5 Lessons from Gary Neville

Last week, I spoke with Gary Neville about the importance of authenticity.

These are the top 5 things I learnt during our discussion:

1. Social media is 99% positive.

There is undoubtedly an issue with online hate, and the impact it has on the recipients in the real world cannot be denied.

But it’s also just one portion of the bigger picture.

When scrolling through your social feeds, how much of what you see is actually abusive?

The answer - most likely - is very little. Yet, it’s the small percentage of negativity that sticks out to us. Because of this, we fall into the trap of letting the bad overshadow the good. As is our basic nature as humans.

So it doesn’t hurt to be reminded every now and then to take a step back and look at the big picture. By doing so, we allow ourselves to be reminded of the good that also exists as a result of social media, and that the negativity that exists within the digital world isn’t always representative of real life.

2. We should be encouraging young people to use social media.

Social media isn’t going anywhere, and we need to accept that.?

In fact, the sooner we do, the better.

It is the cornerstone of the digital world our younger generations are growing up within, and by denying them the ability to explore it in full, we are doing them a disservice.

If we want them to succeed in the future, we need to be encouraging them to use it to fulfil their values, pursue their passions, create supportive communities, form deep connections and propel their careers.

Social media has the potential to act as their digital CV, showing employers a clear and diverse indication of who they are as people, what they are interested in and the sort of communities they are active members of.

It’s a key communication tool, and we should want them to be confident in using it.

Yes, there is an element of risk associated with it - as there is with everything - but by attempting to actively discourage young people from exploring it, we are doing the opposite of protecting them.

We are sheltering them to the point in which they risk being unable to fend for themselves.

3. The curriculum is not fit for purpose.

There is a huge gap in the curriculum when it comes to preparing children for the world we now live in.

Yes, there is still a need for the cornerstone subjects such as maths, English and science (amongst others) but we need to be broadening the scope to include the likes of financial literacy, digital literacy, diversity and inclusion and social media, whilst also placing greater emphasis on health and wellbeing.

If we are going to be encouraging young people to use social media, we need to be equipping them with skills to do so safely and effectively. We need to be warning them of the dangers whilst simultaneously giving them the tools needed to recognise and protect against them.

We need to be modelling what positive social media usage looks like, helping them to identify their values so that they can use them to inform their actions both online and offline.

4. Adults need to get clued up on social media.

If we are going to be able to teach young people about social media and encourage them to use it well, we as adults need to be able to do so too.

Instead of acting like the travel agents we do now - people telling you about a place without necessarily having ever been there personally - we need to be acting more like tour guides.?

We need to know which machete to use in which part of the jungle. We need to be making the mistakes so the younger generations don’t have to.

By doing so, we are not only able to offer them the best chance of having positive digital experiences, but we also open ourselves up as trusted advisors should they ever get stuck.

It’s time we stepped into the new world.

5. Football is nothing without authenticity.

Building online communities for football clubs is the future, but at the moment, it feels more like the investment is going towards manipulating football fans instead.

It’s normal to have a strategy. But that strategy should be focused on getting players closer to the fans. It should be aimed at showing the fans that you genuinely love the shirt, that you’re committed, that you’re training well and even that you’re a good personality and character.?

It’s a way in which you players tell people in the world what and who they are both within the club they play for and the outside world.

But that cannot happen when management teams are controlling your words.

If your name is on that account - it has to be you. You don’t have to post for yourself, but you do have to be the person behind the words.

And if you don’t have the words - don’t post.

There is no harm in walking away for a while and coming back to it when you feel ready. That is hugely authentic.

Fans don’t want algorithm-based responses, they just want you.