sent by Nick Grantham | 29th December 2020
Coming from a background in Olympic sport, I appreciate the importance of taking a long-term approach to performance enhancement. However, like many environments, professional sport demands results, and more often than not, the people in charge want to see the results yesterday! If we can't produce results or influence change overnight, we have somehow failed. Chasing quick fixes is tempting, and whilst you may see some initial short-term success, the changes don't tend to stick around long enough to deliver tangible long-term results. ?Furthermore, constantly switching focus from one approach to another may stifle any real progress. While I get frustrated at the seemingly glacially slow rate of progress of specific projects, I remind myself that slow progress is lasting progress.
Source: Chinese Proverb
The quote's origins may date back to Admiral Lord Nelson (yep, the fella from the Battle of Trafalgar). I think it sounds like something Spike Milligan would have said in his inimitable style. The meaning attached to the quote is also up for interpretation, but I think the most straightforward meaning is that if doing something makes you sick (annoys you, you don't like it etc.), stop doing it! If you want a situation to change then, you have to do something about it.
Source: Source name
If you ?spend any portion of your time trying to persuade, influence, or move others, then guess what, you're in sales! If you don't believe me, grab a copy of To Sell is Human by Daniel H Pink!??? We are all in sales, and the sooner we understand that, the sooner we can persuade, influence and move others. If you want an athlete to follow your training programme, you need to sell it to them. If you want your boss to give you a pay rise, you need to sell the idea to them. If you're delivering a keynote speech at a conference, you need to sell your message to the audience. The days of simply providing facts and figures have long gone (I'm not sure they even really existed). Instead, we need to establish a connection and understand the emotions involved in our daily interactions. An athlete is far more likely to engage and adhere to the colour coded periodised training plan if you've taken the time during the planning process to understand what drives and motivates them. An audience will remember the key points from your presentation if you build a narrative that connects the audience more emotionally.
Source: The Dip by Seth Godin
How can you learn anything if you think you already know the answers? I've worked in a wide range of sports and a variety of organisations, and every time I've taken on a new athlete or sport, I've tried to maintain a beginners mindset. It would be all too easy to turn up on the first day with preconceived ideas and think that I had all the answers. The trick is to maintain an open mind. If we walk into a new situation thinking that we know it all, we will be unable to improve, unable to learn new lessons and most importantly, we won't earn the trust and respect of others.
Source: The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman
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