New Zealand Leadership Week – Day 1 - Mr Joe Schmidt
It was a pleasure to welcome Mr Joe Schmidt to our first assembly of New Zealand Leadership Week. Mr Schmidt, as the current coach of the Irish national rugby team, will be well known to many New Zealanders. Mr Schmidt is also a former PNBHS staff member, having taught here from 1990 – 1998, during which time he coached the 1st XV rugby team from 1994 – 1997. Mr Schmidt noted that it was almost exactly 20 years since he was last in assembly, with him having finished his time at PNBHS at the end of term two in 1998.
During his presentation, Mr Schmidt underscored the vital importance of values and character. He stated that, in his opinion, “It’s not about becoming a leader, it’s about becoming the best version of yourself.” He spoke about the importance of having an emphasis on values in professional sporting environments, and gave some recent high profile examples of what can happen when values are missing from team culture.
Mr Schmidt spoke about the dinner table ritual his family had, where each day they shared what they had done to help someone else. He challenged our young men – members of the often-maligned Generation Z – to prove the negative stereotypes about their generation wrong by actively seeking to do things for other people, small acts of kindness with no reward expected.
Mr Schmidt concluded with the message “Make values your foundation, make your base around your integrity.”
Thank you to Mr Schmidt for taking the time to share his knowledge and experiences with us on Monday morning; it was a fantastic way to begin New Zealand Leadership Week.
