Paul McVeigh

This week we tried (unsuccessfully, messily, hauntingly) to mate a canary with a cockerel – all in a bid to impress our guest, former Norwich and Tottenham footballer, turned performance psychologist Paul McVeigh. 

Having played more than 270 professional games, as well as earning 20 caps for Northern Ireland, Paul kicked ball with and against some legendary players, earning a few trophies, a few promotions and, perhaps the ultimate honour, his own song.

But rather than go off and do the sort of generic post-playing jobs many ex-pros go for (like moaning about stuff on the tv. Or moaning about stuff on the radio. Or moaning about stuff on a podcast etc.) Paul has bottled up all his remarkable experiences in sport and used them to help all kinds of leaders to perform when it matters most.

As a highly respected performance psychologist, Paul has built a super-successful second career out of helping to dismantle the old narratives about shouty, macho, ego-driven leadership, through his coaching and his two excellent books: ‘The Stupid Footballer is Dead’ and ‘It’s Not About You: The Psychology of Leadership.

In a chat where Giles tries really, really hard not to dribble ‘Spurs’ all over the conversation, we ponder the most common mistakes, and misunderstanding, when it comes to ‘being the boss’, and some of the most influential sporting figures who inspired Paul’s philosophies on leadership. 

This episode is proudly dedicated to Paul’s Aunt Jean – proof that it’s never too late to reinvent yourself and that anything is possible.

Follow Paul on LinkedIn 

Timestamps

1:32 – Quick Fire Questions
 

5:37 – Leaving Belfast for Tottenham Hotspur
 

10:05 – Inside a High-Performance Environment
 

16:03 – Leadership Styles in Football
 

19:12 – It’s Not About You and Modern Leadership
 

24:21 – Leadership Beyond Football
 

27:25 – Humility and Misconceptions About Leadership
 

33:18 – Ahead-of-the-Curve Professional Habits
 

39:58 – Transformational Habits That Stick
 

42:52 – Advice to His Younger Self