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Josie Payne        

In 1974, on her second ever flight as a BA flight attendant, Josie was caught in the midst of a terrorist hijacking on a flight from Dubai. Reflecting on this ordeal, Josie inspires and motivates individuals to achieve their potential

Relentless change. Increasing expectations. Economic Uncertainty. Changing Roles, Values and Cultures. Limited Resources. The World has always been a challenging place and many of us are trying to cope with fast paced and unpredictable change. What we do know is that it is not going to stop.

Josie Payne, Managing Director of Bruck Payne Associates, tells her story of the 1974 British Airways 5 day Hijack. At 21 she was on her 3rd flight as a newly recruited air stewardess. Josie received the Queens Commendation for Valuable Services in the Air from the Queen of England. During this experience she relates how she recognised and developed resilience to survive, to negotiate other people’s lives and to engage in and then dismiss the “Stockholm Syndrome”. The spin off from this is that this skill is very relevant in today’s business world.

Effective leaders need to understand and accept themselves; be clear about their values, strengths and weaknesses; they have to have the insight and self-confidence to recognise the choices they must make for themselves and for others. Josie’s story will and has helped business leaders to reflect on their inner resources and emotional intelligence to identify for themselves what they need to do.

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