Gary Neville

Last week was a bit of a whirlwind being on Dragons Den, but in the midst of that there was a clip that came out of Roy Keane on Stick To Football telling me to slow down and what he said has been on my mind for a few days.

Last year I spoke about the Brian Kidd philosophy I’d learned at United of “Make your pace early, you can’t make it up at the end”, my motto being “Attack The Day” and my company being called Relentless.

People tell you to go for it and people tell you to slow down and take your time and you end up having these conflicting messages in your mind where you’re looking for balance.

Because I have great respect for Roy and I don’t think he would have said it if he didn’t genuinely feel it, it did hit home how that balance is important.

That idea between work ethic, work ethos and hard work being the most important thing for me and it underpinning everything I’ve ever done vs slowing down at times and making sure you look after yourself and your health. 

🥳🧀🍷

Passion

Watching Harry Maguire and Ronaldo celebrate last night made me think of the word passion.

This photo was me lost in a moment of sheer exhilarating passion .

How important is it for fans , the coach , the owners to see their team demonstrate passion when they score a goal , win a game and represent their club. It’s everything !

Without it there can be no connection or spirit .

It’s the same in business . I know our teams have passion everyday.

The way they work, the way they communicate on social media , the way they train and socialise together , the friendships and attitude towards each other .

It inspires us all to get up in a morning .

Maybe it’s too simple to say if you’re not passionate about your work give it up. However we must strive to be in a job / place of work everyday where we feel that love for what we do.

I had that at United ! Those lads showed it last night

Thought of the Week:

“ Failure is a bruise , not a tattoo “

This press conference during my time managing Valencia was following the 7-0 loss to Barcelona , it was a brutal press conference . This was the 4th or 5th time I’d been asked “ would I resign “ and it’s clear I’m not handling it well .

It was the first time I’d lost my confidence since my early 20’s.
I was in a country , in a city , in a role that was eating me alive. I knew the job wasn’t for me. When I was sacked I wasn’t in a great place but I also wasn’t in a really low place .

I received that message ‘ Failure is a bruise , not a tattoo ‘ from an ex-coach and it felt like a great summary . Failure is a part of life. You do get things wrong . You are going to lose confidence . You are going to have bad days . But they’re not permanent and you can bounce back from them and resurrect your status , performance and reset yourself .

It’s a saying that has stayed with me ever since . It’s on my iPad and I see it every day . It takes me back to a moment where I looked in the mirror and it was the first time I’d seen grey hairs and black bags under my eyes ! Looking at myself and thinking ‘ what the hell are you doing here ‘

Whilst I do get reminded of what happened in Valencia , it actually gives me strength and is one of my biggest learnings . To say no to things you shouldn’t be doing and to be selective in what you do, and when you’re in difficult situations that you make tough decisions and don’t shy away.

Thought of the Week:

“ Don’t go too early “

This is something that I often say to myself in punditry . You form a view on something either in haste or we always tell ourselves sayings like “ trust your first instincts “, “ I knew I didn’t like them after 5 mins ”.

However I interviewed Declan Rice this week for the overlap and I judged him as a young player at West Ham.

I have to say I got it completely wrong. What an outstanding young person . Authoritative , confident , humble and quite simply the most impressive young footballer I’ve interviewed in 11 years .

He’s also a fantastic talent and I went too early !

LinkedIn asked me to contribute my Big Idea for 2022!

The goal next year should be to ensure you keep your team together.

Look after them in every sense of the word, both inside of work and out ❤️

#BigIdeas2022

Tomorrow on Stick To Football we have a very special guest joining us in David Beckham.

David’s Netflix documentary comes out tomorrow and he shared with us his experiences bringing it together and reflecting on his career from Manchester United to Inter Miami. I think you’re going to like it.

We hope you enjoy this episode of Stick To Football which will be out on YouTube and all podcast platforms tomorrow and have a watch of David’s documentary on Netflix if you like ❤️

A final visit to Old Trafford for this season ! 👹❤️

Up next at the Euro’s 🇦🇹 🇫🇷 🎤

Thought of the Week:

“ Find the place where you feel free “

I’m currently away skiing for a few days with the international break on and having just finished our latest Overlap Live in Dublin.

The next 2 months after this break are full on with the football season coming to a close and lots going on with The Overlap and in the businesses and there’s never a good time to get away but I’ve prioritised taking breaks where I can recently .

Skiing has become the place where I feel the most “ free “ . Being on top of the mountain , putting on the helmet and the mask and the fresh air and just thinking “ wow “ .

Wherever that place is that makes you feel free , if it’s skiing or sunbathing or spending time with family or going to a concert . Find the place you feel “ free “ and spend time there when you can ❤️⛷️

Every business needs its defenders!

My full interview with Tyson Fury is coming very soon and here is a glimpse of what you’re going to see.

No-one quite puts it like Tyson does

Head to my YouTube channel The Overlap to watch the Xtra clip, and subscribe for the full episode coming soon https://lnkd.in/gAsnkxfU

North London Derby! ☂️

Thoughts on New Year’s Eve!

Thought of the Week:

“ Get up , get out , attack the day “

This week I started Monday morning with a 5k run through Manchester at 6am .

It was my first run since Soccer Aid and reminded me of the importance of prioritising our health and fitness not only for the physical side , but for the mental side too .

Get your week off to that positive start . Get out in the sunshine, feel good about yourself and attack the day.

Give it a try on Monday , I promise you’ll feel better about the week ahead !

We’re up to number 2 on Tripadvisor in Manchester, having only been open 10 months out of the last 2 years.

So proud of the team at Stock Exchange Hotel Manchester and the work they do.

Well done to Dakota, but we’re coming for you 👊🏻

The importance of having good influences in your life! ❤️

I'm with Salford City FC in remembering the 22 lives lost in the Manchester Arena attack four years ago.