WEBVTT
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Welcome to Control on Compete today by joined by a
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good friend from Anty Sports.
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How are you.
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I'm very good, Thank you. Yeah, it's great to see
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you again.
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To see you. You got in another peck jot from
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the report.
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It was it was an interesting system on the taxis
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and then tell me, well, it was kind of like
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we spoke to somebody and then they took my details,
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and then about ten minutes later somebody called me and
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then I jumped in the taxi. So it was quite
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efficient and then less efficient when I found out how
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much it cost. I did nearly split my water out.
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But what can you do at that point? You can't.
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That's it. They've got your hostage. But in saying that,
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I had a really good chat with him on the
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way here the sun shining. He asked me if I
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was a football or a rugby man. I did, and
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then he had a whole conversation about he was a
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Hibs fan and how rubbish both those teams are. So
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it's quite good.
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Yeah.
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Then you gave me a bit of history about Edinburgh
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population and he said that's about four hundred and fifty
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thousand here said, but festival week it's at one point
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something made crazy and he had somebody in the taxi
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that was there for four weeks. He said, what you've
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had You've been in a hotel for four weeks. I said, yep,
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that must have been expensive. He said, no, that wasn't
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too bad. Actually it was six hundred and fifty quite
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a night.
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Not too bad, Yeah.
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Not too bad. We're in the wrong industry.
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And I think we came back from Dreamhark and we
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were in Sweden and it was so efficient, right, everything
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was perfect.
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We came back to Edinburgh.
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People were getting stuck in the like. It was quite
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funny because you know how you get to be door bets.
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Somebody got stuck in that right, and then we got
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the boss back and then we came into this transpert
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butt and the boys stopped and he said, everyone's gonna
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have to go off the boss. We ran out of
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diesel and we're like, all right, so we all stood
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up and then he just put the foot down. Everybody
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were back in Scotland then, brilliant, brilliant. So you're going
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to be doing our horse for tomorrow. You're looking forward.
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I am really looking forward to it. Yeah, I've been
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buzzing for for a few weeks now, you know, as
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you as you build up to the events, obviously known
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I was going to be was going to be there
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for a good few months now, but you kind of
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just just something in the calendar, whereas, yeah, for the
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last last couple of weeks, I'm so excited and you know,
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and seeing the setup and and also just catching up
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with really good friends. You know, I've got partners.
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Here, meet you at the gate bubble and I like
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as well each other.
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It was yeah, and that's the kind of like that's
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that whole sports community is that most of the time
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everyone crossed paths, you know, and it just so happens that,
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you know, I've got a couple of business partners that
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are here this weekend and people that have done arenas
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for you know, I've just had had a chat with
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Gavin and that was the first ever arena that I consulted.
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On back take one, doesn't that?
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Yeah, that's the Yeah Tech Arena And it was Andrew Forster.
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From were you working on that back then?
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Yes, So Newcastle approached me and then it went it
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went from there, so and it was Joyo Tech's first
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arena after QMC, so it was quite a big one.
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Just so, is that how you made your through QMC?
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So yeah, So I was head of Esports at QMC,
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and we had a yoyo tech arena. So I had
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a yoyo tech office if you like, for two years.
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So my office was the arena, and and and again.
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Different programs on different PCs.
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No, no again, we so year one management of the
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PCs was shocking, James, Like, you know, we had two
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I apprentices and they spent because we had fifty two
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machines across two arenas, they spent ninety percent of their
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time just going around loggins updates, logins updates.
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Because even logans, when you're talking about even apic games,
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you've got to then go back to the hot meal like.
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Guest guest accounts. You know, we're birthday parties. And when
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we used to monetize the space really effectively, and you
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know people are coming in the dinner.
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You're in the plug of our company now.
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But then we got the Then we got the software software,
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and then management software changed everything because even I could
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manage the arena, so I could go in and teach,
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manage all the computers, all the software. So yeah, you know,
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not cheap, but for those people that use gig circuit,
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they know what, they work out what they're paying for.
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And you know, in year two when it came down
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to renew the contract, it actually paid for it because
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it's saved the amount of time it saved them in
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stuff that makes sense, so they paid it. So Yeah,
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so that was how I got involved with Yo.
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You know what I've always you're always hot in the button.
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There's always something that you know about that's coming over there.
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How do you how do you do it?
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Is it? Because you're like.
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You know it's it's I'm rich. I'm going to be
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brutally honest, hear James. I'm very lucky in that, I
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suppose almost right time, right place. So I've been working
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in esports and education for over ten years and if
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you think kind of like it really kicked off for
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maybe five years ago when the b Tech came out
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in England and I'd already been working in that space
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for four years and I'd jumped out of education to
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go and work for an esports company to build their
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education center. So I was already kind of like working
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in the background with like people like British Sports and
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other supplies. Yeah, and the b Tech came out, somebody
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came to get some advice at James at MC came
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to get some advice. Worked out that I'd come spent
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ten years as head of department, you know, where I'd
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introduced games development because I was already working on the
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board for the for the esports organization and said, Nick,
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you need to come to QMC and and run the
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esport So you know, that's kind of that's what happened.
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And then through that, because we were the first people
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to have the arena, all the eyes were on us,
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you know, and we started. I started to write blogs
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and documents for pearsons and things like that. And that's
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one I been about the time in the place. I've
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been there from the start, and I've been that journey.
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I've seen it all. I've seen all of the progression
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through being in the classroom. But there was a reason
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I left it education and you know, a couple of
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years back.
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In talking to you during that process as well, Yeah.
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And it was it was difficult. It was a difficult
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choice to make to go back into education, but going
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back into esports education was completely different. And I had
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the best few years at q and C.
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What did you enjoy more about it.
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Do you think I loved teaching? You know, that's why
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people say how could you be a teacher? And nearly
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every teacher will say because I like teaching.
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Because here's the thing that you see, I like teaching, Right,
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What is that about teaching?
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Like?
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Is it helping the kids? Has it seen them the
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struggles or helping support?
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It's it's giving back something that you know, we've all
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in our careers has always been somebody who has given
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us something.
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You always had that teacher on big yeah.
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Inspired you on. I remember my geography teacher at school,
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you know, and kind of like how that then led
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to me falling in love with geography and then doing
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my degree in geography and all of those sorts of things.
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So you know, I started out my first careers in
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media as a broadcast journalist to work for radio and
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had sat in my first company when I was twenty five.
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We used to broadcast seven days, seven days a week,
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so it was full on how did that was?
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I'll stop yea, yeah, so how did that work? Then
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about twenty five year old neck like what are you doing?
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Yeah?
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Second second, yeah, So I was, I was.
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I was a journalist and so I used to read
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news and sport on air. The client base we had
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was over two hundred radio stations. So I've read news
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and sport on over two hundred radio stations, most of
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them UK based when we used to have independent local
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radio in the UK, which we don't anymore unfortunately. And
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I used to train journalists as well, so I used
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to pick people, you know, when I needed new journalists,
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I would get quite often media students, not journalist students,
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because I found out, you know, I did a postgrad
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diploma in broadcast journalism, but it wasn't until I started
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actually working in radio that's when you learn the real job.
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So I didn't want people coming in with a pre
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you know, of what they were going to be doing.
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So it's like I wanted the person and I wanted
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the you know that the spark and the charisma and
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the confidence that I could then show in the ropes
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about how my company worked, because that company was really
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quite unique in what we did at the time, and
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that gave me a massive buzz and we won a
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couple of awards for training. And then family relocated. Me
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and my wife live in two hundred miles apart wanted
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to start a family, so we relocated. I still did
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a bit of radio, you know. Me and my wife
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went in radio, met in radio, so she carried on
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working in London in radio, and I did weekend stuff.
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But again, after running your business for like nearly ten years,
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and I was up at four in the morning and
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on air at six, finished at one, and then you
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do the business stuff after. So I was doing fourteen hours,
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fourteen hour days, six six seven.
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You always need to be like you're a craft anyway,
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So you probably didn't. You probably done more than did.
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That did me the world of good.
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Do you think yellow starts as well, all of the.
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Early starts, because I don't. I have no issue with doing. Yeah.
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So I've been trying to get myself up earlier this week,
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just to make sure it's going to be.
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Fifty eight. Yes, so spoon, spoon, spoon.
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I can't. I can't sleep till five to eight, six o'clock.
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Is I think you got a bed early?
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Yeah, see, fairly early.
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I trying to stay. I take it my bed before
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midday if possible.
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Yeah. No, I'm like mid I struggle with midnight on
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New Year's even from being honest, ten ten late night.
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Tens of late night for me. But when you when
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I used to get at four o'clock, I wasn't mad
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at nine o'clock, you know, But trying to sleep in
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the summer at nine o'clock in the evening's difficult. And
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if your team's on the teley playing football, yeah, so
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you'd stay up and then like the rest been games today.
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I had one year of it. A couple of years
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we did win, so yeah, but you know things I remember,
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like the Liverpool three nil come back I was. I
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was working in radio at that point, so I switched
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off at halftime. My fiance at the time of my
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now wife text me are you watching this? Put it
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back on, and then like you know, it was worth it,
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But in the morning I regretted it.
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So do you So what I'm said saying, do you
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enjoy that early warning?
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I used to love in the summer, four o'clock drive
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to work, birds singing, suns out.
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I don't think anyone should be a week at four.
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You do get used to it, you know, and you'd
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hone it as well. So I had all my clothes
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out ready, literally next to the bed, so I used
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to get up clean it. I'd have a shower before
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I went to bed, get up, clean my teeth, put
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the clothes on, get in the car, get to work
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straight in coffee first coffee start, and then that was it,
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you know, And I still drink a ridiculous amount of
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coffee now based on what I used to drink.
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I think I've got a coffee machine in the host
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which God glean beans.
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See, I see that's that's nice, and I do like it.
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I do like a cafe coffee. But yeah, I'm an
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and it's.
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A deffinite world. You should.
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Yeah, it does when you drink the amount of coffee
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I do it.
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I feel enough.
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It's a there's a little bit of indigestion, yea enough
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going on. It doesn't really work for me if I
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have two minutes, but I do like one. And I
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love an espress.
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I think it helps you have an espresso before I
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go to bed. So that's weird. And so do you
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think I've actually phoned. I could probably sleep off coffee
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as well.
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Yeah, it really does.
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People can't.
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Then there's my wife would have one caffeine coffee in
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the morning and then it's caffeine free all day and
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then stops on the caffeine three at three o'clock in
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the afternoon. I'm still drinking coffee at eight in the evening.
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And then quite often I've got a bet and I
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want to watch you think I'll take an espresso to bed.
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Ah, there you go, nice and the space of nears coffee.
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No, no, it's it's a proper espresso, but instant in
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a little glass as well. Because if I've got like
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a late evening meeting, because a lot of the meetings
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are doing people abroad or whatever, and I'm sat there
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in a little cup and I'll quite off and get commented.
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You probably coutch people in the hope if everyone else
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is like half a week and you're like absolutely in
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the morning. And plus you do a lot of you know,
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I don't know how you do it, but you're on
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how many boards, You're always on something else, You're always
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in your old webinars or what's the ones that you're
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on you're involved with then.
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So I'm chair of the Education committee for the Sports
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Trade Association, which is based in Chicago. I've been doing
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that for two years now. Yeah, it's great and and
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you know, it's one of those things that it gives
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me an insight into global e sports, which is so
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invaluable in what I do. So for example, in the
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last two years, we've managed to build the committee so
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it's almost like a global think tank. So I've got
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people from the UK and Europe, North America, South America, Asia, India.
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There's another one that's that's I've forgotten off the top
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of my head. That's really important.
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But what that country is important.
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It's no, there's there's there's a there's another link in
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that system escapes me. But but it's really important because
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then I get to see what's happening in all of
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these different countries and you know, like and one of
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the reasons that I'm here in Scotland right now is
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because obviously we met and started to work together with
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a few years back, and I kind of see how
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Scotland has developed and recent stuff that I've been doing
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with s q A here and but I'm seeing similar
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patterns a broad and it's usually abroad, tends to be
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they go straight for the online commercial vehicle to create
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programs because the private industry, private business, they can do it.
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They're not there's no red tape, there's no accreditation as such,
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they just get on and do it if they've got
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the investment, and then the formal qualifications follow, whereas in
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England we're much more formal, you know, and so things
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need to be adhered to. Accreditations important and but that's
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a process in its own right, you know. And I
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think for Scotland right now, you know, that's why you know,
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phrases is perfect timing because it's just kicking off. It's
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all kicking off like it's you know, the things that
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we were talking about three years ago, you know, and
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like battling for and trying to it's almost like everyone's
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caught up.
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And so who would you see if we were on
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power worth No then like you could see in a
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sense you're like England three years ago or like.
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Yeah, so I would say England three three years maybe
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not maybe let's say four. But give it another year
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and I think you'll be exactly where we were three
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years ago in England. And at that point it had
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all kicked off and it was all.
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So glad you're involved with sque as well, because they
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both experience that you've got. It's great to think that
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you're in board and you can give that experience or that,
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you know, because that's what I'm looking for because they
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wanted to do it.
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But people, yeah, and I have to say, James, the
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team SQUA were unbelievable good, absolutely awesome, Like it was
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such an efficient process. They listened, they valued everything, you know,
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everything was clear. I knew, you know, I vetted the
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whole qualification and wrote one of the units for it,
331
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just to add somebody else did vet that unit for me,
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didn't vet my own unit, but it was it was
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you know, the process was really efficient and the the
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end result the qualification is an evolvement with what I've
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seen in England, which again is really but.
336
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That's what it's going to because once again he's outly
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that because you're always going to see okaill or you
338
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won't mind them.
339
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An't it.
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Here's one Yeah, you know, esports evolved so quickly, you know,
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that whole world, and you know the new qualification from
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the SQA reflects it, you know, and there's elements in
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there that aren't in any of the previous qualifications that
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I've worked on or seen and looked at or taught
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or whatever, you know. And I think I think Scotland's
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in a good place and we've got I've now for
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the first time, got a number of customers who have
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ordered kit facilities, you know, like they're starting to see
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that investment in the broader elements of you know, that
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not just gaming like esports, is of qualification and and
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the fact that you know, creating immersive spaces and what
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that does for engagement and recruitment and all of those
353
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things that that you know, we know and and you know,
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I've been banging the drum for for years over it,
355
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but I'm almost past banging that drum good, you know,
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and which is yeah, which is which is good because
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it means we've moved on, you know, And I still
358
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go to certain events and certain conferences, and you know,
359
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people have only just started the journey that that journey
360
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and they're talking about the things that we were talking about,
361
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a few years back, but with that same passion, you know,
362
00:17:25.359 --> 00:17:28.839
and like passion, I've never I've never seen that in
363
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any other area, James, Like, you know, It's like I said,
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geography was my favorite subject to schol absolutely loved it,
365
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hated it doesn't change my I hated it until it
366
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does over millions of years. But but it's I used
367
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to hate it and then it all clicked and so
368
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I really liked it. But you know, no disrespect to
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jograph things. You know, I'm a big fan, but that passion.
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There's more people that get involved with.
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The more brains are getting involved with in the more
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challenge you've got for it to evolve, for people to
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think a different way or try a different way. Size
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you've vowage and with the rate, and they can try
375
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different things that are I think that's what's going to go.
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And lots of people do. And it's like I would
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never tell somebody no, you know, if they've got a
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valid idea and they think it's gonna work, even if
379
00:18:12.640 --> 00:18:15.359
I don't necessarily think it's gonna work, and I think
380
00:18:15.400 --> 00:18:17.759
it's that's not gonna work. But I want you to
381
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go through that process to see that it's not gonna work,
382
00:18:20.680 --> 00:18:23.240
not unless they not unless they're gonna invest, like you know,
383
00:18:23.240 --> 00:18:24.720
I'm gonna put one hundred grand on my own money
384
00:18:25.119 --> 00:18:27.640
and mortgage my house. But no, no, no, honestly, please
385
00:18:27.640 --> 00:18:30.440
don't do that. But most times they're just small little
386
00:18:30.480 --> 00:18:32.680
things you know that you like teachers do and things
387
00:18:32.720 --> 00:18:34.279
that happen in the classroom so I'll go for it.
388
00:18:34.359 --> 00:18:36.920
See what happens, and do you think then there's more
389
00:18:36.960 --> 00:18:39.720
through the independent schools, colleges, high schools.
390
00:18:39.720 --> 00:18:41.559
What would you see? Would you see the moors the
391
00:18:42.119 --> 00:18:42.480
the worst?
392
00:18:43.799 --> 00:18:48.000
Okay, that's a really good question, James, because that market
393
00:18:48.880 --> 00:18:52.359
it really flucks and has done for years. So originally
394
00:18:52.359 --> 00:18:55.079
it was all about the colleges, all about the colleges,
395
00:18:56.119 --> 00:18:57.960
and then the colleges got on board, loads got on board.
396
00:18:58.000 --> 00:19:00.000
And then like a couple of years after the second
397
00:19:00.039 --> 00:19:03.799
can waive of colleges woke up and said, a minute,
398
00:19:03.960 --> 00:19:07.200
their competitors are doing it. We're missing out. And then
399
00:19:07.319 --> 00:19:11.039
in that time there was like one or two independent
400
00:19:11.119 --> 00:19:14.359
schools that dipped in, and there were one or two
401
00:19:14.400 --> 00:19:17.799
schools that dipped in. While all that's going on, you've
402
00:19:17.799 --> 00:19:20.880
got the universities have suddenly realized that hang on a minute.
403
00:19:21.720 --> 00:19:24.559
So I think I think the last time I did
404
00:19:24.599 --> 00:19:29.039
my research on UKs, I think there's seventy two esports
405
00:19:29.039 --> 00:19:33.559
courses available at university level across thirty six institutions. I
406
00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:35.799
think that was the last stat for a couple of
407
00:19:35.799 --> 00:19:39.480
months ago that I worked out, which is phenomenal because
408
00:19:39.519 --> 00:19:41.400
previously it was only like two places and it was
409
00:19:41.440 --> 00:19:45.839
really specialist courses. So we've got the college and we've
410
00:19:45.880 --> 00:19:49.119
got this end like the universities. And what's happened is
411
00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:54.519
schools are now getting on board big time. Yeah, like
412
00:19:54.960 --> 00:20:00.720
secondary schools, even some of some junior schools getting involved
413
00:20:00.839 --> 00:20:03.440
in a smart much smaller than capasity, but we're doing
414
00:20:03.440 --> 00:20:06.119
a lot more business excuse me with Yo Yo tech
415
00:20:06.200 --> 00:20:09.119
and with my services at MT Sports, like with quality
416
00:20:09.119 --> 00:20:12.160
control of those with schools, which is great because you're
417
00:20:12.200 --> 00:20:15.279
creating that pipeline. And then I would say in the
418
00:20:15.319 --> 00:20:17.799
last year and a half, the independent.
419
00:20:17.359 --> 00:20:20.319
Schools put by in between high school to college from
420
00:20:20.359 --> 00:20:23.359
school college and that's what they want. I mean, you'll
421
00:20:23.359 --> 00:20:26.160
owned more about high colleges to them. It's very important
422
00:20:26.160 --> 00:20:28.880
for them to get that students coming in from high school.
423
00:20:28.960 --> 00:20:32.400
When I was head of department at college, you know
424
00:20:32.839 --> 00:20:35.200
that progression ate was really important. So we used to
425
00:20:35.240 --> 00:20:36.960
do it, just as an example, do level one media,
426
00:20:37.000 --> 00:20:39.559
level two media, level three media, and then we delivered
427
00:20:39.559 --> 00:20:42.680
a degree so we could we could keep students, retain
428
00:20:42.759 --> 00:20:46.519
students for like six seven years and you're guaranteeing that pastor.
429
00:20:46.519 --> 00:20:49.759
And when you've got schools all the way through university.
430
00:20:50.000 --> 00:20:52.559
That means that path through is solid, so it's sustainable,
431
00:20:52.799 --> 00:20:56.200
but also it means the university is constantly after up
432
00:20:56.240 --> 00:20:56.640
their game.
433
00:20:56.880 --> 00:20:58.839
So here's the thing. So let's fast forward.
434
00:20:58.880 --> 00:21:00.880
If you can start to get the gree horses at colleges,
435
00:21:00.920 --> 00:21:04.160
which and all you can, surely university will order a minute.
436
00:21:04.279 --> 00:21:07.400
That's what we do, they saw hawfully, and then you
437
00:21:07.440 --> 00:21:09.440
will start to mogulate to one one thing.
438
00:21:10.440 --> 00:21:13.559
The way that if you're a mega horse bowl, if.
439
00:21:13.440 --> 00:21:14.880
You pay me to one of their savor and your
440
00:21:14.960 --> 00:21:15.920
unit it then yeah.
441
00:21:15.960 --> 00:21:19.000
So you know, like the H and D was launched
442
00:21:19.039 --> 00:21:22.400
in September twenty fourth, so and lots of colleges are
443
00:21:22.400 --> 00:21:24.519
able to deliver H and d's because it's a B tech.
444
00:21:24.839 --> 00:21:27.039
So they're keeping students like they have a sixth form
445
00:21:27.119 --> 00:21:28.680
or you know, they're sort of keeping them from the
446
00:21:28.759 --> 00:21:33.519
H and D. But most colleges sort of traditionally sixteen
447
00:21:33.559 --> 00:21:37.559
to eighteen year olds that are delivering degrees as well,
448
00:21:37.839 --> 00:21:41.039
they're delivering them as a satellite center. So we used
449
00:21:41.079 --> 00:21:45.839
to deliver degrees so validated by the University of Surrey,
450
00:21:46.000 --> 00:21:49.039
so it goes through their validation process and Surrey say yes,
451
00:21:49.759 --> 00:21:52.519
we're happy with you. You can deliver a University of
452
00:21:52.519 --> 00:21:56.319
Surrey degree from your college because you've got the facilities
453
00:21:56.359 --> 00:22:00.039
like they do, you know, places like Wiltshire and and
454
00:22:00.480 --> 00:22:03.359
you know there's quite a few colleges now that deliver universities,
455
00:22:03.400 --> 00:22:07.039
but they generally work for a delivered them on behalf
456
00:22:07.039 --> 00:22:08.319
of another university.
457
00:22:08.359 --> 00:22:11.359
Okay, so what would so here's one feel because you're
458
00:22:11.400 --> 00:22:13.000
very much on it and you're very much right in it.
459
00:22:13.480 --> 00:22:16.160
How many different variations of esports degrees have you seen?
460
00:22:16.640 --> 00:22:20.319
They're all touching on some business? Yes, what do you
461
00:22:20.319 --> 00:22:20.759
think work?
462
00:22:20.759 --> 00:22:23.200
And what do you know what some things?
463
00:22:23.240 --> 00:22:24.920
There's definitely been a bet where people think, oh, people
464
00:22:25.000 --> 00:22:27.319
just stacking esports on to say the train attract students, right,
465
00:22:27.359 --> 00:22:28.799
So it's always going to be that part of it, right,
466
00:22:28.839 --> 00:22:31.839
But which ones do you think are give the most value?
467
00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:35.720
Do you know what? James, I wouldn't like to pick
468
00:22:35.759 --> 00:22:40.119
one out, And I'll give you the reasons why. There
469
00:22:40.160 --> 00:22:42.599
are so many different degrees in esports and you can
470
00:22:42.640 --> 00:22:47.640
have esports with marketing, esports, broadcasts, production, business law. You know,
471
00:22:47.759 --> 00:22:51.000
there's so many variants. So therefore the quality of that
472
00:22:51.039 --> 00:22:53.160
degree depends on where it's being delivered and who's delivering
473
00:22:53.200 --> 00:22:58.039
it also relevant on what the student wants.
474
00:22:57.799 --> 00:23:00.400
Yeah, and what they can get a job wise after that.
475
00:23:00.559 --> 00:23:03.039
If a student is lot, they've studied law at a
476
00:23:03.200 --> 00:23:05.680
level and esports.
477
00:23:05.519 --> 00:23:07.680
Long modules, you could have a degree, so you could
478
00:23:07.680 --> 00:23:10.079
have a law degree that has an esports module. Law
479
00:23:10.519 --> 00:23:12.160
doesn't have to be an all esports degree.
480
00:23:12.599 --> 00:23:14.559
Oh yeah, so you do a lot of them are
481
00:23:14.599 --> 00:23:18.119
like marketing with esports, you know, and and and that
482
00:23:18.160 --> 00:23:21.160
sort of thing. And students will then join the same
483
00:23:21.200 --> 00:23:23.559
students who are doing a full time esports degree for
484
00:23:23.680 --> 00:23:27.440
those modules, so they're in those lessons. But yeah, you know,
485
00:23:27.519 --> 00:23:32.519
I had a student who was doing law A level,
486
00:23:33.640 --> 00:23:38.640
business A level, and esports B tech. I don't remember
487
00:23:38.720 --> 00:23:42.519
a conversation with her going interesting combat and she said,
488
00:23:43.119 --> 00:23:45.319
I said why, He said, all right, because I want
489
00:23:45.319 --> 00:23:47.160
to go to university. I don't want to do law,
490
00:23:47.680 --> 00:23:51.000
but I want to work within law within esports because
491
00:23:51.000 --> 00:23:52.839
at the moment there aren't many esports lawyers about This
492
00:23:52.920 --> 00:23:56.720
was four years ago. So I need to understand the law,
493
00:23:56.759 --> 00:23:59.599
but I need I need to understand the esports. I
494
00:23:59.680 --> 00:24:03.079
was like place switched on, you know, like that's that's
495
00:24:03.200 --> 00:24:05.440
that's a great idea and she went on to university
496
00:24:05.440 --> 00:24:05.880
to do law.
497
00:24:05.920 --> 00:24:06.799
But she's how easy do you.
498
00:24:06.759 --> 00:24:08.279
Think it is for people are switched to on to
499
00:24:08.279 --> 00:24:10.559
think they may want to do that? Depect these courses? Now,
500
00:24:10.640 --> 00:24:11.480
who do you think of that?
501
00:24:12.200 --> 00:24:15.000
I think? Yeah, I think again, it's over the years,
502
00:24:15.039 --> 00:24:18.680
it's it's grown and evolved so much that the teachers
503
00:24:18.720 --> 00:24:23.839
that are delivering are able to have those conversations and
504
00:24:23.880 --> 00:24:27.799
explain to these people, you know, to these learners, like, yeah,
505
00:24:27.839 --> 00:24:30.039
but there are all of these different careers you can
506
00:24:30.160 --> 00:24:32.880
do that, and you know how you go about it
507
00:24:33.039 --> 00:24:35.519
either way, most of them sort of like the college
508
00:24:35.519 --> 00:24:38.960
courses and the skills that they're learning and all transferable
509
00:24:38.960 --> 00:24:41.079
and could be taken into lots of different industries. So
510
00:24:41.160 --> 00:24:43.079
if they then choose to do something on the side
511
00:24:43.200 --> 00:24:46.359
or specialize at university and something else, they can use
512
00:24:46.440 --> 00:24:49.160
all of that within the esports industry, because let's be honest,
513
00:24:49.599 --> 00:24:52.319
you know, twenty years ago, esports wasn't even called esports,
514
00:24:52.359 --> 00:24:56.279
and when it kind of blew up, we esports just
515
00:24:56.319 --> 00:24:59.759
stole people from other industries. All the broadcasters.
516
00:24:59.359 --> 00:25:02.319
Networks it absolutely see on LinkedIn obtaining people coming from
517
00:25:02.319 --> 00:25:04.279
a big, massive networks coming over to the esports and
518
00:25:04.279 --> 00:25:05.200
that's only that's good though.
519
00:25:05.279 --> 00:25:06.920
Yeah, it's good because they bring in that kind of
520
00:25:06.960 --> 00:25:10.559
like initial knowledge, whereas now education is delivering those skills
521
00:25:10.559 --> 00:25:14.920
but within the context of esports, and you know, that's
522
00:25:14.920 --> 00:25:19.000
that's kind of inevitable. And I think when the you know,
523
00:25:19.039 --> 00:25:22.400
one of the reasons that NTY sports kind of kicked
524
00:25:22.440 --> 00:25:26.839
off started really was was just to the demand of
525
00:25:27.160 --> 00:25:30.640
suddenly this esports qualification came out and people were being
526
00:25:30.680 --> 00:25:37.599
asked to teach it esports. They may well have been gamers, so,
527
00:25:37.720 --> 00:25:39.480
you know, and so they understood that, or they might
528
00:25:39.480 --> 00:25:42.200
have watched esports didn't really understand the industry, or they
529
00:25:42.200 --> 00:25:47.240
were sporty, or they were computer based. So like my
530
00:25:47.400 --> 00:25:53.319
teaching resources, like when I started telling it's just over
531
00:25:53.359 --> 00:25:56.799
twenty one thousand, I'd still wake up in the morning
532
00:25:56.839 --> 00:26:01.759
and go because I don't every day before every day, Yeah,
533
00:26:01.759 --> 00:26:04.039
that's it. I just I put it on and there's
534
00:26:04.079 --> 00:26:07.519
another thing. But you know, I certainly didn't set that
535
00:26:07.640 --> 00:26:11.279
up to as a revenue stream. I set it up
536
00:26:11.319 --> 00:26:14.240
because people were asking me like, have you got any resources,
537
00:26:14.279 --> 00:26:16.119
and I was like, yeah, I have. I spent months
538
00:26:16.119 --> 00:26:18.559
preparing these because I knew the BEATECH was coming. You know,
539
00:26:18.559 --> 00:26:20.119
I worked really hard and they're really nice. You know,
540
00:26:20.160 --> 00:26:23.160
they look nice because I wanted them to look cool
541
00:26:23.200 --> 00:26:25.279
for the students, because the nature.
542
00:26:24.960 --> 00:26:26.720
Of the course to engage with them.
543
00:26:26.799 --> 00:26:28.400
I wanted to want them to them to go, and
544
00:26:28.440 --> 00:26:30.799
they go, this is esports. He's got a character from
545
00:26:31.119 --> 00:26:35.640
Fortnite on here or whatever, and so but then I
546
00:26:35.720 --> 00:26:37.920
realized it's in a minute. There's there's a lot of
547
00:26:37.960 --> 00:26:41.720
teachers that are like crying out for resources and more
548
00:26:41.720 --> 00:26:44.200
traditional subjects like media and you know, you could go
549
00:26:44.240 --> 00:26:47.240
on to t yes and there's thousands of resources and
550
00:26:47.359 --> 00:26:49.440
colleges would have resources because they've been teaching it for
551
00:26:49.519 --> 00:26:52.400
twenty years, and esports there was nothing and again time
552
00:26:53.200 --> 00:26:55.880
lack of time and place. And you know, in that
553
00:26:55.960 --> 00:26:56.759
kind of time, do you.
554
00:26:56.799 --> 00:26:58.640
Know what, I give you more credit?
555
00:26:58.720 --> 00:27:00.839
And I don't want to say like Tame's probably got
556
00:27:00.839 --> 00:27:02.319
a part of it, but you've got to make it happen.
557
00:27:02.519 --> 00:27:03.720
I think you definitely make it happen.
558
00:27:03.799 --> 00:27:06.960
My wife always says it's about you know, taking the opportunity,
559
00:27:07.160 --> 00:27:07.519
seeing the.
560
00:27:07.519 --> 00:27:09.559
Opportunity, and you're talking about working Tame. If you're always
561
00:27:10.079 --> 00:27:12.160
you're going to hit everything do you know what I mean?
562
00:27:12.599 --> 00:27:15.279
There are there are things still and there have been
563
00:27:15.319 --> 00:27:17.000
things in the past that.
564
00:27:17.000 --> 00:27:20.200
I've he's a hunger for it.
565
00:27:20.240 --> 00:27:22.119
Do you think, yeah, I mean you've done the graind
566
00:27:22.119 --> 00:27:24.240
you get as do you think you're looking forward to
567
00:27:24.279 --> 00:27:25.680
the tame where it's even easier?
568
00:27:26.319 --> 00:27:28.880
I would, I'd like to get to a point whereby
569
00:27:29.119 --> 00:27:33.000
I at work less, but I don't mind the grind,
570
00:27:33.079 --> 00:27:36.759
you know. And and like when you're kind of working
571
00:27:36.799 --> 00:27:39.880
for your own company, you know, you I'm effectively self employed,
572
00:27:40.079 --> 00:27:42.759
but employed by my company. It is down to me,
573
00:27:43.680 --> 00:27:45.319
so you have to put the graft in because you
574
00:27:45.359 --> 00:27:47.480
never know when your next contract is going to end
575
00:27:47.880 --> 00:27:50.119
or when your next new contract is going to turn up.
576
00:27:51.079 --> 00:27:54.680
And you know, that's quite scary, the same as I'm
577
00:27:54.799 --> 00:27:57.599
used to that from from my business side of my twenties.
578
00:28:00.759 --> 00:28:03.119
So you know, at the moment, my quality of life
579
00:28:03.240 --> 00:28:05.680
is good. I'm happy, you know, and that's the most
580
00:28:05.680 --> 00:28:07.960
important thing, you know, Like I get to spend a
581
00:28:08.000 --> 00:28:10.119
good amount of time with my family, I get to
582
00:28:10.119 --> 00:28:11.599
come to events like this, you know. When I was
583
00:28:11.680 --> 00:28:15.200
a teacher, obviously you're you're chained to the classroom each
584
00:28:15.359 --> 00:28:16.759
Monday to Friday, it's hard to work.
585
00:28:17.200 --> 00:28:17.359
You know.
586
00:28:17.400 --> 00:28:21.200
There's a reason why thousands and thousands of teachers start
587
00:28:21.240 --> 00:28:23.119
teaching and within the first six months they leave. There
588
00:28:23.160 --> 00:28:25.480
is a reason for all that. Yeah, and they're always
589
00:28:25.480 --> 00:28:27.799
struggling to find new teachers, you know. And I went
590
00:28:27.839 --> 00:28:31.519
into teaching as somebody from industry to teach media, thinking
591
00:28:31.759 --> 00:28:33.880
I'm going to go in, I'm going to tell them
592
00:28:33.920 --> 00:28:35.559
all the stuff I know this is. Look at all
593
00:28:35.599 --> 00:28:40.839
these examples I've interviewed these people. That's not the reality.
594
00:28:41.160 --> 00:28:43.400
It's just it really isn't the reality. And you know,
595
00:28:44.240 --> 00:28:46.440
one thing I used to say it or so I
596
00:28:46.480 --> 00:28:48.440
have teachers they get like all the summer off. Yeah,
597
00:28:50.359 --> 00:28:52.559
you when you speak to any any teacher who's done
598
00:28:52.599 --> 00:28:54.960
it for a little while, Like now, I resent that
599
00:28:55.000 --> 00:28:55.799
comment a lot.
600
00:28:55.680 --> 00:28:57.920
Because it's difficult as well.
601
00:28:58.039 --> 00:29:01.480
You need you half your time social work, you're dealing
602
00:29:00.759 --> 00:29:06.440
with and things have changed so much over the years,
603
00:29:06.480 --> 00:29:09.640
you know. But in sand that I also did love it.
604
00:29:09.640 --> 00:29:11.920
It was the red tape and and and which is
605
00:29:11.920 --> 00:29:14.200
why I go into colleges and talk because it takes
606
00:29:14.200 --> 00:29:14.920
them back to teaching.
607
00:29:15.319 --> 00:29:15.480
You know.
608
00:29:15.519 --> 00:29:17.480
It's like, oh, yeah, I'm come in and talking about
609
00:29:17.640 --> 00:29:20.400
sports and.
610
00:29:19.319 --> 00:29:21.680
I'm moving forward to seeing your certainly talk tomorrow, buddy.
611
00:29:22.039 --> 00:29:24.759
Thank you. Yeah, I'm really looking forward to it. First
612
00:29:24.759 --> 00:29:29.960
time as host, so yeah, I'm looking forward to it. Thanks,
613
00:29:30.000 --> 00:29:31.480
thanks for inviting me and thanks for getting me on.
614
00:29:32.079 --> 00:29:33.920
Thank you, buddy, James
1
00:00:04.040 --> 00:00:06.320
Welcome to Control on Compete today by joined by a
2
00:00:06.320 --> 00:00:08.640
good friend from Anty Sports.
3
00:00:09.080 --> 00:00:09.480
How are you.
4
00:00:09.599 --> 00:00:11.359
I'm very good, Thank you. Yeah, it's great to see
5
00:00:11.359 --> 00:00:11.919
you again.
6
00:00:12.080 --> 00:00:13.919
To see you. You got in another peck jot from
7
00:00:13.919 --> 00:00:14.640
the report.
8
00:00:16.600 --> 00:00:20.440
It was it was an interesting system on the taxis
9
00:00:20.960 --> 00:00:25.000
and then tell me, well, it was kind of like
10
00:00:25.039 --> 00:00:27.640
we spoke to somebody and then they took my details,
11
00:00:27.679 --> 00:00:29.879
and then about ten minutes later somebody called me and
12
00:00:29.960 --> 00:00:32.039
then I jumped in the taxi. So it was quite
13
00:00:32.039 --> 00:00:36.479
efficient and then less efficient when I found out how
14
00:00:36.560 --> 00:00:39.759
much it cost. I did nearly split my water out.
15
00:00:40.079 --> 00:00:42.439
But what can you do at that point? You can't.
16
00:00:42.679 --> 00:00:44.679
That's it. They've got your hostage. But in saying that,
17
00:00:44.799 --> 00:00:46.240
I had a really good chat with him on the
18
00:00:46.280 --> 00:00:49.000
way here the sun shining. He asked me if I
19
00:00:49.000 --> 00:00:53.679
was a football or a rugby man. I did, and
20
00:00:53.719 --> 00:00:56.439
then he had a whole conversation about he was a
21
00:00:56.560 --> 00:01:00.640
Hibs fan and how rubbish both those teams are. So
22
00:01:00.640 --> 00:01:01.159
it's quite good.
23
00:01:01.200 --> 00:01:01.359
Yeah.
24
00:01:01.359 --> 00:01:03.039
Then you gave me a bit of history about Edinburgh
25
00:01:03.600 --> 00:01:06.359
population and he said that's about four hundred and fifty
26
00:01:06.359 --> 00:01:10.400
thousand here said, but festival week it's at one point
27
00:01:10.439 --> 00:01:13.239
something made crazy and he had somebody in the taxi
28
00:01:13.280 --> 00:01:15.879
that was there for four weeks. He said, what you've
29
00:01:15.920 --> 00:01:18.079
had You've been in a hotel for four weeks. I said, yep,
30
00:01:19.040 --> 00:01:21.239
that must have been expensive. He said, no, that wasn't
31
00:01:21.280 --> 00:01:23.760
too bad. Actually it was six hundred and fifty quite
32
00:01:23.760 --> 00:01:24.879
a night.
33
00:01:25.000 --> 00:01:26.879
Not too bad, Yeah.
34
00:01:26.519 --> 00:01:29.000
Not too bad. We're in the wrong industry.
35
00:01:29.879 --> 00:01:32.959
And I think we came back from Dreamhark and we
36
00:01:33.159 --> 00:01:35.760
were in Sweden and it was so efficient, right, everything
37
00:01:35.799 --> 00:01:36.319
was perfect.
38
00:01:36.359 --> 00:01:37.560
We came back to Edinburgh.
39
00:01:37.840 --> 00:01:40.760
People were getting stuck in the like. It was quite
40
00:01:40.760 --> 00:01:43.000
funny because you know how you get to be door bets.
41
00:01:43.200 --> 00:01:45.799
Somebody got stuck in that right, and then we got
42
00:01:45.799 --> 00:01:48.560
the boss back and then we came into this transpert
43
00:01:48.560 --> 00:01:50.959
butt and the boys stopped and he said, everyone's gonna
44
00:01:50.959 --> 00:01:52.120
have to go off the boss. We ran out of
45
00:01:52.159 --> 00:01:54.760
diesel and we're like, all right, so we all stood
46
00:01:54.799 --> 00:01:56.680
up and then he just put the foot down. Everybody
47
00:01:58.719 --> 00:02:01.799
were back in Scotland then, brilliant, brilliant. So you're going
48
00:02:01.840 --> 00:02:03.680
to be doing our horse for tomorrow. You're looking forward.
49
00:02:03.719 --> 00:02:05.239
I am really looking forward to it. Yeah, I've been
50
00:02:05.280 --> 00:02:08.520
buzzing for for a few weeks now, you know, as
51
00:02:08.520 --> 00:02:10.319
you as you build up to the events, obviously known
52
00:02:10.599 --> 00:02:12.919
I was going to be was going to be there
53
00:02:12.960 --> 00:02:16.039
for a good few months now, but you kind of
54
00:02:16.120 --> 00:02:18.800
just just something in the calendar, whereas, yeah, for the
55
00:02:18.840 --> 00:02:21.599
last last couple of weeks, I'm so excited and you know,
56
00:02:22.039 --> 00:02:24.800
and seeing the setup and and also just catching up
57
00:02:24.800 --> 00:02:27.080
with really good friends. You know, I've got partners.
58
00:02:26.719 --> 00:02:29.360
Here, meet you at the gate bubble and I like
59
00:02:29.360 --> 00:02:30.400
as well each other.
60
00:02:30.439 --> 00:02:32.520
It was yeah, and that's the kind of like that's
61
00:02:32.520 --> 00:02:35.199
that whole sports community is that most of the time
62
00:02:35.520 --> 00:02:38.319
everyone crossed paths, you know, and it just so happens that,
63
00:02:39.240 --> 00:02:41.000
you know, I've got a couple of business partners that
64
00:02:41.039 --> 00:02:43.840
are here this weekend and people that have done arenas
65
00:02:43.879 --> 00:02:46.560
for you know, I've just had had a chat with
66
00:02:46.639 --> 00:02:50.159
Gavin and that was the first ever arena that I consulted.
67
00:02:49.719 --> 00:02:51.599
On back take one, doesn't that?
68
00:02:51.680 --> 00:02:54.840
Yeah, that's the Yeah Tech Arena And it was Andrew Forster.
69
00:02:54.599 --> 00:02:57.280
From were you working on that back then?
70
00:02:57.479 --> 00:03:02.919
Yes, So Newcastle approached me and then it went it
71
00:03:03.000 --> 00:03:06.120
went from there, so and it was Joyo Tech's first
72
00:03:06.319 --> 00:03:09.800
arena after QMC, so it was quite a big one.
73
00:03:09.639 --> 00:03:12.120
Just so, is that how you made your through QMC?
74
00:03:12.759 --> 00:03:15.000
So yeah, So I was head of Esports at QMC,
75
00:03:15.719 --> 00:03:18.639
and we had a yoyo tech arena. So I had
76
00:03:18.919 --> 00:03:22.159
a yoyo tech office if you like, for two years.
77
00:03:22.400 --> 00:03:26.360
So my office was the arena, and and and again.
78
00:03:26.639 --> 00:03:28.120
Different programs on different PCs.
79
00:03:29.039 --> 00:03:33.520
No, no again, we so year one management of the
80
00:03:33.560 --> 00:03:36.599
PCs was shocking, James, Like, you know, we had two
81
00:03:36.680 --> 00:03:39.840
I apprentices and they spent because we had fifty two
82
00:03:39.840 --> 00:03:43.360
machines across two arenas, they spent ninety percent of their
83
00:03:43.400 --> 00:03:46.800
time just going around loggins updates, logins updates.
84
00:03:46.479 --> 00:03:49.039
Because even logans, when you're talking about even apic games,
85
00:03:49.080 --> 00:03:50.840
you've got to then go back to the hot meal like.
86
00:03:51.680 --> 00:03:54.840
Guest guest accounts. You know, we're birthday parties. And when
87
00:03:54.840 --> 00:03:58.039
we used to monetize the space really effectively, and you
88
00:03:58.080 --> 00:03:59.280
know people are coming in the dinner.
89
00:03:59.319 --> 00:04:01.039
You're in the plug of our company now.
90
00:04:02.840 --> 00:04:05.080
But then we got the Then we got the software software,
91
00:04:05.439 --> 00:04:07.879
and then management software changed everything because even I could
92
00:04:07.960 --> 00:04:10.360
manage the arena, so I could go in and teach,
93
00:04:10.800 --> 00:04:15.280
manage all the computers, all the software. So yeah, you know,
94
00:04:15.599 --> 00:04:19.160
not cheap, but for those people that use gig circuit,
95
00:04:19.199 --> 00:04:22.360
they know what, they work out what they're paying for.
96
00:04:22.399 --> 00:04:24.639
And you know, in year two when it came down
97
00:04:24.680 --> 00:04:27.920
to renew the contract, it actually paid for it because
98
00:04:27.959 --> 00:04:29.720
it's saved the amount of time it saved them in
99
00:04:29.759 --> 00:04:32.319
stuff that makes sense, so they paid it. So Yeah,
100
00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:33.439
so that was how I got involved with Yo.
101
00:04:33.839 --> 00:04:36.480
You know what I've always you're always hot in the button.
102
00:04:36.480 --> 00:04:38.920
There's always something that you know about that's coming over there.
103
00:04:38.959 --> 00:04:39.800
How do you how do you do it?
104
00:04:39.839 --> 00:04:40.439
Is it? Because you're like.
105
00:04:42.879 --> 00:04:45.560
You know it's it's I'm rich. I'm going to be
106
00:04:45.639 --> 00:04:50.040
brutally honest, hear James. I'm very lucky in that, I
107
00:04:50.079 --> 00:04:54.120
suppose almost right time, right place. So I've been working
108
00:04:54.120 --> 00:04:57.279
in esports and education for over ten years and if
109
00:04:57.319 --> 00:04:59.720
you think kind of like it really kicked off for
110
00:05:00.480 --> 00:05:02.439
maybe five years ago when the b Tech came out
111
00:05:02.480 --> 00:05:05.759
in England and I'd already been working in that space
112
00:05:05.800 --> 00:05:08.240
for four years and I'd jumped out of education to
113
00:05:08.279 --> 00:05:10.519
go and work for an esports company to build their
114
00:05:10.600 --> 00:05:13.600
education center. So I was already kind of like working
115
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in the background with like people like British Sports and
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other supplies. Yeah, and the b Tech came out, somebody
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came to get some advice at James at MC came
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to get some advice. Worked out that I'd come spent
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ten years as head of department, you know, where I'd
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introduced games development because I was already working on the
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board for the for the esports organization and said, Nick,
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you need to come to QMC and and run the
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esport So you know, that's kind of that's what happened.
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And then through that, because we were the first people
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to have the arena, all the eyes were on us,
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you know, and we started. I started to write blogs
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and documents for pearsons and things like that. And that's
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one I been about the time in the place. I've
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been there from the start, and I've been that journey.
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I've seen it all. I've seen all of the progression
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through being in the classroom. But there was a reason
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I left it education and you know, a couple of
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years back.
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In talking to you during that process as well, Yeah.
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And it was it was difficult. It was a difficult
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choice to make to go back into education, but going
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back into esports education was completely different. And I had
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the best few years at q and C.
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What did you enjoy more about it.
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Do you think I loved teaching? You know, that's why
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people say how could you be a teacher? And nearly
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every teacher will say because I like teaching.
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Because here's the thing that you see, I like teaching, Right,
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What is that about teaching?
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Like?
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Is it helping the kids? Has it seen them the
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struggles or helping support?
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It's it's giving back something that you know, we've all
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in our careers has always been somebody who has given
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us something.
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You always had that teacher on big yeah.
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Inspired you on. I remember my geography teacher at school,
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you know, and kind of like how that then led
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to me falling in love with geography and then doing
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my degree in geography and all of those sorts of things.
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So you know, I started out my first careers in
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media as a broadcast journalist to work for radio and
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had sat in my first company when I was twenty five.
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We used to broadcast seven days, seven days a week,
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so it was full on how did that was?
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I'll stop yea, yeah, so how did that work? Then
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about twenty five year old neck like what are you doing?
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Yeah?
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Second second, yeah, So I was, I was.
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I was a journalist and so I used to read
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news and sport on air. The client base we had
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was over two hundred radio stations. So I've read news
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and sport on over two hundred radio stations, most of
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them UK based when we used to have independent local
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radio in the UK, which we don't anymore unfortunately. And
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I used to train journalists as well, so I used
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to pick people, you know, when I needed new journalists,
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I would get quite often media students, not journalist students,
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because I found out, you know, I did a postgrad
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diploma in broadcast journalism, but it wasn't until I started
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actually working in radio that's when you learn the real job.
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So I didn't want people coming in with a pre
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you know, of what they were going to be doing.
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So it's like I wanted the person and I wanted
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the you know that the spark and the charisma and
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the confidence that I could then show in the ropes
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about how my company worked, because that company was really
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quite unique in what we did at the time, and
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that gave me a massive buzz and we won a
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couple of awards for training. And then family relocated. Me
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and my wife live in two hundred miles apart wanted
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to start a family, so we relocated. I still did
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a bit of radio, you know. Me and my wife
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went in radio, met in radio, so she carried on
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working in London in radio, and I did weekend stuff.
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But again, after running your business for like nearly ten years,
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and I was up at four in the morning and
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on air at six, finished at one, and then you
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do the business stuff after. So I was doing fourteen hours,
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fourteen hour days, six six seven.
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You always need to be like you're a craft anyway,
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So you probably didn't. You probably done more than did.
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That did me the world of good.
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Do you think yellow starts as well, all of the.
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Early starts, because I don't. I have no issue with doing. Yeah.
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So I've been trying to get myself up earlier this week,
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just to make sure it's going to be.
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Fifty eight. Yes, so spoon, spoon, spoon.
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I can't. I can't sleep till five to eight, six o'clock.
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Is I think you got a bed early?
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Yeah, see, fairly early.
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I trying to stay. I take it my bed before
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midday if possible.
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Yeah. No, I'm like mid I struggle with midnight on
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New Year's even from being honest, ten ten late night.
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Tens of late night for me. But when you when
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I used to get at four o'clock, I wasn't mad
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at nine o'clock, you know, But trying to sleep in
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the summer at nine o'clock in the evening's difficult. And
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if your team's on the teley playing football, yeah, so
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you'd stay up and then like the rest been games today.
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I had one year of it. A couple of years
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we did win, so yeah, but you know things I remember,
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like the Liverpool three nil come back I was. I
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was working in radio at that point, so I switched
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off at halftime. My fiance at the time of my
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now wife text me are you watching this? Put it
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back on, and then like you know, it was worth it,
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But in the morning I regretted it.
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So do you So what I'm said saying, do you
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enjoy that early warning?
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I used to love in the summer, four o'clock drive
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to work, birds singing, suns out.
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I don't think anyone should be a week at four.
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You do get used to it, you know, and you'd
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hone it as well. So I had all my clothes
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out ready, literally next to the bed, so I used
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to get up clean it. I'd have a shower before
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I went to bed, get up, clean my teeth, put
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the clothes on, get in the car, get to work
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straight in coffee first coffee start, and then that was it,
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you know, And I still drink a ridiculous amount of
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coffee now based on what I used to drink.
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I think I've got a coffee machine in the host
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which God glean beans.
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See, I see that's that's nice, and I do like it.
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I do like a cafe coffee. But yeah, I'm an
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and it's.
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A deffinite world. You should.
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Yeah, it does when you drink the amount of coffee
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I do it.
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I feel enough.
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It's a there's a little bit of indigestion, yea enough
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going on. It doesn't really work for me if I
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have two minutes, but I do like one. And I
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love an espress.
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I think it helps you have an espresso before I
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go to bed. So that's weird. And so do you
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think I've actually phoned. I could probably sleep off coffee
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as well.
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Yeah, it really does.
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People can't.
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Then there's my wife would have one caffeine coffee in
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the morning and then it's caffeine free all day and
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then stops on the caffeine three at three o'clock in
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the afternoon. I'm still drinking coffee at eight in the evening.
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And then quite often I've got a bet and I
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want to watch you think I'll take an espresso to bed.
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Ah, there you go, nice and the space of nears coffee.
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No, no, it's it's a proper espresso, but instant in
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a little glass as well. Because if I've got like
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a late evening meeting, because a lot of the meetings
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are doing people abroad or whatever, and I'm sat there
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in a little cup and I'll quite off and get commented.
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You probably coutch people in the hope if everyone else
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is like half a week and you're like absolutely in
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the morning. And plus you do a lot of you know,
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I don't know how you do it, but you're on
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how many boards, You're always on something else, You're always
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in your old webinars or what's the ones that you're
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on you're involved with then.
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So I'm chair of the Education committee for the Sports
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Trade Association, which is based in Chicago. I've been doing
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that for two years now. Yeah, it's great and and
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you know, it's one of those things that it gives
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me an insight into global e sports, which is so
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invaluable in what I do. So for example, in the
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last two years, we've managed to build the committee so
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it's almost like a global think tank. So I've got
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people from the UK and Europe, North America, South America, Asia, India.
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There's another one that's that's I've forgotten off the top
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of my head. That's really important.
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But what that country is important.
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It's no, there's there's there's a there's another link in
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that system escapes me. But but it's really important because
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then I get to see what's happening in all of
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these different countries and you know, like and one of
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the reasons that I'm here in Scotland right now is
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because obviously we met and started to work together with
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a few years back, and I kind of see how
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Scotland has developed and recent stuff that I've been doing
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with s q A here and but I'm seeing similar
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patterns a broad and it's usually abroad, tends to be
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they go straight for the online commercial vehicle to create
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programs because the private industry, private business, they can do it.
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They're not there's no red tape, there's no accreditation as such,
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they just get on and do it if they've got
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the investment, and then the formal qualifications follow, whereas in
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England we're much more formal, you know, and so things
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need to be adhered to. Accreditations important and but that's
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a process in its own right, you know. And I
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think for Scotland right now, you know, that's why you know,
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phrases is perfect timing because it's just kicking off. It's
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all kicking off like it's you know, the things that
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we were talking about three years ago, you know, and
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like battling for and trying to it's almost like everyone's
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caught up.
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And so who would you see if we were on
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power worth No then like you could see in a
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sense you're like England three years ago or like.
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Yeah, so I would say England three three years maybe
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not maybe let's say four. But give it another year
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and I think you'll be exactly where we were three
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years ago in England. And at that point it had
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all kicked off and it was all.
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So glad you're involved with sque as well, because they
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both experience that you've got. It's great to think that
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you're in board and you can give that experience or that,
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you know, because that's what I'm looking for because they
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wanted to do it.
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But people, yeah, and I have to say, James, the
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team SQUA were unbelievable good, absolutely awesome, Like it was
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such an efficient process. They listened, they valued everything, you know,
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everything was clear. I knew, you know, I vetted the
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whole qualification and wrote one of the units for it,
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just to add somebody else did vet that unit for me,
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didn't vet my own unit, but it was it was
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you know, the process was really efficient and the the
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end result the qualification is an evolvement with what I've
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seen in England, which again is really but.
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That's what it's going to because once again he's outly
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that because you're always going to see okaill or you
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won't mind them.
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An't it.
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Here's one Yeah, you know, esports evolved so quickly, you know,
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that whole world, and you know the new qualification from
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the SQA reflects it, you know, and there's elements in
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there that aren't in any of the previous qualifications that
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I've worked on or seen and looked at or taught
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or whatever, you know. And I think I think Scotland's
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in a good place and we've got I've now for
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the first time, got a number of customers who have
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ordered kit facilities, you know, like they're starting to see
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that investment in the broader elements of you know, that
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not just gaming like esports, is of qualification and and
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the fact that you know, creating immersive spaces and what
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that does for engagement and recruitment and all of those
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things that that you know, we know and and you know,
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I've been banging the drum for for years over it,
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but I'm almost past banging that drum good, you know,
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and which is yeah, which is which is good because
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it means we've moved on, you know, And I still
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go to certain events and certain conferences, and you know,
359
00:17:14.960 --> 00:17:19.039
people have only just started the journey that that journey
360
00:17:19.079 --> 00:17:22.000
and they're talking about the things that we were talking about,
361
00:17:22.079 --> 00:17:25.279
a few years back, but with that same passion, you know,
362
00:17:25.359 --> 00:17:28.839
and like passion, I've never I've never seen that in
363
00:17:28.880 --> 00:17:31.160
any other area, James, Like, you know, It's like I said,
364
00:17:31.200 --> 00:17:33.559
geography was my favorite subject to schol absolutely loved it,
365
00:17:33.720 --> 00:17:36.720
hated it doesn't change my I hated it until it
366
00:17:36.720 --> 00:17:41.519
does over millions of years. But but it's I used
367
00:17:41.519 --> 00:17:42.759
to hate it and then it all clicked and so
368
00:17:42.799 --> 00:17:45.559
I really liked it. But you know, no disrespect to
369
00:17:45.640 --> 00:17:52.079
jograph things. You know, I'm a big fan, but that passion.
370
00:17:52.440 --> 00:17:53.960
There's more people that get involved with.
371
00:17:54.000 --> 00:17:55.920
The more brains are getting involved with in the more
372
00:17:55.960 --> 00:17:57.680
challenge you've got for it to evolve, for people to
373
00:17:57.680 --> 00:17:59.559
think a different way or try a different way. Size
374
00:17:59.559 --> 00:18:01.160
you've vowage and with the rate, and they can try
375
00:18:01.160 --> 00:18:03.440
different things that are I think that's what's going to go.
376
00:18:03.920 --> 00:18:05.920
And lots of people do. And it's like I would
377
00:18:05.960 --> 00:18:10.880
never tell somebody no, you know, if they've got a
378
00:18:10.920 --> 00:18:12.640
valid idea and they think it's gonna work, even if
379
00:18:12.640 --> 00:18:15.359
I don't necessarily think it's gonna work, and I think
380
00:18:15.400 --> 00:18:17.759
it's that's not gonna work. But I want you to
381
00:18:17.799 --> 00:18:20.119
go through that process to see that it's not gonna work,
382
00:18:20.680 --> 00:18:23.240
not unless they not unless they're gonna invest, like you know,
383
00:18:23.240 --> 00:18:24.720
I'm gonna put one hundred grand on my own money
384
00:18:25.119 --> 00:18:27.640
and mortgage my house. But no, no, no, honestly, please
385
00:18:27.640 --> 00:18:30.440
don't do that. But most times they're just small little
386
00:18:30.480 --> 00:18:32.680
things you know that you like teachers do and things
387
00:18:32.720 --> 00:18:34.279
that happen in the classroom so I'll go for it.
388
00:18:34.359 --> 00:18:36.920
See what happens, and do you think then there's more
389
00:18:36.960 --> 00:18:39.720
through the independent schools, colleges, high schools.
390
00:18:39.720 --> 00:18:41.559
What would you see? Would you see the moors the
391
00:18:42.119 --> 00:18:42.480
the worst?
392
00:18:43.799 --> 00:18:48.000
Okay, that's a really good question, James, because that market
393
00:18:48.880 --> 00:18:52.359
it really flucks and has done for years. So originally
394
00:18:52.359 --> 00:18:55.079
it was all about the colleges, all about the colleges,
395
00:18:56.119 --> 00:18:57.960
and then the colleges got on board, loads got on board.
396
00:18:58.000 --> 00:19:00.000
And then like a couple of years after the second
397
00:19:00.039 --> 00:19:03.799
can waive of colleges woke up and said, a minute,
398
00:19:03.960 --> 00:19:07.200
their competitors are doing it. We're missing out. And then
399
00:19:07.319 --> 00:19:11.039
in that time there was like one or two independent
400
00:19:11.119 --> 00:19:14.359
schools that dipped in, and there were one or two
401
00:19:14.400 --> 00:19:17.799
schools that dipped in. While all that's going on, you've
402
00:19:17.799 --> 00:19:20.880
got the universities have suddenly realized that hang on a minute.
403
00:19:21.720 --> 00:19:24.559
So I think I think the last time I did
404
00:19:24.599 --> 00:19:29.039
my research on UKs, I think there's seventy two esports
405
00:19:29.039 --> 00:19:33.559
courses available at university level across thirty six institutions. I
406
00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:35.799
think that was the last stat for a couple of
407
00:19:35.799 --> 00:19:39.480
months ago that I worked out, which is phenomenal because
408
00:19:39.519 --> 00:19:41.400
previously it was only like two places and it was
409
00:19:41.440 --> 00:19:45.839
really specialist courses. So we've got the college and we've
410
00:19:45.880 --> 00:19:49.119
got this end like the universities. And what's happened is
411
00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:54.519
schools are now getting on board big time. Yeah, like
412
00:19:54.960 --> 00:20:00.720
secondary schools, even some of some junior schools getting involved
413
00:20:00.839 --> 00:20:03.440
in a smart much smaller than capasity, but we're doing
414
00:20:03.440 --> 00:20:06.119
a lot more business excuse me with Yo Yo tech
415
00:20:06.200 --> 00:20:09.119
and with my services at MT Sports, like with quality
416
00:20:09.119 --> 00:20:12.160
control of those with schools, which is great because you're
417
00:20:12.200 --> 00:20:15.279
creating that pipeline. And then I would say in the
418
00:20:15.319 --> 00:20:17.799
last year and a half, the independent.
419
00:20:17.359 --> 00:20:20.319
Schools put by in between high school to college from
420
00:20:20.359 --> 00:20:23.359
school college and that's what they want. I mean, you'll
421
00:20:23.359 --> 00:20:26.160
owned more about high colleges to them. It's very important
422
00:20:26.160 --> 00:20:28.880
for them to get that students coming in from high school.
423
00:20:28.960 --> 00:20:32.400
When I was head of department at college, you know
424
00:20:32.839 --> 00:20:35.200
that progression ate was really important. So we used to
425
00:20:35.240 --> 00:20:36.960
do it, just as an example, do level one media,
426
00:20:37.000 --> 00:20:39.559
level two media, level three media, and then we delivered
427
00:20:39.559 --> 00:20:42.680
a degree so we could we could keep students, retain
428
00:20:42.759 --> 00:20:46.519
students for like six seven years and you're guaranteeing that pastor.
429
00:20:46.519 --> 00:20:49.759
And when you've got schools all the way through university.
430
00:20:50.000 --> 00:20:52.559
That means that path through is solid, so it's sustainable,
431
00:20:52.799 --> 00:20:56.200
but also it means the university is constantly after up
432
00:20:56.240 --> 00:20:56.640
their game.
433
00:20:56.880 --> 00:20:58.839
So here's the thing. So let's fast forward.
434
00:20:58.880 --> 00:21:00.880
If you can start to get the gree horses at colleges,
435
00:21:00.920 --> 00:21:04.160
which and all you can, surely university will order a minute.
436
00:21:04.279 --> 00:21:07.400
That's what we do, they saw hawfully, and then you
437
00:21:07.440 --> 00:21:09.440
will start to mogulate to one one thing.
438
00:21:10.440 --> 00:21:13.559
The way that if you're a mega horse bowl, if.
439
00:21:13.440 --> 00:21:14.880
You pay me to one of their savor and your
440
00:21:14.960 --> 00:21:15.920
unit it then yeah.
441
00:21:15.960 --> 00:21:19.000
So you know, like the H and D was launched
442
00:21:19.039 --> 00:21:22.400
in September twenty fourth, so and lots of colleges are
443
00:21:22.400 --> 00:21:24.519
able to deliver H and d's because it's a B tech.
444
00:21:24.839 --> 00:21:27.039
So they're keeping students like they have a sixth form
445
00:21:27.119 --> 00:21:28.680
or you know, they're sort of keeping them from the
446
00:21:28.759 --> 00:21:33.519
H and D. But most colleges sort of traditionally sixteen
447
00:21:33.559 --> 00:21:37.559
to eighteen year olds that are delivering degrees as well,
448
00:21:37.839 --> 00:21:41.039
they're delivering them as a satellite center. So we used
449
00:21:41.079 --> 00:21:45.839
to deliver degrees so validated by the University of Surrey,
450
00:21:46.000 --> 00:21:49.039
so it goes through their validation process and Surrey say yes,
451
00:21:49.759 --> 00:21:52.519
we're happy with you. You can deliver a University of
452
00:21:52.519 --> 00:21:56.319
Surrey degree from your college because you've got the facilities
453
00:21:56.359 --> 00:22:00.039
like they do, you know, places like Wiltshire and and
454
00:22:00.480 --> 00:22:03.359
you know there's quite a few colleges now that deliver universities,
455
00:22:03.400 --> 00:22:07.039
but they generally work for a delivered them on behalf
456
00:22:07.039 --> 00:22:08.319
of another university.
457
00:22:08.359 --> 00:22:11.359
Okay, so what would so here's one feel because you're
458
00:22:11.400 --> 00:22:13.000
very much on it and you're very much right in it.
459
00:22:13.480 --> 00:22:16.160
How many different variations of esports degrees have you seen?
460
00:22:16.640 --> 00:22:20.319
They're all touching on some business? Yes, what do you
461
00:22:20.319 --> 00:22:20.759
think work?
462
00:22:20.759 --> 00:22:23.200
And what do you know what some things?
463
00:22:23.240 --> 00:22:24.920
There's definitely been a bet where people think, oh, people
464
00:22:25.000 --> 00:22:27.319
just stacking esports on to say the train attract students, right,
465
00:22:27.359 --> 00:22:28.799
So it's always going to be that part of it, right,
466
00:22:28.839 --> 00:22:31.839
But which ones do you think are give the most value?
467
00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:35.720
Do you know what? James, I wouldn't like to pick
468
00:22:35.759 --> 00:22:40.119
one out, And I'll give you the reasons why. There
469
00:22:40.160 --> 00:22:42.599
are so many different degrees in esports and you can
470
00:22:42.640 --> 00:22:47.640
have esports with marketing, esports, broadcasts, production, business law. You know,
471
00:22:47.759 --> 00:22:51.000
there's so many variants. So therefore the quality of that
472
00:22:51.039 --> 00:22:53.160
degree depends on where it's being delivered and who's delivering
473
00:22:53.200 --> 00:22:58.039
it also relevant on what the student wants.
474
00:22:57.799 --> 00:23:00.400
Yeah, and what they can get a job wise after that.
475
00:23:00.559 --> 00:23:03.039
If a student is lot, they've studied law at a
476
00:23:03.200 --> 00:23:05.680
level and esports.
477
00:23:05.519 --> 00:23:07.680
Long modules, you could have a degree, so you could
478
00:23:07.680 --> 00:23:10.079
have a law degree that has an esports module. Law
479
00:23:10.519 --> 00:23:12.160
doesn't have to be an all esports degree.
480
00:23:12.599 --> 00:23:14.559
Oh yeah, so you do a lot of them are
481
00:23:14.599 --> 00:23:18.119
like marketing with esports, you know, and and and that
482
00:23:18.160 --> 00:23:21.160
sort of thing. And students will then join the same
483
00:23:21.200 --> 00:23:23.559
students who are doing a full time esports degree for
484
00:23:23.680 --> 00:23:27.440
those modules, so they're in those lessons. But yeah, you know,
485
00:23:27.519 --> 00:23:32.519
I had a student who was doing law A level,
486
00:23:33.640 --> 00:23:38.640
business A level, and esports B tech. I don't remember
487
00:23:38.720 --> 00:23:42.519
a conversation with her going interesting combat and she said,
488
00:23:43.119 --> 00:23:45.319
I said why, He said, all right, because I want
489
00:23:45.319 --> 00:23:47.160
to go to university. I don't want to do law,
490
00:23:47.680 --> 00:23:51.000
but I want to work within law within esports because
491
00:23:51.000 --> 00:23:52.839
at the moment there aren't many esports lawyers about This
492
00:23:52.920 --> 00:23:56.720
was four years ago. So I need to understand the law,
493
00:23:56.759 --> 00:23:59.599
but I need I need to understand the esports. I
494
00:23:59.680 --> 00:24:03.079
was like place switched on, you know, like that's that's
495
00:24:03.200 --> 00:24:05.440
that's a great idea and she went on to university
496
00:24:05.440 --> 00:24:05.880
to do law.
497
00:24:05.920 --> 00:24:06.799
But she's how easy do you.
498
00:24:06.759 --> 00:24:08.279
Think it is for people are switched to on to
499
00:24:08.279 --> 00:24:10.559
think they may want to do that? Depect these courses? Now,
500
00:24:10.640 --> 00:24:11.480
who do you think of that?
501
00:24:12.200 --> 00:24:15.000
I think? Yeah, I think again, it's over the years,
502
00:24:15.039 --> 00:24:18.680
it's it's grown and evolved so much that the teachers
503
00:24:18.720 --> 00:24:23.839
that are delivering are able to have those conversations and
504
00:24:23.880 --> 00:24:27.799
explain to these people, you know, to these learners, like, yeah,
505
00:24:27.839 --> 00:24:30.039
but there are all of these different careers you can
506
00:24:30.160 --> 00:24:32.880
do that, and you know how you go about it
507
00:24:33.039 --> 00:24:35.519
either way, most of them sort of like the college
508
00:24:35.519 --> 00:24:38.960
courses and the skills that they're learning and all transferable
509
00:24:38.960 --> 00:24:41.079
and could be taken into lots of different industries. So
510
00:24:41.160 --> 00:24:43.079
if they then choose to do something on the side
511
00:24:43.200 --> 00:24:46.359
or specialize at university and something else, they can use
512
00:24:46.440 --> 00:24:49.160
all of that within the esports industry, because let's be honest,
513
00:24:49.599 --> 00:24:52.319
you know, twenty years ago, esports wasn't even called esports,
514
00:24:52.359 --> 00:24:56.279
and when it kind of blew up, we esports just
515
00:24:56.319 --> 00:24:59.759
stole people from other industries. All the broadcasters.
516
00:24:59.359 --> 00:25:02.319
Networks it absolutely see on LinkedIn obtaining people coming from
517
00:25:02.319 --> 00:25:04.279
a big, massive networks coming over to the esports and
518
00:25:04.279 --> 00:25:05.200
that's only that's good though.
519
00:25:05.279 --> 00:25:06.920
Yeah, it's good because they bring in that kind of
520
00:25:06.960 --> 00:25:10.559
like initial knowledge, whereas now education is delivering those skills
521
00:25:10.559 --> 00:25:14.920
but within the context of esports, and you know, that's
522
00:25:14.920 --> 00:25:19.000
that's kind of inevitable. And I think when the you know,
523
00:25:19.039 --> 00:25:22.400
one of the reasons that NTY sports kind of kicked
524
00:25:22.440 --> 00:25:26.839
off started really was was just to the demand of
525
00:25:27.160 --> 00:25:30.640
suddenly this esports qualification came out and people were being
526
00:25:30.680 --> 00:25:37.599
asked to teach it esports. They may well have been gamers, so,
527
00:25:37.720 --> 00:25:39.480
you know, and so they understood that, or they might
528
00:25:39.480 --> 00:25:42.200
have watched esports didn't really understand the industry, or they
529
00:25:42.200 --> 00:25:47.240
were sporty, or they were computer based. So like my
530
00:25:47.400 --> 00:25:53.319
teaching resources, like when I started telling it's just over
531
00:25:53.359 --> 00:25:56.799
twenty one thousand, I'd still wake up in the morning
532
00:25:56.839 --> 00:26:01.759
and go because I don't every day before every day, Yeah,
533
00:26:01.759 --> 00:26:04.039
that's it. I just I put it on and there's
534
00:26:04.079 --> 00:26:07.519
another thing. But you know, I certainly didn't set that
535
00:26:07.640 --> 00:26:11.279
up to as a revenue stream. I set it up
536
00:26:11.319 --> 00:26:14.240
because people were asking me like, have you got any resources,
537
00:26:14.279 --> 00:26:16.119
and I was like, yeah, I have. I spent months
538
00:26:16.119 --> 00:26:18.559
preparing these because I knew the BEATECH was coming. You know,
539
00:26:18.559 --> 00:26:20.119
I worked really hard and they're really nice. You know,
540
00:26:20.160 --> 00:26:23.160
they look nice because I wanted them to look cool
541
00:26:23.200 --> 00:26:25.279
for the students, because the nature.
542
00:26:24.960 --> 00:26:26.720
Of the course to engage with them.
543
00:26:26.799 --> 00:26:28.400
I wanted to want them to them to go, and
544
00:26:28.440 --> 00:26:30.799
they go, this is esports. He's got a character from
545
00:26:31.119 --> 00:26:35.640
Fortnite on here or whatever, and so but then I
546
00:26:35.720 --> 00:26:37.920
realized it's in a minute. There's there's a lot of
547
00:26:37.960 --> 00:26:41.720
teachers that are like crying out for resources and more
548
00:26:41.720 --> 00:26:44.200
traditional subjects like media and you know, you could go
549
00:26:44.240 --> 00:26:47.240
on to t yes and there's thousands of resources and
550
00:26:47.359 --> 00:26:49.440
colleges would have resources because they've been teaching it for
551
00:26:49.519 --> 00:26:52.400
twenty years, and esports there was nothing and again time
552
00:26:53.200 --> 00:26:55.880
lack of time and place. And you know, in that
553
00:26:55.960 --> 00:26:56.759
kind of time, do you.
554
00:26:56.799 --> 00:26:58.640
Know what, I give you more credit?
555
00:26:58.720 --> 00:27:00.839
And I don't want to say like Tame's probably got
556
00:27:00.839 --> 00:27:02.319
a part of it, but you've got to make it happen.
557
00:27:02.519 --> 00:27:03.720
I think you definitely make it happen.
558
00:27:03.799 --> 00:27:06.960
My wife always says it's about you know, taking the opportunity,
559
00:27:07.160 --> 00:27:07.519
seeing the.
560
00:27:07.519 --> 00:27:09.559
Opportunity, and you're talking about working Tame. If you're always
561
00:27:10.079 --> 00:27:12.160
you're going to hit everything do you know what I mean?
562
00:27:12.599 --> 00:27:15.279
There are there are things still and there have been
563
00:27:15.319 --> 00:27:17.000
things in the past that.
564
00:27:17.000 --> 00:27:20.200
I've he's a hunger for it.
565
00:27:20.240 --> 00:27:22.119
Do you think, yeah, I mean you've done the graind
566
00:27:22.119 --> 00:27:24.240
you get as do you think you're looking forward to
567
00:27:24.279 --> 00:27:25.680
the tame where it's even easier?
568
00:27:26.319 --> 00:27:28.880
I would, I'd like to get to a point whereby
569
00:27:29.119 --> 00:27:33.000
I at work less, but I don't mind the grind,
570
00:27:33.079 --> 00:27:36.759
you know. And and like when you're kind of working
571
00:27:36.799 --> 00:27:39.880
for your own company, you know, you I'm effectively self employed,
572
00:27:40.079 --> 00:27:42.759
but employed by my company. It is down to me,
573
00:27:43.680 --> 00:27:45.319
so you have to put the graft in because you
574
00:27:45.359 --> 00:27:47.480
never know when your next contract is going to end
575
00:27:47.880 --> 00:27:50.119
or when your next new contract is going to turn up.
576
00:27:51.079 --> 00:27:54.680
And you know, that's quite scary, the same as I'm
577
00:27:54.799 --> 00:27:57.599
used to that from from my business side of my twenties.
578
00:28:00.759 --> 00:28:03.119
So you know, at the moment, my quality of life
579
00:28:03.240 --> 00:28:05.680
is good. I'm happy, you know, and that's the most
580
00:28:05.680 --> 00:28:07.960
important thing, you know, Like I get to spend a
581
00:28:08.000 --> 00:28:10.119
good amount of time with my family, I get to
582
00:28:10.119 --> 00:28:11.599
come to events like this, you know. When I was
583
00:28:11.680 --> 00:28:15.200
a teacher, obviously you're you're chained to the classroom each
584
00:28:15.359 --> 00:28:16.759
Monday to Friday, it's hard to work.
585
00:28:17.200 --> 00:28:17.359
You know.
586
00:28:17.400 --> 00:28:21.200
There's a reason why thousands and thousands of teachers start
587
00:28:21.240 --> 00:28:23.119
teaching and within the first six months they leave. There
588
00:28:23.160 --> 00:28:25.480
is a reason for all that. Yeah, and they're always
589
00:28:25.480 --> 00:28:27.799
struggling to find new teachers, you know. And I went
590
00:28:27.839 --> 00:28:31.519
into teaching as somebody from industry to teach media, thinking
591
00:28:31.759 --> 00:28:33.880
I'm going to go in, I'm going to tell them
592
00:28:33.920 --> 00:28:35.559
all the stuff I know this is. Look at all
593
00:28:35.599 --> 00:28:40.839
these examples I've interviewed these people. That's not the reality.
594
00:28:41.160 --> 00:28:43.400
It's just it really isn't the reality. And you know,
595
00:28:44.240 --> 00:28:46.440
one thing I used to say it or so I
596
00:28:46.480 --> 00:28:48.440
have teachers they get like all the summer off. Yeah,
597
00:28:50.359 --> 00:28:52.559
you when you speak to any any teacher who's done
598
00:28:52.599 --> 00:28:54.960
it for a little while, Like now, I resent that
599
00:28:55.000 --> 00:28:55.799
comment a lot.
600
00:28:55.680 --> 00:28:57.920
Because it's difficult as well.
601
00:28:58.039 --> 00:29:01.480
You need you half your time social work, you're dealing
602
00:29:00.759 --> 00:29:06.440
with and things have changed so much over the years,
603
00:29:06.480 --> 00:29:09.640
you know. But in sand that I also did love it.
604
00:29:09.640 --> 00:29:11.920
It was the red tape and and and which is
605
00:29:11.920 --> 00:29:14.200
why I go into colleges and talk because it takes
606
00:29:14.200 --> 00:29:14.920
them back to teaching.
607
00:29:15.319 --> 00:29:15.480
You know.
608
00:29:15.519 --> 00:29:17.480
It's like, oh, yeah, I'm come in and talking about
609
00:29:17.640 --> 00:29:20.400
sports and.
610
00:29:19.319 --> 00:29:21.680
I'm moving forward to seeing your certainly talk tomorrow, buddy.
611
00:29:22.039 --> 00:29:24.759
Thank you. Yeah, I'm really looking forward to it. First
612
00:29:24.759 --> 00:29:29.960
time as host, so yeah, I'm looking forward to it. Thanks,
613
00:29:30.000 --> 00:29:31.480
thanks for inviting me and thanks for getting me on.
614
00:29:32.079 --> 00:29:33.920
Thank you, buddy, James