The Talent Equation Podcast

Joe Baker makes a welcome return to the podcast to talk about his latest book 'The Tyranny of Talent'. We had a great conversation and covered a LOT of ground including...1. Talent in sports is a far more complex concept than most people assume, and the traditional understanding of talent as a fixed, simple, and unidimensional capacity is flawed.2. Coaches often lack training in talent evaluation and prediction, making it difficult for them to accurately identify and develop potential in young athletes.3. Long-term athlete development (LTAD) models can be useful but have limitations, and should be considered as a starting point rather than an end goal.4. A more nuanced approach to athlete development is needed, taking into account various domains such as child development, behavioral, neurological, and physical needs.5. Predicting talent in professional sports drafts is challenging, and early selections can have a significant impact on an athlete's long-term development.6. Survivorship bias can lead to an ove

-Talent Equation Conclave is a group of ecological explorers that get together once a month to discuss coaching challenges and co create solutions. This month we had a book club featuring guest Rob Grey, author of "How We Learn to Move." and his new book 'Learning to optimise movement'Here are the key takeaways... - Affordances are invitations from the environment, conveyed by information, and are relative to an individual's action capabilities.- A common misconception is treating skills as action capacities, which can lead to issues in skill development and application.- Agility is a skill that relies on information and functional goals, while change of direction is an action capacity.- Equipment can impact an athlete's perception and adaptation, with changes in size, weight, or length forcing adjustments in movements and problem-solving skills.- Direct perception argues that all necessary information is available within the environment, and there is no need for additional internal processing.- Engaging athl

Phillip O'Callaghan (@mrtenniscoach on Twitter) hosted another one of his Twitter Spaces discussions recently and I was asked to join with Marrianne Davies, Alex Lascu and Cal Jones to talk all about isolated practice. Here are the key takeaways...1. Skill and technique are distinct concepts; technique refers to a movement pattern, while skill is the application of technique in response to a problem presented by a sport, activity, or game.2. Isolated practice tasks can be effective in skill acquisition if they allow athletes to couple perception with action, but they must maintain relevant information for proper skill development.3. Representative design is crucial in creating effective training sessions that closely resemble real-game scenarios, helping athletes develop problem-solving skills in context.4. Scaling in sports training involves altering equipment size and game parameters to impact an athlete's actions and problem-solving abilities, ensuring the learning environment is tailored to their skill le

Hey there!I just finished recording an incredibly insightful conversation with Nick Smallridge, whose journey from playing soccer in his small hometown to experiencing the professional setup in Finland has given him unique perspectives on coaching and player development. We discussed the transformative experiences that led Nick to adopt the ecological approach, and the challenges faced when implementing this approach. Throughout our conversation, we touched on the complexities in gameplay, the role of vulnerability, and the importance of fostering exploration and learning in soccer coaching while remaining mindful of the constraints and influences that can affect players' development. Here are some key highlights from the episode: 1. How Nick's experiences in Finland and Uzbekistan shaped his coaching journey and sparked his interest in ecological dynamics. 2. The importance of experimentation and embracing failure in coaching soccer. 3. The impact of coaching demeanor and the environment on players' explorat

In this episode I am joined by Shawn Myszka and Tyler Yearby from Emergence to disuss their recent paper co-authored with Keith Davids entitled 'Being Water: how key ideas from the practice of Bruce Lee align with contemporary theorizing in movement skill acquisition'. We discuss his famous quote 'fear someone who has practiced one kick ten thousand times' and explore how he may have meant for us to adapt and be 'like water', rather than trying to perfect technique. We also touch on the philosophical boundaries of an ecological worldview, the concept of 'one-touch play' in soccer, Finally, we explore Bruce Lee's work and words, and how they are a testament to his ideas.Chapters:(0:05:59) - Exploring Bruce Lee's Movement(0:10:51) - 'Jeet Kune do' Origins and Meaning(0:24:56) - Adaptability and Ecology in Martial Arts(0:32:02) - Exploring the Principles of Ecological Dynamics(0:37:32) - Exploring Ecological Dynamics(0:51:20) - The Challenges of Evolving Ideas(1:00:36) - Bruce Lee's Influence on Movement(1:11:32

Flo the dog helps me to make sense of recent controversy I created by calling a practice a ‘form of cruelty’ during one of our morning walks. I explain my rationale for saying this and share whether I think that the provocation was justified.

Tom Shields boasts an impressive resume. His bio on the STA Soccer website reads... "A native of Hull, England, Technical Director Tom Shields joined STA with an exhaustive list of previous coaching and educational experience, making him one of the most progressive young coaches in the country. Holding both a Masters in Sport Psychology and an Undergraduate Degree in Sport Coaching, alongside experience as a University Professor in Sports Coaching and Sport and Exercise Science at Leeds Metropolitan University, and countless published articles, Tom helps STA blend together the worlds of education and coaching. The former Head Coach of Hull City Ladies (FA Women’s Premier League) and the University of Hull, an Assistant and NCAA Division I Title Winning Coach at Central Connecticut State University, The Director of Player Performance and Pedagogy at Rutgers University, US Club Soccer Boys ID2 National Staff Coach, ODP and Region I Staff Coach, United Soccer Coaches (formerly NSCAA) Associate National Staff Coa

Jennifer Dunaway runs www.soccermomsanddads.com, a website dedicated to supporting parents to navigate the compelx and challenging world of youth soccer in the US. I met Jennifer and her husband, Nick at the United Soccer Coaches Convention in Philadelphia and we got to talking...her story was just jaw dropping!! She told me about how she was a completely 'bat shit crazy' soccer mom that was completely out of control until a number of moments made her rethink things and completely turn round her worldview and approach. This is an emotional and heartwarming story of rehabilitation and redemption that places the human aspect of children's sport at the centre stage. I hope you enjoy. You can read Jennifer's honest and vulnerable reflection blog here

Dr Zöe Wimshurst is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology within the School of Psychology, Sport and Physical Activity at AECC Univirsity College in Bournemouth, England. She is a Chartered Psychologist specialising in visual performance in elite athletes. She also runs the consultancy 'Performance Vision' and has worked with Sir Clive Woodward among others..Zöe has worked with many Olympic and professional athletes to help them improve their performance by improving their perceptual capabilities. The athletes she works with have gone on to win Olympic medals, World and European championships, as well as set many personal best achievements.In this conversation we cover the following: The challenges of working with U8sWhy her own talent journey was curtailed by poor coachingHow visual perception and agility are intertwinedWhy the phrase 'you can't teach that' is nonesenseThe biological reason why players 'revert to type'Why video games are great for developing visual abilitiesand so much more!!It's a great conversat

Alex Sarama is the Director and Head Coach at the 'College Prep' Basketball Academy in Borgomanero in norther Italy. The College Prep website states:"College Prep exists to help young men between 16 to 20 years old fulfil their complete potential in basketball and life. College Prep is a complete academy program for players wishing to pursue collegiate and professional basketball opportunities. The program at College consists of basketball, mindfulness, athletic performance, education and life skills. At College Prep, players work with coaches who are extremely passionate and curious about their learning, with the program embracing all the latest research and evidence before our experiments are shared with the basketball world!". Alex is a committed Eco-Dynamicist and has taken the philosophy and ideas to new levels by embedding them throughout the whole programme at the academy. It is a case study in how powerful ecological dynamics can be in shaping a talent development and learning environment. It is an ab

I caught up with Trine Falnes - CEO of Spond at the United Soccer Coaches Convention in Philadephia and we 'got to talking'. I pressed record on my podcast gear and we explored how her company's coaching app 'Spond' has transformed my life as a coach by making it so much easier to manage all of the teams that I coach and also supported with the running of the club. We also discuss how the app is reducing coach drop out and has enabled me to ensure that I keep the voices of the young people I coach at the forefront of my coaching practice.

On my travels across the United States I made the trip to see John O'Sullivan from Changing the Game Project and the Way of Champions Podcast. We had a great time and decided to record a podcast to talk about some of the things that we had discussed while I was there. In this podcast we discuss the application of skill in varied environments (including my limited ability at powder skiiing!) We also explore the challenges that coaches face in an increasingly hostile world where parents and other stakeholders seem only to eager to challenge coaches for any perceived slight on their child. What can coaches do about this, how can they protect themselves and what measures can they put in place to prevent or manage a landscape with increasingly high expectations.

I caught up with Julian after my presentation at the United Soccer Coaches Convention and we reflected on some of the questions that were raised by the audience.

Chris Cushion is Professor of Coaching & Pedagogy at Loughborough University as well as the Head of Coaching at England Netball. Chris is one of the most well known researchers in the world of sports coaching and has published widely. I asked Chris to join me to disuss the nature of 'direct instruction' which he argues has some to mean something in coaching that is not an accurate way to depict it. Chris and I have disagreed in the past about this subject so we thought it was hight time we got together and had a proper discussion about this area. Needless to say, we didn't stop there...we also discussed...How poor coach education is as a means to effectively support coaches and develop thier skillsWhy coach development is so under valuedWhy technique led coaching is still so prevalentWhy the 'toolbox metaphor' limits coaching effectivenessIt was a really interesting and valuable conversation. Hope you enjoy

In this dog walk diary I think aloud about work I am doing at the moment to support a reconceptualisation of coaching for children by evoking the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child.

Leanne Norman is a Professor of Sport and Sociocultural Studies and Director of the Research Centre for Social Justice in Sport and Society at Leeds Beckett University. Her research utilises a critical sociological lens to examine sport organisational and coaching cultures to address gender equity and diversity within sport coaching workforces.Ellen Jones is a lecturer and the academic lead for all tennis performance modules and the Performance Director of Tennis at Cardiff Metropolitan University.They join me to discuss a paper that they had written that explained some of the challenges faced my both male and female coaches who had experienced mental health issues and burnout linked to the dominant 'performance narrative' that has become so prevalent across sport. Here is a link to the paper - https://t.co/Kl6I4mNq7ZI hope you enjoyStuart

After a monster twitter discussion about the relative value of 'two touch' as a constraint I invited some of the protagonists to join me for a live streamed discussion where we could circle around the problem in a more conducive situation than the limits of Twitter. It's a proper CLA geek out but I think we made some good progress and shared some good ideas. Hope you get some new insights from it

Callum Murray has worked in youth football for the last five years with some of the most talented and respected players of their age in the country, including working in men’s first-team recruitment for a professional club. With a background in sport psychology and a deep interest in football and talent development, he has researched football- talent hotbeds in England exhaustively, speaking to experts and some of the most influential people in this field. 'Something in the Water' uncovers the secrets of the football-talent hotbeds of English football: past, present and future. It takes a look behind the scenes of the traditional working-class northern town hotbeds and the emergence of south London as the new-school hotbed, to explore the key characteristics that helped to develop players such as Sancho, Zaha, Gerrard and others.Hope you enjoy

This is a bit of a different episode, it is the recording from my 'Twitter Spaces' conversation organised by Philip O'Callaghan to explore 'Representative Learning Design'. The chat features a range of people who have all featured on the podcast in the past, Alex Lascu, Marianne Davies, Cal Jones and Mark O'Sullivan. It's an interesting conversation that wanders all over the map of Representative Learning Design and also gets into coach education (because Mark tries to get me into trouble by baiting me into saying something about it - and I can't resist!)I hope you enjoy

Rob McGarr is a YouTuber who has been documenting the ups and downs of his journey of improvement in golf for several years. His honest video diary has seen him travel all over the UK and Europe in search of information that will help him reach his goals of playing consistent scratch golf. His channel is fantastic and I really enjoy it but I have also been struck by the interactions he has had with many coaches, and the different philosophies that they adopt and the approaches they take and how this has affected his performance, adversely or otherwise. I decided to reach out to him to have a conversation about his journey and to explore some thoughts about coaching and skill acquisition that might help him make sense of all of the information he has received. It's a long one...but I think that it is a goody...whether you are into golf or not. Enjoy!!