How You Say It

Paul McGuinness has worked with, played with and coached some of the biggest names in the world through his incredible football career. Growing up with his father being heavily involved in football management and coaching, you could say that Paul was destined to make his own pathway into the game. From a young age, he can remember how his father coached him and as he developed as a player, focussed on becoming a coach after his playing days were over. Sir Alex Ferguson recognised his ability as a coach and brought him into the Manchester Utd Academy in the early 90's at a young age and he remained working there for many years. Paul has worked as Director at the Centre of Excellence, Youth Development Coach and Coach Developer at Man Utd, The FA and Leicester City and he now works as an independent Football Consultant. In this episode, Paul shares some fascinating insights into his coaching, tells some great stories and highlights the importance of using analogies, stories and language to engage performers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr. Kieran File is an associate professor in Applied Linguistics at Warwick University. In this episode we explore how language shapes relationships in professional sports teams. Kieran spent 6 weeks following and studying a professional rugby team in New Zealand to learn and write about the use of language within the context of a professional sports team environment. His book; How Language Shapes Relationships in Professional Sports Teams  was a fascinating insight into the dynamics of power and solidarity within a team environment.He also talks about his journey into sharing his passion of sport with his linguistic profession. His PHD in post match interviews and the importance of the use of language within the sports context. If you want to get in touch with him you can find out more here:https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/al/people/file/https://twitter.com/KieranFile Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John Stoszkowski describes himself as a 'reformed academic' and has spent his life studying and learning philosophy. John has over 25 published research papers covering social learning, reflection and critical thinking. As well as this, in 2019 he was awarded a Senior Fellowship from Higher Education. In 2021 John made the decision to leave academia and is now providing philosophy-driven coaching and courses to help self-determined professionals unlock their true potential. John now works in businesses and elite sport to work with people to help deepen their thinking to gain a better perspective on themselves and their situations. He has also co-written a book with previous guest of the podcast Daniel Massaro called Being Well - A journey of living well through a sporting life. Find out more about John through his website - https://johnstoszkowski.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Frank Dick has had an incredible career spanning over 40 years in the world of high performance sports coaching. Frank has worked has worked as the British Athletics Federation's Director of Coaching, High Performance Director at the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee, strategic planning consultant the England Rugby Leadership Team and personally trained gold medalist Daley Thompson.Frank is also a motivational speaker and consultant and works with sports and business organisations around the world helping to develop high performance cultures and teams. In this episode we talk about:Influences on his career Creating a learning environment Importance of preparation Journey of the olympic cycle Pre-mortems and dealing with setbacks The power of storytelling The importance of building relationships Feedback and feedforward The 'Four R's' of communication This was a fascinating and very inspiring and motivational conversation with Frank and I really appreciate him giving me the time to gain these great insights from him. I hope you enjoy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Adam Nicholls is a Professor of Psychology at Hull University who specialises in the fascinating world of Sport Psychology.He has written 4 books and plenty of papers on the subject of psychology in sport. The book we discuss in this episode is Psychology for Coaches: Theory and Practice. Adam has over 20 years of experience in studying, learning and practicing sport psychology.In this conversation we discuss:Psychology in grass root sports coachingImportance of awarenessManaging stress and high pressure situationsTrust and care in coachingThe basic psychological needsChallenge and threat mindsetsPsychology for coach and leadership developmentCommunicating in teamsI came across Adam on LinkedIn and have enjoyed his insightful posts.You can find out more about Adam on his LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/professor-adam-nicholls-77453b20b/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I caught up with former Manchester City, Crewe Alexandra, Leicester and Celtic player Neil Lennon for this interview.Neil came to England when he was a fresh-faced 16 year old lad and forged a career in football that's taken him to the English Premier League, captaining Celtic against European giants and managing in Scotland, England and Cyprus.In this conversation Neil talks about:Man City as a youthEarly influences on his careerBuilding resilience through setbacksMartin O'Neill's impact on himGlory days at Leicester CityMan management in the gameWinning mentalitiesPantomime villanMoving to CelticCaptaining and managementDealing with disappointmentCulture differences in CyprusThis was a great episode to record. A big thank you to Neil for coming to meet me and thanks to the Gleneagles Townhouse for having us. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I caught up with former International Rugby Captain turned High Performance Coach and Sports Broadcaster Rory Lawson for this great chat about communication and leadership within the sporting and corporate environments. Rory grew up in a sporting family with his Grandfather being the late great ‘Voice of Rugby’ Bill McLaren, his father playing international rugby for Scotland and his older brother also representing Scotland in Rugby Sevens. After being forced into retirement early, Rory has followed in his Papa’s footsteps and has worked in media and broadcasting covering rugby for Sky, BT Sport and ITV. But he is quick to mention, that despite many people thinking this is his ‘full-time job’, this is just one aspect of Rory’s busy life away from playing rugby. Rory now specialises in leaderships development and coaching with a speciality of working within the sports and corporate environments. In this episode, we discuss:Influence from his familyImportance of reflective practices Creating an environment to speak up Sharing data through stories Warmth and Edge Self-awareness Speaking with candour Key fundamentals to communicationIn this episode Rory tells some great stories of his time as a professional rugby player and gives great insight from his lived experiences. If Rory isn’t working in the commentary gantry at a rugby match, he’s working on stage in the hospitality lounges and tents hosting hundreds of people and interviewing former and current players. He’s become a well known and established keynote speaker and also works as an Executive Consultant for Ceannas who specialise in unlocking leadership excellence. This was a fascinating episode to record and I’d like to say a big thank you to Rory who took his time out of a busy Six Nations schedule to share his insights with us. Find Rory on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rory-lawson-01b05717/Ceannas - https://www.ceannas.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stuart Mitchell started comedy by attending a comedy course while he worked in banking. It's clear from this episode, that hard work and creating a process is how he has managed to become so successful in what is an extremely cutthroat industry. He is the longest serving panelist on the hit show 'Breaking the News' on BBC Scotland and also has a new radio series 'Stuart Mitchell Cost of Living' which will air on BBC Radio 4 on the 25th of Feb 2024. In this episode, Stuart talks all about:Getting into comedy Investing in comedy for his own development Discipline when working - recording himself, listening back and making changes Lessons from comedy in America Working on a panel show Testing new material All about the 'left turn' Challenging environments Working with commercial clients Dealing with nerves and mental strength Dealing with difficulties It was great to meet Stuart and hear his amazing insights into the world of comedy and his work that he does with CEOs and the corporate world to help create engagement with audiences by adding humour. To find out what Stuart is up to you can check him out online - https://linktr.ee/stuartmitchell Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I got the chance to have a chat with former, and accidental, footballer, CEO and now pundit Pat Nevin for a great chat about his incredible career and some of the key lessons he's learnt on the way. In this episode we talk all about: The importance of being true to himself Using weaknesses as strengths Knowing when to use, and when not to use a strong personalty Influences from managersHandling nerves (or not having them in the first place)PR and dealing with the press and media When to tell the truth, but not all of the truth Managing relationships in football Building and working on trust Managing personalities as a player and a CEO Importance of empathy, listening and self-depreciation Lessons from working in the media Inspiration from his son SimonPat has had an incredible career, in his first book he labels himself 'The Accidental Footballer' which covers his early career which took him from Clyde FC in Scotland down to the Chelsea and then Everton and playing for his national team Scotland. Despite having no real intentions of becoming a footballer, Pat had plenty of other interests like the arts, academia and listening and writing about music. Through the 70's and 80's he stuck out from the crowd as not being a 'typical footballer'. And in this episode we hear how Pat would never let that get to him and how he relied on his Glaswegian upbringing and strong personality. When he came back up to Scotland after an enjoyable period at Chelsea, Everton and Tranmere Rovers as well as being Chairman of the English PFA, Pat joined Kilmarnock, but it was the lure of being part of running a football club that took him to Motherwell FC where he would be the first person to ever hold the title as 'Player - CEO'. There are some amazing stories from this period of Pat's life in his second book - 'Football and how to survive it'. There are some incredible insights and lessons on communication and leadership in this conversation and I really enjoyed listening to Pat share them with me. How to get hold of Pat's books:The Accidental Footballer Football and how to survive it Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Billy Sloan has worked a music journalist for over 40 years. His career has taken him around the world and introduced him to stars such as David Bowie, Mick Jagger and many more. It all started for Billy on the 21st of October 1971 when he went to see The Who. From that moment on, he made his mind up that he wanted to work in the music industry. From working as a local reporter for the Bishopbriggs and Springburn Times in Glasgow, he forged his path into the world of music journalism. Billy has a book out which covers his incredible career with plenty of stories of meeting the stars. 'One Love, One Life: Stories from the Stars' is available to buy and from some of the stories that Billy shares in this episode, it will be well worth a read. In this conversation we talk about his life and experiences when it comes to interviewing musicians and other celebrities. Billy explains how to navigate through the difficulties with limited interview time, ensuring to always be prepared and doing his homework. One Love, One Life: Stories from the Stars - https://www.amazon.co.uk/One-Love-Life-Stories-Stars/dp/178530481X Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Terrance Phelan has played at the highest level in football, having played football at the top end of English Football for clubs like Leeds, Chelsea, Manchester City, Everton, Fulham and Wimbledon. As well as representing Republic of Ireland on the international stage. Towards the end of his career, Terry moved abroad to play and begin his journey in coaching at youth level. His travels took him to the USA, New Zealand and India. Terry is now Technical Director of South United Football Club and oversees the development of the coaching staff and players throughout the football club set up. With over 450 young boys and girls being coached by his staff of 20 coaches, he never seems to be away from the fantastic facilities in Bangalore, India. In this interview, I got a chance to talk to Terry about his playing career, that famous FA Cup Final victory over Liverpool in 1988, his journey from playing to coaching and educating, and his vision and ethos when it comes to coaching and developing people. It was great to get to chat with someone who's enthusiasm for the game is infectious. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this incredible interview, I dive into what it takes to fly into conflict war zones on your own and how to handle yourself through good and open communication.Richard has had an extraordinary career which has taken him into some of the most volatile parts of the world as a soldier in the famous Parachute Regiment, a soldier in a private security army and as a risk management consultant.Richard is an ex-member of the Parachute Regiment who became involved in the secretive world of the private security industry in post Gulf War II, Iraq. Since then, he has worked in Afghanistan, Syria, Somalia, South Sudan, Nigeria and many other hostile environments, continually at the tip of the spear as the intelligence services fight the Global War on Terror.To underpin his empirical experience of terrorism and insurgency, Richard has continually studied, achieving degrees from University if Leicester in Security and Risk Management and most recently a masters degree from St Andrews in Terrorism and Political Violence. His work as a management consultant in the field of Risk Management, Organisational Resilience, and Counter-Terrorism for NGOs, United Nations, commercial companies and government organisation takes him all over the world. The up-to-date information that he amasses from his substantial network of contacts and on going research, allowing him to comment accurately on one of the biggest challenges currently facing the world today: Terrorism.You can find out all about Richard on his website - https://www.richardcpendry.com/He is very active on social mediaTwitter - https://twitter.com/RichardCPendry?s=20Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/richardcpendry/?hl=enHe is about to launch his second book. You can read his first book Damascus Redemption - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Richard-C-Pendry/e/B073FNRCFP?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1688028359&sr=8-1 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chris McLaughlin has been covering sport news stories in Scotland and wider for 19 years. In this podcast episode, we here all about how he began as a youngster doing match reports and coverage for a local radio station and progressed to becoming one of the countries leading sports broadcasting correspondents. Chris talks me through his experiences in interviewing sportsmen and women and football managers. He explains how he likes to conduct an interview and offers a great insight for us all on how we can conduct efficient and affective interviews. I've listened and watch Chris covering Scottish Football for years, his voice is synonymous with the biggest breaking sports news and coverage. Chatting with him for this episode was a real treat. To keep up to speed with Chris, you can follow him on Twitter - https://twitter.com/BBCchrismclaug?s=20 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The first (and hopefully not the last) episode of the podcast that was recorded in the nice cosy back room of The Athletic Arms Diggers pub in Edinburgh.I was joined by Ambassadors to Scotland for Monkey Shoulder malt whisky blend - Jody Buchan, Hendricks Gin - Sarah Berardi and Glenfiddich whisky - Mark Thomson.This episode is a fascinating insight into what a drinks brand ambassador does and how they communicate their brand to the many different audiences. This could include whisky or gin tasting sessions with people who are familiar or unfamiliar with their drink brands, trade vendors learning about their products and people who they interact with on a daily basis.There are many different hats that a brand ambassador has to wear and this could involve being challenged by sceptical audience members, convincing people about their brand and sometimes changing people's perceptions.Mark Thomson is the only scotch whisky brand ambassador to r have won the coveted Scotch Whisky Ambassador of the Year title 3 times. His wealth of knowledge and incredible story telling skills really show why he has been as successful as he is.This is not a conversation about gin and whisky, this is a conversation about how people in this industry communicate.To keep up to speed with everything Sarah, Mark and Jody are up to then check them out on their Instagrams -Mark Thomson - @singlemaltmarkSarah Berardi - @sarahkberardiJody Buchan - @_the_moto_monkeyAll of these ambassadors work for brands owned by the famous whisky family - William Grant & Sons. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael Bochel is a Scottish Sports Marketing Consultant who has worked with huge sports organisations such as the Scottish Football Association and The Open. In this episode, we delve into Michael's experience working at the Scottish Football Association and his role in capturing the attention of an entire nation of during the Scotland National Team's journey through the trials and triumphs of World Cup and European Championship qualification campaigns. Through the highs and lows of these campaigns, someone takes up the vital task of crafting engaging digital content that resonates with the supporters.Michael discusses the importance of creativity and being bold to try new things to keep an audience happy. And this was especially clear during the COVID-19 pandemic. We talked about the challenges and successes for marketers and organisations during that time when it came to communicating with fans, customers and communities. Michael firmly believes that knowing and truly understanding your audience is the crucial factor for successful engagement across various social media channels.There are loads of great insights in this episodes and I really enjoyed recording it. I've taken plenty of lessons from this episode myself and I hope there's something in this that can help you out too. If you want to find Michael then you can check him out on Twitter - https://twitter.com/MichaelBochel?s=20You can also see his personal website - https://www.michaelbochel.co.uk/And his Sports Marketing Newsletter - https://www.michaelbochel.co.uk/newsletter Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Raymond Mearns is a professional Scottish comedian and actor and has been telling jokes and stories on the stage in front of audiences for over 20 years. In this episode, I wanted to gain an insight into what it takes to be stand up comedian. We talk all about how he prepares and creates material, how he deals with set backs, building a rapport with an audience and his experience in working with film director Ken Loach. There is a lot of strong language and adult themes in this episode.Raymond is preparing for the Edinburgh Festival and also does walking tours in Edinburgh 2 days a week. If you would like to find out more about any of his up and coming gigs, book a walking tour or reach out to him then you can find all of this information on his website - http://raymondmearns.co.uk/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Steven Lawther has worked in communications since he left university. Having mainly worked in politics in Scotland and Northern Ireland, Steven explains just how important it is to fully understand the message you are wanting to convey. With a huge wealth of experience in setting up and working with focus groups, Steven talks about the process required to test messages and listen to the intended audience to really hone in on the detail of the ad campaigns and messages he has been part of creating. Steven talks through his experiences in working in polarised political environments and how valuable it is to listen to all sides and to gain that insight into how people are thinking and feeling before you speak to them. We talk all about the value and power tone and language can have as well as easy mistakes we can all fall into when trying to communicate with a large and diverse audience. If you want to contact Steven then you can find his details through his website - https://redcircle.org.uk/index.php Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this interview I caught up with radio broadcasting royalty, Richard Park. Richard started his career on a ship off the coast of West Scotland broadcasting on pirate radio. From there he would become one of the biggest names in the world of radio broadcasting. His career in broadcasting is quite incredible; pirate radio, BBC Radio 1, he helped set up and became Head of Music and Entertainment at Radio Clyde which was the 3rd commercial radio station in the UK at the time, programme director of Capital Radio and Magic Radio and then Global Radio. As well as broadcasting, Richard also signed Craig David under his record label and was also well known for his appearances on the popular BBC tv show Fame Academy. It was incredible to be able to discuss his career and also gain some extremely valuable insights in broadcasting, managing and communication. In all honesty, there was just too much to cram into such a short period of time. I'm hoping that we will be able to catch up for a second interview to hear a few more incredible stories and insights. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

David Martindale has had a unique life journey, which has taken him from organised crime and serving time in prison to being part of building a football club up to the Scottish Premier League. It is safe to say that his experiences have been diverse.In this episode, we delve into David's intuitive understanding of people and his ability to communicate effectively with them. His experience in gang culture, prison, and football environments has taught him that people respond differently to various communication styles. David explains how he adapts his communication approach to suit different individuals and situations.During the interview, David shares his experience of dealing with how others perceive him outside of the football club. Coming from a prison background to working at Livingston presented him with several challenges in changing people's perceptions of him. He also addresses the perception that he is an 'old school' manager and how he has integrated traditional values of hard work with modern coaching methods for professional footballers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Danny Massaro has coached at the top of elite sport for years. What makes him such a good coach? His ability to get into the minds of athletes and performers to get the very best out of them. I met Danny through the Think Space Academy and have enjoyed listening to the Think Space Podcast that he co-hosts with John Stoszkowski. In this episode Danny talks about how he took elements of NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) into coaching to get into the minds of the people he was coaching. His established career in the world of squash coaching has seen him coach his wife Laura to the world number 1 spot. We talk about his beginnings into the world of sports coaching, how he established himself by focusing on the mental side of coaching and what he thinks makes good communicators when coaching at the top level. Think Space Academy - https://thinkspace.academy/Think Space Podcast - https://open.spotify.com/show/5Yegql81TQbqoNqIjjnYQP?si=17c465edf4ec431a Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stephen had no intention on getting into academia and lecturing at a university when he was a youngster growing up. But a turn in events led him on a completely new journey that took him from the working environment into teaching, learning and development. He is now a lecturer for the Edinburgh Napier Business School and specialises in Degrees and Masters level qualifications in Digital Business and Operations Management. Stephen was able to combine his new passion of lecturing in the Edinburgh Napier Business School with one of his first loves - football. He wrote his doctoral thesis Reframing Scottish Football: Strategy and a short term nature of the football industry. From there he began writing the Applied Football Management programme and works with footballers to prepare them for career in football in management or Director of Football roles. I wanted to speak to Stephen because he's been in the working environment and moved into education and academia. He's teaching a subject to young people that he has lived and experienced. On a daily basis he communicates with young people to equip them with the skills they need to further their careers. He has been recognised through awards for his lectures and styles and is a very interesting and engaging person. I hope you enjoy listening to this first episode of the How You Say It podcast as much as I enjoyed recording it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.