Now that in itself isn’t extraordinary – what was extraordinary was what happened on the track straight after the injury.  Derek fell to the ground and then decided to get up and hobble round the remainder of the track in order to complete the distance for which he’d trained so hard; he was joined by his father who leapt from the crowd to support him.

My friend had never seen the footage before so we got the laptop out, searched for it on YouTube and ended up crying like a couple of babies!  Why?  Because apart from the touching scenes of the father supporting his son at a time of massive disappointment for  him, it was very moving to watch a crowd of 65,000 people acknowledge the struggling pair by way of a standing ovation.  Emotional stuff!

Derek Redmond now works as a motivational speaker and I’m sure he’s brilliant at it; he will no doubt use the same mindset of excellence on the speaking circuit which he employed whilst training to be a top athlete.   I’m guessing part of that mindset would be the determination to persevere and keep going when things weren’t going his way; he more than demonstrated that attitude on the track in Barcelona.

He speaks of the Barcelona Olympic event: “I was pissed off with the situation……I know everyone says it’s the taking part that counts, but I wanted to go out and win the bloody thing…..it wasn’t the best day of my life but as the years have gone by I’ve realised it wasn’t the worst day of my life either.”

Now THAT’S an interesting learning.  I wonder if Derek Redmond has read the poem ‘If’, written by one of our country’s great poets, Rudyard Kipling; it’s quite inspirational.  There’s a bit that would strike a chord with Derek…..

‘I f you can dream – and not make dreams your master;
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same’.

It’s just possible, in realising that his Olympic disappointment wasn’t the worst day of his life, Derek Redmond might well have read ‘If’.

Perhaps there are events in your life which at the outset have felt crushing in their disappointment, only for you to realise, sometime later, that there was a learning there for you?  If you need some inspiration with that concept, I strongly recommend you read ‘If’ by Kipling.

Oh yes, I’ve posted a video of  Derek Redmond persevering and completing his event against the odds on my YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/theLisAllenTube)……a tip though…..have the tissues ready just in case!

Now for those of you who do know about British football, you’ll understand that  Brechin’s usual crowd is around 500 people and there’s no need to queue!  And yet I was lining up with all these people.  Why?  One of the reasons was the standard of the opposition – Aberdeen had come down to test out the local boys.  However, there was a much more important reason for us to be there.  This was no ordinary match – it was a memorial match for David Will, CBE, a former Chairman of the club who died an untimely death due to cancer in September 2009.

That night, the dedication of one of the stands in his honour means that he will always be remembered in Brechin.  However, he will be remembered far beyond Brechin.  He was not only highly respected as a world ambassador for British football, but he was also respected far beyond the game, meeting world figures such as Pope John Paul II, HM the Queen and Nelson Mandela.

So what led him to this?  Well, he initially became involved in the administration and legislation of the game, starting at club level, rising to be President of the Scottish FA, then UEFA and finally Vice President of FIFA for 17 years.  This happened principally because of his professional expertise as a lawyer but really because of his knowledge and passion for the game of football. However, if you add to that the personal qualities (which those who worked alongside him remember him for) you have a measure of the man.

Ernie Walker – Former Scottish Football Association pays tribute: “That he was highly intelligent, a gifted legislator with a strong sense of leadership, and had a great love of the game goes without saying.  It was however, his other human qualities of compassion, generosity, a great sense of humour and, perhaps most importantly of all, his absolutely unbreakable sense of integrity, which will last in the minds of those who were fortunate to know him”.

I count myself fortunate to have known David – he was our family lawyer and friend for many years.   I also count myself fortunate to have been at the memorial match; an occasion when I could reflect on his outstanding personal qualities and ask myself some searching questions about my legacy and contribution to others.  What do I want to be remembered for?  Which of David’s qualities could I adopt? Having read this, perhaps you could ask yourself the same questions; what qualities do you want to be remembered for and what would you like your legacy to be?

P.S  Final score at full time :  Brechin 2:2Aberdeen! Result!

I’ve never been known for my tidiness – in fact quite the opposite.  I adopted the untidy habit when I was a teenager because, perversely, it gave me a feeling of power when there was little else I was in control of.  (I was certainly not in control of myself!).  It worked for a while (great for getting the parents riled!) and then it became ingrained beyond the point of usefulness.  I used to tell myself that it wasn’t important to be tidy; people with tidy houses were boring.  Why would you spend time tidying up when you could be out having a great time?  Don’t worry, all you friends who had tidy houses – I was just jealous of your self-discipline and had to justify my bad habits by knocking your good habits!

Roll on the years and I acquired a husband, followed by four children.  Perfect – now I could blame the husband!  Then the excuse for the untidy habit became ‘it’s more important to spend time with the children than clear things away ’.   Never mind the fact that there were occasions when I could barely find the children, never mind the car keys.  At this point in my life my mother wanted to buy me a fork-lift truck in order to deal quickly and efficiently with the tidying up.

OK, so I exaggerate – poetic licence and all that.  However, I have wasted a disproportionate amount of my life looking for things when I could have been a little more self-disciplined and put/thrown/given/ things away when I’d finished with them.

So, what’s the moral of this little story?

• Time is precious
• Successful people do not waste time looking for children or car keys
• Successful people get rid of clutter because………

According to my mother (she of fork-lift truck fame) the state of your house reflects the state of your mind.  Hmmm, there’s a thought.  Let’s hope your house isn’t dirty…….!

So, what’s the action plan?

• put/throw/give/ things away when I’ve finished with them
• Get some filing systems in place
• Buy a fork-lift…………

If this strikes a chord with you and you want to come clean too, leave me a post and let me know how you’re doing – we can encourage each other.  It’ll be great to know I’m not alone

When I was little, I used to think my mum spoiled all the fun.  Why?  She used to be quite disapproving when I wanted to hang out with the naughtiest kids in the class.  When I was 10 years old, being naughty was much more fun AND it got me some attention! Double whammy, eh?  What I didn’t realise when I was busy getting into trouble with the school caretaker, was that my mother understood the importance of being with like-minded people.  It’s quite simple really (as are lots of things in life!) – if you hang out with people who think it’s acceptable to drink a bottle of whisky a day, you become an alcoholic.  If you hang out with people who like train spotting, you become a nerd……….only joking you lovely train spotters!

When I was a student at Aberdeen University way back when, I worked as a volunteer in the Cyrenian Shelter for the homeless in the city centre.  It was closed during the day, so the tramps had to literally ‘tramp’ the streets and then come back for shelter at night.  What attracted them the shelter?  Yes, a bit of food and drink and a (stinking) mattress for the night.  But what really kept them coming back was the fact that they could be with like-minded people, people who wouldn’t judge for who they were.  I think the tragedy for them was the nature of their mindset – their hopelessness and lack of self-esteem.

When people get clear about what they want in life, it makes it easier to hang out with the ‘right’ crowd.  Here’s a really important tip – if you want to become a golf pro, don’t spend your time in the tennis club!  (Bet you thought it was going to be more complicated than that!). You need to be around people who will support you in achieving what you want out of life, whose lifestyle you are aspiring to AND can help you create opportunities.

Here’s a really important idea-‘Your network is your networth’.  If my mum were still around she wouldn’t necessarily understand that jargon but she would so understand the concept.  Because when I use the word networth, I’m not necessarily talking how much money you have – I’m also talking about the common values you share with others in your network.

So, who are you hanging around with?   Check your feathers – and your mates’ feathers – and see if you’re all flocking in the right direction.

However, even though we think it’s all over – and it is – the England football debate rumbles on.  So what went wrong?  Why didn’t the golden boys in the squad fulfil their potential? Well, I just used the word ‘boys’ and I think that’s part of the problem – there’s something very naive about their attitude.  More detail on attitude in another blog, but meantime I need to get the money thing off my chest!

Instead of the squad releasing a song before a tournament, I think the bosses of the Football Association should release one now.  They should sing along to the Beatles hit  Can’t Buy Me Love.   (You know the Beatles, those world-acclaimed musicians who did what they did and made the rest of us proud they’re British).  All the FA bosses need to do is to substitute the word ‘love’ and sing ‘attitude’ instead.    For all the ridiculous amounts of money they’ve thrown at the team, it hasn’t bought them what they want, ie a great attitude amongst the players .

I can’t make a judgement because I’ve never spoken personally to an England player, so I’m only going on what I observe (and what the media tell me – not always a good idea!).   They just don’t seem to be passionate about the fact that they’re playing for England, they don’t seem to understand the concept of team – in fact, there’s a lot that they don’t understand.  Someone grown-up needs to help them realise what a good attitude is, and the fact that money can’t buy one.

So, come on FA people, time to cut the wages and start singing Beatles songs at training sessions.  Perhaps you need to start with HELP?  Anyone got any other ideas?

PS If you know an England player, I’d love to talk to them.  David Beckham would be top of my list – tell him I can be free whenever it suits him J

What’s more interesting to me as a coach is the discussion that’s going on about the role of the England Manager.  It seems to be the general opinion that the current England squad are, individually, the most talented bunch we’ve had in a generation.  So why aren’t they fulfilling their individual potential?   People were saying after the last match that they looked unfit during the game.  I don’t buy into that theory – they’re training all the time so they have to be physically fit.    Also, imagine you were one of the players – it would have been your dream to play for England since being a little lad so there would be no lack of motivation.    What would make much more sense is that their mental game is dodgy – from where I was sitting they were totally lacking in any flair and looked nervous.  Given the players have the skill, experience and the motivation, their poor performance has to be about their emotional state.  No-one performs well if they’re nervous and de-moralised – it’s the coach’s job to raise their spirits so that they can tap into their innate skill.  So has Capello inspired his team?  Clearly not.  What needs to happen?  They need to RELAX and have FUN –   someone please tell them that football’s a GAME.  To be honest, I want them to relax and play well so that I can relax and enjoy the match.  My emotional state has NOT been good during the England matches.  Inspire them for my sake, Capello!

I’ve just done a telly-watching marathon over the last few days. Telly watching’s not a habit of mine; however, there have been three programmes/series on recently which I’ve found really compelling, inspirational, and one in particular, very moving. Don’t want to rank them in any order, so I’ll start with the one I’ve just finished watching – all about marathons – definitely not the telly-watching variety!

Eddie Izzard (comedian, transvestite and now runner)  is a legend. Last summer he ran 43 marathons in 51 days round the UK. Yes, you read that correctly. 43 marathons in 51 days. The programmes are all about how this very funny man dealt with the physical and mental torture of this gruelling challenge WITHOUT ANY PRIOR EXPERIENCE OF BEING A RUNNER.  How he sometimes accepted the help of professionals – then at other times stubbornly ignored the advice of professionals in order to achieve his goal; how he sat in ice-cold baths, ate 20 potatoes in one go and then gave away ice-creams from his personal ice-cream van in order to raise cash for Sport Relief!

As I watched his progress around the country I felt completely humbled and moved to see the courage, good humour and dogged determination shown by this man as he strove to inspire people – crashing through his comfort zones many times over – in order to make a contribution to others.

I liked Eddie Izzard before I watched this; he made me laugh and gave me an opportunity to question what was going on in the world around me. Now I LOVE Eddie Izzard because he’s inspired me to crash through a few of my comfort zones and get out there and make a difference in the world. Watch this and allow him do the same for you.

Eddie Izzard: Marathon Man, http://bbc.co.uk/i/r8zr8/
Absolutely AWESOME!

PS – haven’t forgotten about the other two inspirational programmes/series I mentioned earlier – more on those later!

PPS – just off for a run (a very short one!)

Well, what a cool way to spend a Sunday evening! Apart from hearing some great music, it was truly inspirational to listen to a group of people who were all playing their individual parts but had come together to polish and perfect the piece as a whole. They’d all taken responsibility for their individual learning of their notes and were there to listen carefully to each other’s performance and take instruction and guidance from the conductor. Real teamwork.

I came away not only having learned a lot from the musical perspective, it set me thinking about other areas in life where working together in a team could produce results far greater than individual ‘performances’ could ever create. There are lots of reasons why people avoid being in a team – they don’t recognise they need a team – they’re afraid to ask for help in case they look stupid- they don’t know who to ask – they don’t trust others to do as good a job as them…..lots of reasons. However, if the band rehearsal last night was anything to go by, working in a team for a greater purpose has to be the way forward.

So who have you got on your inspiring team……..and what are you striving for?

PS – keep watching this space for an update – we compete this Saturday (20th March), so fingers crossed for an inspired team performance!

I’ve just had some perfect pressure   I’m off to Australia this evening in order to learn from some great mentors, people who have already done what I’m aspiring to do. (More on the aspirations in a later blog – watch this space, as they say!)  I’m off down under for some learnings and sunshine – great combination!  Oh yes, I hope to be sitting in a bar on Sunday watching Andy Murray playing in the final of the Australian Open.  Let’s hope he experiences some perfect pressure this week!