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Former Brisbane Lions captain Simon Black shares how real estate leaders can take notes from high-achieving athletes.
At a recent invitation-only Future Leaders’ Retreat for Professionals employees, former Brownlow medallist and current-day leadership coach Simon Black explained the parallels between sports coaching and real estate leadership.
“Whether it’s a sporting team or business, it’s all about learning how your team fit their roles,” Black said, speaking at the retreat.
In the late 1990s, the Brisbane Lions went from “wooden spooners in 1998 to three-time AFL premiers in 2001–2003”. According to Black, the secret was simple: good leadership.
“Under a new coach we went from an ordinary team to something extraordinary,” he recalled. “Coach Leigh Matthews always told us, ‘Know your role, accept your role and perform your role.’”
But the onus for building a strong team culture wasn’t just on the coach’s shoulders – individual team members also stepped up by creating a welcoming environment for newcomers.
“Every time a new player was drafted, we’d all make an effort to develop a strong connection not only with the player but their family too.”
“You have to really get to know your people and build a rapport to understand their challenges and barriers. This is key to retaining your best people,” Black said.
Joining the AFL legend at the event was Marcus Pearce, a former sports journalist and wellness author.
Success can often feel like the only thing that matters in life, but Pearce emphasised the importance of investing in your life outside the office.
“To have a healthy relationship with wealth and success, you can’t put all your eggs in one basket. Leaders won’t truly excel in their career if they are mediocre in other areas of life,” he said.
The author placed particular emphasis on spending time with friends and family, noting that connecting with others has been proven to increase lifespan.
“We don’t know scientifically why socialisation extends life, we just know that it does,” said Pearce.
“It can be the simplest thing like sitting at the table with the family at night without looking at your phone. If you don’t make that effort now, when your career comes to an end, you’ll find yourself divorced, unwell, depressed, and all that money in the bank will mean nothing.”
Katherine Gonzalez-Cork, chief executive officer of Professionals, stated that the retreat’s wellness angle “highlighted the importance of making time for health and self-care when taking your career to the next level”.
She called the event an opportunity for bright young performers to not only hear from inspirational speakers, but develop their leadership skills and receive dedicated mentoring.
Calling attendees “the next generation” of network leaders, she explained they were invited as part of the succession plan for their respective offices – or are top performers looking to buy into a business.
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