What happens when you build a highly successful business, achieve the financial goals you set yourself, win industry awards, and still feel unfulfilled?

That question sits at the heart of this conversation between TrueLeads founder Tom Happè and leadership coach Chris O’Connell.

Chris built and scaled a recruitment business to more than £30 million turnover, employed over 100 people, won multiple growth awards, and created one of the UK’s best places to work. Yet despite the external success, he discovered something many business leaders eventually face.

Success and fulfilment are not the same thing.

Here are the biggest lessons from their discussion.

1. Building a Business Is Not the Same as Building a Life

For many founders, growth becomes the goal.

Revenue targets increase. Team sizes grow. New offices open.

Chris openly admits that for years his entire identity revolved around building his company. Every milestone became another stepping stone towards the next one. £5 million became £10 million. £10 million became £20 million. Yet reaching those goals never delivered the lasting satisfaction he expected.

The lesson is simple.

If business success comes at the expense of your health, relationships, or personal wellbeing, eventually the cracks begin to show.

2. Purpose Often Emerges Through Adversity

One of the most powerful moments in the discussion comes when Chris explains how his purpose was discovered.

After selling his company, circumstances surrounding the transaction meant the outcome was very different from what he had anticipated. The experience had a significant impact on his mental health and forced him to reassess what truly mattered.

During several years of reflection, he realised his real purpose was not building another company.

It was helping others avoid the mistakes he had made.

Many leaders search for purpose through success.

Sometimes purpose reveals itself through setbacks.

3. Culture Starts With Leadership Behaviour

Businesses often talk about culture.

Far fewer intentionally build it.

Chris believes culture starts with how leaders behave every day. He never expected employees to do things he would not do himself and placed significant emphasis on treating everyone equally, whether they were employees, clients, or suppliers.

The strongest cultures are rarely created through posters on walls.

They are created through consistent actions.

4. Manage Individuals, Not Teams

One of Chris’s key leadership philosophies is managing the individual rather than the collective.

While businesses need systems and processes, people are motivated by different things. Some want career progression. Others value flexibility. Some are motivated by learning opportunities, while others are focused on financial rewards.

The best leaders understand what drives each person and tailor their approach accordingly.

A one-size-fits-all management style rarely produces exceptional results.

5. Numbers Are Outcomes, Not Purpose

Many companies make revenue their mission.

Chris argues this is where leaders often go wrong.

Revenue, profit, and growth matter. Every business needs them.

However, they should be outcomes of a compelling vision rather than the vision itself. When people buy into a meaningful purpose, understand the mission, and feel connected to the journey, the commercial results often follow naturally.

People rarely become inspired by spreadsheets.

They become inspired by meaning.

6. The Best Leaders Are Comfortable Being Vulnerable

Leadership has changed dramatically.

The old stereotype of the tough, untouchable leader is becoming less effective.

Chris believes modern leadership requires empathy, compassion, honesty, and vulnerability. Employees want to work with real people rather than corporate personas. They want leaders who are willing to listen, admit mistakes, and remain open to feedback.

Vulnerability is no longer a weakness.

In many cases, it is a leadership advantage.

7. Growth Requires Self-Awareness

One theme appears repeatedly throughout the conversation.

Self-awareness.

Chris looks for this quality in every leader he works with. He believes founders must understand their strengths, acknowledge their weaknesses, and accept that they do not have all the answers.

Leaders who refuse help often become their own biggest obstacle.

Leaders who embrace learning accelerate their growth.

8. Involve Your Team in the Vision

Many founders unintentionally create a business that revolves entirely around themselves.

Chris argues that employees need to feel they are part of something bigger.

This means involving people in decision making, encouraging ideas, accepting challenges to your thinking, and ensuring team members understand how their contribution connects to the wider vision.

When people feel ownership, engagement increases significantly.

9. Remote Working Cannot Fully Replace Human Connection

The discussion also explores one of the most debated topics in modern business.

Remote work.

While Chris supports flexibility and hybrid working, he believes organisations still need face-to-face interaction to build strong cultures. Collaboration, learning, mentorship, and team relationships often develop more naturally when people spend time together.

For new starters especially, being surrounded by experienced colleagues can dramatically accelerate development.

The future may be hybrid.

But culture still requires human connection.

10. Personal Branding Is a Leadership Tool

Towards the end of the discussion, attention turns to LinkedIn.

Chris has built an audience of more than 37,000 followers and generates opportunities without making traditional cold sales calls. His approach is based on authenticity, consistency, and focusing on topics he genuinely cares about, namely leadership, mental health, and recruitment.

His message is clear.

People buy from people.

The more consistently you show up, share valuable insights, and demonstrate expertise, the more likely you are to become the person prospects think of when they need help.

Final Thoughts

Purpose-led leadership is not about abandoning ambition.

It is about redefining success.

Chris O’Connell’s journey demonstrates that building a successful business is only part of the equation. Sustainable leadership requires clarity of purpose, strong values, meaningful relationships, and a commitment to helping others succeed alongside you.

The businesses that endure are rarely built solely on profit targets.

They are built around people, purpose, and a vision that gives everyone a reason to care.

And as Chris discovered, sometimes the greatest success comes not from what you build for yourself, but from the impact you have on others.