Not all coaches are created equal, nor are all players.
In business, leaders are supposed to be coaches. If you have ever worked in a structured business, you know that it is rare to have a manager that is actually a coach and not a boss.
Okay, I hear you…what about the great players? When a player has “what it takes” to win, she will do whatever she needs to in order to hit her mark. BUT pair a great player with a great coach, and magic happens.
“Each person holds so much power within themselves that needs to be let out. Sometimes they just need a little nudge, a little direction, a little support, a little coaching, and the greatest things can happen.” – Pete Carroll
During my 20+ years in Corporate America I was personally responsible for technology sales in excess of $50 Million. I was successful in spite of myself and mostly with mediocre leadership. Yet, for 7 years I belonged to a Dream Team. I studied what made us unstoppable, and while each of us went on to continued success, we all miss and fondly reminisce about the glory days.
The secret to the dream team is no secret at all. The leader led from the front. He was a remarkable coach. He used motivation, strategic guidance, spiritual guidance, skills development, and honest empathy. He always had our backs even when it pushed his against a wall. The players were varied and not all of them champions. However, within the ranks there were enough A-players that were also excellent coaches, we were able to push aside our differences and WIN.
Many, if not most, people think coaches are ‘advice givers’ there to tell you what to do, how to do it, and then to get in your face and tell you how to do it better. This is NOT true.
“A coach is someone who tells you what you don’t want to hear, who has you see what you don’t want to see, so you can be who you have always known you could be.”
Championship coaches build dream teams and superstars. They extract realizations from their players and guide them toward self-realization. They watch the game tape. How many times do you think Brady and Mahomes have watched the game tape?
“Coaches have to watch for what they don’t want to see and listen to what they don’t want to hear.” – John Madden
Like sports, we all have a game tape. I study mine regularly. I take risk, I jump, I win, and I fail. I never stop learning and I never quit. There is a vault of gold in our game tapes and a great coach can find the gold that our eyes fail to see and help us mine it to bring out our brilliance.
A great coach challenges your thinking. She doesn’t placate or commiserate with your excuses. She sees your inner superhero and intuitively knows how to bring her to life. A great coach says things that sometimes make you uncomfortable and things you do not want to hear.
“The interesting thing about coaching is that you have to trouble the comfortable, and comfort the troubled.” – Ric Charlesworth
Nobody’s story is too painful to be heard and healed, even yours. I put my story into words and had it published. My Skeletons Have Names can be found on Amazon in paperback and kindle. It is the story of abuse, extreme trauma, addiction, and hope.
I am on a mission to end the stigma of mental health and addiction and believe that our stories are the key to making the world a better and a safer place. And if there is one thing I know for certain-
“Failure is never quite as frightening as regret. I will see you in the arena!” – Shari