Wolverhampton Wanderers and the language of motivation.

A hero of mine is the Second World War General: George Patton. “Blood and Guts” was a larger than life character, controversial and with a tendency to upset people. He delivered results. He was a motivator. Check out the opening scene in the Hollywood film Patton to get a feel. In the World Cup, the Algerian manager took a motivational leaf from his book before the England match.

When things go wrong powerful and persuasive language to motivate others can be a game-changer.

You see this every week in the Premier Football League. Managers come under pressure to give an account of themselves. Media and fans are just waiting for those quotes. Managers must hate the process and cringe at the interrogation.

The pity is that the interviews are not as well prepared and delivered as they ought. What is reported lies in the memory long after the game has been forgotten.

A recent interview by the local Express and Star with the Wolves manager, Mick McCarthy is a case in point. This was after the Villa match. Assuming the report was a fair representation of what was said, the reader was presented with this.

“I still feel we’ll get out of it, with whatever we’ve got and whatever we do, because I think we’ve got good players…. They keep going and they will get us out of it… There’s nothing more that could have gone wrong against Villa…. It has to turn because our lads worked dammed hard and they’re a great bunch…. We just need to play like we did on Saturday, but not give a penalty away, not get one sent off and not get one carried off…. I’ve signed everyone and there’s not one who would let me down intentionally…. They’ve all got a great work ethic. I believe in the same group of players and getting the best out of them, and that’s what myself and Terry Connor will carry on doing….. We might not have beaten Villa but if we get the level of performance we did on Saturday, that’s all I can ask. We’ve got more chance of winning if we play like that…. The way we played, not just against Villa, but against Arsenal, Bolton, Tottenham and Chelsea offers encouragement…. The biggest reason as to how I cope is that I don’t listen to the backdrop of what fans are saying….. I do not go around in a glass cabinet – I am fully aware of what is going on. If you listen to it, you would go off your head anyway. But I cannot question the performances at all….. I would not have done anything differently against Chelsea and Tottenham and I could not have done anything to make us any better….. I am not going to change anything – I’ve not got a magic wand.”

The cumulative impact of the words is a killer. Notice the high frequency of that magic word “Not”. “If”, “But” and “Can’t” add to the mood. These are killjoy words to close you down. Notice how the passive words are often the shortest.They are negative. Everyone involved is an observer hoping that something will turn up. In a difficult situation you can understand why they were uttered but they are not assertive.

Motivational language is about the right choice of words. It is about energy levels. It is about the creation of virtuous circles of optimism. Words are one part of the equation. Delivery and body language complete the threesome.

This professional sport spends millions on wages, fees, grounds and whatever. It seeks to buy instant success with the acquisition of a new player. What is needed is organic growth stemming from developing communication skills for motivation. Only then will physical, tactical and technical skills have a chance. This is a game where you have to use your voice and mind as well as the feet.

A Black Country Enterprise Zone: a stimulus for business or a bullet to kill off enterprise?

Sometimes it is the juxtapositioning of events which adds to the poignancy of a situation. Such was the case today, with George Osborne’s budget announcement of 10 Enterprise Zones to stimulate business growth. This coincided with a letter in the local Express and Star, inviting ex-employees of a closed iron and steel plant, to meet up for a reunion.

What are you talking about you ask? Well this famous plant in the Black Country, and known as Round Oak, closed in the 1980’s. The derelict site was designated by the government of the time as an EZ at Brierley Hill, to stimulate new manufacturing and jobs. Planning controls were to be freed up and favourable tax and rate incentives posted.

Sorted then! Well not quite. A loop hole in the regulations encouraged rapid retail development, often using semi-skilled labour and consumer imports to the detriment of skilled artisans, manufacturing and exports. Nothing for the apprentice to go into then.

Local shopping centres could not compete with this regional shopping giant at Merry Hill. Firms which hitherto were located outside the EZ jumped across the boundary to access the financial goodies. Not much of a net increase in regional jobs to talk about.

The lamentable economic performance of places such as Walsall, Wolverhampton, Dudley and Sandwell today, may in part and ironically, owe their current status to the decision to create the initial EZ in the first place. See how many empty shops there are today with artistic posters outside to encourage you to think otherwise. What is being done to rectify the situation? Another EZ of course and thirty years on.

There is nothing wrong with these zones, as long as we ensure that they act as a stimulus to local enterprise and the benefits are spread. The reverse may be the case as their performance sucks the energy from the surrounds – a bit of a backwash or tsunami. Vicious rather than virtuous circles.

The newly created Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) will have enough challenges ahead of it as it removes the barriers to business. George Osborne has now added another ingredient into the mix. The boundaries will have to be drawn very carefully. We are still living with the impacts of the first EZs. The task ahead is to ensure that we have not just been given extra toppings.