Alpha Group

A new standard won’t improve delivery on its own. How it’s applied will. Government Project Delivery & National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) 's new Programme and Project Data Standard brings welcome consistency. The challenge is turning it into something that actually works in PMOs and governance forums. This upcoming Verto webinar looks at the thinking behind the standard, and how it’s been tested in practice, not just written in policy. Register here: https://lnkd.in/eSW5a3Ns

"Your anxiety needs a job." One of my 17-year-old clients told me he had crippling performance anxiety the day before games. He was focused on his touch, whether he was going to play well, and whether the defender was stronger, faster, or better than him. He was focused on the wrong thing. I’m a mental performance coach, so I had a different idea. I told him: completely forget about your game. I don’t care if you play well or play badly. The only thing I care about is the first 10 minutes. He’s a striker, so I told him: press the living hell out of the center backs. Force a mistake. Make them stress out. Make them feel like this game is going to be hell for the next 85 or 90 minutes. Press them, harass them, make them super uncomfortable. I want them rethinking their entire game. What happened in the next match? He stole the ball in the first five minutes and got an assist. Then he stole it again in the next 10 minutes and scored. Why did that happen? Because his anxiety needed a job. When you have anxiety, it’s energy. It needs to move somewhere. So whenever you feel anxiety, give it a job. It was never about his ability. It was about his attention. If I leave you with one thing: redirect your attention.