Exercise Adapt Overcome

I've been using this tagline for my business since I started nearly 20 years ago!

But where did it originate? When I was around 14, I had the opportunity to go on a school trip to Germany with the Army. The Royal Engineers, stationed in Ripon, took about 25 of us to Hameln when they were deployed there. It was probably the best three weeks of summer vacation ever—we drove tanks, fired guns, visited the East German Border towers, built bridges over rivers, learned to march (though I was quite bad at it), and spent time in the NAFFI.

During our stay, we were supervised by a Scottish man named Corporal Nailer, who seemed to have drawn the short straw for this assignment. He managed to use swear words in every sentence he uttered and, to my 14-year-old self, seemed as tough as they come. His response to every question was "improvise, adapt, and overcome" (usually with a few expletives in between), and this phrase has stuck with me ever since that trip.

It's such an uncomplicated perspective on viewing things and bringing them to fruition. Later, to better align it with my work, I modified it slightly to "Exercise, Adapt, and Overcome." I hope this message resonates with my clients, conveying that with some effort, we can transform our lives and conquer any challenges we face.