Having lived
in Waterford City for nearly fifteen years I have been excited by many sporting
“nearlys” and the margin between success and failure in sport, as in business,
is a very, very fine line. Waterford’s sporting teams across all manner of
disciplines have on so many occasions almost got there just to be thwarted at
the very last minute. But there is always an annual drive and enthusiasm at the
start of every season and if that collective will could be harnessed and transferred
to the field of play then we would be at the pinnacle of all our City and
County sports. Waterford generates passionate supporters and this must be
utilised in terms of other aspects of our City and County. If we can literally
bring the rafters down shouting for GAA or soccer or rugby then we should be
doing likewise for our other City and County assets – yet we seem to remain strangely
silent about these!
As a prime
example of how leaders in our local sports have a positive affect on not only
our own mindset but the mindset of whole communities you do not have to look
very far.
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| Kilkenny Castle |
Kilkenny is
a prime example of a town that almost certainly, on an annual basis, will
celebrate some sort of sporting success. And this sporting celebration filters
down through the people of Kilkenny to such an extent that they are not afraid
to rejoice, exult and take pride in their own town and the environs of a whole
County. Ask someone in Kilkenny how business is going and they will tell you it
is going great. Ask someone in Kilkenny about the castle and they will boast
about it as if it is the only example in the whole of Ireland. Ask a Kilkenny
person about the nightlife, shopping, restaurants etc and you will undoubtedly
get the same positive upbeat answer. The people of Kilkenny are, in part, lead
by their sports and the senior personalities associated with their sports and
they celebrate everything else with just as much gusto, passion and eagerness.
And this mentality is infectious and contagious as every visitor to Kilkenny
leaves with the same positive impression. It really is a win win for all
concerned.
As our GAA
success story continues to gather pace we also need to see our soccer team
return to winning ways for the benefit of the City and County. In fact if all
our sporting sectors can be part of a metaphorical rising tide then this can
only benefit everyone. Just imagine future years where we can watch our GAA
teams winning at the highest levels, our soccer team on top of the Premier
League, our rugby teams back playing senior rugby and so on. To be absolutely
blunt our sporting success has to be seen as part of the City’s future and we
all must make an effort to support our teams as and when we can. The benefits
of sporting success to a local economy cannot be underestimated
and the higher the standard the higher the economic spend and the more positive
the impact this has on a localised economy. You really do not have to be Adam
Smith to realise that if Waterford sporting prowess exponentially
grew over the next few years we would all see the economic benefits.
As a City
and County looking towards a brighter future we do need to see more positivity
from every single inhabitant who lives, works and plays here.
On a daily
basis I go out of my way to meet and speak to as many visitors as I can and
they are easily identified as they are more often carrying map, or they look
lost having inadvertently wandered out of the Viking Triangle, and I would say
that 95% of the feedback about the City is extremely positive. I would go
further to say that many “love” the idiosyncratic way our medieval architecture
leads you through and around our City Centre. Though I do often wonder just how
many of us are prepared to do the same. We all know from our own holiday experiences
that a friendly welcoming face goes a long way to helping you enjoy and
remember a place with fond memories. And really Waterford should be no
different.
We have a
City that is ideal for walking and discovering and perhaps this needs to be the
focus in terms of our future development. Let us use the very assets that make
the City what it is today instead of trying to “impose” modern solutions on a
Medieval footprint. With the immanent start date for the City Centre Renewal
just around the corner I would hope that the circa 70 plus submissions lodged with
the Council will be taken into account. And it will be very interesting to see
if all the work and effort that went into the engagement with members of the public
actually results in positive changes to the overall plan.
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| Success and the emotion it brings! |
I am a great
believer that in order to progress in business you must surround yourself with
positively minded people. Negative people do not drive businesses forward and,
in fact, negative people who hold senior positions within a company or
organisation often asphyxiate and smother potential “superstars” from, shall we
say, the “lower ranks”. This model can be seen across many organisations
including those involved in sport and the trick is spotting this early and then
being brave enough to make the right changes.
Maybe we
have to see changes from within that will encourage positivity and allow us to
free up our lungs to breathe more easily and so in the future we too can shout
from the terraces of Croke Park or the Aviva Stadium and be singing the songs of
victory.
Finally,
well done to our Ladies, just don’t leave it another 17 years to repeat the
success – please!
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