It is always incredible getting the chance to sit down and talk to sporting greatness. My time with Mark Ramprakash last week in the Burrow at Bedford Blues was just that.
He played first-class cricket for 25 years for both Middlesex and Surrey. This was a time when those two counties were arguably at the peak of their cricketing powers. As a batsmen, Ramprakash’s prodigiously heavy scoring is remarkable. Only 25 players have ever averaged over 100 runs in a first-class season; he did it twice, in successive seasons!
But when representing England, things didn’t quite go his way. He struggled for consistency and form, and under the scrutiny of a wider watching public, he couldn’t replicate club form. In this interview, Mark talks with candour about why that was the case.
He also speaks openly about his upbringing. He discusses the players who shaped his career and the moments that stood out. He also shares what he’s learned about himself as a coach. He even lifts the lid on Strictly Come Dancing!
Mark Ramprakash talks brilliantly about how you go about coaching England
If you missed out (or want another listen) here is an audio version of our whole chat for you to download. Enjoy.
Now, I know you have a lot of things on at the moment but I promise you, putting some time aside to listen to how Israel talks about rugby in New Zealand, his career, playing for the All Blacks, and a life after rugby is utterly worth it.
The whole episode is invaluable listening, whatever your interest level in rugby. But there was a particular extract that I thought would be fascinating to regular readers of this website. I’ve cut it out so you can hear it below.
Here, he is talking about post-2015 (where he had not been selected for the All Blacks’ World Cup Squad). He was out of form, struggling with the weight of expectation, and was seriously considering retiring from the sport of rugby altogether. He then dislocated his shoulder, a seemingly terrible development, but… I’ll let Izzy pick up the story:
This is an extraordinary insight into how Dagg rediscovered a love and appreciation for the sport. He readjusted his mindset to what really mattered and, in doing so, found freedom from a weight that had previously hampered him, and ended up playing his best rugby.
A great reminder to re-find your ‘why’. Remind yourself about the things that really matter. Not the things we think others find important; not the things we think we should find important; not outcomes, money or fame; but what is really important to us.
Why are you really doing what you do? Take a leaf out of Izzy’s book and find freedom in the simplicity of that reason.
Below is an edited version of our Sporting Stories Evening with Sarah Hunter. Sarah’s rugby career is unrivalled. She has played more time than anyone else for her country and is now an important coach for the indomitable Red Roses.
The evening was a brilliant example of her down-to-earth, open, honest approach to life and sport. She talked about growing up in Newcastle, the enablers who allowed her to play the sport, her transition from centre to back row, her first international, and how the women’s game has changed. We opened the chat up to the audience and some brilliant questions led us to find out about mental strength, peanut butter and jam sandwiches and even how the Rugby World Cup trophy ended up at the bottom of the team swimming pool!
Mental prep and superstitions led to an unusual revelation about food!
The whole evening was an incredible success and the podcast episode can be downloaded below.
Next month’s guest is from the world of Netball, and we could not be prouder to welcome Pamela Cookey to the Burrow. A former England Captain, a hall of fame player and now a favourite on Sky Sports’ coverage of the Super League, Pamela will share her story as to how she did what she did, and all of the peaks and troughs she experienced.
You can get your ticket via the Bedford Blues website and discounts are available for club, team and school bookings. £24 each, doors open at 7pm.
Below is an edited version of the evening we had in the Burrow at Goldington Road on Thursday 5th September with international referee Karl Dickson.
You really had to be there! But this podcast recording does give you a very good version of what went down. Listen to Karl describe his rugby-playing journey, how refereeing came about, how he has learnt and developed, and even how he deals with mistakes and the abuse he receives. It is an excellent insight into a professional operating at the top of their powers.
The recording can be played and downloaded below. Please note that this episode does contain strong language and listener discretion is advised.
If you are looking for something to whet your appetite, above is a clip of Karl talking about mistakes and how he deals with them.
Tickets for next month’s event, with another genuine great from the sporting world, are on sale now. You won’t want to miss out.
I make no apology for being a disciple of John Cleese. My formative years were spent with a set of cassette tapes, on which were the whole twelve episodes of Fawlty Towers.
I knew every beat of the show, and would often talk along with each episode. Even though it has aged a little, and the 70s language and racial slurs don’t do it any favours, it remains, for me at least, a masterpiece of comedy.
I couldn’t resist sharing the above. A brilliant example of the wordplay, timing and physical comedy that Cleese and company generated in every episode.
But I don’t really want to discuss the excellence of Fawlty Towers. I want to talk about creativity, the power of play and the need to never say no to any idea.
Here is John Cleese again, this time lecturing a group of business people. He provides some crucial insight into how you need to behave when trying to create something new.
This mindset is really useful in any career. Yes, essential to the creative arts but when tasked with trying to come up with an idea in business, sport, or every day life, finding a mindset where ‘no answer is a wrong answer’ is a really good environment to have.
But that can be difficult. And often this is dictated by the labels and status that we might ‘own’.
Identity is important. It gives us safety and security, but it can also cause issues: getting involved in things it shouldn’t, acting like an officious bouncer outside a club; ‘no’ becomes its favourite word. A bit like ‘our monkey’, we don’t want identity to interfere when we are thinking creatively.
Let me explain. For many years, I taught English at an all-boys independent school (I was Head of English for a while before stepping down to pursue other opportunities). And as such, I often needed to get creativity out of my classes. There were many times that I wanted loads of ideas up on the whiteboard and I would need my class’s help to explore options.
However, in the year groups I was teaching, the school operated a ‘streaming’ system (setting the boys into higher-ability and lower-ability classes) and it was in these particular environments where creativity was stifled. Not in the low ability sets I might add, but in the high. And it’s all to do with identity.
When you give someone a label like ‘intelligent’ or ‘clever’, it becomes part of their identity. And these identity labels, while seemingly pleasing to receive, are often prohibitive.
Once you are told that you are ‘clever’, your ‘ego-self/monkey’ does not want to do anything to risk losing that label. And the easiest way to stay ‘clever’ is to not put forth any information or statements that might not be seen as ‘clever’. Thus not risking losing your status. It is best to just not say anything.
So, my ‘high ability sets’ would sit there, shifting their glances from side to side, their lips tights shut, hoping someone else would step forward. Hardly an environment conducive to creativity. Quite the opposite.
If you think of any ‘good’ labels. The same worries apply. If you’re referred to as ‘trendy’, your immediate thought is to your next outfit. How do you stay ‘trendy’?
Same with funny, witty, charming, polite, athletic, romantic, sporty, studious, even organised!
In fact, you could suggest it is one of the drawbacks of success. Being good at something means that the future expectations (from yourself and others) will be high. You will have to maintain the identity. Here’s a well-known sporting great talking about the trouble with identity.
“I went from thinking I could be an important person by winning things to realising that winning things doesn’t make you important. I realised that, in fact, it’s better to be no-one. Because that is freedom. As soon as you have an identity, you have to work to keep it alive.”
Jonny Wilkinson’s struggles with what success brought him are well-documented. He continues to work through the issue and produces some key thinking and insight with his “I am” podcast.
Being no-one and it providing freedom is an interesting one. If you think of some of your happiest places, the times when you were most content, it is unlikely that identity was playing a part.
A woodland walk, on a sunny day, the light dappled by the trees, with the birds and wildlife creating a subtle but harmonious soundscape; hand in hand with a loved one, you walk along the woodland path, breathing in the air, soaking in the glory of nature, totally and utterly relaxed.
Sounds great doesn’t it? Just the words and your imagination can make you feel at peace and happy. Being there would be even better.
But being there would not be reliant on any identity. In fact, one of the main reasons that walk is endearing is that it has no reliance on anything the past has given you. No titles, no history, no events or achievements colouring who you are: nothing. You are just you. This is genuine freedom. Which is feels so good and why so many people are drawn to it.
To return to the idea of play and generating creativity: there is no room for identity. Labels, hierarchy, previous achievements must all be left at the door if you are to fully embrace a creative process. You cannot worry about getting things wrong, you cannot say ‘no’ to any idea and you must be free from the constraints of identity to fully develop.
And as a side note: some of your best creative moments will come to you outside of your normal set-up. Struggling to come up with an idea, find an answer or think differently? Go for a walk, run, cycle, take yourself out of your current environment and the answer could well appear.
Once you’ve practised, prepared, grafted, ingrained and worked your arse off on the training field, how can you make sure that you are in the best possible place to perform?
Defeat hurts. But the pain goes far deeper if you don’t perform at your best. If you give it everything; the very best version of your being; the pinnacle of your performance; and someone else is better, so be it. It smarts, but you can handle that discomfort.
Listen to this article here
But if you know that things could’ve been different, that you could’ve been better, that you could’ve done more, then we have real issues that linger a lot longer. How do you try to remove this possibility? How do you get into a position where you can access the best version of yourself?
The answer could lie in the world of road cycling:
Mark Cavendish articulates brilliantly the simple process of taking yourself to your best place. For him, the phrase ‘bibbidi-bobbidi-boo’ brings to mind a clip of his daughter, and that clip, in turn, reminds him of the reason why he’s here, slogging his guts out, on the unforgiving roads of the Tour de France. The clip also makes him smile and feel great inside.
Why do we need to feel great inside?
To perform at our best, we need to be free of tension. If you think of yourself at your best, there is no tension in you. Dancers, musicians, singers, comedians, speakers, sports people, teachers, business people, anyone, whatever you are doing, you cannot operate at your best if you are tense.
You have to be engaged, ready, focused and committed, but you cannot carry restrictive tension of any sort with you. That is why you see sprinters shaking themselves loose before they settle into their blocks. They need to be at their instinctive best to burst forward once the gun sounds. Tension will interfere with that freedom to respond.
I use this technique all the time when speaking in public and working in broadcasting. It wasn’t always the case, but with the help of Don Macpherson, I found that spending time putting myself into the right mindset, controlling my breathing and having a ‘happy thought’ helped everything.
When broadcasting, this process allowed me to start well, to not rush, it helped my brain to be a little calmer, and I was far more likely to be able to think clearly. Very useful when you have to respond to live sporting action when commentating!
When speaking, the added benefit is that a smile lifts the soft palate (in your head, between your nose and mouth) and creates a better vocal tone. A happy thought also tends to put a smile on your face.
When you are presenting to other people, smiling and giving them the message that you are content, tends to make them think that you are in control. A great place from which to command a room or conversation!
This great try was very early on in the game. I had to be relaxed but ready.
Why are you here?
This question is so integral to us achieving the very best we can. There is always something that spurs you on, a motivation that lies deep within you that allows you to push as hard as you can. Like many people, Mark Cavendish’s reason is his children. He needs to do them proud, to show them how good he can be, to work as hard as he can to provide them with the best possible life they can have.
Your ‘WHY?’ could be the same as Mark’s, it could be different. Of course, it can change throughout your life, as you grow and develop. The important thing is that you try and work out (every so often) exactly why you are here: what is motivation for being the best you can be?
Reminding yourself of the ‘WHY?’ is vital. Often just that thought will re-centre you, re-engage you with the task, and give us that little bump we need to push on through. It should also make you smile.
You can see from Cavendish’s reaction, his ‘WHY?’ is something that makes him smile from ear to ear. Again, this provides a levity that can promote exactly the right thought with which to operate at your best. This is why the team car says the phrase to him. To allow him to access that feeling.
Your best place
So, have a think where your ‘best place’ is. Make sure it has detail and colour, make sure it’s something that has strong memory roots, and make sure it makes you smile and feel warm inside. Capture it and take it with you to that moment just before you need to perform: take a good zen breath, take yourself to your happy place, smile, and then give it your all!
A reminder that this process does not replace any hard work or preparation that you need to do to be technically good. This is just the last layer on top.
Give yourself the best possible chance of success by putting yourself in the best possible place to perform at your best. Because as Mark Cavendish so aptly put it:
“Put ’em together and what have you got? Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo!
The other night, I watched on in admiration of England’s penalty-takers. It was an emphatic display of precision and courage. Perhaps, like you, I tried to imagine myself doing it. Dealing with the moment, the pressure, the decision, the technical skill.
I looked on, impressed by Bukayo Saka. A player who, not so long ago, had attempted and missed from the spot, and had felt the depth of the plunge beneath his error.
I wondered what must have been going through his mind and how he found the courage to return to the edge of the precipice. Seeing him possess the strength and power to be seemingly unaffected was amazing.
LIsten to this article here
Trust and Truth
Courage is on my mind a lot at the moment. I regularly speak to people who must find the courage to deal with their situation. All sorts of environments demand it. Courage will need summoning in your personal life, in your profession, in front of others and in private. But where does it come from? How do we get it? And once we have it, can we always rely on it?
I have spent a while talking to different sports people about courage. For them, courage would seem a common currency, one oft-discussed and admired. But in pondering the whys and wherefores associated with courage, I find myself returning to two well-known values that you need at your foundation: trust and truth. Without these, courage doesn’t flower.
To be courageous, you have to, at first, acknowledge the truth of the situation. You have to be honest enough to lay out everything that is in front of you; how much it might hurt, how tricky it might be, and how you might fail. There is little point misrepresenting the task you will have to take on.
This is not easy. In a way, this is your first courageous step. You need to admit that you are afraid. Courage is fear turned inside out. It is impossible to be courageous if, at first, you weren’t afraid.*
Vulnerability and weakness
There is vulnerability here: a willingness to accept weakness. It will be difficult to do but the benefit is a base point of truth. From which grows the trunk of our tree, the strength of our being. Think how vulnerable seeds are. Great towering oaks were all seeds once.
You need to accept the vulnerability and the fear. Let it into your world so that you can stand next to it for a while. Size it up and appreciate the things that make it scary to you. Accept that it might have hurt you in the past, and understand why that was the case. Take away the emotion and just look at how it did it.
All of this has to involve honesty. A truthful appraisal of the situation and your feelings towards it is the starting point. Once, and only once, we reach this point can we properly start summoning the power to make you courageous.
You see, the same power that made something frightening is going to make you courageous. You are just going to harness it differently. It’s a similar mental process but has vastly contrasting outcomes. Both are powerful, both feel real. One with the ability to limit, cower and restrict. The other will enhance, engage and enable possibility. It won’t guarantee anything, but the chances of success will be significantly improved.
Authenticity is key
Be careful of outcome bias. Courage is not defined by an outcome. Bukayo Saka was not courageous because he scored, but because he put himself, once again, in the position to score. It is not determined by an outcome, and should not be judged as such. This is why we see courage in fallen heroes; why the Victoria Cross and Medal of Honour are given out posthumously.
You can be unselfish with your courage, in an attempt to make things better for others but, in a way, courage is a selfish act. Determined by our willingness to remove fear, or the thought of failure, for ourselves. As such, courage must come from within and be authentic. It is very difficult to hide the truth about our thoughts from ourselves.
False courage, unsupported by inner belief, cracks easily and will see you crumble early. Courage must be a genuine thought propelled by absolute assurance from the self that it is the right thing to do.
Courage given to you by others does not stand up to scrutiny, either. This is the idea of courage being ‘a solo act’. We cannot be courageous just because others have been. It is ours alone and in being so, we must accept its truth, and completely align ourselves with our desire to stand up to our fear. And this is only properly achieved with the help of trust.
You need to trust in your ability. Given to you by practice, preparation, experience, visualisation and mindset. Having recognised the threat, the beating of it must be seen and believed in the mind. And this vision is often gifted to you by the experience of previous achievements.
Mindset is perhaps the most prevalent tool of those listed. Determination and resilience is seen most predominantly in those who have had no practice, preparation or experience of the situation they are in. Which brings us to…
Fortitude
Interestingly, this is how the classical virtue of ‘courage’ is referred. Fortitude requires patience and persistence, a willingness to persevere. Courage is cultivated in the time you spend practising and preparing to face the fear; in the moments you spend seeing and believing in your success, in the resilience and determination you show in pursuit.
Although carried out by you alone, being courageous can be achieved through others. Trust in those around you and gain trust from those around you. Courage can’t be given to you by other people, but they can create the environment needed for you to forge it. A team, a family, a circle of friends that also believe in the merits of your challenge and the truth of your mission can deepen your resolve.
Courage is ‘a solo act’ but is always better fashioned from a shared belief and understanding. If you can find others to face down the fear with you, it reduces the seeming size of the task and increases the joy of achievement.
TRUST THE PROCESS TO SUMMON THE COURAGE
So, most importantly, we must remember that courage is only really borne out of trust and truth. And to truly experience courage, we must at first have been afraid. If we are willing to recognise that vulnerability, be patient, persevere with practice and preparation, and surround ourselves with a group of people who can help nurture that belief within us, we will be able to become courageous.
This isn’t easy. And neither should it be. Any virtue worth attaining should always be difficult. But, like many things I have shared on this website, this doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do it.
Keep being truthful, keep trusting the process and keep pushing yourself into situations where you need to summon courage.
This is an extract from a speech I gave at a school prize giving down in Dorset last week. If you’d like me to come and speak to your school, company, club or organisation, get in touch.
A lot will be written about Jude Bellingham over the next few years. He is clearly a special footballer. But I am drawn to him for another reason: a reason from which we can all learn a little something. And it was summed up perfectly by his recent two-word answer to Gabriel Clarke’s post-match question.
