Motivation
Team Culture
Let’s start with a trick question.
Does your team have a culture?
Remember, it’s a trick question. And the answer is yes.
Whether in sports, in business or even in your family, your group has a culture.
It may be weak or it may be strong, but it’s a culture.
It may be positive or it may be negative, but [...]
Prince Fielder and the Tigers
Pursuing goals can be overrated.
Sometime they’re the wrong goals. And other times the way in which they’re being pursued is the wrong way.
In the case of Prince Fielder and the Detroit Tigers, the second case could be true. Fielder and the Tigers just agreed on a nine-year, $214 million deal, because team owner Mike Ilitch [...]
Daily Motivation
A few days ago, a coached reach out to me, said that her team was going through a rough stretch, and asked if I had any wisdom to offer.
I told her I had no wisdom of my own, but that there was plenty in this article from the Gold Medal Squared Web site.
Written by Loyola-Marymount [...]
Other People’s Mistakes
Last night on a flight from Atlanta, our pilot slammed on the brakes shortly after landing.
People flew forward in their seats. Bags crashed into the side of the overhead bins. You could hear the gasps throughout the cabin.
At that moment, you were glad you had done what the stewardess told you to do: fasten your [...]
Four Words for Great Leaders
Want to be a great leader? Your task can be summed up in four words, according to this article in Inc.
Aspire. Plan. Inspire. Execute.
“Great leaders do not aim for the easily achievable,” says the article, written by Matthew Swyers. That’s what he means by “aspire.”
The more lofty your goal, however, the more you need to [...]
Set Yourself on Fire
Years after his retirement, Hall of Fame baseball player Ty Cobb attended an Old Timers’ Day celebration at Yankee Stadium.
A reporter approached Cobb and asked him, “If you were playing in the modern era, what do you suppose your batting average would be?”
Cobb replied, “About .300.”
“Only .300?” said the startled reporter. “You have the highest [...]
Your Actions and Words
Paula Deen, who creates high-fat, high-calorie recipes, is eating less of her own creations these days. That’s because she has diabetes, a fact she never mentioned for years while serving up yummy but artery-clogging items.
“I’ve always said, ‘Practice moderation, y’all.’ I’ll probably say that a little louder now,” Deen said Tuesday after revealing her diagnosis [...]
What Successful Coaches Saw as Kids
Over the weekend I had the chance to hear a talk by sports psychologist Dr. Gloria Balague.
Among her remarks was a look at successful coaches and how they were shaped by their childhood experiences.
Dr. Balague said that when these successful were young:
* Their youth coaches were passionate about sport.
* Their coaches were positive [...]
Passion and Problem-Solving
Here’s a different point of view on something you’ve heard a lot: follow your passion.
It comes from Oliver Segovia, a young author and entrepreneur, who argues that following your passion can leave you feeling empty (as well as poor). Segovia instead suggests finding big problems.
“Happiness comes from the intersection of what you love, what you’re [...]
Five Things Great Coaches Know
The mood at a coaches clinic always excites me. People are there because they want to be, not because they have to be. They want to learn. They talk shop.
Right now I’m in Elmhurst, Ill., speaking to the Illinois Track and Cross Country Coaches Association. While here I’ve already met great coaches. One of them [...]
