Adrian Gore on building Discovery, bold decisions and staying optimistic
Discovery Group founder Adrian Gore joins Elana Afrika-Bredenkamp in the studio to talk about his new book, 'The Four Principles'.
Starting a business at the age of 27 and growing it into an internationally recognised brand might sound daunting, but that's exactly what Discovery Group founder Adrian Gore achieved.
Now, more than three decades later, Discovery Group is a multinational financial services group, offering medical aid and insurance and has pioneered the Vitality Shared Value Model, which uses behavioural science and incentives to encourage healthier choices.
In his new book, 'The Four Principles', Gore shares the ideas he believes can multiply impact in life and leadership.
Seeing opportunity where others see failure
Speaking to Elana Afrika-Bredenkamp, Gore says launching Discovery in 1992, during South Africa's transitional period, wasn't an act of bravery; it was simply seeing opportunity where others saw risk.
"If I look back and I think about where South Africa was, I spotted opportunities that were there. They actually weren't courageous choices. They were pretty intellectual," he tells Elana.
"At that stage, South Africa was going through a crisis and difficulty and change. Very exciting time, but a very threatening time.
"My choice at that stage was about a very deep conviction about how the world would change, and therefore it was actually quite an intellectual view. It wasn't a brave view. It was the ability to spot opportunity where others spotted failure, threat and danger, and I think that's one of the key issues of impact: the ability to spot positive signals when others see negative."
I'm out to make a difference. I have always felt that there's something bigger that you've got to do.
Making bold decisions
Guided by his determination to make a difference, Gore left his job at another financial services group before launching Discovery. While he had no doubts about his decision to start a business from scratch, he recalls the one reality check that grounded him.
"My daughter was born literally in '91, and I remember after leaving my job, we took her away just before I started Discovery, and sitting on the beach, the only time I thought, 'Jeez, you know, you've got responsibilities. You've got a daughter to bring up. Have you thought about this?'"
"That's the only time. It wasn't doubt, but it was kind of a reality check…but other than that, it's the kind of intention and purpose that felt absolutely almost logical, a natural consequence."
The four principles behind impact, leadership and Discovery
Gore believes success is within anyone's reach and says his book is a practical tool to build impact and overcome natural biases that often hold people back.
"The purpose of the book is not as simple as: follow these things and great things happen. Life is not that simple. This is not a get-rich-quick book. It's about real sustainable impact coming from overcoming some of these natural biases that we have," he says.
Elana asked Gore to define disciplined optimism, one of the principles highlighted in his book, asking how people can stay positive when facing real-life challenges.
"It's not about being an optimist. This is more about the ability and the discipline of seeing positive signals, because the whole basis of the book is that we're coded for negativity," he tells Elana.
"Disciplined optimism is about seeking the positive where others only seek the negative. But being realistic is about seeing everything, so you need to see the positive and the negative, and disciplined optimism is about the ability and discipline in every situation to look at, understand the negatives, (and ask) what opportunities are there?"
Listen to the full conversation below as Adrian Gore joins Elana Afrika-Bredenkamp to unpack how to build a globally recognised brand and multiply your impact in life and leadership.