The words you say to your athletes will either help them or hurt them. Ask yourself: If you were a teenager and heard your words, would you understand them? Would you know what to do with them? Are they simple and clear?
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 […]
Bill James became one of the top 100 most influential people in the world through his analysis of baseball statistics. You can do what he did: Find something you love and learn more than anyone else in the world about it.
“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 […]
Joe Torre reached the Hall of Fame in his field the same way you can get to the top in yours. He did it by knowing the biggest problem he had to solve. In Torre’s case it was George Steinbrenner, who hired him to manage the New York Yankees but who had a habit of […]
Suppose that all the business world was more like sports, where you’re drafted, not hired. That’s right, employers would take turns picking the people they thought could do the most to help them win. If you were looking to get drafted, what would employers want to see? And if you were drafting, what would you […]
You’ve already seen athletes spin and twist through the air at the Sochi Winter Olympics. Those feats are nothing compared to the gymnastics that take place in their minds. “You have to train your mind like you train your body,” Olympic decathlete Bruce Jenner once said. This Huffington Post article by Carolyn Gregoire explains how […]
Four days before the biggest speaking gig of my life, I’m nervous. If the talk goes well, the people in the audience will like me. They will buy my book. They might hire me for more speaking gigs. Stop! What’s wrong with this train of thought? Here’s what’s wrong: It’s all about me. Me, me, […]
The more I coach, the more I realize that sports is about giving. Athletes give their time, effort and attention. Coaches give encouragement, hope, and even love. It’s not perfect. Nothing in life is. Better to try than not to try. “Give what you have,” said Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “To someone it may be better […]
Comic legend W.C. Fields once bragged about his role in a fight with a character named Chicago Molly. “He knocked her down … but I was the one who started kicking her.” This line from the movie “My Little Chickadee” explains why I can’t condemn Rutgers Coach Mike Rice. It’s not that what Rice did […]