“Were you ready?” they ask.

You’d think I’d have a ready answer to a question asked so often. One I’d prepared earlier.

Maybe it is less question and more response when people learn I was appointed CEO of the Richmond Football Club at age 24.

This thought comes to mind when I am interviewing Collingwood Premiership Captain Nick Maxwell, the perfect guest “In the Arena” in Grand Final week. Since retiring as an AFL player after a remarkable career, Nick has been Leadership Coach and Mentor of Melbourne Storm in the NRL, Greater Western Sydney and Collingwood, and is now CEO of the wonderful Eclat, where designCEO is proudly located.

The first team Nick Maxwell captained was Collingwood, the biggest and most famous in the country. He was never a captain of any of his junior teams because that honour generally went to one of the better players, which, in his own judgement, was never him.

This judgement prevailed when the hundreds of names were called in draft after draft, but never his. He was good enough to be invited for tryouts over pre-season with AFL clubs, and the effort this asked of him, motivated by hope rather than expectation, only to be rejected time and again.

Eventually, Collingwood did take a chance, but the stakes were low, as were the expectations, selection #15 in the Rookie Draft, which effectively made him the 99th player selected that year.

It took him a season before he won a place in the Collingwood senior team, and after only twenty games, he was asked by legendary captain Nathan Buckley to join the player leadership group.

“Were you ready?” I wonder.

I have never really had a good answer, but as years pass, I now understand when taking on anything difficult, be it a personal goal, ambition or desire, or a circumstance or situation you find yourself, my answer is now:

“You are never ready”.

Nick Maxwell is now In the Arena.

Play on!