The Great Coaches: On Connection

Connection: The Biggest Predictor of Success

Today’s podcast is a special one, focusing on the topic of ‘Connection’.

In order to really dive deep into the topic and explore the impact that it can have on team performance, I used audio clips taken from 10 of the 214 interviews that we have held with Great Coaches for this podcast.

These audio clips, and the voices of the coaches, compliment and amplify each other in such a way that by the end of the episode I hope you’ll have a few good new ideas on how to improve the connection within your own sporting, work, or community groups.

It’s always great to create episodes like this, revisiting and re-examining some of the fantastic insights and advice that our guests provide during interviews. I hope you’ll enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed making it — as always, make sure to let me know your thoughts!

Listen Now: Apple | Spotify

The key questions raised from today’s episode:

• What are you doing when you are apart, to prepare for the times when you will come together?

• What can you do to be more authentic with each other?

• How can you share more information about yourselves with each other in order to deepen understanding of what drives each person?

• How can you use daily, small moments to stay connected?

• What more could you do to understand the linkages between the people who support you?

Find all of our past interviews with some of sport’s most successful coaches and leaders on our website.

How Emotions Impact Relationships

In each episode of our newsletter, we look at a different lesson that you can take and use within your own leadership.

This week’s podcast is looking at the topic of ‘Connection’, and how leaders can strengthen relationships within their groups and teams.

It can take a while to establish meaningful connections and strong relationships with others; unfortunately, those connections can be damaged far more quickly. In the clip below, past podcast guest Markus Weise speaks about how his emotional response — to ignore his team for two days because they had performed poorly at a highly-significant time — had a negative impact on his relationship with his players.

When we allow our emotions to dictate our responses, or when we shut down avenues of communication, we can make lasting, negative impacts on relationships, connections, and environments. The people around us can feel unappreciated, uncertain, and hurt, and the result can be negative self-talk, unwelcoming environments, and poor performance.

Now is a great time to consider your own leadership and actions. Is there anything that you do that could be negatively impacting the connections that you actually wish to build or strengthen?

We combine videos of the Great Coaches that we have interviewed with our experience as corporate and sporting leaders in order to bring insight, energy, and ideas to your teams.

Leader, Manager, Coach

Many of you will be familiar with Sir Gareth Southgate, who was Manager of the England national football (soccer) team until 2024. Gareth regularly appears on podcasts, in articles, and on social media sharing his insights into both leadership and the world of football, and recently he shared an interesting post on LinkedIn that caught my eye.

In this short piece, Gareth examines the differences between a ‘leader’, a ‘manager’, and a ‘coach’. In his sport, these words can often be used interchangeably (particularly the terms ‘Manager’ and ‘Head Coach’), but Gareth assigns different values to them, writing in the context of several big-name teams parting ways with their own managers in recent weeks.

A very interesting but quick read that should get you thinking.

Build Connection With MberX

One of the easiest ways to build connection in your team is through a footy tipping competition.

MberX lets workplaces run private tipping comps that get everyone involved, not just footy fanatics. It’s free, easy to set up, and gives teams something to talk about on a Monday morning.

MberX is built by fans and made for today.

If you are looking for a simple way to bring your team together, sign-up at mberx.com — download the app, and set up a workplace tipping comp today.

Elevated Leadership

If you’re looking to improve your own leadership skills, get in touch with us at elevatedleadership.com.au 

Our team of executive coaches — including The Great Coaches host, Paul Barnett — bring a wealth of experience as international CEOs who have faced the challenge of stepping forward in uncertain moments.