"Soft skills" of communication, discipline, and empathy matter.
Remember Thomas Crane's phrase in The Heart of Coaching, "performance-focused, feedback-rich." Use feedback to 'land the plane'. Knowing more about the past helps us in the future.
Be open to feedback. Steve Kerr got advice from video coordinator Nick U'Ren to play smaller against the Cavs in 2015 using Andre Iguodala over Andrew Bogut.
As a middle schooler, I heard the message that "you're not going to be tall enough to play forward, so you need guard skills." Coach meant both offensively and defensively. Defensively, I understood that meant 'contain the ball' and to play quicker players off the ball.
After a bitter overtime two-point loss to the defending State Champions, Coach Lane dished a deserved 45 minute tongue lashing. The takeaways were the better team lost and lack of belief defeated us. He guaranteed that we would not lose to them again. We didn't...at their place and in the old Boston Garden in the Sectional Championship.
As a medical student at Boston City Hospital, I heard Dr. Ann Knowlton tell me to speak up and participate. "Show what you know. Don't just write in the patient's chart." That helped me achieve a degree of professional success unavailable without that prodding.
Later as a medical student on rotations at Bethesda Naval Hospital, I was 'summoned' to the Chief of Medicine's office. "I'm nobody. What could I have done?" CAPT Georges explained that he had high expectations for me when I started internship next summer. I had applied elsewhere. That conversation led to a decade of service at the Navy's flagship hospital.
As a youth coach, I listened to my best friend, Ralph. "You have to play your best players more." It was less about winning than fostering their development over players with less size, skill, and commitment. Herb Welling echoed that advice, "when you get that generational player, you have to take care of her."
Be willing to take your own advice. What have I shared that helped others?
"Share something great." It doesn't have to be life-changing. Share great reads, great recipes, great lessons. It's better to reread a great book than to read ten poor ones.
"Learn five things every day." That adds up over time.
Help people ask, "why?" and "how do you know?" When we know the why, it's easier to follow-through on the 'how'.
"How you play is how you live your life." Leave an impression.
"We don't need an opinion on everything." Discipline is more important than conviction.
Lagniappe. From MasterClass and Kim Scott... feedback comes in varieties.
Your periodic reminder that the greatest gift you can give a team member who is early to mid-career is telling them what you see as their superpower, with sincere optimism about what this superpower might enable for them in the future.
— Shreyas Doshi (@shreyas) May 31, 2023
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