve conversions. They must be willing to examine their habits, seek coaching, practice difficult conversations, and change behaviours that are no longer effective.
A sales leader cannot simply demand resilience. They must create an environment where people can acknowledge setbacks, learn from mistakes, and ask for support without fear.
And an organization cannot expect sustainable performance if it celebrates only outcomes while ignoring the effort required to build capability.
Resilience is not pretending that everything is fine. It is having the courage to acknowledge what isn't working and the discipline to keep improving what can be changed.
In rehabilitation, progress may be measured in small movements. In sales, progress may begin with one better discovery question, one more courageous conversation, one improved qualification decision, or one honest discussion about a struggling opportunity. The scale may be different. But the principle remains. Sustainable progress is built through consistent, purposeful action.
My View: We Celebrate the Finish Line.
But Do We Ever Thank the People Who Carried Us There?
This experience has changed the way I look at success. We live in a world that celebrates individual achievement.
The top salesperson.
The highest-performing leader.
The doctor who performs a complex procedure.
The entrepreneur who builds a successful business.
And rightly so. Expertise, dedication, and personal accountability deserve recognition.
But I wonder whether, in celebrating the person at the finish line, we sometimes overlook the people who made the journey possible.
The nurse who notices a small change in a patient's condition.
The friend who makes one crucial phone call.
The family member who stays awake through the night.
The rehabilitation professional who patiently helps someone attempt another step.
The operations executive who resolves a customer's problem before it becomes a crisis.
The technical specialist who prevents a costly implementation failure.
The colleague who says, "Don't worry, we'll figure this out together."
These contributions rarely make headlines. They don't always feature in performance dashboards. They may never receive an award. Yet, without them, many celebrated outcomes would never exist. And that brings me to something I believe organizations need to rethink.
We have become exceptionally good at measuring individual performance, but are we equally good at recognizing collective contribution?
Sales incentives reward revenue generated. Performance reviews measure individual KPIs.
Leadership discussions focus on productivity and accountability. All important. But where do we measure the willingness to support a colleague? The courage to take ownership when something goes wrong? The ability to make another person's job easier? The commitment to protect a customer relationship even when it isn't part of one's job description? The empathy to recognize that someone else may be experiencing the most difficult day of their life? Last week, when life unexpectedly placed us in the middle of a crisis, I witnessed what it means to have people stand beside you.
Some brought expertise.
Some brought solutions.
Some brought reassurance.
Some brought hope.
And some simply brought their presence.
Every contribution mattered.
It reminded me that the strongest ecosystems are not built when adversity strikes. They are built long before adversity arrives, through trust, generosity, relationships, and the willingness to show up for one another. Perhaps that is the greatest lesson I am taking away from this experience. In life, as in business, we may be remembered for our individual achievements. But the difference we make in someone else's journey may be our most meaningful contribution. And sometimes, the greatest measure of success isn't how far we have travelled ourselves. It is how many people we have helped get back on their feet.
A question worth asking to every sales leader, business owner, and professional reading is this:
If your biggest customer opportunity turned into your biggest crisis tomorrow, would your people come together to protect the relationship, or would they start protecting their individual responsibilities?
And an even more personal question:
When someone in your ecosystem needs you most, will you be remembered as someone who followed the process, or someone who made a difference?
I'd love to hear your perspectives. Have you experienced a situation where the strength of an entire team made the difference between failure and success? As for us, the road to recovery continues. One day at a time. One small milestone at a time. With gratitude for every person who has stood beside us, and hope for the journey ahead. You may contact Leenna at this email leenna@transdefy.com
Thank you Leenna very much for this insight blog!
Michael J Griffin
CEO & Founder of ELAvate
michael.griffin@elavateglobal.com
+65-91194008 (WhatsApp)