Leadership Lessons from Ray Klassens: Performing Together
Lessons from Ray Klaassens on stepping up when everyone is exhausted, helping your teammates, and why companies must value those who go the extra mile.
An Unexpected Seminar
Yesterday, I attended a seminar hosted by IO Digital featuring Ray Klaassens as the presenter. Ray is a former military officer turned leadership expert. Since I'm not really in the loop with Dutch TV shows and media, I wasn't familiar with him, but my colleagues mentioned he's been on Dutch television and now gives motivational talks, particularly about leadership. After a quick search, I learned he draws from his military experience to create customized leadership seminars.
IO Digital brought him to our company and tailored the event around our core values: Performing Together.
The experience was interesting. The presentation was in Dutch, but they provided headphones with live translation for English speakers (though hearing two languages at once was a bit challenging).
The Two Dimensions of Work
Ray talked about how each of us has two professional dimensions. One is what we call hard skills—the technical expertise we develop throughout our education and career. These are the things we carry on our résumé, moving from company to company, constantly trying to improve and advance our careers.
But that wasn't his focus.
The other dimension is our character—how we respond in different situations. This character reveals itself most clearly during moments of crisis. Those moments when everyone is confused and just looking for someone to show them the way. When the building is on fire and you're looking for an escape route, but no one dares to make a suggestion, say something, or take action.
It's in these moments that our character pulls us toward leadership. When some of us find the courage to step forward, make a suggestion, and take action.
The Video That Changed My Perspective
He showed us a 2-minute clip from Kamp Van Koningsbrugge, a Dutch TV show where ordinary people challenge themselves in military-style exercises.
What we saw: a team had to carry heavy loads over a long distance, as if they were in combat. These loads had different weights, and carrying them over this distance was extremely difficult. To make it even harder, they kept adding more weight along the way.
One person volunteered to be the team leader—a woman named Shila. She started distributing the loads—team members picked them up individually or in pairs and moved forward. After hours of walking, everyone was exhausted. Shila had been trying to delegate tasks and help where possible. But eventually, we saw her at the back of the line, completely silent.
Suddenly, Ray stops the group and asks Shila to come forward: "Why aren't you here? Why are you at the back? Why aren't you saying anything?"
Shila responds: "I'm weak. I can't do it anymore. I don't have the strength."
Right then, Ray asks the rest of the group: "Who else is exhausted?" Everyone raises their hand.
"Who else thinks they can't go on?" Everyone raises their hand.
Then he turns to Shila: "See? Everyone feels the same way. It's not just you. Everyone is like this. But this group needs your presence. They need to hear that they should keep going. They just need one person to show them the way. This is when leaders must reveal themselves. When everyone is tired. When no one can even think anymore!"
The Sleeping Bag Story
He told another story about special forces training in southern Germany. Teams must hide from the German army for two weeks. It's a two-sided exercise—hiding (Dutch) and seeking (Germans). They get supplies and ammunition for one week and have to make it work.
The interesting example: during this time, people obviously need to sleep, but each person can only get about 1 hour of sleep at a time. He explained how you have to sleep in your clothes because you don't have time to take them off and put them back on. Anyone who's ever slept in a sleeping bag knows the zipper always gets stuck on your clothes, and you can't close it easily.
In winter, sleeping in the Alps without a sleeping bag is practically suicide.
Imagine someone trying to sleep, but their sleeping bag zipper gets stuck on their clothes. They can struggle to fix it, or they can sleep uncomfortably with it half-closed, which means no good sleep. Those 60 minutes become 0.
Meanwhile, there's someone else sleeping next to them. When they see their buddy struggling, they can turn away and comfortably get their 60 minutes of sleep. Or they can take 5-10 minutes to help fix their buddy's sleeping bag zipper and then sleep.
If they help, they'll sleep 50 minutes, but their buddy will also sleep 50 minutes. So instead of 60 minutes (one person), the team gets 100 minutes (two people) of rest. Mathematically, it benefits the team.
But it's not just about the numbers. It helps build team spirit. It brings these two people closer together. It increases synergy in the team. It brings people together, and that's the most important thing.
The Question That Made Me Think
The question was: "Imagine it's 8 PM and there's a problem with your project. Is there anyone you can call to ask for help? Are you that person for someone?"
My Personal Take
I honestly don't know if this is good or bad. I am that person people call, and I help them with everything I've got. This has happened countless times in my 10-year career, and I'm happy to do it. But I don't know if this creates bad habits for companies and employers.
In Europe, this doesn't happen much—maybe because there are clearer boundaries. I'm willing to help at 10 PM in emergencies, and I have no problem with it. But in my current situation, I can't bring myself to call someone and ask them to help me with something work-related outside their working hours.
When I was a project manager, I worked on holidays myself but never asked any of my team members to give up their days off to help me. I raised my team in a way where they would offer to help whenever they saw the situation needed extra support.
Leadership Creates This Character
I believe that developing people's character to take ownership of their work doesn't just depend on the individual—it also depends on the team leader. A leader can teach this. They can create this character and help the team grow.
But at the same time, having a framework in every company and team for these situations is something that must be considered.
Overall, I love having the character to help get things done, whether it's my team or not. But this shouldn't create the expectation in employers that you're obligated to do this if it's not part of your job description!
This learning must be two-sided! From us and from the companies! Companies must value these efforts! People need to know that if they're doing this favor, the company has their back in return.
Everything must be two-way.
Final Thoughts
Ray Klassens' seminar reminded me that leadership isn't just about technical skills or job titles. It's about showing up when things are hard, helping your teammates even when you're exhausted, and fostering a culture where people genuinely care about each other's success.
But it also reinforced something I've been thinking about: healthy boundaries matter. Companies that expect endless availability without reciprocal support aren't practicing "Performing Together"—they're practicing "Performing Alone."
The best teams—the ones that truly perform together—understand that dedication goes both ways. When employees go the extra mile, companies should recognize and reward that commitment. When companies invest in their people, employees naturally want to give their best.
That's what real teamwork looks like. That's what performing together means.