02. Returning on your A-game.

My longstanding passion has been to support people. I did this for a decade in elite sport working with some of the world’s best Olympic and Paralympic athletes culminating in 6 and a half years as a practitioner with the Great Britain Cycling Team and a further 14 months working with senior leaders. Below I draw upon my experiences in elite sport to illustrate the aspects of successful transitions and show how they resonate with the way I’ve supported athletes and worked in high performing environments.

There are many parallels between the workings of high-performance sport when getting the best out of athletes and how mothers can return on their A-game:

1. Who is in your team? Knowing the individuals that can support you and can help a mother returning his key. Not just anyone however, you need the people who have specific skills in certain areas. Knowing the right people for the right form of support is what brings the added advantage. In sport, we have access to lots of different “ologists” and expertise. When it comes to the support of returning mothers seek out those for support, practical help or someone who can see the things you can’t.

2. Plan for multiple scenarios. You cannot always control the environment around you so having a good understanding of different situations and knowing the challenges ahead of you allows you to put together a better informed plan. This may be informed by data or intuition but either way, knowing that you can plan provides reassurance and a strategy for what is needed next. Follow this up with good communication of those plans and you will be in the best place possible.

3. Be flexible. Having a mindset where you can be flexible and adapt to different occurrences allows you to adjust. It’s an unpredictable world with many variables and sport optimises this. You cannot control your opponent or many of the other things happening around you in your business, but you can adapt and be versatile. Allowing yourself to be open to different things will mean you can take on your opportunities as an individual and in a business context.

4. Know the context. Context is key and supporting individuals as either athletes or returning mothers. Knowing the individual and their circumstances allows you to provide bespoke support. Being versatile to how you support an athlete from a medical, physiological, or psychological perspective works best when you understand the individual. The context that the individual sits in is also incredibly varied so knowing what is going on for them in around their lives allows you to flex and support them, allowing them to be engaged and feel fully supported.

Taking these 4 points above and applying them to either you as an individual or as a manager or business leader supporting your members of staff will ensure you provide the best support in a way that works for the individual.