Guest Speaker – Mr. Matt Little
On Tuesday 12th July, we were fortunate to host Matt Little to give a Citizenship and Physical Education talk.
Matt Little is Sir Andy Murray’s Strength And Conditioning Coach. Matt is the author of the recent book “The Way of the Tortoise”.
Matt uses the metaphor of the tortoise from Aesop’s fable to be a paradigm for continual learning, reflection, improvement and values. It is a very deep book of details and values. Matt also advocates the vital importance of so-called “soft skills” of emotional intelligence, empathy, thoughtfulness. Ethics and values are at the core of Matt’s approach.
Matt has been a consistent and constant member of tennis player Sir Andy Murray’s team. He has been alongside Sir Andy for two Wimbledon Championships, a US Open Championship, a Davis Cup team victory, two Olympic Gold Medals. All historic. Even more vitally, he was also there every step of the way when Sir Andy has returned from potentially career-threatening and life-changing injury.
Matt’s own journey is equally inspirational and also based on hard work and values. His journey to elite sport has taken many, many years. Matt is a total inspiration.
Matt gave two presentations, one to Year 10 and one to Year 12. Students were excellent and Matt was even better. It is easy to see why Matt Little is as successful as he has been and is. Matt was absolutely wonderful with students and staff.
By following “The Way of the Tortoise” and moving forward gradually step-by-step, following the process, we can all achieve our goals, over time.
Mr. Etheridge, Head of Religious Studies and Citizenship said: “Matt Little was a truly inspirational and wise speaker and person. Matt encouraged us all to learn from “The Way of the Tortoise. ‘The race is not always to the swift.’ Thank you to Mr. Harris, Head of Physical Education, for his massive support.”
