AS COACHES, WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE SYSTEM

I've really enjoyed reading the book "The 4 Disciplines of Execution" by Chris McChesney, Sean Covey and Jim Huling.  You can expect several blog posts from this book in the coming month.  Here is a short but powerful passage about holding your self accountable.  This is especially true of coaches -- head coaches particularly.  We all know the coach that is constantly blaming their players for the woes of the program.  Well this passage is for them:

W. Edwards Deming, the father of quality movement, taught that any time the majority of the people behave a particular way the majority of the time, the people are not the problem.  The problem is inherent in the system.  As a leader, you own responsibility for the system. Although a particular person can be a big problem, if you find yourself blaming the people, you should look again.