The Team Leadership Report

The first and most important element of any leadership endeavor is evaluating people and understanding the importance of identifying roles to create the strongest possible team. Effective leadership is selecting the right people; educating them well, and motivating them to do their very best while asking them to make the commitment to winning. Every team must have a core of people on which the leader can rely on to understand and express the team’s vision, mission, goals and objectives. That is leadership--properly identifying who those people are. If you embrace this philosophy, it becomes the essential element of good leadership provided you do one more thing: Listen to your people! Become an active, engaged, and interested listener. You can assure yourself and your program’s success if you create and listen to the strongest core possible. You do that by: Selecting the right people. Investing in them, improving them, and leading them with enthusiasm. And by listening—truly l

In their quest for improvement many coaches often become too “x” and “o” oriented—they go to clinics, debate new strategies, devour literature, etc. In their obsession with the technical side of their game, they sometimes overlook the other vital aspects of coaching: philosophy, organization, methodology and team building. The point to remember is that whereas the technical side of coaching varies  greatly from sport to sport and even within a given sport, the methodology of exceptional coaches exhibits great uniformity. The following traits distinguish the superior coaches: Superior coaches are drill oriented. They believe that nothing is more important in the preparation of an individual or a team than the extensive use of efficient drills. What is an efficient drill? It is one that accurately reproduces the specific competitive situation and teaches the individual the proper reaction pattern and technique with which to respond to a recognized stimulus. Superior coaches

The arena may just be a back yard.  Up for grabs it's not the world's championship.  Just bragging rights to who's the best on the block (remember those days!).  It's not a venue worthy of legendary prose.  But it's a place where legends often begin.  Because from such beginnings, the taste of victory is first savored.  That insatiable taste that instills the desire to be the best. It's more than all those sports page clichés of extra effort and 110%.  The will to win is a work ethic.  A dedication. A commitment to never giving up.  Find these traits in an athlete, and you'll find an athlete who's the first one at practice.  And the last one to leave.  An athlete who toils away from the spotlight, perfecting those little nuances that can later make all the difference. Though the odds are long of ever achieving fame and glory, this serves as little deterrent to this athlete.  Because even when he/she faces others with more natural talent, he/she do

Earn respect. Communicate. Offer praise when it’s deserved. Never criticize someone who is competing but overmatched. Go for brains over brawn. Be flexible. Make decisions with authority. Drill them until they have it down cold. Stress the little things to build a strong system. Pinpoint and assign responsibility. Be friendly with players but not overly familiar. Be demanding. Compete against the best. Remember, a loss can be a great teacher. Insist that self-esteem be earned. Go for quality of practice over duration.  Be organized. Control what you can and don’t worry about what you can’t. Don’t make excuses. Take responsibility. Don’t use one kid to make an example for another. Always have a positive attitude.  Be efficient and precise. Use tradition as a teaching tool. Live by these rules—humility; dignity; ask no favors & give no favors. Be proud to be on the team and remember the team always comes first. —Compliments of Florida State Basketball