Remembering Norman Hewitt: A Lesson in Ancestry, Purpose, and True Connection

A note to young leaders.

Recently, a good friend of mine, former All Black, Norman Hewitt, passed away too young at the age of 55 from the ravages of motor neuron disease.

I will miss him. He brought with him a deep spirituality, grounded in Māori tradition.

Norm and I met in 2017 and instantly connected. I asked him to work with the EG and Willow teams on how to foster an authentic, high-performing team culture.

Norm had many great insights on corporate culture – but I’ll leave it for others to expound on these.

Instead, I’ll tell the story of when Norm and I had dinner in Sydney in June 2019. He excused himself at 7.30pm (9.30pm NZ time) and called his kids in Wellington. “I call them every night at the same time no matter where I am in the world”, he remarked.

When I held out my hand for a goodbye handshake, he smiled, opened his arms and gave me a big hug instead.

Then he held out the palm of his hand in front of his face. “When I look into my hand, Adam, I don’t just see a hand. I see hundreds of generations before me. I see all my ancestors who had children and who loved them and sacrificed for them so I can be here tonight.”

Then he flashed that broad smile of his and affirmed: “When you connect with your ancestors in that way, you’ll never be lonely.”

Ancestry is destiny. Destiny is purpose. Purpose is abiding happiness. Vale Norman Hewitt, until we meet again, my friend.