I am not a talent scout, and neither am I a sports analyst. What I am is a specialist in career transition and when an article was brought to my attention by my business partner, Peter, I took notice. That article was the one which appeared in the Times Tuesday 21 August, by Oliver Kay profiling Micah Richards the Man City prodigy who learnt his football skills the Brazilian way.
The article was of interest to me because of the mere mention that what Richards achieves physically is technically a mystery, as some scientists would have you think that he is too short and too heavy to do what he does on the football field. Well, Richards is proving one that he is defying what scientists would have you think, and secondly he is also proving that to become a rising star in the world of professional football you have to be your own person. There are always different strategies to achieve your targets and goals. Sometimes that little bit of 'X' factor added to discipline, passion and hard work can make all the difference.
We talk often of rising stars and it will be interesting to see how Micah Richards cultivates his early success into a long and prosperous career.
Thursday, 30 August 2007
Wednesday, 22 August 2007
Smooth Transitions
Many of you might not realise it, but it is actually summer in the UK! It is usually a great time to watch some exhilarating sport, but if Wimbledon and the latest Cricket Test Match are anything to go by sports fans are going to have to suffer for their passion.
There was however some sun a few weekends ago, and I was able to enjoy watching the the London Triathlon earlier in the month. Now, what a sport triathlon is, 3 gruelling events one after the other with barely much time to pause between each one. For those who are not up to speed with triathlon, the swim is first, followed by the cycle then after all of that the competitors have to hop off their bikes and run to the finish line. Whilst people were busy watching the thousands of competitors swimming, cycling and running around East London, I was amazed at how different competitors made such quick transitions between each discipline. After the swim you could see all the bikes lined up with helmets and sometimes shoes attached placed in strategic positions so that the athletes could get shoes and helmets on with as little fuss as possible. Some of course are past masters and could seemingly gets shoes, helmet and bike on the move in what seemed like one swift motion - amazing! And of course in a triathlon the transition phases can save you valuable time and also extend or close down a gap between competitors.
Watching all of these athletes go through this process certainly made me think about how transition in our lives can be rough or smooth depending on how we handle them, but if we want them to go smoothly it certainly helps if we; 1) Plan, 2) Prepare, 3) Practice and apply 4) Positive Action.
How many of us look at changes in our lives, or careers like that and follow these phases?
We are all going to experience different types of transitions in our careers; apparently the latest statistics state that we will all have at least 3 different careers in our working lives, and some of those important career transitions are going to be life changing, so like the triathlete who makes sure that their transitions run smoothly in their competitive lives it is interesting to see that not all athletes pay so much attention to such transitions in their career. We have seen many a budding star falter just as their star is rising, likewise we have seem many a professional athlete fall from grace at the very top and then there are others who have floundered when their sporting careers have come to a gracious end.
Q. What makes an athlete, or in fact anyone, make a smooth transition from one phase of their career to another?
A. I think that it has something to do with those 4P's, don't you?
There was however some sun a few weekends ago, and I was able to enjoy watching the the London Triathlon earlier in the month. Now, what a sport triathlon is, 3 gruelling events one after the other with barely much time to pause between each one. For those who are not up to speed with triathlon, the swim is first, followed by the cycle then after all of that the competitors have to hop off their bikes and run to the finish line. Whilst people were busy watching the thousands of competitors swimming, cycling and running around East London, I was amazed at how different competitors made such quick transitions between each discipline. After the swim you could see all the bikes lined up with helmets and sometimes shoes attached placed in strategic positions so that the athletes could get shoes and helmets on with as little fuss as possible. Some of course are past masters and could seemingly gets shoes, helmet and bike on the move in what seemed like one swift motion - amazing! And of course in a triathlon the transition phases can save you valuable time and also extend or close down a gap between competitors.
Watching all of these athletes go through this process certainly made me think about how transition in our lives can be rough or smooth depending on how we handle them, but if we want them to go smoothly it certainly helps if we; 1) Plan, 2) Prepare, 3) Practice and apply 4) Positive Action.
How many of us look at changes in our lives, or careers like that and follow these phases?
We are all going to experience different types of transitions in our careers; apparently the latest statistics state that we will all have at least 3 different careers in our working lives, and some of those important career transitions are going to be life changing, so like the triathlete who makes sure that their transitions run smoothly in their competitive lives it is interesting to see that not all athletes pay so much attention to such transitions in their career. We have seen many a budding star falter just as their star is rising, likewise we have seem many a professional athlete fall from grace at the very top and then there are others who have floundered when their sporting careers have come to a gracious end.
Q. What makes an athlete, or in fact anyone, make a smooth transition from one phase of their career to another?
A. I think that it has something to do with those 4P's, don't you?
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