Podcast: The High Performance
Published Date:
Mon, 13 Jul 2020 05:00:00 GMT
Duration:
51:10
Explicit:
False
Guests:
MP3 Audio:
Please note that the summary is generated based on the transcript and may not capture all the nuances or details discussed in the podcast episode.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer scored 126 goals in 366 appearances for Manchester United, but that doesn’t go nearly far enough in explaining his legacy at Old Trafford.
On the field, the Norwegian became an embodiment of the Reds’ never-say-die spirit in their most successful decade, often scoring late goals when points or trophies looked to have been lost. The most special of all being the Champions League final in 1999 cementing his place in Man Utd folklore.
Since retiring as a player, Ole returned to his homeland in 2011 and spent three years with Molde before taking over at then Premier League side Cardiff City.
In December 2018, Ole received a call he just could not turn down - Manchester United. He was made permanent manager in March 2019 until 2021.
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## **Navigating the Journey to Success: Lessons from Manchester United's Manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer**
### **Introduction**
In this captivating episode of the High Performance Podcast, host Jay Comfrey sits down with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the manager of one of the most renowned football clubs in the world, Manchester United. Their conversation delves into the secrets behind Solskjaer's success as a player and manager, exploring the lessons he's learned throughout his illustrious career.
### **Key Insights**
#### **1. Cultivating a Winning Mindset:**
- **Embracing a Quiet Confidence:** Solskjaer emphasizes the significance of maintaining a quietly confident mindset, believing in one's abilities while remaining humble enough to learn and improve.
- **Taking Personal Responsibility:** Solskjaer stresses the importance of accepting personal responsibility for one's performance, acknowledging that excuses only hinder progress.
- **Visualizing Success:** He shares his practice of visualizing successful outcomes, believing that imagining positive results enhances the likelihood of achieving them.
#### **2. Building a High-Performance Culture:**
- **Promoting Respect and Loyalty:** Solskjaer highlights the importance of fostering a culture of respect and loyalty within the team, emphasizing that players should put the team's success before their own individual interests.
- **Encouraging a Desire to Learn:** He emphasizes the need for players to be open to learning and improving, embracing feedback and implementing new strategies to enhance their performance.
- **Identifying and Nurturing Leaders:** Solskjaer discusses the significance of identifying and developing leaders within the team, recognizing players who possess the qualities to inspire and motivate their teammates.
#### **3. Turning Good Players into Winners:**
- **Testing Players' Character:** Solskjaer reveals that he sometimes deliberately referees training sessions poorly to observe how players react under pressure, assessing their emotional control and resilience.
- **Demanding Excellence:** He expects players to perform at their best even in challenging situations, instilling a never-say-die attitude and a desire to win in every game.
- **Creating a Supportive Environment:** Solskjaer emphasizes the importance of creating a supportive environment where players feel comfortable taking risks and expressing themselves, fostering a culture of creativity and innovation.
#### **4. Learning from Setbacks:**
- **Embracing Failure as a Learning Opportunity:** Solskjaer reflects on his experience as manager of Cardiff City, acknowledging that it was a challenging period but valuable in terms of learning and personal growth.
- **Adapting Management Style:** He admits to changing his management approach over time, becoming more relaxed and focused on building relationships with players, recognizing the evolving needs of modern athletes.
- **Remaining Authentic:** Solskjaer emphasizes the importance of staying true to oneself as a manager, avoiding the temptation to adopt a persona that doesn't align with one's values and beliefs.
### **Conclusion**
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's journey as a player and manager is a testament to the power of perseverance, self-belief, and the ability to learn from both successes and failures. His insights into building a high-performance culture, identifying and developing leaders, and creating a supportive environment offer valuable lessons for anyone aspiring to achieve success in their chosen field.
# **Navigating the Pressures of Managing Manchester United: Insights from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer**
## **Introduction:**
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, a name synonymous with Manchester United's glorious past, returned to the club in 2018, this time as manager, carrying the hopes and expectations of millions of fans. In this insightful podcast episode, Solskjaer delves into the challenges, triumphs, and philosophies that have shaped his managerial journey at Manchester United.
## **Key Points:**
1. **Mentorship and Learning:**
- Solskjaer emphasizes the invaluable mentorship he received from Warren Joyce and Sir Alex Ferguson during his playing career. He credits them for shaping his tactical understanding and instilling in him the importance of organizing a team effectively.
2. **Coping with Pressure:**
- When asked about handling the sudden surge of expectations upon becoming Manchester United manager, Solskjaer reveals his ability to compartmentalize and focus on his strengths. He credits his experience as a player under Sir Alex Ferguson for teaching him to navigate the intense media scrutiny and external pressure.
3. **Creating a Supportive Environment:**
- Solskjaer highlights the significance of fostering a positive and challenging environment for his players. He believes in creating a culture where players enjoy coming to work each day and are motivated to improve. He emphasizes the importance of balancing discipline with encouragement to bring out the best in his team.
4. **Dealing with Outside Scrutiny:**
- Solskjaer acknowledges the challenges players face in dealing with negative media attention and its impact on their mental well-being and performance. He emphasizes the need for open and honest conversations with players to help them manage criticism and focus on their goals.
5. **Seeking Feedback and Support:**
- Solskjaer reveals that he values feedback from trusted individuals, including Sir Alex Ferguson and club officials. He appreciates their support during difficult times and acknowledges the importance of having a plan and managing expectations with the club's hierarchy.
6. **The Importance of Patience:**
- Solskjaer stresses the need for patience in achieving sustained success. He believes in a gradual process of development and improvement, rather than expecting immediate results. He emphasizes the importance of setting realistic goals and working towards them consistently.
7. **Non-negotiable Behaviors:**
- Solskjaer identifies three non-negotiable behaviors that he expects from his players: trust, loyalty, and commitment to the team. He believes that these values are essential for creating a cohesive and successful unit. He emphasizes the importance of accountability and ensuring that players hold each other responsible for their actions.
8. **Advice for Young Players:**
- Solskjaer offers valuable advice to young players aspiring to reach the highest levels of football. He encourages them to work harder than ever before, learn continuously, and never stop developing their skills. He emphasizes the importance of humility, hard work, and a willingness to learn from experienced players and coaches.
9. **The Essence of a Manchester United Player:**
- Solskjaer emphasizes that Manchester United players should possess not only exceptional talent but also a strong work ethic and a deep understanding of the club's history and values. He believes that players who embody these qualities will always be appreciated by the fans.
10. **Finding a Balance:**
- Solskjaer acknowledges the need to strike a balance between individual brilliance and team cohesion. He encourages his players to express themselves and showcase their unique talents while simultaneously working for the collective success of the team. He believes that this delicate balance is crucial for achieving sustained success.
11. **Embracing Failure:**
- Solskjaer reveals his positive outlook on failure, viewing it as an opportunity for growth and learning. He encourages his players to learn from their mistakes and use them as motivation to improve. He believes that a healthy relationship with failure is essential for personal and team development.
12. **Legacy and Personal Fulfillment:**
- Solskjaer expresses his desire to leave a positive legacy at Manchester United but emphasizes that his primary focus is on making decisions that he believes are in the best interest of the club. He finds fulfillment in knowing that he has been true to his values and made decisions with the club's best interests at heart.
## **Conclusion:**
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's insights into his managerial journey at Manchester United provide a valuable perspective on the challenges, pressures, and philosophies that shape the world of elite football. His emphasis on creating a positive and supportive environment, fostering non-negotiable behaviors, and embracing failure offers valuable lessons for aspiring leaders in any field. Solskjaer's dedication to the club's values and his commitment to developing a winning team while maintaining a strong connection with the fans make him a respected and admired figure in the world of football.
# Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: Manchester United's Never-Say-Die Spirit
**Introduction:**
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, renowned for his 126 goals in 366 appearances for Manchester United, left an indelible mark on the club's legacy. Beyond his impressive goal-scoring record, he personified the team's unwavering spirit, epitomized by his knack for scoring crucial late goals that salvaged points or secured trophies. His most iconic moment came in the 1999 Champions League final, solidifying his place in Manchester United folklore.
**Post-Playing Career:**
Following his retirement as a player, Solskjaer returned to his homeland in 2011, spending three years as manager of Molde before taking the reins at Cardiff City in the Premier League. In December 2018, he received a call from Manchester United, an opportunity he couldn't resist. He was appointed interim manager, and his impressive performance led to his permanent appointment in March 2019, a role he held until 2021.
**High-Performance Mindset:**
The High-Performance Podcast, hosted by Damon and featuring Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, delves into the mindset and strategies that have shaped Solskjaer's successful career. The podcast aims to inspire and motivate listeners, encouraging them to adopt a high-performance mindset in their own lives.
**Community Engagement:**
The podcast seeks to foster a community of high-performance thinkers, inviting listeners to engage in conversations and share their thoughts and questions. The use of the hashtag #highperformancepodcast across social media platforms facilitates this interaction, allowing listeners to connect with the podcast and with each other.
**Upcoming Episode:**
The next episode of the podcast will feature Damon and Solskjaer answering questions from listeners, providing insights into Solskjaer's philosophy, leadership style, and experiences at Manchester United. Listeners are encouraged to send their questions and comments using the hashtag #highperformancepodcast.
**Conclusion:**
The High-Performance Podcast, featuring Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, offers a unique opportunity for listeners to learn from a legendary footballer and manager. Through engaging conversations and insightful discussions, the podcast aims to inspire and empower individuals to adopt a high-performance mindset, both personally and professionally.
[00:00.000 -> 00:07.000] Hi there, welcome along to series 2 episode 1 of the High Performance Podcast.
[00:07.000 -> 00:09.840] It is so good to be back.
[00:09.840 -> 00:15.080] Damien, myself, everyone involved in the podcast can't quite believe the impact we had with
[00:15.080 -> 00:17.080] the first series.
[00:17.080 -> 00:21.080] Thank you so much for all the messages, for all the downloads, for all the subscribes
[00:21.080 -> 00:24.160] right across the world and here we go again.
[00:24.160 -> 00:27.040] I really want to make this even more of a community
[00:27.040 -> 00:30.680] I want to make it a conversation about high performance and to do that
[00:30.680 -> 00:34.540] I need you so as you're listening at the end of the episode
[00:34.800 -> 00:38.840] At any time when you're listening to this series or the previous first series
[00:38.960 -> 00:47.200] I'd love you to start a conversation on social media. Use the hashtag highperformancepodcast, send me a message,
[00:47.200 -> 00:52.960] get in touch and what we're also planning to do not after this episode but after every subsequent
[00:52.960 -> 00:58.400] episode Damien and I are just going to have a chat about your comments and your thoughts so
[00:58.400 -> 01:08.000] please do get in touch. Anyway here we go then episode, series 2 and we have got the manager of one of the biggest football clubs in the world.
[01:08.000 -> 01:18.000] This is a family, Man United, we've always been a family and Sir Alex, the way he's created this atmosphere in this training ground, I think is unique.
[01:18.000 -> 01:25.160] I'm really looking forward to this. The conversation with Oli, Damien and myself was one that I will never forget. It was fantastic.
[01:25.160 -> 01:26.840] Right, here we go then.
[01:26.840 -> 01:29.840] Once again, thank you so much for getting involved, for listening to the episode.
[01:29.840 -> 01:36.440] It's time to get going as we begin the second series of the High Performance Podcast.
[01:36.440 -> 01:39.240] Hey, I'm Ryan Reynolds.
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[03:49.720 -> 03:51.160] Hi there, I'm Jay Comfrey,
[03:51.160 -> 03:52.960] and you're listening to High Performance,
[03:52.960 -> 03:54.520] the podcast that delves into the minds
[03:54.520 -> 03:57.160] of some of the most successful athletes, visionaries,
[03:57.160 -> 03:59.320] entrepreneurs and artists on the planet,
[03:59.320 -> 04:01.960] and aims to unlock the very secrets to their success.
[04:01.960 -> 04:03.920] As always, Damien Hughes is alongside me,
[04:03.920 -> 04:08.080] and Damien, you're going to be joining me in planet and aims to unlock the very secrets to their success. As always Damien Hughes is
[04:08.080 -> 04:11.960] alongside me and Damien we're lucky enough to be at the place that has
[04:11.960 -> 04:16.640] cultivated and improved the players that you've cheered as a Manchester United fan
[04:16.640 -> 04:19.680] over the years. I think this is an episode that you're going to enjoy.
[04:19.680 -> 04:23.800] Oh yeah, I've been looking forward to this for a long time. We're in the home
[04:23.800 -> 04:28.880] of champions so I'm looking forward to finding out a little bit more about what makes a champion.
[04:28.880 -> 04:31.640] Brilliant, I wish I could say the same about Norwich City, but there you go.
[04:31.640 -> 04:35.000] Yeah, today we are at the Manchester United training ground Carrington,
[04:35.000 -> 04:40.000] talking to a man who, as I'm sure you know, scored one of Manchester United's most famous ever goals.
[04:40.000 -> 04:44.560] He now leads them as a manager, but what did he learn here as a player under Sir Alex Ferguson?
[04:44.560 -> 04:45.920] What are the good things that have happened
[04:45.920 -> 04:47.840] in his career that he's learned from,
[04:47.840 -> 04:49.040] and the bad as well?
[04:49.040 -> 04:50.560] How does he take individuals
[04:50.560 -> 04:52.480] and lead them to collective glory,
[04:52.480 -> 04:54.840] and what can you, listening to this podcast,
[04:54.840 -> 04:58.360] learn from him to live a more high-performance life?
[04:58.360 -> 05:00.760] Welcome to the podcast, Oli Gunnars Solskjaer.
[05:00.760 -> 05:03.240] Thank you very much, pleasure to be here.
[05:03.240 -> 05:05.960] Listened to you before, so might as well join in.
[05:05.960 -> 05:08.360] Good, so you've listened to the pod. What do you think?
[05:08.360 -> 05:14.440] Well I like to listen to champions. I like to listen and know a little bit more about
[05:14.440 -> 05:28.920] what makes winners tick, of course. And obviously being a Man United manager now, a previous player. I've always tried to make the most of my talents
[05:28.920 -> 05:34.440] and this is an opportunity for me to learn off some good ones.
[05:34.440 -> 05:38.440] And I suppose it also leads to the fact that despite everything you've achieved as a player
[05:38.440 -> 05:41.600] and as a manager and the fact that you're now in charge of one of the biggest clubs
[05:41.600 -> 05:46.080] in the world, you're someone that thinks you can still keep learning, still keep improving.
[05:46.080 -> 05:50.920] Yeah, I think so. I think everyone can learn all the time and that's what I learned when
[05:50.920 -> 05:58.680] I came here as a player as well. That players like David Beckham, Roy Keane, Paul Scholes,
[05:58.680 -> 06:06.000] they always wanted to improve and be better. The day you think you're the real deal, I think that's when you go downwards.
[06:06.000 -> 06:12.400] And I'm always trying to improve myself and the club and the players.
[06:12.400 -> 06:17.000] So we always start with the same question, which is, in your mind, what is high performance?
[06:17.000 -> 06:27.280] Making the best out of the potential in either you as an individual or us as a team or the club as a whole.
[06:27.840 -> 06:33.440] High performance is knowing when you leave the door that you've done everything you can
[06:34.000 -> 06:39.280] to stay at the top. Where did that lesson come from Oli, that I know your dad was a wrestling
[06:40.320 -> 06:45.000] successful wrestler? Yeah,, he says so anyway.
[06:45.000 -> 06:50.000] But how early did that lesson of getting everything out of your potential
[06:50.000 -> 06:52.000] start to drop?
[06:52.000 -> 06:56.000] Well, I think I've always been willing to learn,
[06:56.000 -> 06:59.000] humble enough to try to improve.
[06:59.000 -> 07:03.000] I never thought about myself as one of the best,
[07:03.000 -> 07:06.600] most talented ones, so I had to find other ways to make the most
[07:06.600 -> 07:11.800] of my talent. And that stayed with me all the time, I think, during my time at Clösslingen
[07:11.800 -> 07:17.240] and Molde, and then here at Man United, and then as a manager as well.
[07:17.240 -> 07:21.640] So when you end up here at Manchester United as a player, and you openly admit you didn't
[07:21.640 -> 07:28.480] feel like you were one of the most talented ones. How do you have a mindset of not being overawed by the talent around you and thinking to yourself,
[07:28.480 -> 07:33.360] right, I'm going to take on the strikers around me as a challenge to be better?
[07:33.360 -> 07:41.840] It's a fine balance between being humble and being quietly confident, believe in yourself enough.
[07:42.640 -> 07:45.840] I think I was a quietly confident guy and then
[07:45.840 -> 07:50.080] believing in my own abilities I knew I had an x-factor of scoring goals and
[07:50.080 -> 07:56.120] that was my forte but I was also humble enough to try to learn from Andy Cole,
[07:56.120 -> 08:01.560] Eric Cantona, Ryan Giggs, David Beckham. All the players got different attributes
[08:01.560 -> 08:07.120] and qualities and that's the secret to be confident enough to trust yourself
[08:07.120 -> 08:14.880] all the time but also humble enough to work hard and that's instilled into us from early on plus
[08:14.880 -> 08:20.000] from Sir Alex. So when you arrived then from Norway and you first came into what would have
[08:20.000 -> 08:27.000] been the Cliff at the time, Oli, what was the biggest difference that struck you in those early days?
[08:27.000 -> 08:32.960] Well for me I just played with better players. That meant I got more opportunities to score
[08:32.960 -> 08:38.040] goals and yeah of course there were better opponents as well but early on in my life
[08:38.040 -> 08:47.200] I was quite good at imagining and living the so I so the goal I scored against Bayern Munich for example
[08:47.200 -> 08:50.340] I'd scored hundreds or maybe thousands of times before
[08:51.040 -> 08:53.240] On the field back home on my own
[08:53.840 -> 09:00.560] Going through one-on-one imagining if I score now if I hit the bottom corner, I'll win the Champions League or a euro
[09:00.560 -> 09:07.680] Yeah, the European Cup as it was called when I was young. I've always loved creating my own atmosphere
[09:07.680 -> 09:09.680] and testing myself.
[09:09.680 -> 09:11.960] So when I came here, it's like,
[09:11.960 -> 09:14.920] well, just do the things that you've always done,
[09:14.920 -> 09:17.920] what you've learned, but do them a bit quicker.
[09:17.920 -> 09:19.480] But my finishes were at bottom corner,
[09:19.480 -> 09:23.240] so Rina Tassajef, who was the best keeper when I grew up,
[09:23.240 -> 09:26.720] he wouldn't even save my finishes, even when I was 15.
[09:26.720 -> 09:29.880] That was my mindset.
[09:29.880 -> 09:33.520] Practice as it was a cup final.
[09:33.520 -> 09:34.920] Was it like visualization?
[09:34.920 -> 09:35.760] Yeah.
[09:35.760 -> 09:36.880] I know like sports psychologists now talk
[09:36.880 -> 09:39.040] about the importance of visualization.
[09:39.040 -> 09:40.160] Did anyone teach you that,
[09:40.160 -> 09:41.640] or was that just something you'd learn
[09:41.640 -> 09:42.920] and then you kept adopting?
[09:42.920 -> 09:44.480] I think it was just in me.
[09:44.480 -> 09:48.360] I was so keen and watching football football and I saw goals being scored
[09:48.360 -> 09:54.040] and I saw keepers making saves and there's an opening there and if you hit the top corner
[09:54.040 -> 10:00.840] or bottom corner he's got no chance and I still believe that there's no such thing as
[10:00.840 -> 10:04.000] a good save. It's just a bad finish.
[10:04.000 -> 10:05.360] Brilliant, that's just a bad finish. That's unbelievable.
[10:05.360 -> 10:06.200] That's a striker talking.
[10:06.200 -> 10:09.840] And yeah, but there's so many times, Sir Alex,
[10:09.840 -> 10:13.560] and it used to bug me big time in training
[10:13.560 -> 10:15.600] that he shouted, hit the target,
[10:15.600 -> 10:20.000] make the goalkeeper make a mistake when I missed a target.
[10:20.000 -> 10:23.520] But as soon as that ball left my foot,
[10:23.520 -> 10:26.840] I knew if it's a good finish or a bad finish.
[10:26.840 -> 10:28.840] And if it just hit the post and out,
[10:28.840 -> 10:31.480] I knew that just a slight millimeter to the left
[10:31.480 -> 10:35.480] or to the right on my boot would make that ball go in.
[10:35.480 -> 10:38.920] So quietly in my mind, I said, shut up you.
[10:38.920 -> 10:40.200] I know what I'm doing.
[10:40.200 -> 10:43.760] And that'll go in on Saturday.
[10:43.760 -> 10:45.520] You know what I like about that as well is
[10:45.520 -> 10:47.000] that even at a young age,
[10:47.000 -> 10:50.540] that's you taking 100% responsibility for yourself
[10:50.540 -> 10:52.380] because I think all too often,
[10:52.380 -> 10:54.580] let's take football as the lesson here,
[10:54.580 -> 10:55.420] young players will go,
[10:55.420 -> 10:57.680] well, I did all right, but the goalkeeper was brilliant.
[10:57.680 -> 10:59.080] Whereas in your head, you're saying,
[10:59.080 -> 11:01.340] if that goalkeeper saves it, I'm the one that's failed.
[11:01.340 -> 11:04.460] And I do love that at that young age,
[11:04.460 -> 11:07.040] you were taking full responsibility for yourself. I truly believe that's failed. And I do love that you were, at that young age, you were taking full responsibility for yourself.
[11:07.040 -> 11:08.680] I truly believe that as well.
[11:08.680 -> 11:12.340] That's, it was always down to me, that finish.
[11:12.340 -> 11:15.020] And as I said before, my teammates were so much better.
[11:15.020 -> 11:17.980] I created chances by my movement
[11:17.980 -> 11:20.720] and I knew David Beckham is going to put the cross in
[11:20.720 -> 11:22.720] and then I'm just ready to finish.
[11:22.720 -> 11:23.820] And where did that come from?
[11:23.820 -> 11:26.280] Did your parents instill in you
[11:26.280 -> 11:28.440] a mindset of being responsible for yourself?
[11:28.440 -> 11:29.280] Definitely.
[11:29.280 -> 11:31.800] It's from probably more from my dad
[11:31.800 -> 11:34.720] as he was an athlete himself.
[11:34.720 -> 11:38.920] He always instilled into me that mindset of,
[11:38.920 -> 11:41.400] it's up to me, I can't have any excuses.
[11:41.400 -> 11:44.480] I can't blame the coach, it's just yourself.
[11:44.480 -> 11:46.280] And because there was one time,
[11:46.280 -> 11:49.040] and that's the only time I remember my dad
[11:49.040 -> 11:51.800] looking a bit angry, I came home,
[11:51.800 -> 11:54.200] I had a party, stayed up a little bit late,
[11:54.200 -> 11:57.040] and I just got home early in the morning
[11:57.040 -> 12:00.840] to get up to training and go straight to training.
[12:00.840 -> 12:03.040] And he just had a little, with his cup of coffee,
[12:03.040 -> 12:08.400] a little glance when I came in and said, do you think this is a way to become the top athlete?
[12:08.400 -> 12:14.000] And that was, that's the one comment I remember that he really like, he's right.
[12:14.000 -> 12:21.000] So what are you like now as a manager with your players that look for fault rather than take responsibility?
[12:21.000 -> 12:22.000] How do you deal with that?
[12:22.000 -> 12:28.720] I don't want any blame culture here because I think they all deep down know it depends
[12:28.720 -> 12:29.720] on them.
[12:29.720 -> 12:34.560] And how do you remove any blame culture? What's your process to that?
[12:34.560 -> 12:41.760] Well quietly because they just gradually end up not playing and being out of the club.
[12:41.760 -> 12:46.000] I'm not the ranter or a raver and say if you don't f***ing
[12:46.000 -> 12:51.440] change that. I'm like quietly tick off behind me here that okay let's have a
[12:51.440 -> 12:54.720] look let's have a look next game if he makes the same mistake again or if he
[12:54.720 -> 13:01.200] blames other people again and in the end you just gradually wean them off.
[13:01.200 -> 13:06.600] How does that sit Damien with the conversation we had with Sean earlier
[13:06.600 -> 13:11.760] on where he said he makes sure he tells the players every single thing. He's a
[13:11.760 -> 13:15.800] England rugby league manager and he said I tell the players exactly what I
[13:15.800 -> 13:19.560] want because then if they don't give it to me then I can get rid of them
[13:19.560 -> 13:23.520] legitimately. Well I think that there's a I think Ollie's making this distinction
[13:23.520 -> 13:27.000] here between the technical and attitudinal responses so I think what Mae Oli'n gwneud y gwahaniaeth yma o ran y cyfathrebu technigol a'r cyfathrebu arwain.
[13:27.000 -> 13:32.000] Rwy'n credu bod Sean yn dweud, os yw'r chwaraewyr yn gwneud ychydig o ddewis technigol, mae'n cymryd ymdrech.
[13:32.000 -> 13:50.000] Dydw i ddim wedi'u hyrwyddo'n dda. Os yw'n ymwneud â nhw ddim wedi'u hirnio'n ôl neu ddim wedi gweithio'n anodd, mae'r cyfrifoldeb arnaf. Completely agree, that's a decision, that's an attitude. Because you can always make a decision to not run back.
[13:50.000 -> 13:53.680] It's easy not to run back, but that's your decision
[13:53.680 -> 13:56.760] and we don't want those types of players.
[13:56.760 -> 14:00.120] And if a player misses a chance or misses a penalty,
[14:00.120 -> 14:02.000] of course they don't do that on purpose.
[14:02.000 -> 14:05.000] I can't shout and rant if they do that,
[14:05.000 -> 14:10.000] but I can prove my point if they keep on making decisions
[14:10.000 -> 14:13.000] that go against our framework or principles
[14:13.000 -> 14:15.000] or the way we want to play, style of play.
[14:15.000 -> 14:17.000] So if I can pick up on that,
[14:17.000 -> 14:19.000] I remember you telling me a story years ago
[14:19.000 -> 14:21.000] when you were the reserve team coach
[14:21.000 -> 14:23.000] and you spoke about Danny Waelbeck
[14:23.000 -> 14:28.960] and one of the things that impressed you was that he would stay behind and help the coaches collect the balls in after shooting
[14:28.960 -> 14:34.000] practice and you spoke about that indicated that he was a team player, he was thoughtful
[14:34.000 -> 14:40.400] of other people. So what would you say are the behavioural factors you look for in people
[14:40.400 -> 14:42.800] that you want to bring into your culture?
[14:42.800 -> 14:46.480] It's about respect. I think respect is a big word for me.
[14:46.480 -> 14:48.680] I think loyalty is a big word.
[14:48.680 -> 14:52.280] So I expect them to not think about themselves
[14:52.280 -> 14:54.480] too much like me before the team.
[14:54.480 -> 14:58.320] It's always the team before I.
[14:59.320 -> 15:01.240] The manager or Sir Alex always used to say
[15:01.240 -> 15:03.200] there's no I in team.
[15:03.200 -> 15:05.600] But then you've got individual qualities in there
[15:05.600 -> 15:06.920] that you don't want to take away.
[15:06.920 -> 15:11.800] But that human quality of being a team player,
[15:11.800 -> 15:14.240] that's got, you have to have that.
[15:14.240 -> 15:15.640] Yeah, you have to have it.
[15:15.640 -> 15:18.240] And what else are you looking for?
[15:18.240 -> 15:19.400] People who want to learn.
[15:19.400 -> 15:22.240] If you're humble enough to say, yeah, you're right,
[15:22.240 -> 15:25.320] I can learn that, Listen to the coaches.
[15:25.320 -> 15:29.600] Want to implement our principles in the way we want to play,
[15:29.600 -> 15:34.200] our style, because if we agree on one way of playing,
[15:34.200 -> 15:36.520] you can't just make your own decision on,
[15:36.520 -> 15:37.800] no, I want to play my own way.
[15:37.800 -> 15:40.400] That's completely going against the team.
[15:40.400 -> 15:42.480] There's so many good talent out there,
[15:42.480 -> 15:45.000] but if you have the good, right human qualities
[15:45.000 -> 15:48.000] and also be driven, you have to be driven.
[15:48.000 -> 15:49.000] You have to be a winner.
[15:49.000 -> 15:51.000] We haven't talked about winning yet.
[15:51.000 -> 15:56.000] And you'd want winners in a team like Man United.
[15:56.000 -> 15:59.000] I've been here now 18 months-ish,
[15:59.000 -> 16:03.000] and we have started, we have a foundation to build from.
[16:03.000 -> 16:06.640] And now it's about, we have the attitude is right,
[16:06.640 -> 16:08.880] the work ethic is right, they're humble,
[16:08.880 -> 16:12.080] they're hardworking, they want to learn.
[16:12.080 -> 16:14.640] Now it's about getting to the next stage
[16:14.640 -> 16:17.480] of learn how to win, but in a fair way.
[16:17.480 -> 16:20.640] But we need to learn how to win.
[16:20.640 -> 16:23.760] And when I say fair way, well, I've had one sending off
[16:23.760 -> 16:26.180] and I was so told off by the gaffer
[16:26.180 -> 16:30.760] He absolutely slaughtered me in the dressing room in two weeks way against Newcastle against Newcastle
[16:30.760 -> 16:35.720] Yeah, and he's I learned a lesson then that that's not the way we want to win at Man United
[16:35.720 -> 16:39.260] We don't do it that way. So when you've got a squad of players here who?
[16:39.760 -> 16:46.400] You've chosen because they're good enough as footballers. Yeah, How do you go about turning a bunch of good footballers
[16:46.400 -> 16:49.440] into a bunch of good footballers who win?
[16:49.440 -> 16:50.880] To get as far as they have,
[16:50.880 -> 16:55.480] they've got to have a bit of an edge and an ego in them
[16:55.480 -> 17:00.120] because you don't get to the top by just being a nice guy.
[17:00.120 -> 17:03.440] The thing is that you want to see, you test them.
[17:03.440 -> 17:05.480] You see who's got that little bit of extra.
[17:05.480 -> 17:06.920] How do you test them?
[17:06.920 -> 17:10.600] Well, we referee quite badly a few times and see how they react.
[17:10.600 -> 17:11.120] Do you?
[17:11.120 -> 17:14.520] Yeah, of course you do that on purpose because you want to see,
[17:14.520 -> 17:16.360] you don't want defenders who are emotional.
[17:16.360 -> 17:19.920] Because if they're too emotional, they'll cost you in a cup final
[17:19.920 -> 17:23.400] or they'll give a penalty away or get sent off.
[17:23.400 -> 17:27.680] And you want players who on nil-nil or one nil down
[17:27.680 -> 17:30.400] want to take the ball and then do the bit
[17:30.400 -> 17:32.520] that everyone else does when it's five nil
[17:32.520 -> 17:33.800] because then everyone's confident
[17:33.800 -> 17:35.160] and they'll come and give us the ball.
[17:35.160 -> 17:36.760] Everyone's confident then.
[17:36.760 -> 17:39.920] But when you're one nil down and you're really struggling,
[17:39.920 -> 17:41.920] that's when you want the leaders to step up
[17:41.920 -> 17:43.480] and the winners to step up.
[17:43.480 -> 17:45.600] But you have three, four of them
[17:45.600 -> 17:48.020] who really take the level up.
[17:49.520 -> 17:50.360] And you want them-
[17:50.360 -> 17:51.800] Who would you say are your leaders
[17:51.800 -> 17:53.200] currently at Manchester United?
[17:53.200 -> 17:54.880] Damien talks about cultural architects,
[17:54.880 -> 17:57.560] the people that stamp the Oligon and Solskjaer mark
[17:57.560 -> 17:58.520] on the rest of the squad.
[17:58.520 -> 17:59.360] Well, of course.
[17:59.360 -> 18:02.920] I think you have had an example lately on Marcus Rashford.
[18:02.920 -> 18:06.260] What kind of human being he is,
[18:06.260 -> 18:09.400] but also a leader he is by stepping forward.
[18:09.400 -> 18:11.560] He stepped forward on the pitch and off the pitch.
[18:11.560 -> 18:13.600] He steps forward, takes his first penalty
[18:13.600 -> 18:15.680] for Man United ever.
[18:15.680 -> 18:17.880] Extra time, Champions League, PSG.
[18:17.880 -> 18:19.640] He's never had a penalty before,
[18:19.640 -> 18:22.820] and he takes it, and he scores, and we're through.
[18:22.820 -> 18:24.800] That's, Marcus is a leader.
[18:24.800 -> 18:26.500] Of course you've got Bruno who has come in
[18:26.500 -> 18:28.440] and with the impact he's made,
[18:28.440 -> 18:32.520] you can see he's a leader because players follow him.
[18:32.520 -> 18:34.680] They've seen, wow, he's such,
[18:34.680 -> 18:39.040] that was the little spark that we needed, I feel,
[18:39.040 -> 18:42.560] earlier on this season from being a team
[18:42.560 -> 18:46.000] that should have won games to now winning more games.
[18:46.000 -> 18:50.000] And of course the captain Harry Maguire has been there six months and he's captain of the club.
[18:50.000 -> 18:55.000] What did Bruno do? As someone that's come in, it's not easy is it to come in halfway through a season
[18:55.000 -> 18:59.000] or to come in even in the summer transfer window to come into a squad that's already formed.
[18:59.000 -> 19:03.000] What did he do where the players immediately thought right this guy is one of the leaders?
[19:03.000 -> 19:08.000] He's got the talent of course. You can see the qualities there, and we've seen that for a long time.
[19:08.000 -> 19:11.000] But then again, he steps up when it matters,
[19:11.000 -> 19:12.440] and he does it when it matters.
[19:12.440 -> 19:17.480] He's delivered crosses, he's delivered assists, he's scored goals,
[19:17.480 -> 19:21.000] he's took penalties, he's done everything
[19:21.000 -> 19:23.000] in a short space of time that you'd expect.
[19:23.000 -> 19:24.200] And off the field?
[19:24.200 -> 19:26.200] And off the field as well, in training.
[19:26.200 -> 19:29.800] He demands of me, he demands of his teammates.
[19:29.800 -> 19:33.400] And the first day he was in the club, he shook everyone's hand.
[19:33.400 -> 19:40.200] He didn't come in here thinking I'm the big shot, you follow me.
[19:40.200 -> 19:44.200] No, he shook absolutely every staff member's hand.
[19:44.200 -> 19:45.000] And you noticed that?
[19:45.000 -> 19:47.000] And of course, this is a family.
[19:47.000 -> 19:49.000] Manny and I, we've always been a family.
[19:49.000 -> 19:56.000] And Sir Alex, the way he's created this atmosphere in this training ground,
[19:56.000 -> 19:57.000] I think is unique.
[19:57.000 -> 19:59.000] Two of the names you mentioned there, Oli,
[19:59.000 -> 20:03.000] so Maguire and Bruno, are people that you've recruited in.
[20:03.000 -> 20:08.000] So what kind of homework do you get to do to make sure that they're the right character
[20:08.000 -> 20:11.360] as well as having the talent that is going to add to the family?
[20:11.360 -> 20:14.960] Well, obviously, we got the chief scouts that do all the scouting.
[20:14.960 -> 20:20.600] We got the analysis, who do all the analysis and break it down to the minutest detail.
[20:20.600 -> 20:25.000] But you can see that with your eye, really, what talent and what quality you've got.
[20:25.000 -> 20:30.000] Then you speak to teammates that maybe play with them in the national teams.
[20:30.000 -> 20:33.000] Obviously Cristiano was an easy go to me.
[20:33.000 -> 20:41.000] I managed to get through Patrice to get hold of Cristiano and his recommendation.
[20:41.000 -> 20:44.000] Obviously stands him in good stead.
[20:44.000 -> 20:45.360] In Norway it was easier for me.
[20:45.360 -> 20:48.400] I knew more of the, most of them when I signed
[20:48.400 -> 20:52.200] and I knew maybe the agent and I managed to maybe
[20:52.200 -> 20:56.440] meet the parents or the boys on the sly.
[20:56.440 -> 20:58.680] You're not allowed to, but sometimes you just meet
[20:58.680 -> 20:59.800] and you speak.
[21:00.680 -> 21:03.920] And I think for English internationals, for example,
[21:03.920 -> 21:05.000] you speak to Marcus,
[21:05.000 -> 21:08.000] what do you think of such and such a teammate of yours?
[21:08.000 -> 21:10.000] Do you think he'll fit?
[21:10.000 -> 21:15.000] Harry Maguire, for example, you follow him, you watch his Instagram account,
[21:15.000 -> 21:18.000] you watch Twitter, you watch what kind of personalities they are.
[21:18.000 -> 21:22.000] Mick Phelan had him at Hull, and you go back to the scouts
[21:22.000 -> 21:26.720] that scouted him when he was 15, 16, of course they'd spoken to them
[21:26.720 -> 21:30.680] and we just know more or less everything we need to know
[21:30.680 -> 21:32.560] about the personality.
[21:32.560 -> 21:34.560] Then you can't do that all the time.
[21:34.560 -> 21:37.440] Sometimes you have to have to take the hunch,
[21:37.440 -> 21:40.800] you watch him and you say, well, rainy day at Stoke,
[21:40.800 -> 21:42.440] well, he steps up, he's a winner.
[21:42.440 -> 21:45.000] Or he picked up the ball and gave it to the player, or
[21:45.000 -> 21:50.440] he's respectful when he's off the pitch, he shakes everyone's hand. Those little things,
[21:50.440 -> 21:52.200] you look at the human qualities as well.
[21:52.200 -> 21:56.960] I'm interested to know also what you say to those players about, this is before they've
[21:56.960 -> 22:01.220] signed, before they've seen the culture, seen their teammates, what's your message to them
[22:01.220 -> 22:06.300] for the club that they're coming into? I suppose it's quite an important moment for you because it's the very first chance
[22:06.300 -> 22:09.220] you have, isn't it, to make a mark with these players?
[22:09.220 -> 22:13.240] First of all, it's like I've got to manage for the club all the time.
[22:13.240 -> 22:17.480] You've got to think the best for the club, but you've got to try to help this player.
[22:17.480 -> 22:27.180] You've got to try to say, well, you've got a chance here to make a career at the biggest club in the world.
[22:27.180 -> 22:28.640] You can make history.
[22:28.640 -> 22:31.880] And I want to be here to help you,
[22:31.880 -> 22:33.560] but I can't do everything for you.
[22:33.560 -> 22:35.680] You've got to step up and do it yourself.
[22:36.600 -> 22:41.140] But I've changed quite a lot since I started managing.
[22:41.140 -> 22:42.980] 10 years ago now in Molde,
[22:42.980 -> 22:45.680] I was more of a direct, choose life straight,
[22:45.680 -> 22:47.680] and this is the way it is.
[22:47.680 -> 22:50.080] But gradually, you know, the millennials,
[22:50.080 -> 22:52.160] we speak about it, the young kids now,
[22:52.160 -> 22:54.560] they need a different way of managing and help.
[22:54.560 -> 22:57.480] And sometimes being spoon-fed,
[22:59.680 -> 23:03.640] it's a different, I've got players now,
[23:03.640 -> 23:09.160] just the age of my son, and's like well you could be my son and
[23:09.160 -> 23:11.640] it's like you treat them a little bit differently.
[23:11.640 -> 23:15.520] But you challenge them, they've got to do it themselves even though how much I want
[23:15.520 -> 23:16.520] to help them.
[23:16.520 -> 23:20.920] So what would you say is the biggest single difference between when you first went into
[23:20.920 -> 23:24.080] Molde and the manager you are today?
[23:24.080 -> 23:30.240] There's many differences. Of course I was a very driven, ambitious manager.
[23:30.240 -> 23:33.760] Been at Man United, I'm going to come to Molde, I'm going to win, I'm going to get
[23:33.760 -> 23:38.720] back to the Premier League. My dream is to manage Man United and I'm
[23:38.720 -> 23:43.920] just focused on that. And we do well in Molde, we win. I brought
[23:43.920 -> 23:46.400] a few Man United staff with me,
[23:46.400 -> 23:51.840] we bring a mini Man United over there, and it's like, this is easy, this is like gradually,
[23:51.840 -> 23:57.840] and then I get an offer and I jump on it with Cardiff,
[23:57.840 -> 24:00.720] and that's a different learning curve for me.
[24:00.720 -> 24:08.280] And ever since I finished at Cardiff, I've obviously looked back and evaluated
[24:08.280 -> 24:13.400] myself and, but worlds changed quite a bit. So I went back to Molde again and it was a
[24:13.400 -> 24:18.760] different squad I went into, but I changed my ways. I was more, I got to know the players
[24:18.760 -> 24:25.560] more and as you speak, you create more relationship with the players. I think players nowadays need that more
[24:25.560 -> 24:30.320] than maybe what I did and the generation before me did.
[24:30.320 -> 24:32.240] So after that Cardiff experience,
[24:32.240 -> 24:34.240] how did you process that?
[24:34.240 -> 24:38.120] Because that's one of your first failures in your career.
[24:38.120 -> 24:40.040] I'm quite easy in that respect,
[24:40.040 -> 24:42.160] because then, well, I'm,
[24:43.160 -> 24:44.760] I was that like a player as well.
[24:44.760 -> 24:45.840] I did my best.
[24:45.920 -> 24:48.680] And that's all I can do. This is me.
[24:48.760 -> 24:54.000] But then I realised after a while that this isn't me at Cardiff.
[24:54.080 -> 24:57.000] Because that wasn't me. It was a challenge.
[24:57.080 -> 25:00.080] I was too stubborn maybe to, when I took the job, say,
[25:00.160 -> 25:01.720] I'll manage this.
[25:01.800 -> 25:04.320] I needed maybe different skill sets.
[25:04.400 -> 25:08.120] And maybe I was said I was open and honest, and my door
[25:08.120 -> 25:13.400] was always open with the players, but maybe I was still a little bit too distant, and
[25:13.400 -> 25:17.480] I didn't get that relationship that I wanted with the players.
[25:17.480 -> 25:23.880] And in my last five years, I've been a different manager, to be fair, and more relaxed, so
[25:23.880 -> 25:26.480] much more relaxed, and say,
[25:26.480 -> 25:28.320] well, the worst thing that can happen
[25:28.320 -> 25:29.560] is that you're allowed to move back
[25:29.560 -> 25:32.080] to lovely Christensen with your family.
[25:32.080 -> 25:34.120] Do you think that there'll be people listening to this now
[25:34.120 -> 25:35.440] who are in management positions,
[25:35.440 -> 25:37.240] and they've maybe made the same mistake as you,
[25:37.240 -> 25:39.320] where instead of just being themselves,
[25:39.320 -> 25:41.680] they feel they have to play the role of a manager,
[25:41.680 -> 25:43.400] and that's the mistake you made?
[25:43.400 -> 25:45.600] I think so, definitely.
[25:45.600 -> 25:48.200] I loved going into work every day at Cardiff,
[25:48.200 -> 25:51.440] good people, and I absolutely loved it,
[25:51.440 -> 25:55.400] but it just wasn't me, that situation, it didn't suit me,
[25:55.400 -> 25:59.720] and I think maybe, as you say, you get found out,
[25:59.720 -> 26:02.360] maybe I wasn't me, or I'm sure I wasn't me,
[26:02.360 -> 26:04.880] because one, the style of play that we wanted to play
[26:04.880 -> 26:10.400] didn't suit the players, so the style of play that I wanted, I couldn't go through with
[26:10.400 -> 26:15.720] it. I've been here for 15 years as a player, no, 11 as a player and four as a coach before
[26:15.720 -> 26:22.040] I've come back now. And of course, these years have moulded me in the way how I believe a
[26:22.040 -> 26:28.440] team should be playing. It was miles easier walking in here to bring my,
[26:28.440 -> 26:31.320] call it philosophy, I don't, principles,
[26:31.320 -> 26:33.080] I don't like all these words.
[26:33.080 -> 26:35.720] I just want the players to go out there
[26:35.720 -> 26:38.480] and express themselves within the framework
[26:38.480 -> 26:39.320] in a positive manner,
[26:39.320 -> 26:41.320] because you want to dominate.
[26:41.320 -> 26:43.080] You want to dominate when you're Man United,
[26:43.080 -> 26:45.320] you want to be the team that's got
[26:45.320 -> 26:48.820] the ball.
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[29:55.280 -> 30:01.120] See Mint Mobile for details. How important was that apprenticeship you did that when you finished
[30:01.120 -> 30:06.000] as a player and then you worked with Warren Joyce and you also had Sir Alex mentoring you,
[30:06.000 -> 30:08.000] how important was that in your development?
[30:08.000 -> 30:09.000] It was fantastic.
[30:09.000 -> 30:12.000] And Warren was a fantastic partner for me
[30:12.000 -> 30:17.000] because he had a completely different upbringing in the English league system.
[30:17.000 -> 30:20.000] So he'd played more games in the lower league.
[30:20.000 -> 30:22.000] I was used to winning every year.
[30:22.000 -> 30:26.120] I was used to having Jaap Stam and Ronny Jonsson at the back
[30:26.120 -> 30:27.640] playing 2v2 all the time.
[30:27.640 -> 30:30.640] And so tactically I realized that,
[30:30.640 -> 30:33.080] well, you need to set your team up differently here
[30:33.080 -> 30:35.640] than to what it was like with Sir Alex.
[30:35.640 -> 30:38.760] Because when you got Jaap Stam and Ronny Jonsson,
[30:38.760 -> 30:41.040] you can play 2v2 because they've got pace and strength.
[30:41.040 -> 30:43.240] And now you need to organize your team.
[30:43.240 -> 30:49.200] So I learned to organize a team much more with Warren.
[30:49.200 -> 30:54.680] And all of these moments of learning and successes and failures and relationships you built along
[30:54.680 -> 30:58.280] the way led you to getting the Manchester United job.
[30:58.280 -> 31:01.960] For people that are listening to this, who have big things come along in their lives
[31:01.960 -> 31:06.200] and they don't sit comfortably with them because it just overalls them a bit
[31:06.200 -> 31:12.840] How did you cope mentally when you got the phone call to say first of all, you're coming in on a temporary basis
[31:12.840 -> 31:17.200] And then that's it. You are the Manchester United boss. How do you deal with the sudden expectation and the
[31:17.840 -> 31:20.540] Kind of explosion that it creates in your in your own life
[31:21.200 -> 31:24.080] No problem. Really? No, absolutely. No problem
[31:24.080 -> 31:26.640] I'd I've had the best manager in the world,
[31:26.640 -> 31:30.200] how to deal with all the circumstances,
[31:30.200 -> 31:33.000] how to deal with the expectations of this club.
[31:33.000 -> 31:35.040] And when you were a player here,
[31:35.040 -> 31:38.200] I didn't get it as much as, say, Eric Cantona,
[31:38.200 -> 31:40.400] David Beckham, Ryan Giggs,
[31:40.400 -> 31:42.400] all the superstars that we had,
[31:42.400 -> 31:44.480] but the media attention.
[31:44.480 -> 31:47.280] You just have to learn how not to pay too much attention
[31:47.280 -> 31:49.500] to it and just do your best, because that's,
[31:49.500 -> 31:53.400] Dave asked you to do the job because of your qualities.
[31:53.400 -> 31:57.320] And I trusted myself to bring my good qualities
[31:59.300 -> 32:01.240] into the team that was here.
[32:01.240 -> 32:04.720] Obviously, I was only here for six months, to be fair,
[32:04.720 -> 32:05.480] and it's easier then to come in and say, okay, I'm going to enjoy this. I'm going to do was only here for six months to be fair, and it's easier then
[32:05.480 -> 32:07.480] to come in and say, okay, I'm gonna enjoy this,
[32:07.480 -> 32:09.400] I'm gonna do my, I'm just gonna be.
[32:09.400 -> 32:10.440] You don't feel quite pressure free
[32:10.440 -> 32:11.280] because it was short term initially.
[32:11.280 -> 32:14.040] Yeah, I'm gonna be me, I'm gonna make the players
[32:14.040 -> 32:16.720] enjoy playing football, create an environment
[32:16.720 -> 32:20.640] that they want to come into every single day.
[32:20.640 -> 32:22.580] That's key for me now.
[32:22.580 -> 32:26.000] You have to have an environment which is enjoyable but challenging.
[32:26.000 -> 32:28.000] They've got to want to come in the next day and say
[32:28.000 -> 32:30.000] I'd like to come in to work.
[32:30.000 -> 32:32.000] We talk about leaders, we talked about leaders
[32:32.000 -> 32:34.000] before, Paul Pogba.
[32:34.000 -> 32:36.000] He's an unbelievable leader, both
[32:36.000 -> 32:38.000] on the pitch and off the pitch.
[32:38.000 -> 32:40.000] He steps up with his
[32:40.000 -> 32:42.000] world class qualities as a player
[32:42.000 -> 32:44.000] but also as a leader.
[32:44.000 -> 32:47.560] I spent a lot of time with Paul because I had him in the reserves as well and we knew each other
[32:47.560 -> 32:53.440] and it was easy to to just rekindle that relationship really and he enjoyed it
[32:53.440 -> 32:58.600] now how do you help your players to deal with that outside scrutiny and pressure
[32:58.600 -> 33:01.880] because I look at someone like Paul Pogba and as you say a world-class
[33:01.880 -> 33:08.000] footballer he's won a World Cup, yet still persistent questions across the media, right?
[33:08.000 -> 33:11.000] That must surely have an impact on people's mental well-being
[33:11.000 -> 33:14.000] and therefore their performance on a football field.
[33:14.000 -> 33:16.000] I'm just interested in how you deal with that side.
[33:16.000 -> 33:18.000] Do you talk to your players about that sort of stuff,
[33:18.000 -> 33:20.000] have a very sort of open dialogue with them?
[33:20.000 -> 33:22.000] Yeah, definitely.
[33:22.000 -> 33:26.000] I think one is the individual chats you have with them. Of course, you have
[33:26.000 -> 33:31.120] everyone's different and everyone's got different challenges in life. We've all got, there's
[33:31.120 -> 33:35.880] more, there's, we could probably sit there for hours and hours talking about what happens
[33:35.880 -> 33:41.360] off the pitch that you're not allowed to know, which I obviously don't want to, to share
[33:41.360 -> 33:48.640] with people, but there's so much more to a footballer than just what happens
[33:48.640 -> 33:49.640] on the pitch.
[33:49.640 -> 33:50.640] They're human beings.
[33:50.640 -> 34:00.600] I try to make them understand that, yes, we play for our fans, Man United fans, but don't
[34:00.600 -> 34:06.840] pay attention to social media and media when... The more loud ones normally are just...
[34:06.840 -> 34:12.440] They just want to criticise you for anything.
[34:12.440 -> 34:16.480] So we speak to them about how to handle that and manage that,
[34:16.480 -> 34:19.360] both as a group and as individuals.
[34:19.360 -> 34:24.040] Because what matters when you step onto the pitch is your teammates,
[34:24.040 -> 34:27.000] it's your fans, it's what the manager and coach is what we want.
[34:27.000 -> 34:34.000] If you've done your absolute best, don't worry about anything else. You know that you've done what we've asked.
[34:34.000 -> 34:39.000] Because I often use the phrase that criticism is the enemy of creativity.
[34:39.000 -> 34:47.400] And in that moment you've got a footballer about to do something amazing and all it takes is that slight seed of doubt in his head to think well I've got so much criticism this week I'm not sure I'm willing
[34:47.400 -> 34:48.960] to put myself out there.
[34:48.960 -> 34:51.880] Well that's one way of looking at it.
[34:51.880 -> 34:57.440] Then you've got the Michael Jordan way or my way because whenever the manager put me
[34:57.440 -> 35:02.240] out of the team that just gave me more energy to show him when he put me on.
[35:02.240 -> 35:04.340] I want to show you that I should be playing more.
[35:04.340 -> 35:05.160] So you feed off either. So you feed off?
[35:05.160 -> 35:06.160] Yeah, you feed off that.
[35:06.160 -> 35:07.160] You feed off negativity.
[35:07.160 -> 35:12.700] I'd rather have you lot criticise me all day long than praise me. I think it's easy if
[35:12.700 -> 35:16.160] you get praised all the time to just rest a little bit on your laurels.
[35:16.160 -> 35:18.520] I feel it seduces you almost.
[35:18.520 -> 35:23.520] Oh yeah, sometimes I think yeah, you might believe it. You might just deep down you think
[35:23.520 -> 35:26.840] I could have done better, should have done better, but everyone thinks I'm great,
[35:26.840 -> 35:28.560] so yeah, I'm probably great.
[35:28.560 -> 35:29.880] One of the themes that we've spoken about
[35:29.880 -> 35:32.200] on this podcast has been,
[35:32.200 -> 35:33.880] we've seen a lot of high performers talk about
[35:33.880 -> 35:36.240] having this role of a memento mori,
[35:36.240 -> 35:39.480] somebody that reminds them of their fallibility
[35:39.480 -> 35:41.040] or their mistakes.
[35:41.040 -> 35:42.880] Who is it that, when they give you feedback,
[35:42.880 -> 35:45.000] you sit up and pay attention and really listen to them?
[35:45.000 -> 35:46.000] Who does that for you?
[35:47.000 -> 35:58.000] I have to say I've had some fantastic support from Sir Alex and in the hard times that we've gone through here,
[35:58.000 -> 36:04.000] when you lose a game at Man United, it is a crisis and through the difficult periods,
[36:04.000 -> 36:08.000] he's been a very, very good support to me.
[36:08.000 -> 36:14.000] We keep texting each other, he rings me. Ed has been, the club has, they've been very supportive as well.
[36:14.000 -> 36:21.000] And that's, we went into this with a plan as well, which everyone, well I put my, how do you say,
[36:21.000 -> 36:28.120] my ideas across and say this is not an easy fix. Because I felt quite a bit had to be done.
[36:28.120 -> 36:28.960] And...
[36:28.960 -> 36:30.760] You share with us what you felt needed to change.
[36:30.760 -> 36:32.280] No, not really.
[36:32.280 -> 36:34.680] But then of course, it's just those little,
[36:34.680 -> 36:36.600] those things that you feel,
[36:36.600 -> 36:38.560] if you want to give me the job,
[36:38.560 -> 36:40.760] this is how I'd like to do it.
[36:41.840 -> 36:44.160] But you have to understand it might take some time.
[36:44.160 -> 36:46.440] It might mean that we're not
[36:46.440 -> 36:51.200] going to challenge for the Premier League or it will mean we're not going to challenge
[36:51.200 -> 36:58.000] for the Premier League in 2020. But we might be able to win the Europa League or FA Cup.
[36:58.000 -> 37:03.600] But we'll challenge for top four still because we've got quality. But I need time to get
[37:03.600 -> 37:06.960] this done. Of course, there's always demands on that.
[37:06.960 -> 37:08.720] You need to perform, you need to win.
[37:08.720 -> 37:12.360] We've spoken about development and improvement and culture,
[37:12.360 -> 37:14.680] but winning at Man United is important.
[37:14.680 -> 37:16.720] There's no chance I can rest on laurels and say,
[37:16.720 -> 37:19.800] well, 10th is fine because we have a three-year plan.
[37:19.800 -> 37:23.800] That's completely, you can't do that.
[37:23.800 -> 37:26.080] You have to always push the limits.
[37:26.080 -> 37:27.800] Everyone that we've spoken to,
[37:27.800 -> 37:31.520] that has sustained success has always spoken about,
[37:31.520 -> 37:33.440] it isn't a linear straight line journey,
[37:33.440 -> 37:35.760] that there will be setbacks, there'll be difficulties.
[37:35.760 -> 37:40.680] And this art of patience seems to be a consistent theme
[37:40.680 -> 37:42.680] that you need to give somebody time
[37:42.680 -> 37:46.000] to get through that messy middle bit when setbacks happen.
[37:46.000 -> 37:55.000] So how do you get people to see that bigger picture and be patient to get through the messy middle before success starts to occur?
[37:55.000 -> 38:10.000] Well, it's important that you have open and honest conversations then on this is the way, and that's probably what people might like about me as well, and this
[38:10.000 -> 38:14.560] is the way I see it, this is the way I'd like to do it, because I've become so much more
[38:14.560 -> 38:19.640] relaxed and say, we spoke about it before, you have to be yourself.
[38:19.640 -> 38:24.400] And I just said, well, this is what I believe, this is what I think should be done.
[38:24.400 -> 38:28.960] If you've got belief in that, this is the way I will try to do it with the staff I've got.
[38:28.960 -> 38:36.360] Because it's, and trust you me, we are a staff that always will have the club,
[38:36.360 -> 38:39.360] Manchester United, ahead of anything else.
[38:39.360 -> 38:44.880] I've managed Man United, so I've reached my dream.
[38:44.880 -> 38:45.000] But of course my dream is to win the Premier League and Champions League with Man United, so I've reached my dream,
[38:45.000 -> 38:48.160] but of course my dream is to win the Premier League
[38:48.160 -> 38:50.640] and Champions League with Man United,
[38:50.640 -> 38:53.840] and I always want to be better.
[38:53.840 -> 38:57.000] The only way I can do it is just to do it my way
[38:57.000 -> 38:59.000] and do it to the best of my abilities,
[38:59.000 -> 39:01.240] and I promise you, as long as I'm in the job,
[39:01.240 -> 39:04.280] I'll do this to the best of my ability,
[39:04.280 -> 39:05.040] and trust my staff.
[39:05.040 -> 39:10.560] To have Michael Carey, Kieran McKenna, Mick Phelan, Rich Hartis who was with me in the
[39:10.560 -> 39:15.560] reserves, physios John and Richard, they were with me in the reserves.
[39:15.560 -> 39:19.840] There's so many, the kit man, he was with me when I was in the reserves.
[39:19.840 -> 39:27.040] It's like Man United, our identity and DNA, we're just going to do it the way we think is right for Man United.
[39:27.040 -> 39:32.000] When you first came into the club and you had a plan of where you were going to take them,
[39:32.000 -> 39:33.760] where are you now on that journey do you think?
[39:34.480 -> 39:42.400] Well, we just got back playing after a horrendous three-month layoff with a situation that
[39:42.400 -> 39:45.280] everyone's been through with a virus.
[39:45.280 -> 39:50.720] And we just, at the moment that the lockdown started, we were really in the momentum.
[39:50.720 -> 39:54.520] We had 11 games, I think, undefeated.
[39:55.080 -> 39:57.720] And you wanted just to keep that run going.
[39:57.920 -> 40:00.280] And now, who knows where we are?
[40:00.280 -> 40:05.680] Because who knows what will happen with team performances after such a layoff.
[40:10.960 -> 40:16.720] But then again, the players, the staff, they worked really hard over the lockdown. Yeah. And not just hard, smart and clever as well. It's like, yeah, have your breather mentally,
[40:16.720 -> 40:20.400] but look after yourself physically. So the coaching staff, the fitness staff, they've been
[40:21.360 -> 40:25.360] looking after the players, but the unknown was difficult.
[40:26.000 -> 40:27.360] When are we going to come back?
[40:27.360 -> 40:30.080] When are we going to start really training hard to be fit?
[40:30.560 -> 40:33.840] Or if we start too early, you might be tired when we start.
[40:33.840 -> 40:40.560] So it's been a difficult situation, but I think we've found the golden middle highway
[40:40.560 -> 40:44.080] that I think we're just about where we are, we should be.
[40:44.080 -> 40:48.800] So can I ask you about, use that phrase about that DNA of a winning culture.
[40:48.800 -> 40:49.800] Yeah.
[40:49.800 -> 40:54.760] What would you say are the three non-negotiable behaviours of the winning culture that you
[40:54.760 -> 40:59.840] experienced as a player and that you're now seeking to re-embed as a manager?
[40:59.840 -> 41:03.400] Trust, loyalty, commitment to the team.
[41:03.400 -> 41:05.160] That's, is that one word? That can be one, you can have that as one. Yeah, we'll commitment to the team. That's... Is that one word?
[41:05.160 -> 41:07.160] That could be one. You can have that as one.
[41:07.160 -> 41:08.560] Yeah, we'll let you have that.
[41:08.560 -> 41:11.920] You've got to be a... You have to be a team member.
[41:11.920 -> 41:15.640] You have to... For me, that's be all, end all, really.
[41:15.640 -> 41:20.200] If you want to go your own way, it doesn't matter how great you are.
[41:20.200 -> 41:23.640] If you don't want to give your qualities to the team,
[41:23.640 -> 41:26.640] we'll just have to find another club for you,
[41:26.640 -> 41:28.240] or you have to find another way.
[41:28.240 -> 41:32.720] So for me, that loyalty is vital.
[41:32.720 -> 41:37.680] And the trust. I know I can trust the staff and the players,
[41:37.680 -> 41:39.480] more or less, as well, with my life,
[41:39.480 -> 41:41.920] because they want the same as us.
[41:41.920 -> 41:43.400] Keep the standards high.
[41:43.400 -> 41:47.320] You've just got to keep challenging yourself all the time.
[41:47.320 -> 41:49.360] Because that accountability,
[41:49.360 -> 41:51.760] if a player lets the teammates down,
[41:52.800 -> 41:55.120] I want the team, the players as well,
[41:55.120 -> 41:58.120] to make that player accountable.
[41:58.120 -> 42:01.240] Because it's only not himself he's letting down,
[42:01.240 -> 42:03.400] he's letting the whole team down.
[42:03.400 -> 42:08.440] But it's all about team really, for me, family.
[42:08.440 -> 42:10.960] You very much go back to this team thing, don't you?
[42:10.960 -> 42:14.000] How much do you see yourself as being on a level with your players?
[42:14.000 -> 42:18.000] And how important is it as their leader, as their manager,
[42:18.000 -> 42:19.720] that you maintain some distance?
[42:19.720 -> 42:22.880] No, well, obviously I'm the one who makes the decisions
[42:22.880 -> 42:28.000] and will suffer if we lose and get the criticism,
[42:28.000 -> 42:32.600] which I don't mind because you are the one that makes the most difficult decisions.
[42:33.600 -> 42:41.120] And the players and the coaching staff, they know that I rate their opinions.
[42:41.120 -> 42:46.360] I really, really think it's vital that everyone in my staff feel
[42:46.360 -> 42:51.200] comfortable of raising their opinions to me. I respect their opinion, but then you respect
[42:51.200 -> 42:56.800] my decision as well. And I like that way of managing and making decisions. Players as
[42:56.800 -> 43:02.240] well, I think they know that I want the best for them, but that the team is the most important.
[43:02.240 -> 43:05.320] When I was at Molde, for example, it's a different job, I know.
[43:06.560 -> 43:08.400] But one of my jobs there, I felt,
[43:08.400 -> 43:11.600] was to give those players a chance
[43:11.600 -> 43:14.200] to have a career like I have had as a player.
[43:14.200 -> 43:18.160] So I want you to go from Molde to a bigger club in Europe,
[43:18.160 -> 43:19.120] and I'm gonna help you.
[43:19.120 -> 43:22.360] I'm gonna tell you exactly what you need to do
[43:22.360 -> 43:24.400] and prepare you for that job.
[43:24.400 -> 43:28.160] So you've gotta just trust me on that because I've been through it.
[43:28.160 -> 43:34.240] Here is younger lads but they're at such a high level.
[43:34.240 -> 43:39.840] I still want the best for them but I have to make decisions for the club and I think
[43:39.840 -> 43:42.640] the players respect and understand that.
[43:42.640 -> 43:46.000] So if there was one piece of advice you could give a young player
[43:46.000 -> 43:49.000] that was here at the club, or was maybe on the cusp of
[43:49.000 -> 43:52.000] making the transition to join your first team,
[43:52.000 -> 43:56.000] what would be the one thing you would want them to know, or do, or understand?
[43:56.000 -> 44:00.000] Work harder than you've ever done to reach your goals.
[44:00.000 -> 44:07.040] You've come so far now, and I'm sure you've dreamt of playing at the highest level.
[44:07.040 -> 44:13.440] You're so close and don't feel that you've made it. Make sure that you always want to
[44:13.440 -> 44:18.880] learn and develop. I had René Møllerstein as a coach in the first team when I was 30
[44:19.440 -> 44:24.240] and I still learned things of him that I've taken into my coaching career, but also
[44:29.000 -> 44:38.000] I've learned things of him that I've taken into my coaching career, but also to the last few years of my career, I felt I learned of him. You never, ever, ever finish the article as a player. You've got players now, Paul Pogba, Bruno, Marcus Rashford, Anthony, they all want to learn.
[44:38.000 -> 44:46.480] Cristiano, for example, Ronaldo. Best player in the world, but he always wanted to learn and improve. He's still got that
[44:46.480 -> 44:52.720] in him. Like, well, Giggs, he suddenly found a new way of playing football when he was a centre
[44:52.720 -> 44:57.920] midfielder at the age of 40. So you've always got a chance to better yourself.
[44:57.920 -> 45:00.240] There's no substitute for hard work in this club, right?
[45:00.800 -> 45:05.400] No, it's the gaffer used to say all the time. We were like...
[45:05.400 -> 45:09.640] Other managers used to tell him that we were like a fourth division team,
[45:09.640 -> 45:11.160] just with quality players,
[45:11.160 -> 45:14.320] because we ran and we ran and we ran and we worked hard.
[45:14.320 -> 45:17.560] And the two, like, wide men or full backs,
[45:17.560 -> 45:20.240] you know, the graveyard shift that we used to talk about,
[45:20.240 -> 45:21.760] it's just relentless.
[45:21.760 -> 45:23.960] But that's the way, that's the only way at Man United.
[45:23.960 -> 45:28.360] A Man United team should never be outworked I said that early on in one of
[45:28.360 -> 45:32.840] my press conferences that we should never be outworked and Mick Phelan said
[45:32.840 -> 45:36.280] to me you know you'll always be remembered for that you know you've
[45:36.280 -> 45:41.680] you've said that so you now you can't let any team be fitted in us so that we're
[45:41.680 -> 45:46.000] working towards being the fittest team in the league. But how much of that will lead were you even consciously aware that that goes right the way back to ymddiriedol o ran y Llywodraeth a'r Llywodraeth yng Nghymru. Ond pa mor oedd hynny o'r llyfr?
[45:46.000 -> 45:50.000] Oedd gennych chi'n ymwneud â'r ffaith bod hynny'n mynd yn ôl i Sir Matt Busby
[45:50.000 -> 45:55.000] a dweud bod hynny'n rhywbeth fel cyfrifol ar gyfer y bobl sy'n gweithio yn y ffatriau
[45:55.000 -> 45:59.000] a'r gweithwyr lleol a oeddent yn mynd ac roedden nhw eisiau gweld
[45:59.000 -> 46:02.000] y Llywodraeth ym Mhansyst ym Mhansys yn gweithio'n fawr ac yna rhoi talent ar y top o hynny.
[46:02.000 -> 46:08.600] Wrth gwrs, rwy'n gwybod y hanes y clwb, rwy'n the history of the club and I know Sir Matt and I know Sir Alex and I know how much
[46:08.600 -> 46:16.400] and the quote Sir Matt said, well we have got people here in Manchester working their socks off
[46:16.400 -> 46:25.240] to be able to go and enjoy Saturday at Old Trafford, seeing their heroes, but also being entertained.
[46:29.200 -> 46:32.240] Because you need to, as a Man United player, you also need that X factor. You need that skill, but you're always deep down.
[46:32.480 -> 46:37.800] You've got to have that humility about you and be working hard.
[46:37.840 -> 46:40.480] If not, our fans won't have you.
[46:40.880 -> 46:43.920] That's one of the things I say to my players as well when we sign them.
[46:44.720 -> 46:49.000] You've got to work hard here because our fans, they love a hard-working player.
[46:49.000 -> 46:52.000] They love a tackle from a...
[46:52.000 -> 46:56.000] So Jesse and Marcus, local lads, who just go and chase...
[46:56.000 -> 46:58.000] They chase down the opposition.
[46:58.000 -> 47:02.000] First five minutes, you get a tackle in their box, for example.
[47:02.000 -> 47:05.320] Our fans love that. And they deserve to see it.
[47:05.320 -> 47:06.520] We are Man United.
[47:06.520 -> 47:09.040] And that's, you just gradually,
[47:09.040 -> 47:12.160] you just, it takes over your life.
[47:12.160 -> 47:13.600] One of the things that really intrigues me
[47:13.600 -> 47:15.600] about managing a club like Manchester United
[47:15.600 -> 47:18.160] is you've spoken a lot about the team.
[47:18.160 -> 47:19.000] Yeah.
[47:19.000 -> 47:20.560] And the team as one, and the work ethic,
[47:20.560 -> 47:22.760] and what you need to be a Manchester United player.
[47:22.760 -> 47:23.600] Yeah.
[47:23.600 -> 47:27.600] Your job, one of the tricky parts of your job I guess, is balancing with that, the fact
[47:27.600 -> 47:32.720] that you need flair and you need players that bring that individual little bit of brilliance.
[47:32.720 -> 47:39.080] So what is the trick to allowing those players to flourish and grow and be a superstar here,
[47:39.080 -> 47:45.560] but at the same time work for the team and everyone moves in the same direction. When you are part of a successful team,
[47:45.560 -> 47:48.440] you do that work no matter what,
[47:48.440 -> 47:52.280] but your quality will make you win.
[47:52.280 -> 47:53.640] How do you do it?
[47:53.640 -> 47:58.000] You just, you always encourage them to express themselves,
[47:58.000 -> 48:00.640] be themselves, be like we talked about.
[48:00.640 -> 48:02.440] What's unique about you?
[48:02.440 -> 48:04.200] Man United have signed you.
[48:04.200 -> 48:05.360] You must have an X factor.
[48:05.360 -> 48:07.600] You must have uniqueness.
[48:07.600 -> 48:08.760] Is it your pace?
[48:08.760 -> 48:10.440] Is it your free kick?
[48:10.440 -> 48:11.880] Is it your dribble?
[48:11.880 -> 48:13.680] Is it your work rate?
[48:13.680 -> 48:14.520] Is it...
[48:15.760 -> 48:16.600] Finishing.
[48:16.600 -> 48:17.440] Finishing, yeah.
[48:17.440 -> 48:18.440] That was my quality.
[48:18.440 -> 48:21.120] That was the one X factor that I felt
[48:21.120 -> 48:23.480] that I made a difference with that.
[48:23.480 -> 48:25.320] How can you make a difference?
[48:25.320 -> 48:30.400] Everyone would sacrifice yourself and you work hard for the team.
[48:30.400 -> 48:33.400] If you know at the end, you've got that trophy, you lift that
[48:33.400 -> 48:36.200] Champions League trophy or Premier League.
[48:36.200 -> 48:39.760] So hopefully we can, that's what we're working towards.
[48:39.760 -> 48:42.480] I remember Martin Keogh telling me that when he was at Arsenal,
[48:42.480 -> 48:46.720] Arsene Wenger used to pull him aside on match day and say, listen, against this opposition,
[48:46.720 -> 48:48.880] you're the single most important player for us, OK?
[48:48.880 -> 48:49.920] You've got to have a good day.
[48:49.920 -> 48:53.640] And Martin would spend the rest of the pre-match and the game thinking,
[48:53.640 -> 48:55.520] Arsene's told me that I'm the main man.
[48:55.520 -> 48:56.840] He said, it's only after we retire.
[48:56.840 -> 48:58.680] And they all used to get together, have a drink.
[48:58.680 -> 48:59.960] And then he'd be like, hold on.
[48:59.960 -> 49:02.360] Yeah, he told me as well.
[49:02.360 -> 49:04.280] But that's a trick of a good manager as well.
[49:04.280 -> 49:10.080] And, you know, that's Sir Alex, us and most of them will have that little trick.
[49:10.080 -> 49:14.000] That's so, so important for them.
[49:14.000 -> 49:17.880] And no, it's when you win it, it's all worth it.
[49:18.600 -> 49:21.360] Look, we always finish with some quickfire questions.
[49:21.400 -> 49:22.800] So here we go.
[49:22.800 -> 49:26.360] First of all, your three non-negotiable behaviors
[49:26.360 -> 49:29.000] that everyone around you here at Manchester United
[49:29.000 -> 49:30.340] needs to buy into.
[49:30.340 -> 49:31.180] Trust.
[49:31.180 -> 49:32.480] Yep.
[49:32.480 -> 49:33.780] Do your best.
[49:35.800 -> 49:36.640] Respect.
[49:36.640 -> 49:38.400] No respect, all this.
[49:38.400 -> 49:39.240] Very good.
[49:39.240 -> 49:40.720] What advice would you give a teenage Oli
[49:40.720 -> 49:42.240] just starting out?
[49:42.240 -> 49:43.520] Do the same again.
[49:43.520 -> 49:47.000] If not, I wouldn't sit here, would I?
[49:47.000 -> 49:51.040] So any little decision, just make the same decisions.
[49:51.040 -> 49:53.600] How did you react to your greatest failure?
[49:53.600 -> 49:56.520] It spurred me on to do something about it
[49:56.520 -> 49:58.280] and learn from it.
[49:58.280 -> 50:00.600] Do you have a comfortable relationship with failure?
[50:00.600 -> 50:04.160] Because I'm a firm believer that you need to fail in life
[50:04.160 -> 50:07.840] to move forwards, to learn, fail forwards, fail early, fail often.
[50:07.840 -> 50:13.120] No problem with failing, absolutely no problem at all because as long as you
[50:13.120 -> 50:21.240] know that you meant well and your decisions were good ones but it turned
[50:21.240 -> 50:21.920] out wrong.
[50:21.920 -> 50:24.800] How do you sort of get there though because there'll be people listening to
[50:24.800 -> 50:25.600] this that struggle with it.
[50:25.600 -> 50:26.920] Maybe even your own children.
[50:26.920 -> 50:31.000] You spent time speaking to them about the fact that, you know, it's OK to fail.
[50:31.000 -> 50:34.000] I think quite often as parents, we spend all our time trying to make sure
[50:34.000 -> 50:35.720] our kids never fail at anything.
[50:35.720 -> 50:37.440] No, that's not a great lesson for life.
[50:37.440 -> 50:39.840] I don't mind them failing as long as they've done their best.
[50:39.840 -> 50:42.960] That's the main message for me to the players here as well.
[50:43.440 -> 50:46.800] You know that all your decisions will have consequences.
[50:46.800 -> 50:49.000] How important is legacy to you?
[50:49.000 -> 50:51.360] I know that I'm just going to do my best anyway,
[50:51.360 -> 50:56.040] and I hope obviously there's a good legacy to be left.
[50:56.040 -> 50:59.680] But as long as I know I've been true to my values,
[50:59.680 -> 51:02.240] true to the club's values,
[51:02.240 -> 51:10.400] and made decisions I believe were right, well, so be it. As long as my
[51:10.400 -> 51:16.480] employers and my family and my players know that I've made the decisions for the right
[51:16.480 -> 51:18.680] reasons, that's fine.
[51:18.680 -> 51:27.520] The final one of our quickfire questions is, are you happy? Yeah. Nice quick answer to that one. Yeah, well, if you can't be happy
[51:27.520 -> 51:32.080] with what I've got now, then I'll never be happy.
[51:32.080 -> 51:32.920] It's not bad, is it?
[51:32.920 -> 51:34.760] Well, look, thank you so much for inviting us
[51:34.760 -> 51:38.040] to what is a remarkable training ground.
[51:38.040 -> 51:39.360] Fantastic view, isn't it?
[51:39.360 -> 51:40.200] Thank you very much.
[51:40.200 -> 51:41.520] It's been a pleasure to sit here
[51:41.520 -> 51:43.200] and talk about your time at Manchester United
[51:43.200 -> 51:49.320] and really interestingly, the little tricks and the tips and the approach you've taken to running one
[51:49.320 -> 51:50.760] of the greatest clubs in the world.
[51:50.760 -> 51:55.760] It's been a pleasure to talk to you.
[51:55.760 -> 51:56.760] Damien
[51:56.760 -> 51:57.760] Jake
[51:57.760 -> 52:02.360] He's an interesting character, isn't he? I suppose you always have in your head the type
[52:02.360 -> 52:05.480] of person that is in charge of one of
[52:05.480 -> 52:08.680] the biggest football clubs in the world and Oli probably doesn't fit the stereotype I
[52:08.680 -> 52:09.680] don't think.
[52:09.680 -> 52:15.880] Not at all, I think quiet leadership is the two words I'd use to describe him.
[52:15.880 -> 52:20.760] He's not necessarily gregarious, he's not the loudest person in the room but there's
[52:20.760 -> 52:26.160] a quiet authority and a leadership to him that I think it's him. That's what makes him unique
[52:26.560 -> 52:27.520] And I like that
[52:27.520 -> 52:31.080] I don't I think that we live in a different era now where you no longer need to be
[52:31.440 -> 52:37.880] You don't want you to bully people into following the way that you operate. You don't need to embarrass them into performing for you
[52:37.880 -> 52:43.000] Yeah, you just need to bring them along for the journey get them to emotionally invest in what you're doing and you'll get good results
[52:43.200 -> 52:43.720] Yeah
[52:43.720 -> 52:46.960] There's a brilliant book by book called Quiet by a lady called
[52:46.960 -> 52:51.920] Suzanne Cain which speaks around this idea of that quiet leaders can be just
[52:51.920 -> 52:57.280] as effective as the loud outgoing people that we often get attracted to or that
[52:57.280 -> 53:01.000] often get the attention. It's the ones that just lead in the shadows that can
[53:01.000 -> 53:08.820] be just as effective and that's what I think Ollie's doing really really well at Manchester United. And I think we live in a world where we think the louder
[53:08.820 -> 53:12.240] you are the better it is right we apologize for quiet children oh sorry
[53:12.240 -> 53:16.500] he's shy and we should maybe stop doing that. Yeah there's some really
[53:16.500 -> 53:21.060] interesting work done by a guy called Jonathan Haidt that he wrote a seminal
[53:21.060 -> 53:29.380] book last year called the coddling of the American mind where he speaks around how social media is distorting our view and I think this idea of being the loudest voice
[53:29.940 -> 53:32.600] So he says loud people in this way
[53:34.100 -> 53:36.100] Everything is binary. It's black or white
[53:36.180 -> 53:43.140] They create tribes of people that are with them or against them and I think quiet leadership avoids that they can just sort of
[53:43.740 -> 53:45.880] Go find that middle ground ac rwy'n credu bod leoliaeth ymhwysedd yn ymdrechu â hynny. Gallant ddod i'r ffordd ymhellach.
[53:45.880 -> 53:47.280] Rwy'n credu bod y peth cyntaf y maen nhw'n siarad amdano
[53:47.280 -> 53:50.960] yw bod teimladau'n aml yn cael eu hadnabod ar gyfer ffyrdd.
[53:50.960 -> 53:52.240] Ac rwy'n credu bod leoliaeth ymhysedd,
[53:52.240 -> 53:54.160] eto fel y mae Oli'n ysgrifennu yno,
[53:54.160 -> 53:57.280] yn eithaf ffrensig yn ei ffyrdd o edrych arno.
[53:57.280 -> 53:59.480] Ac yna'r trith,
[53:59.480 -> 54:06.560] yw bod Jonathan Knight yn siarad am beth sy'n ei gael ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei gael yn ei g Knight speaks about what doesn't kill you makes you stronger and it's the idea of we get comfortable with failure because we can process it and move on
[54:06.560 -> 54:11.080] from it and I think what Oli described there is this quiet forensic style has
[54:11.080 -> 54:17.280] allowed him to not feel he has to be somebody that's false or that's untrue
[54:17.280 -> 54:22.480] to the person that he really is. I loved it, good fun and you get to chat to the
[54:22.480 -> 54:25.240] manager of your favorite football club yeah he's a fantastic guy
[54:25.240 -> 54:29.760] oh that was so much fun wasn't it I suppose what really stands out for me is
[54:29.760 -> 54:33.920] that Ollie had listened to the first series and had specifically picked up
[54:33.920 -> 54:38.240] the phone and asked us if he could be on the pod and that that means the world to
[54:38.240 -> 54:42.080] me because if we're having the kinds of conversations on this podcast that the
[54:42.080 -> 54:45.920] manager of Manchester United is learning from and
[54:45.920 -> 54:51.440] gaining from then it can only be a good thing can't it. Now please do leave a
[54:51.440 -> 54:54.960] review of the pod it's really helpful for us I'd love you to subscribe as well
[54:54.960 -> 54:58.800] if you haven't already subscribed there are so many amazing episodes still to
[54:58.800 -> 55:02.560] come I wish I could reveal now some of the guests who are coming your way in
[55:02.560 -> 55:09.640] the next couple of weeks but I can't just yet but trust me they are amazing. A big thanks to Tom at Rethink
[55:09.640 -> 55:13.280] Audio for all of his hard work sorting out the podcast of course a big thanks
[55:13.280 -> 55:18.600] to Damien and Oli at Manchester United and all of the team there and the next
[55:18.600 -> 55:23.280] episode is out next Monday so plan really to start your week whether you're
[55:23.280 -> 55:27.100] traveling to work or you're on the commute or you're getting home and you're flopping onto
[55:27.100 -> 55:29.560] The sofa or you've put the kids in bed or whatever you're up to
[55:30.000 -> 55:36.120] plan to start your week with the high-performance podcast every Monday for some inspiration for some conversation and
[55:36.480 -> 55:42.240] Talking of conversation. Don't forget. We really do want to create a community of high-performance thinkers
[55:42.240 -> 55:50.340] So get in touch right now start sending you some messages and use hashtag high performance podcast across social media
[55:50.340 -> 55:54.880] to join the conversation and after the next episode any questions you've got or
[55:54.880 -> 55:58.600] thoughts you've got about Oli and the way he thinks and what he's done at
[55:58.600 -> 56:03.160] Manchester United, Damon and I will answer your questions so anything for me
[56:03.160 -> 56:05.300] anything for him get in touch
[56:05.300 -> 56:06.300] right now.
[56:06.300 -> 56:26.480] Anyway, thanks for listening and keep your eyes peeled for episode 2 out next Monday. Bye!