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Herb Brooks

This tag is associated with 15 posts

Could Herb Brooks coach the same way today?

Thirty-five ago, the U.S. Olympic hockey team was creating what came to be known as the Miracle on Ice. Under the stern leadership of coach Herb Brooks, the Americans upset the then-Soviet Union and capped a sports story for the ages with a victory over Finland. Brooks, whose tough style involved insults and at least […]

Impossible Feedback

Real toughness isn’t throwing fists or getting in someone’s face. Real toughness is absorbing negative feedback, stepping back from its sting, and re-examing it for ways to improve.

How to Do the Impossible

“And the impossible dream comes true!” With those words, broadcaster Al Michaels put an exclamation point on the U.S. Olympic hockey team’s gold medal. Now, 35 winters later, that gold medal reminds everyone that what seems to be impossible can actually happen. For the next 17 days, Dr. Rob Gilbert and I will be offering […]

Great expectations

Abraham Lincoln said, “If you look for the bad in people expecting to find it, you surely will.” If you’re a leader of any kind — coach, teacher, boss — pay great attention to Lincoln’s words, because they are being confirmed by science. You tend to get what you expect. Intelligence, for example, seems to […]

The Hardest Part of Coaching

“Honesty is the best policy,” George Washington once wrote. Too bad he can’t be in the gym when it’s time to make cuts. Sometimes coaches must be brutally honest with those whom they lead, and no one I know likes this part of the business. Whether you have to cut players, send them to the […]

How Unity Creates Miracles

A few years back, a survey asked if we lived in a divided country. Fifty percent said yes, fifty percent said no. Not much takes place in this divided land without people taking sides and shouting at each other. Just take two big new stories, Jeremy Lin and Whitney Houston. The saga of Lin and […]

The Perfect Christmas Gift

Before entering the hospital for open-heart surgery, my mother-in-law spoke lovingly to her daughters. “I’ve had a long, wonderful life,” she said. “I have wonderful children. I saw my grandchildren, and even my great-grandchildren. I’m ready for whatever happens.” My mother-in-law, whose name was Fran, never left the hospital, and died Thursday. With her words, […]

Why Some People Don’t Learn from Their Mistakes

Think of the last time something went wrong in your life. Perhaps it was a project that came up short, an accident on the road, or even an illness. How much of it was unavoidable, and how much of it was due to mistakes you made? If you tend to blame outside factors instead of […]

Herb Brooks’ Gold Medal Secret

Feb. 22 marks 31 years since the U.S. Olympic hockey team upset the Soviet Union en route to the gold medal. Those of us old enough to remember saw the jubilation and the celebration on the ice. But no one saw the hard work behind the feat. Except the players. They will never forget. After […]

Miracle Anniversary

Last night’s U.S. men’s Olympic hockey victory over Team Canada came nearly 30 years to the day after the “Miracle on Ice,” in which the Americans stunned the Soviet Union. If anything, the victory over Canada underlines exactly how unbelievable the “Miracle on Ice” was. At least this year’s American team is made up of […]