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David Beckham on staying calm under pressure

In 1998, soccer star David Beckham made international news at his first World Cup when he lost his cool and got a critical red card. But he went on to lead his teams to numerous titles, become runner up for World Player of the Year, and even be knighted for his contributions to the game. In this episode, David joins Adam at the World Economic Forum in Davos to talk about the thrill of performing under pressure, strategies for managing strong emotions, and the unifying power of sport. Adam also grills David about his competitive drive and his unwavering commitment to showing up early. Join us in person at a TED conference: https://tedtalks.social/events Become a TED Member to support our mission: https://ted.com/membership Subscribe to a TED newsletter: https://ted.com/newsletters Follow our podcasts! Podcasts: https://www.ted.com/podcasts Fixable: https://www.ted.com/podcasts/fixable How to Be a Better Human: https://www.ted.com/podcasts/how-to-be-a-better-human ReThinking with Adam Grant: https://www.ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant TED Talks Daily: https://www.ted.com/podcasts/ted-talks-daily TED Business: https://www.ted.com/podcasts/ted_business TED Health: https://www.ted.com/podcasts/ted-health TED Tech: https://www.ted.com/podcasts/ted-tech The TED Audio Collective is a collection of podcasts for the curious. The TED Audio Collective videos may be used for non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons License, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives (or the CC BY – NC – ND 4.0 International) and in accordance with our TED Talks Usage Policy (https://www.ted.com/about/our-organiz...). For more information on using TED for commercial purposes (e.g. employee learning, in a film or online course), please submit a Media Request at https://media-requests.ted.com.

David Beckhamguest
Apr 2, 20260mWatch on YouTube ↗

EVERY SPOKEN WORD

  1. 0:00 – 0:18

    Captaincy expectations vs. Beckham’s quiet temperament

    1. DB

      I was brought up in an era where captains, they shouted at players. They led with, with not aggression, but they led by, by vocalizing in, in that way. And I was never that person. I'm a very quiet person. I'm quite shy. Um, and I'm not very good at shouting at people.

    2. SP

      [laughs]

  2. 0:18 – 0:33

    Criticism of his appointment and the pressure of the armband

    1. DB

      Um, I'm really not. So to be given the captain's armband at that time, again, it was, it was a decision that was quite criticized. You know, am I ready to be captain of my country? But with that, you know, your responsibilities change. You know,

  3. 0:33 – 0:48

    Leading by example: work ethic as his leadership model

    1. DB

      you be- you have to become a leader. And I was a different leader. My way of leading was to work harder than anyone else, to turn up before everyone else, to leave after everyone else. And I always believed that that was my strongest way

  4. 0:48 – 0:58

    Growing into the role and pride in long-term captaincy

    1. DB

      of leading. So I, I, I kind of grew into that moment. Um, and I'm very proud. You know, I'm very proud that I got the opportunity to captain my country for six years

Episode duration: 0:59

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