Looking backwards to go forwards: what rowing taught me about big tech and what big tech taught me about rowing with Matt Brittin.
Timestamps
01:00 From schoolboy to the Olympics - from a family of ball sport heros.
Matt was inspired by Martin Cross to row to a high level - he was his school teacher. Later he was President of his university club where he led the introduction of professional coaching.
04:00 Rowing teaches skills
Matt was running Google in Africa, Middle East and Europe for the past 10 years - he tells a lot of anecdotes about rowing. Steve Gunn (a harsh coach) taught how to take responsibility for what you are doing. Are you a piece of sh*t on the end of the oar?
When the mindset is right but the self-appraisal was not.
The things Matt learned at rowing were the human things - more useful than Business School, Consultancies and University. I wouldn't be where I am in the business world without the rowing lessons.
08:30 Act like an owner
The unique side of rowing is that when I'm seat racing, I'm against you. When we are in the crew, I'm with you. Act like an owner at Google - take responsibility for what you're doing and win as a team. We collaborate hard - and sometimes a collaborative competitiveness gives a better outcome.
11:00 High Pressure Situations
The start line of a Henley Royal Regatta final is where Matt felt the most intense pressure.
Take confidence from the feeling of nerves and the adrenaline surge - this is a sign you are ready for a big performance. Get the attention off yourself - focus on the process is helpful. Know there is someone there who wants you to succeed.
14:45 Henley Royal Regatta Progress
Matt is a Henley steward - he marks the progress over recent years. Sir Steve Redgrave asked Matt to help the committee to plan a 10 year strategy. It looks unchanging yet it's always evolving. Three new womens quad scull events were announced - near parity in Open events and Womens events. Since 2015 every race has been on YouTube live and on demand. You Win or You Learn.
20:00 Returning to Rowing
It has been a joy and a recalibration too. The gains as you come back are lovely - rediscovering the joy. A lot is about remembering the feelings.
How to balance training and travelling for work. How you manage your time at work is important. Matt blocks his diary to take kids to school twice a week - the most important time of the week.
He does the same for rowing training. The discipline when traveling of visiting the hotel gym.
The more senior you get the more important it is to show up refreshed and feeling great - in good shape. Leaders need to be in the moment and to have time for staff.
Matt is planning to mentor people in business, improve his sculling, rowing strength training this year.
Masters rowing is "running up the down escalator". It doesn't have to be the same each year - unlike younger rowing years. Choose something fun to plan for your future rowing.
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Looking backwards to go forwards: what rowing taught me about big tech and what big tech taught me about rowing with Matt Brittin.
Timestamps
01:00 From schoolboy to the Olympics - from a family of ball sport heros.
Matt was inspired by Martin Cross to row to a high level - he was his school teacher. Later he was President of his university club where he led the introduction of professional coaching.
04:00 Rowing teaches skills
Matt was running Google in Africa, Middle East and Europe for the past 10 years - he tells a lot of anecdotes about rowing. Steve Gunn (a harsh coach) taught how to take responsibility for what you are doing. Are you a piece of sh*t on the end of the oar?
When the mindset is right but the self-appraisal was not.
The things Matt learned at rowing were the human things - more useful than Business School, Consultancies and University. I wouldn't be where I am in the business world without the rowing lessons.
08:30 Act like an owner
The unique side of rowing is that when I'm seat racing, I'm against you. When we are in the crew, I'm with you. Act like an owner at Google - take responsibility for what you're doing and win as a team. We collaborate hard - and sometimes a collaborative competitiveness gives a better outcome.
11:00 High Pressure Situations
The start line of a Henley Royal Regatta final is where Matt felt the most intense pressure.
Take confidence from the feeling of nerves and the adrenaline surge - this is a sign you are ready for a big performance. Get the attention off yourself - focus on the process is helpful. Know there is someone there who wants you to succeed.
14:45 Henley Royal Regatta Progress
Matt is a Henley steward - he marks the progress over recent years. Sir Steve Redgrave asked Matt to help the committee to plan a 10 year strategy. It looks unchanging yet it's always evolving. Three new womens quad scull events were announced - near parity in Open events and Womens events. Since 2015 every race has been on YouTube live and on demand. You Win or You Learn.
20:00 Returning to Rowing
It has been a joy and a recalibration too. The gains as you come back are lovely - rediscovering the joy. A lot is about remembering the feelings.
How to balance training and travelling for work. How you manage your time at work is important. Matt blocks his diary to take kids to school twice a week - the most important time of the week.
He does the same for rowing training. The discipline when traveling of visiting the hotel gym.
The more senior you get the more important it is to show up refreshed and feeling great - in good shape. Leaders need to be in the moment and to have time for staff.
Matt is planning to mentor people in business, improve his sculling, rowing strength training this year.
Masters rowing is "running up the down escalator". It doesn't have to be the same each year - unlike younger rowing years. Choose something fun to plan for your future rowing.
Ways to improve speed of the oar through the water. Keep the stroke rate the same and increase the speed.
Timestamps
00:45 This is a long term project.
Less experienced rowers push the oar less hard than the more experienced and you need to train this.
Time through the water at stroke rate of 20 is approximately 3 seconds per stroke. Pushing the oar through the water on the power phase takes 1.2 to 1.5 seconds and yet we row with a ratio of at least 2:1 at low rates.
Experienced rowers get more rest every stroke. They push the oar with high intensity through the water and so they have more time with the oar out of the water.
03:30 Same rate more speed
How to row at the same stroke rate and deliver more force into the boat hull. The key to training this on the erg was to start with a focus point once every 5 minutes for 10 strokes.
For ten strokes push harder through the power phase but you're not allowed to take the rate up.
This showed us how much harder we could push and how much more rest we got as a result.
It depends on your muscular strength and fitness. Then we moved to doing this for a minute. After each intense stroke period we allowed 5 strokes to recover and take a little rest. Over time, you don't need to take that rest.
06:00 Up one: down one
Taking the same principle of increased intensity into the boat. We call "Up one down one" which means take the stroke rate up one point in rate through the water and down one point in rate on the slide. So at rate 20 you move to rate 21 through the water and rate 19 on the slide - which averages to 20.
This has the effect of intensifying the power phase.
Train yourself to do this and it gets a better ratio in the stroke - you learn how to relax more as you rest on the recovery.
The benefit is slightly more boat speed, slightly more rest and this helps to keep the boat moving fast through the water.
Here's an earlier episode which covers this topic further of how to train yourself to relax.
https://fastermastersrowing.com/get-more-speed-on-the-recovery/
Do this for short periods to begin with as it's tiring. Introduce it to your warmup just for 5 strokes at each stage in the pick drill.
Want easy live streams like this? Instant broadcasts to Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn. Faster Masters uses StreamYard: https://streamyard.com/pal/d/5694205242376192
RowingChat
Looking backwards to go forwards: what rowing taught me about big tech and what big tech taught me about rowing with Matt Brittin.
Timestamps
01:00 From schoolboy to the Olympics - from a family of ball sport heros.
Matt was inspired by Martin Cross to row to a high level - he was his school teacher. Later he was President of his university club where he led the introduction of professional coaching.
04:00 Rowing teaches skills
Matt was running Google in Africa, Middle East and Europe for the past 10 years - he tells a lot of anecdotes about rowing. Steve Gunn (a harsh coach) taught how to take responsibility for what you are doing. Are you a piece of sh*t on the end of the oar?
When the mindset is right but the self-appraisal was not.
The things Matt learned at rowing were the human things - more useful than Business School, Consultancies and University. I wouldn't be where I am in the business world without the rowing lessons.
08:30 Act like an owner
The unique side of rowing is that when I'm seat racing, I'm against you. When we are in the crew, I'm with you. Act like an owner at Google - take responsibility for what you're doing and win as a team. We collaborate hard - and sometimes a collaborative competitiveness gives a better outcome.
11:00 High Pressure Situations
The start line of a Henley Royal Regatta final is where Matt felt the most intense pressure.
Take confidence from the feeling of nerves and the adrenaline surge - this is a sign you are ready for a big performance. Get the attention off yourself - focus on the process is helpful. Know there is someone there who wants you to succeed.
14:45 Henley Royal Regatta Progress
Matt is a Henley steward - he marks the progress over recent years. Sir Steve Redgrave asked Matt to help the committee to plan a 10 year strategy. It looks unchanging yet it's always evolving. Three new womens quad scull events were announced - near parity in Open events and Womens events. Since 2015 every race has been on YouTube live and on demand. You Win or You Learn.
20:00 Returning to Rowing
It has been a joy and a recalibration too. The gains as you come back are lovely - rediscovering the joy. A lot is about remembering the feelings.
How to balance training and travelling for work. How you manage your time at work is important. Matt blocks his diary to take kids to school twice a week - the most important time of the week.
He does the same for rowing training. The discipline when traveling of visiting the hotel gym.
The more senior you get the more important it is to show up refreshed and feeling great - in good shape. Leaders need to be in the moment and to have time for staff.
Matt is planning to mentor people in business, improve his sculling, rowing strength training this year.
Masters rowing is "running up the down escalator". It doesn't have to be the same each year - unlike younger rowing years. Choose something fun to plan for your future rowing.
