Every generation since the first “life coaches” – Aristotle, Plato, Socrates and others has lamented about the challenges of educating the next generation – yet somehow, the species manages to survive.

I believe core human values like integrity, honesty, compassion, sincerity, intelligence and some others are there in every generation: it is the job of coaches to figure out how to best coach to these values by communicating with the next generation in a way they will respond to and in a way they can relate to.

One way I am sure does not work is to sit around complaining about the faults of the next generation while ignoring the simple fact that they are different and capable of better things than the current generation.

I often hear leaders say, “there are no great leaders in the next generation”.

What they really mean is that in their opinion there is no one like them in the next generation – as every generation believes they have all the answers and that all progress will stop at the point where they have taken it.

Our job is to ensure every new generation has the opportunity to realise their full potential and to see further and achieve more than we ever dreamed possible.

Thanks,

WG

About my background……….we are the sum of our experiences.

I started out wanting to be a sports physiologist but after a few years working in the field with athletes, coaches and teams I quickly realised that unless I took a broad, generalist, integrated, multi-factorial view of sport and sports performance I would not make the impact on the industry that I hoped to.

I was also influenced by some great thinkers like Dr Dick Telford (a physiologist by training but who has the most inquisitive mind across all aspects of performance and is a practicing coach), Dr Tim Noakes (breakthrough thinker who back in 2000 suggested that the future of sports physiology was going to be increasingly dependent on integrating physiology with psychology and biomechanics), Forbes Carlile (who in the 1950s was already systematically training and testing athletes using many of the techniques still in vogue today), Bill Sweetenham (great coach but an even greater thinker, coaching philosopher and leader) and many many others.

I guess you could say I got very lucky being exposed to some brilliant people at the top of their game and my own natural creative mind filled in a few of the blanks.
I have been very very fortunate to be given the gift of opportunity to work with “giants” and hope that over time I will be able to see further…..and ultimately I want to train others to take thinking about sport and sports performance to another level.

Thanks again,

WG

Cheers