Between the Lines of Leadership · A Headhunter's Picks (45)
Before we start, a quick confession: this newsletter is born from an excuse... or rather, from a reason shaped like a brick and a whole lot of patience.
I just finished the LEGO set of Home Alone. More than 4,000 pieces. Hours of building in silence, focusing on every detail, getting lost only to find myself again. And when I placed the last chimney on the rooftop of Kevin McCallister's house, it hit me: I had to write about this.
Those of you who've followed this newsletter for a while know I tend to find inspiration in unexpected places: books, movies, video games... I've talked about it in other editions. But also, and more and more, in hobbies like this one, the kind that on the surface have nothing to do with work, yet somehow order everything on the inside.
This time, the milestone was finishing that iconic house. And off the back of it, I sat down to write. That's why I'm sharing the photos. But above all, that's why I'm sharing this reflection.
There's something that clears my head better than coffee, that brings back my focus better than any productivity app, and that inspires me more than plenty of leadership books: building LEGO.
Yes, LEGO. Plastic bricks, millimeter-precise instructions, and hours of focus while I click pieces together in a ritual that reconnects me with myself.
A lot of you know I like to look for inspiration in the unexpected. But there's a more intimate place where I find clarity, structure and energy: my LEGO table.
I've built all sorts of things there:
- The DeLorean from Back to the Future, piece by piece, like I'm traveling back to 1985 every time I touch it.
- The House from Home Alone, more than 4,000 pieces and an insane sense of satisfaction watching something complex take shape.
- The Ghostbusters Ecto-1, because it never hurts to have something around to scare off the mental ghosts.
- The Indiana Jones Temple of Doom, an ode to chaos and adventure... perfect for training focus.
- And a Japanese temple or two, for the calm of building something that's been standing for centuries.
And it's not just nostalgia or play: it's a mental tool.
When I build LEGO, I'm training something a lot like leadership:
- Patience.
- A long-term view.
- Tolerance for frustration.
- The ability to follow instructions... and to question them too.
- And, above all, respect for the process: one piece in the wrong spot, and the whole thing wobbles.
In a world that pushes us to move fast, skip steps, look for shortcuts... LEGO reminds me that good things take time. That talent, like any great project, gets built piece by piece, brick by brick.
And that, sometimes, the best way to think... is to stop thinking and simply do.
So this newsletter isn't just about the LEGO Group . It's about finding your space of structure, focus and silence. That hobby that looks like a game but actually trains your mind.
What's yours?
Because if you want to lead, you also need to know how to stop. If you want to create, you need to empty out. And if you want to build something big, start by enjoying the first brick.
🔚 Epilogue: LEGO® Serious Play®
And in case you're wondering whether all of this has a more structured foundation... the answer is yes.
There's a methodology called LEGO® Serious Play®, originally developed by The LEGO Group, that takes these bricks into the world of strategy, innovation and leadership.
Its premise is as simple as it is powerful: thinking with your hands.
Through facilitated exercises, participants build models that represent ideas, challenges or strategic scenarios. Play becomes a language. The symbolic becomes deep conversation. It's used to align teams, visualize shared visions, or unlock collective creativity.
We experienced it a couple of years ago, at the W Executive kick-off, led by the great Rafa Puerto Vázquez and his team at @Rebel One of those experiences you don't forget, because you realize that even in high-pressure environments, playing can be the most serious path to learning.
From my session with Rafa
Because, sometimes, to build leadership, you have to go back to the simplest pieces.
🎬 Bonus track
The gripping story of LEGO: from the brink of bankruptcy to leading an empire worth more than 6 billion
