Help teammates go where they cannot go by themselves. Hearing stories of the self-made man, we neglect the anteambulo, who helped clear the path for success. Teammates craft the foundation for success. "The strength of the wolf is the pack."
Bills' coach Sean McDermott inspired, “That’s our vision on a day-to-day basis, and that standard is to be a playoff-caliber football team, and that means every day. That’s what it gets back to in terms of earning the right to win. How we meet, how we talk, how we work out, how we practice when we do practice, how we play – that’s the standard we’re trying to get to every day.”
Fans focus on results. Champions focus on process. Truly great players cannot be bad teammates.
The powerful contradiction of basketball is the need to subsume great individual performance into the symphony of team play. Begin with attitude. “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.” – C.S. Lewis
Authentic communication won't always be sunshine and roses. Comfort, cajole, compel teammates to play at a higher level. Ask, "what does my team need now, what does my teammate need now?"
Being on a team doesn't equal playing for the team. Great teams operate off one agenda...the success of the team. Bill Russell said, "my ego depends on the success of my team." In fifteen years, that attitude yielded two NCAA titles, one Olympic gold, and eleven NBA banners...fourteen titles in fifteen years.
Support your teammates. Credit your teammates. Be there for your teammates.
Lagniappe: "Get over yourself." - Gregg Popovich
Lagniappe 2: Improved BOB with more options
