Professional in the Spotlight - Grant Jenkins

Grant Jenkins is the owner of PropelPerform located in Brisbane and plays an active role in helping students to find the way to their dream career.

Why did you choose to study Sport Science? And then move to Australia?

From a young age I’ve been interested in competing in sport and especially preparing for competition. Apparently I used to make my own sports drinks (recipe: water, lemon juice and heaps of sugar) before my major swimming events. A degree in Sport Science seemed to be a natural progression for me - doing what I was drawn to do. Moving to Australia was a multi-factorial decision but one aspect was the amount of opportunity that is available in sport.

What first drew you to working in elite sport?

The initial thoughts were to test my own paradigms and abilities by improving elite athletes. At the time, there were mainly three groups of Sport Science (Human Movement Science) graduates: HPE teachers, those working in elite sports and those doing personal training in commercial gyms. There wasn’t much incentive for me to do the teaching or the PT stuff.

How did you come to create your own business and what PropelPerform is all about?

Something else that started from a young age: a desire to be my own boss. The plan, from the beginning of my career education, was to take an athlete to the pinnacle of their sport (think: Olympics, World Cup, etc.) and then open my own business. I was the S&C coach at Tennis Australia’s National Academy (based in Brisbane) when a Slovakian-born tennis player asked me to prepare her for Wimbledon. I figured that is the pinnacle of tennis (i’d prepared other players for the US, French and Aussie Opens) and planned my exit. One of my best mates and I had coached together for a long time and decided to start a joint venture. PropelPerform is aimed at helping coaches at all levels improve in ways formal education hasn’t been able to help. We currently work with coaches who are preparing young athletes for their local club competition to those preparing athletes for the 2020 Olympics.

What is involved in becoming a Master Coach?

The Australian Strength & Conditioning Association (ASCA) has set up the Professional Coaches Accreditation Scheme, which sets long side their course accreditation system (e.g. level 1, 2 or 3). There are 4 levels within the PCAS: Associate, Professional, Elite & Master. To reach Master level, there are certain requirements: Must be a Level 3 coach, have worked in a high performance setting for a minimum of 8 years, coached multiple athletes to the pinnacle of the sport, provided mentorship to other coaches. Check this link: https://www.strengthandconditioning.org/images/forms/asca-professional-coach-accreditation-scheme-application.pdf

What is the PropelPerform internship and what are the highlights of this program?

This is my 17th year of taking on Interns and work experience students. Over the years, the Internship has evolved from an informal but extended work experience to the structured program it is now. We based the internship on the principle: the more you invest in us, the more we’ll invest in you. It’s a one-year commitment and isn’t easy when you consider balancing uni, work and a social life but it’s awesome watching our alumni flourish and crush opportunities once they’ve graduated. We have amazing guests come in and talk to our interns; opportunities to work with state and national sporting organisations; clubs and schools value our interns because they’re well prepared so the interns get fast-tracked into some great positions. All round it’s a big commitment (from both sides) but it’s worth it.

You have the motto for your interns of “increasing your luck” can you elaborate on what you mean and why this is so important for students?

This philosophy is infused in almost everything we do at Propel. Take our internship program as an example: many think our interns are just lucky. And maybe they’re correct BUT our interns have manufactured much of that luck.

- Most students might chill between lectures and assignments; Propel interns are accumulating valuable experience every morning and evening.

- Most students might go drinking of the weekends; Propel interns are often attending state champs or a talent ID camp and meeting new coaches and athletes.

- Most students might grab a coffee with fellow students; Propel Interns grab a coffee with another coach or a “decision-maker”.

Thinking of the examples above, which person do you think has a greater chance of being “lucky”.

How did you earn the nickname “the athlete whisperer”?

Haha! I am often invited to share some insights into the world of high performance on the ABC. We had a segment every day during the Commonwealth Games where I’d give a perspective that the general public might not otherwise be exposed to. When a number of my predictions eventuated the hosts started calling me The Athlete Whisperer. I thought nothing of it but then it just stuck and now the vast majority of my clients are athletes.

What’s next on the PropelPerform agenda?

We’re pivoting slightly and focusing less on Coach Development (how to be a better coach) and more toward Career Development (e.g. how to earn more money). We’ll cover many of my own mistakes so you won’t have to. The website (propelperform.com - bookmark this page!) is undergoing a transformation as we speak and we look forward to launching in early 2020.