Winning is not synonymous with having a good team...but it helps. Relationships will always matter.
Seamless talent, work, and leadership are dimensions of a good team. Talent without work gets wasted. Work without talent earns respect but seldom excellence.Talent and work without leadership creates chaos and dissatisfaction.
Good teams have superior leaders. Leadership requires reciprocation. It flows up, down, and across organizations. In The Hard Hat, Jon Gordon describes the life of a Cornell lacrosse star, George Boiardi, who tragically died in a lacrosse match. Boiardi was the consummate teammate who is remembered even today with an annual dinner. Gordon described George as a "come with me" teammate.
Good have good followership,too. Coach Starkey reminds us about the '30-second rule'. Inspire immediately.
In Above the Line, Urban Meyer explains that he expects elite players to drag teammates into the top ten percent. To work out, players must bring a teammate along.
Effective leadership sets clear expectations, roles, and discipline. It requires respect and fairness. Anson Dorrance tells a story about a conversation he overheard between a player and her parent about playing time. The parent implied, "Anson doesn't like you." The player, getting frustrated finally said, "Don't you understand, Mom? Kristine is just better than I am." Players know when they are treated fairly and respected.
Good have good followership,too. Coach Starkey reminds us about the '30-second rule'. Inspire immediately.
In Above the Line, Urban Meyer explains that he expects elite players to drag teammates into the top ten percent. To work out, players must bring a teammate along.
Effective leadership sets clear expectations, roles, and discipline. It requires respect and fairness. Anson Dorrance tells a story about a conversation he overheard between a player and her parent about playing time. The parent implied, "Anson doesn't like you." The player, getting frustrated finally said, "Don't you understand, Mom? Kristine is just better than I am." Players know when they are treated fairly and respected.
Everyone can't have the role they want, but good teams have players performing their roles at their best. Dorrance says that a team grows according to the average of the relationship between the best and happiest player on a team and the worst and most dissatisfied player. In Teammates Matter, Alan Williams relays a story about not getting a black and gold 'WF' basketball bag (with his number) as a walk-on at Wake Forest. He then found a bag in his locker, with the number of the star player. The star had taken care of him when the equipment man did not.
Good teams practice well. Buffalo Bills' coach Sean McDermott provides clarity, "That's what it gets back to in terms of earning the right to win. How we meet, how we talk, how we workout, how we practice when we do practice, how we play - that's the standard we're trying to get to every day." It's always about detail. "Pete Carril reminds us, "No drill is any good unless it’s used in some form in the game. There is no transfer of learning." Coaches say, "Play purposefully." It starts with practicing purposefully.
We have limited control over our teams. We struggle because of lack of knowledge, lack of execution, and lack of caring. But we oversee the development of team culture, character, player autonomy, and accountability. If we add enough value and get enough buy-in, we can have a good process and a good team, regardless of our record.
We have limited control over our teams. We struggle because of lack of knowledge, lack of execution, and lack of caring. But we oversee the development of team culture, character, player autonomy, and accountability. If we add enough value and get enough buy-in, we can have a good process and a good team, regardless of our record.