Friction, saying what you see, deafening silence and the importance of understanding

sent by Nick Grantham | 7th December 2021

"It's hard to win if your attitude adds friction to every interpersonal experience."

James Clear

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There was a brief period in my career where I added friction to every interaction. It took up a lot of my energy and didn't help the support team I was a member of to move forward. High-performance sport can be a challenging environment to work in at the very best of times. Being pleasant and having a decent attitude will get you much further along your career pathway than being a dick!

Source: James Clear Newsletter 04.11.21 by James Clear


"Say what you see, what you believe and what you think...but not everything you are told."

Gerald Sinstadt

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Watch out for the number one bull sh*t guy (fans of Tik Tok and Instagram Reels will know who I'm talking about). Just because you've been told something, doesn't mean it's true. Source: Gerald Sinstadt

Source: Gerald Sinstadt


"The biggest concern for any organisation should be when their most passionate people become quiet."

Tim McClure

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Performance sport is an environment packed with passionate people, from the athletes and coaches to the support staff. Motivation typically runs high across all groups, which is why the alarm bells start to ring when naturally motivated individuals 'become quiet'. Jonathan Mills explains in his excellent article that when it all goes quiet, one or more of the following issues are experienced; breach of trust, lack of leadership consistency, being overlooked, dishonesty, poor communication, leadership selfishness and lack of vision. So lookout for the deafening silence.

Source: When Your Most Motivated Employees Become Quiet by Jonathan Mills


"Any fool can know. The point is to understand."

Albert Einstein

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When asked to critique another coach's training programme or session, I'm often only given a copy of the programme on excel or session plan. My response is always a firm "no". Anyone can look at a programme and pick holes in it. To provide any valuable insights into the programme, I first need to understand the thought process that has gone into its design. Don't offer up solutions unless you've taken the time to understand the problem.

Source: Albert Einstein


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