BEILEIN ON HANDLING ADVERSITY

Here's part of a well-written column by Diamond Leung of mlive.com on how John Beilein now looks at adversity:

While Michigan coach John Beilein hates losing, he has learned to sleep well after losses.

That's what Beilein said last week at the Michigan Elite 25 coaching clinic, explaining that winning is what wreaks havoc on his sleep pattern because then he has to figure out how to make the team better. In losing, the picture is clearer on what's needed to improve.

"Now when I was at LeMoyne and Nazareth and Erie Community College, I didn't sleep well because I didn't embrace the adversity like I do now," Beilein told Michigan Elite 25 co-founder Tim McCormick. "Now I embrace adversity and say, 'Alright, now I know what we've got to get better at.' We saw it this year."

Beilein used the example of last year's stunning Wisconsin loss when Ben Brust took 2.4 seconds to hit a halfcourt prayer that sent the game into overtime. Beilein said his team didn't play well in that brief period of time, with multiple players not executing what was discussed in the huddle.

"It was bad, so what did we do? Did we walk out and say the season's over?" Beilein said. "No we said, 'That's going to come up again this year, and we're going to be more prepared for something like that.'"

Beilein indicated that when similar out-of-bounds plays took place in NCAA tournament wins against Kansas and Syracuse to send the Wolverines to the national championship game, they were ready for them.

"Would you rather have beaten Wisconsin and maybe (Trey Burke) make the shot that went in-and-out, and we didn't realize our mistakes and lost to Kansas with the chance to go to the Elite Eight? I think I like the Kansas win. I think I like the Syracuse win.

"I hate losing, but you've got to embrace that part of it."

ARE YOU IMPRESSING OR IMPACTING

These are some excerpts of an outstanding column written by Ingar Grev of the Birmingham Business Journal.

As I mentioned in Part 1 of this series, mediocrity is constantly trying to infiltrate every organization, and world-class leaders work relentlessly to keep mediocrity out. When I asked Nick Saban, the head coach of the University of Alabama’s football team, how he is able to consistently win in the competitive sport that is college football, he shared with me eight points. Here are five:

1. You have to be willing to serve. Great leaders are great servers. Every time I hear the term “servant leader,” I always think, “Well that’s redundant. Is there any other kind of leader?”

Serving is what great leaders do, and it was something that was beat into our heads in leadership classes at the Naval Academy. This means shunning the Hollywood caricature of military-style leadership (you’ll follow my barked orders immediately if you want to keep your job!) and opting instead for real leadership through serving. Look out for the best interests of your people; give them the tools and the training they need to perform their best.

Help them be successful in your system. When they win, you win.

2. You have to be willing to set an example. This is one of the toughest things for a leader to embrace. If you want men and women of integrity working for you, you need to be a man or woman of integrity. If you want people to work hard, you need to work hard. If you want your team to give their best, their very best, you need to give your very best, and your employees know if you are or you aren’t.

I’ve had enough conversations with junior people in organizations to know that your employees are finely-tuned hypocrisy detectors. Don’t ask your employees to do something or be something that you aren’t willing to embrace for yourself.

3. Inspire others by making an impact. If you’re willing to set an example, then you can inspire others.

“There’s a big difference between impressing your people and impacting your people,” Saban told me. “Impressing people is easy if that’s all you want to do.”

If you want to make an impact and inspire others, your actions are paramount. My own experience with Coach Saban is a great example — his simple action eight years ago of attending a funeral inspired me and two other guys to do the same thing. He didn’t go to the funeral to impress anyone, and his actions were certainly an inspiration.

What do you think? Have you been focused on impressing or your people or impacting them?

4. Focus on being your best, not on winning. When I asked Coach Saban about his focus on winning, he told me, “Ingar, we don’t talk a lot about winning; instead, we talk a lot about being the best we can be.”

One of the advantages of being focused on being your best, rather than on winning, is that being your best is the only thing you can really control. Your competition isn’t just going to roll over and surrender just because you are focused on winning. This scene from “Facing the Giants” is a great illustration of the concept.

The other advantage of getting your employees to give you their best, instead of winning at all costs, is that it can help keep your team from making unethical choices.

5. Be positive. There are a number of ways to motivate people, and one of them certainly is through fear (e.g. you’ll lose your job if you don’t perform), but Coach Saban prefers being positive.

He told me that being positive is the best way to “help your people believe in what they can accomplish and give them something to strive for.” Note that I wrote “prefers being positive.” Saban was very clear that different people are motivated differently, so a one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t always work out.

“I have to take the time to understand each of my players and give them the push that they need,” he said.

What do you think? Are you negative most of the time when it comes to motivating your employees (i.e. “you’ll work hard because you’ll lose your job if you don’t”). I’m not telling you to change your approach, but if knowing his people well and being positive has worked for Coach Saban, maybe it will work for you, too.

INSIGHT INTO RICK PITINO

A big thanks to Indiana Associate Head Coach Tim Buckley for passing on some clinic notes to me that I'll post over the next month.  Here are some thoughts form Steve Masiello on what he learned from Rick Pitino:

On Rick Pitino and his philosophy:

Has an incredible ability to change

Have to make the opponent’s talent think. When you combine that with fatigue (fatigue neutralizes talent), you have a chance to win

To his players: it’s not about one practice or one game, it’s a lifestyle and a four year commitment

Used to be 30% defense / 70% offense; today he is 60% defense / 40% offense

Wants to dominate the game without having to score; does not care how much players score.
Cared more about the following statistics:
    --Going to the glass 80% of opportunities
    --Grabbing a rebound every 3 minutes
    --Getting a deflection every 2 minutes

There is no grey area. Know what your job is and do it

Ego is the enemy of greatness

Constantly searched out feedback from everywhere – always wants to know how to get better

COACHING TIPS FROM COACH RAVELING

The following comes from Coach George Raveling and his website -- check it out:

http://coachgeorgeraveling.com/

All coaches would be better served if they spent more time listening to the voice of the athlete.

Many studies reveal that building on your strengths is more productive & success enhancing than overcoming weakness.

Coaching is a helping profession.

The world lies before us. How will I live it, what will I contribute to it, when will I contribute, will my contributions be negative or positive, how do I wish to leave the world, what will they say about my existence in the world?

One of the greatest ways you can avoid failure in any area of your life is to allocate time everyday for serious thinking!

HOW ALABAMA IS UTILIZING GUEST SPEAKERS TO GROW THEIR TEAM ON AND OFF THE FIELD

I blogged about this in 2008 -- utilizing guest speakers to help get messages across to your team.  In fact, in that particular blog post, Coach Nick Saban was one of the guest speakers we used during our run to a Final Four.  It doesn't always have to be coaches or athletes.  When I worked for Dale Brown, he often brought in people from every facet of life to speak to our team.  The connections made were incredible.

Here is an article by Cliff Kirkpatrick of the Times Daily.com on how Coach Saban is utilizing speakers this year.

Alabama football coach Nick Saban has children, so he has seen this too often.         

He tried to advise them about life, but it takes a Little League coach or someone else to deliver the same message to get the point across.

Players on his football team are no different. That's why he brings in a string of guest speakers during training camp to reinforce what he's tells them.

 

"This is a tremendous opportunity for us to try to, while we have camp and we have players here they don't have school," Saban said. "They don't have anything else, it's all about football — is to have people that can help develop a better attitude so that they have a better chance to be more successful in life, because they were involved in the program."

The speakers talk about life and use football as a backdrop. Topics include drugs, alcohol, agents, gambling, staying out of fights and how to treat women.

"We're really always trying to educate our players on the consequences of good and bad behavior," Saban said.

Former NFL player, coach and current analyst Herman Edwards and former NFL player Ray Lewis were two of the latest speakers.

Saban liked their message of working hard so not to regret anything later in life, and to take advantage of your gifts.

Players were particularly intrigued by Lewis, a Super Bowl MVP. Linebacker C.J. Mosley said he was thrilled to meet one of his idols growing up, so he listened intently.

"It was a pretty nice thing to learn from (him)," defensive lineman Ed Stinson said. "He told us what he had been through, what was driving him to be great. It was a good point he made. I hope some of us learned from it."

Here is another example of how Coach Saban uses speakers (must read) to get message across:

http://tinyurl.com/ljs43q3

 

DOUG COLLINS' THOUGHTS FROM COACHING U LIVE

One of the most enjoyable parts of Coaching U Live for me was listening to Doug Collins.  He spoke on both days and I garnered a ton of great notes -- here are just a few:

"Work to be the best individual player you can be so your team can win."

"I outlived my dream." (loved that one)

"Once you build trust, you can speak the truth."

Coach Collins talked about H.A.L.T.
Hungry
Angry
Lonely
Tired
This is when we are most vulnerable (decisions)

Coach Collins told Avery Johnson that his biggest challenge as a coach would be to find 5 guys that love the game as much as you do and to not let the other 8 distract you.

"As coaches, we too often get seduced by talent."

As a coach, Collins was concerned about things he can control:
1. Conditioning
2. Preparation
3. Reward my competitors (my players that competed)

"To change a team you must change their comfort zone."

"Don't be in competition with players for publicity."

3 Things you must give you team:
1. Faith
2. Hope
3. Live

Easy baskets (scoring them offensively and stopping them defensively were important to Coach Collins. 
1. Points of turnovers
2. Turnovers
3. Transition Defense - points allowed
4. Paint Points
5. 2nd Chance Points

Key stats for Coach Collins:
1. Point Differential - Big in NBA
2. Road Record
3. FG% Differential

Again, this is just a short list of what Coach Collins shared with us.  The most moving was Saturday night when he shared his '72 Olympic experience with us.  He went into not just losing the controversial Gold medal game but the process of the tryouts, the practices (21 straight days of 3-a-day sessions), the games, etc.  It included how Coach K utilized him with the Dream Team, sharing his story and how they honored him. He also shared some great practice and games stories from his time coaching Michael Jordan with the Chicago and then Washington.

SABAN ON TRUST AND COMMUNICATION

Here are some great excerpts from an article written by Ken Rogers for the DothanEagle.com.  You can read the entire article here.

Several times already this training camp Alabama coach Nick Saban has talked about the need for trust – coaches trusting players, but, perhaps more important, players trusting each other.

“Something as simple as being on time,” Saban said Tuesday after practice. “Being on time is important because it shows that you care, it shows that it’s important to you. It shows that we can trust in you. It shows that your teammates can trust in you.”

It goes much farther than punctuality, of course.

“It’s important to pay attention to detail,” Saban said. “Know what your role is and be responsible and accountable to do it, because if you can’t prove that every day, how can the other guys in the huddle trust you? They may not say it, but how can they trust you?”

It’s a theme he began when talking with reporters before his appearance at SEC Media Days last month.

“I just think that in this day and age, the players are a little less geared toward communicating,” Saban said in Hoover. “They do a lot of texting, they do a lot of Facebook, they do a lot of social media, but in doing that, they don’t spend as much time communicating with other people. That’s one of the things that we really try to emphasize: that we have good communication.”

The coach talked about a recent leadership seminar players went through.

“The first question that was asked the players was, ‘Do you think it’s important to tell your teammates what you think?’” Saban said. “And 95 percent of the guys said no. That’s for the coach to do, or the strength coach or somebody in a position of authority."

“The next question was, ‘What’s the most important thing to you about your teammates?’ And the unanimous answer was, ‘What they think of me.’ That gives you a little bit of how much of a disconnect there is in the importance of communication.”

Linebacker C.J. Mosley said trust – and communication – is crucial on the field.

“If you’re worried about the other player, you won’t be focused or you might mess up on what you’re doing,” Mosley said. “If you know that that linebacker has your back when you’re spilling the ball on the power, you really don’t have to worry about if he’s going to get the guy.

“You just play ball and play your position. If you know that all 10 men know what they have to do and they’re going 100 percent, it makes your job that much easier.”

Senior offensive guard Anthony Steen was even more succinct about the issue of trust.

Saban said issues of trust, accountability and communication are keys to being great.

“If you’re going to have a great team, you’ve got to have great team chemistry, which comes from that respect and trust that people get from their discipline, accountability and responsibility they have to their role,” the coach said. “They’ve got to be able to focus on that no matter what else is going on around them.

“Which means it’s got to be important enough for them to want to do it and to stay focused on it. And they’ve got to be available mentally, whether in meetings or on the practice field or wherever it is, to take advantage of the repetitions that they get so that they have a chance to do that.

“That’s how you play winning football. That’s a challenge for every team. The devil is always in the details.”

 

COACHING U 2013 (PART I)

Here are just a few gems I grabbed at Coaching U Live in Maryland this summer.  And I say just a few gems because I took two spiral notebooks full of notes.

KEVIN EASTMAN
"To get better, you go until."

Paint Consequences
1. Block
2. Charge
3. Hard foul

"Fouling negates hustle." -Rick Pitino

"Don't put a ceiling on anything."

"A breech of culture must be met head on."

"You need to know that the malcontents are the best recruiters -- and they will go after young players."

Living in the TRUTH
1. Live it
2. Tell it
3. Take it

"Preparation trumps pressure."

GANNON BAKER
"You must be involved in solution based teaching, not just drills to fill a workout."

"Rebounding is pursuit, passion and position."

TIPS FOR ASSISTANT COACHES

Two of my favorite people in the world of coaching (and two of the people in my coaching circle of influence) are Felicia Hall Allen and Greg Brown.  Felicia has been a game changer for our profession with the development of A Step Up Assistant Coaching Symposium for men and women's basketball coaches.  She also is an amazing motivational speaker and excellent team builder.  We utilized her at LSU and she made such an impact in our program that we annually voted her a recipient of our Final Four rings.  Greg Brown is someone I have know for years in large part because of my relationship with Don Meyer who Greg worked for.  In fact, I often tell people that Greg worked for Coach Meyer and Pat Summitt when they were the winningest coaches in all of college basketball.  Greg is an excellent teacher and continual learner.

The two of them combined for this post this morning.  Greg had sent this list from an article he read to Felicia and she then emailed out to her contact list.  It is an outstanding list and I wanted to share it on our blog:

TIPS FOR ASSISTANT COACHES

1. Ultimately, your job is to make your head coach look good. Being a head coach is much more about being a CEO than an Xs and Os strategist. Yes, the head coach will get most of the credit, but they will also get all of the blame. Their job is to win, have a detailed vision and to be the leader. Your job is to help them execute their vision. It’s not your show, it’s the head coach’s show.

2. Understand and teach the game inside and out. Know how to attack opponent weaknesses, win with the players you’ve got, teach fundamentals and research and teach the best drills to prepare your position group.

3. Traits head coaches are looking for in assistant coaches: loyal, hard-working, reliable and trust-worthy. Being a great recruiter can help you get and keep a job.

4. Not everyone on the staff will get along—there will always be jealousy, personal differences, age differences but in order to win you must be able to put that aside to work with each other!

5. Coaching is a family—build your network. Outside of your head-to-head competitions, consider other coaches as your co-workers, not enemies. Build a strong network. You will rely on them heavily throughout career.

6. Best way to move up from where you are today into a new position? Be the best at your current position! Treat your role and current school as your dream job, and work like it’s where you’ve always dreamed to be.

7. Assistant coaches on your staff (or your opponents) can be in the position to hire you one day—you are building a track record with not just your head coach, but assistant coaches and opponents. Keep it professional and courteous.

8. Always bring a great attitude to work, even if you are having down days. Keep your personal issues to yourself, the team would never accomplish anything if every coach and player brought their personal issues to the facility or complained about all of their problems. Manage your personal life, address problems, get counseling if you need to!

9. Your players will mirror you. You want them to do it right and pay attention to detail—you must take the lead and see that you take the little details serious, too. Do what you say you will do. Follow through!

10. It’s never “I,” “me” or “mine,” instead use “we,” “us,” and “our.”

11. No detail is too minor for the head coach. If they want to be kept up-to-date on an issue, keep them in constant communication with a quick text, call or email.

12. Your position group, recruiting efforts and off-field responsibilities need to be your top priority. Do not get distracted by the fluff that goes along with the job. Focus on what you are being paid to do: develop players, graduate players, win games, represent the university and sign new players. If you feel like you can handle it, ask to take on additional responsibilities or create a new job responsibility that falls into one of those categories that will ultimately help your team win.

13. Become a great evaluator of talent—you need to learn how to find the hidden gems who aren’t gracing every recruiting Top 100 list. You need to be able to “find” great players before every other coach. Find the players who fit your needs, who have raw talent, who can be developed reasonably quickly, and who have great attitudes and toughness.

14. Remember—you are ALWAYS representing your boss and university.

15. Understand and value that EVERYONE in program has a role. Everyone has different strengths, everyone can contribute something different and critical: coaches, players, trainers, doctors, academic counselors, marketing staff, interns, students, boosters, maintenance staff, housing.

16. Think ahead, anticipate what’s next. What will your head coach need today/this week?

17. Self-evaluate and scout your team and position group. What weaknesses are returning? Evaluate top teams at those skills—how and why are they successful? What do they do exceptionally better? What drills can you use to help your players improve?

18. When evaluating players it’s critical you rule out players who will be a waste of time in terms of leading you on a wild goose hunt. Don’t spend all of your time recruiting players who will never get enrolled into your university, who won’t finish, who won’t be happy too far away from home, etc. If you know problems will arise down the road, it’s best to find other players who have less off-field issues. The risk isn’t often worth the reward.

19. Nothing is beneath you—all hands on deck. Be wise with your time and put most urgent priorities first! Develop players, graduate players, win games, sign new players.

20. Appearance is important—never know who you will run into. Your days will be long, the stress will be high—being in shape will help you fight the mental and physical battles. Be well groomed, well dressed and energetic.

21. How can you separate yourself—what value can you add to a staff? What can you become indispensible at? Scouting, recruiting, relationships with prep coaches, developing players, leadership?

22. Scout opponents as if your job depends on it—at some point, it will! The smallest of details can make the biggest of difference when it comes to game planning and having your players prepared.

23. Keep a daily to-do list with the same key areas that need your daily attention: situations to monitor (class attendance/study hall/grades of your players), things to do, people to call. Repeat, repeat, repeat with the attention that you expect of your players with their fundamentals.

24. Be organized—organization brings direction to chaos! A prepared player never flinches, nor do prepared coaches!

25. If needed, help communicate for your head coach. You may have to return calls for them, take on delegated responsibilities. Remember—your job is to make their job easier and to make them look good.

26. With recruiting—it’s not about what YOU want in a player, it’s about what your boss wants in a player. Can the recruit play for and be successful under this head coach? Will they clash or flourish? Recruit players who will fit your head coach’s personality and style.

27. If you lack experience or talent, you can overcome your weaknesses by being hardest worker who brings relentless energy—in the same way that you teach your players that “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”

28. Be who you are and believe in who you work for.

29. Never doubt the head coach in front of players or other members of the staff. When the negative talk begins internally everyone’s job is in trouble. If there is an issue with the head coach, approach them directly.

30. Most head coaches are excellent in three areas—on-field teaching, off-field preparations and recruiting. Most assistant coaches are only good at one or two of these areas, sometimes just masters of one. You must develop strong skills in all three areas to become a successful head coach.

31. Help your players do something that’s never been done before, even if it’s a small accomplishment. Bigger accomplishments will come after you begin achieving smaller, more manageable goals.

32. Develop a good relationship with your player’s parents—communicate! They need to be your allies, not your enemies! Deal with issues before they become unmanageable.

33. Have a ‘no gossip’ policy with your spouse—they shouldn’t be the town gossip about team issues. Like you tell your players, ‘What happens in the lockerroom stays in the lockerroom.’ If they can’t keep issues quiet, limit what you share with them.

34. No money talk amongst other coaches—your salary is what you have agreed to and signed for. It is a cancer to constantly discuss money with other coaches on staff.

35. What would a scouting report on your own team/unit look like? Be brutally honest with yourself on which weaknesses your players need to improve on. Build on what they are really good at, show them how to get better!

36. Get to know your Athletic Director and Associate/Assistant Athletic Directors, they could be in position to hire you one day or give you a key recommendation.

37.  Get to know athletic department staff—at some point you will need their help, they are ambassadors for your program! Their jobs are important, get to know everyone and let them know you appreciate them.

CHAMPIONSHIP TEAMS ARE NOT A "MECHANIC" PROCESS

Most coaches I know spend a lot of time focusing on X's and O's.  I must admit that at times I've fallen in that trap myself.  But what fascinates most people about sports is not the endless chatter about strategy that fills the airwaves.  It's what I like to call the spiritual nature of the game.

I can't pretend to be an expert in leadership theory.  But what I do know is that the art of transforming a group of young, ambitious individuals into an integrated championship team is not a mechanic process.  It's a mysterious juggling act that requires not only a thorough knowledge of the time-honored laws of the game but also an open heart, a clear mind, and a deep curiosity about the ways of the human spirit.

From "Eleven Rings" by Phil Jackson