Nicole Pratt: Advice For Young Professionals

Welcome to another copy of the Great Coaches: Leadership & Life newsletter.

This has been a busy week, with a lot going on around the world. It has also been a busy week for sports fans: the UEFA Champions League, the WTA Finals, and the final game of the 2024 MLB World Series are just a few of the sporting events that have been dominating sports headlines over the past seven days.

If you’re looking for something to help you unwind over the weekend, then you’ll want to listen to our latest podcast episode with the fantastic Nicole Pratt, who reminds us all to “take time out from yourself”. Find out more about Nicole and our interview below!

Taking Time Out From Yourself With Nicole Pratt

When you first started your career - whether that be in sports, business, or something else entirely - what advice do you wish you had received?

As a successful former tennis player who then transitioned into coaching both players and coaches, Nicole Pratt has had a lot of first-hand experience of the difficulties, challenges and uncertainties that come with the start of a professional playing career.

For this week’s podcast episode we asked Nicole about some of the advice that she would give to young professional players, but a lot of what she told us is just as applicable to the corporate world as it is to the world of sports.

Three of the great tips that she shared during the interview which I think will most resonate with those of you at the start of your leadership journeys are:

• Be your own CEO

• Take control of decisions that will influence your performance

• Don’t be afraid to focus on self-investment rather than the lure of things like cars

I’d be interested to know if, after listening to the explanations behind these points, those of you with a bit more career experience would have anything to add to them.

Of course, Nicole also shared a number of the things that she has learned during her own coaching career. One of those things was the importance of having belief in the people you work with, and how demonstrating that belief really ignites commitment and energy in your athletes and the people you coach or lead.

We also spent some time speaking about one of our listeners’ favourite topics - team culture - and how Nicole attempts to utilise the ‘power of belonging’ through the creation of fun environments designed to encourage active involvement. Nicole also brought up how those established environments can play a vital role in discouraging athletes from ‘dropping out’ when the reality of the development ceiling hits later on in their playing career.

Whether you’re an established leader looking for ways to better encourage the people you work with or perhaps someone just starting out in your own career, there’s a lot of fantastic content in this week’s podcast that I think will resonate with you.

If you put any of Nicole’s advice or tips into practice, then please do let me know — I’d love to hear how it goes.

Listen to the episode now: Apple | Spotify 

This Week’s Guest

Nicole Pratt

Nicole Pratt is a former professional tennis player from Queensland, Australia.

During her playing career, Nicole reached a career high ranking of #35 and won 4 ITF singles finals. In doubled play she reached a doubles ranking high of #18, captured nine WTA doubles titles, and won an additional nine ITF doubles titles. In early 2001, she became Australia’s No. 1 ranked female player.

Retiring as a player in 2008, Nicole then transitioned to coaching with the Australian Institute of Sport, where she worked with players and coaches who were transitioning onto the WTA tour. Nicole has worked with a number of great players - including Daria Saville, Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua - and is presently the Women’s Coach Lead and National Teams Coach at Tennis Australia.

On The Topic Of Belonging…

As I mentioned above, one of the topics that Nicole Pratt covers in this week’s podcast episode is how she uses the ‘power of belonging’ to build a culture that encourages participation from players.

The desire to belong is part of a larger, motivational human need to establish positive social bonds and interpersonal relationships. Being part of a group or social network in which we can receive support is thought to help manage stress, encourage resilience, and improve overall mental health, so it’s definitely something to be encouraged in both sports and work, as well as our personal lives.

By encouraging your team to establish strong bonds and fostering a sense of belonging, you can also promote ownership, improved performance, and commitment — all things and skills that athletes or team members operating within a successful team culture will exhibit and develop.

In this clip from our past interview with field hockey coach Barry Dancer, he speaks about how the need for belonging plays an important role in his own coaching style and team culture.

Want to explore this topic further? Explore our archive of topic-based insights and bundles on our website with a Great Coaches Membership.

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Preparing For Success With The Penrith Panthers

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Australian National Rugby League, the Penrith Panthers are the current NRL Premiers with an unprecedented four consecutive title wins under their belt.

As any leader will tell you, securing your first success or win is a challenge, but maintaining a highly-successful streak and living up to the associated high expectations is also just as (if not even more) difficult. No player or coach wants to play a role in ending a string of consecutive title wins, meaning increased stress levels and an on-going pressure to not only meet existing standards, but also to excel them.

UNDISPUTED is a three-part documentary recently released on the Panthers’ Youtube page, following the team as they work to make history with another NRL Premiership win. The series gives us a great glimpse at what goes on behind-the-scenes, delving into the challenges and successes experienced by the team.

Here’s episode one of the series — I think quite a few of you will enjoy it.

Elevate Your Leadership

We believe that there’s no algorithm for leadership, but there are ways to elevate your own unique leadership style.

We help emerging leaders who cannot afford coaching through our pro-bono work.

If you’d like to know more about our services and how we can help you or an aspiring leader you know, get in touch today at [email protected] 

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