# 177 The Mindset Behind One of AFL's Most Remarkable Recoveries | Jason McCartney

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/performance-intelligence-5318461/177-the-mindset-behind-one-of-afl-s-most-remarkable-recoveries-jason-mccartney
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/performance-intelligence-5318461/177-the-mindset-behind-one-of-afl-s-most-remarkable-recoveries-jason-mccartney.md
Podcast: [Performance Intelligence](https://stenobird.com/podcast/performance-intelligence-5318461)
Published: 2026-04-22T19:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://share.transistor.fm/s/4d296056
Audio file: https://media.transistor.fm/4d296056/79b88b4b.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/performance-intelligence-5318461/episodes/177-the-mindset-behind-one-of-afl-s-most-remarkable-recoveries-jason-mccartney
Duration seconds: 3411

## Resource

October 12, 2002. AFL star Jason McCartney was on holiday in Bali. By the end of that night, 202 people were dead, and he had burns to 50% of his body. Most people with his injuries spend 3-4 months just getting out of hospital. Jason was back on the football field in 5 months. What got him there was not superhuman toughness. It was a specific set of skills, built through years of setbacks, that clicked into gear when everything was on the line. Skills that translate far beyond sport. 1:05 A career built on resilience before Bali even happened 6:15 Nearly walking away from football...and what brought him back 14:50 That night in Bali: what he remembers 20:25 Goal-setting from intensive care 27:20 The decision to return and play one last game 32:40 What he pushed through in training that he never told anyone 39:20 Doing the psychological work: compartmentalisation, exposure therapy, and why talking about it healed him 48:25 Building elite culture at GWS and what leaders get wrong about performance Subscribe on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Learn more at performanceintelligence.com. You can find Jason at his LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-mccartney-oam-b10a39217/ Use Code "PQPODCAST10" to get 10% off your Lumo Coffee order:https://lumocoffee.com/ Interested in sharing your story? Email Producer Shannon at support@performanceintelligence.com today with your story and contact details. Learn more about Andrew and Performance Intelligence: https://performanceintelligence.com/ Find out more about Andrew's Keynotes : https://performanceintelligence.com/keynotes/ Follow Andrew May : https://www.instagram.com/andrewmay/ Watch the Performance Intelligence Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@performanceintelligencepodcast If you enjoy the podcast, we would real…

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## Transcript

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