As promised here is the gymnasts training journal for summer. It needs updating. I will work on it and repost it. Probably tomorrow.
It is 3 pages. So I added a cover to be printed out separately. Print out the cover then as many pages as need for each of your gymnasts.
YES- I am giving it away.
WHY?- Sharing is caring. You can share it too.
What do I expect in return? That when someone asks for help- you help them. That’s all. Pay it forward.
This was originally published on my other blog- VACILANDO. I have just finished the lecture on ethics I did at a conference in Idaho. I will get my presentation up shortly but I though I would share this for anyone interested. I believe the article I was reading was in the Huffington Post.
Originally Published 05/30/2017
Right now I have sequestered myself at a cabin so I could finish some writing. I had to work on a lecture on ETHICS. As often happens in my research I get pulled down the rabbit hole. I get too deep and can get side tracked.
In our society there is a lack of REAL heroes. Why is it difficult for people to do the right thing AND when people make the right decision it is viewed as remarkable.
New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu stood up last week and delivered a moving, bracingly honest speech to explain why he removed four Confederate monuments from his city.
“You elected me to do the right thing, and this is what it looks like,” Landrieu told the crowd gathered at New Orleans’ former city hall. “These monuments purposefully celebrate a fictional, sanitized Confederacy, ignoring the death, ignoring the enslavement and the terror that it actually stood for.”
While it was remarkable to see a Southern politician speaking boldly and clearly about race ― in the face of death threats and protests ― it was perhaps even more notable to see a leader publicly demonstrating the character of his convictions. Landrieu’s speech went viral.
As the country grows ever more cynical, divided and partisan, we’re not used to honesty and courage from our leaders. Seeing a politician stand up for what he or she believes is the right thing is increasingly rare.
Political discourse and civic life has so devolved in 2017 that a man charged with physical assault, Republican Greg Gianforte, was elected to Congress Thursday in Montana with the backing and full support of his party. Just the day before, Gianforte, a self-made tech millionaire, wrapped his hands around the neck of a reporter, threw him to the ground, and repeatedly punched him for asking a question.
Comparing a longtime politician in Louisiana (Landrieu comes from a political family and is a former lieutenant governor) to an upstart businessman-cum-politician may seem like a stretch. But these two men make a neat case study on the state of ethics and integrity in 2017.
These days the public no longer expects leaders to do what’s right. We’ve grown accustomed to name-calling and carefully crafted milquetoast middle-of-the-road statements. We’re used to lying, and we expect leaders to put party and their own careers before all else.
“Norms have shifted,” said Gautam Mukunda, the author of Indispensable: When Leaders Really Matter and a professor at Harvard Business School. “We expect leaders to be bad, and people live up to what you expect of them. We’ve created a self-fulfilling prophecy of bad behavior and it is profound.”
To many Americans, politics is either a massive conspiracy, a “House of Cards” dystopia, or a playground for craven buffoons, a la “Veep.” We are no longer surprised as we witness leaders live up to these expectations, lying about meeting with foreign agents, changing their stories, and blaming everyone but themselves when things go wrong.
You could see footprints of our lower standards all over the Gianforte incident. Instead of apologizing for his naked act of aggression, Gianforte initially released a statement blaming the reporter, Ben Jacobs of The Guardian. “It’s unfortunate that this aggressive behavior from a liberal journalist created this scene at our campaign volunteer BBQ,” the statement read.
Worse, the statement was false. It claimed Jacobs shoved the microphone in Gianforte’s face and refused to lower it after being asked, but audio and witness accounts from a Fox News crew refuted the claims.
Republican Speaker of the House Paul Ryan gamely admitted what Gianforte did was wrong, and called on him to apologize, but he also said would support his election if that’s what the people of Montana wanted.
Of course, we can’t actually know what the people in Montana thought of the assault. A majority of voters cast their ballots before the body-slam.
It’s easy to imagine a different politician simply stepping out of the race in the face of such an incident. Remember when Howard Dean appeared to scream in one speech and it doomed his entire bid for the presidential nomination?
Some conservative pundits tried to spin the assault this week as a good thing: “Gianforte, the manly and studly candidate, threw the 125-pound wet dishrag reporter from The Guardian to the ground,” Rush Limbaugh said of the incident, according to an online transcript of his show posted on his website. Laura Ingraham, while gamely allowing that politicians should stay cool in such situations, also tried to cast Jacobs as wimpy for not fighting back. What “would most Montana men do if ‘body slammed’ for no reason by another man?” she asked in a tweet.
As is too often the case in 2017, partisanship blinded us from even distinguishing right from wrong. The increasing divide between right and left and the intensely personal way each side attacks the other means that even ethics are now partisan. Republicans and Democrats call each other “bad” or “evil,” and there is often no higher playing field where everyone agrees to nonpartisan standards and values (don’t hit people, don’t lie, etc.).
“I don’t think Obama was perfect, but it’s hard to imagine more of a straight-arrow person. Not a hint of scandal,” Mukunda said. Yet somehow half of America just didn’t it see it that way. People who disagree with his politics won’t typically acknowledge that he acted with respect for the office. “You don’t hear a lot of that,” Mukunda said.
Yet at the same time, people are hungry for heroes ― men and women with humility who will stand up for what’s right. When former acting Attorney General Sally Yates refused to enforce President Donald Trump’s travel ban because she believed it was unconstitutional, many people found it thrilling. When Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) criticizes the Trump administration for its failings, he’s lauded.
Indeed, we need people like this to set examples, Mukunda says. “The extent that we have culturally deprived people of that is troubling.”
It’s also highly dysfunctional. Integrity is the bedrock of a properly functioning organization, Joseph Badaracco told HuffPost recently. Badaracco has been teaching an introductory course in ethics, leadership and accountability to Harvard Business School students for the past decade. He defines integrity as a consistency between what you believe, say and do. “It all hangs together,” he said.
“There’s a way in which integrity shouldn’t be newsworthy ― we assume it, rely on it and count on it,” Badaracco said. “It’s not exactly like obeying the laws of gravity, but we ought to be able to assume it’s there.”
The ability to know what’s right and follow through on it with conviction isn’t something Badaracco believes can really be taught to people by the time they reach Harvard Business School.
“We don’t teach people how to have integrity. Or even teach the importance of it,” he says. “If someone doesn’t understand that, they have a deficiency in their education or development and we can’t remedy that.”
Badaracco says his focus is on making hard decisions. The grey areas. “Not right versus wrong where a person with integrity will know what’s right,” he explains. “But right versus right where it’s not really clear.”
But civil discourse has devolved from this graduate-school-level thinking. Americans elected Trump, a man whose most original thinking seems to come through in his creative penchant for name-calling. Many mistook Trump’s plainspoken manner for authenticity, and perhaps conflated this with honesty and integrity.
These are not the same things.
Wouldn’t it be great if success was simple?
But it isn’t.
There is no one-size-fits-all answer for success in the gym and in life, but I will do my best to steer you in the right direction.
GET UP INSANELY EARLY
It sounds scary, but consider what would happen if instead of watching reruns of bad movies at night, you went to bed at a reasonable hour, thus allowing yourself to wake up early and super productive? Through the Gym Momentum community I get 10-15 e-mails each night and another 20-30 things on Facebook. Looking at the time stamps I know that many of you post and e-mail late at night when your time would be better spent sleeping.
Waking up before anybody else allows you to work out the logistics of the day to come , track your time, and (most importantly) UNPLUG FOR A FEW HOURS. Turn off your cell phone at night, If you wake up in the middle of the night, don’t check your e-mail or text messages. They will all still be there in the morning.
I hear people all the time say, “I just need a few more hours in the day to get everything done” . Often these are the same people who waste their mornings.
KEEP PROMISES, NO MATTER HOW SMALL
Talk is cheap and meaningful customer relationships are built on promises. Same goes for your personal life, right?
Well, Maybe.
Success is built on mutually trusting relationships with just about everybody. If you say you’re going to walk the gym dog, well, you’d best walk the gym dog.
LEARN HOW TO TELL STORIES.
You want to be successful in life, but you don’t have the job you want or your team isn’t as successful as you’d like them to be this year. The first step to nail that dream job or dream team? Learn how to tell a great story- Starting with your interview.
Sometimes you need to CREATE your history. Create YOUR story. WHY you are who you are. WHY are you destined for greatness.
LEAD, DON’T DICTATE.
There is a big difference between being a leader and being a boss. A great leader leads by example and sets the tone. You want a team of hard working individuals. Be the hardest working one out there.
DON’T BE AFRAID- OR EMBARRASSED- OF YOUR FAILURES
We all know many stories of those who have failed in order to succeed. I have posted many BLOGS on why Failure is a necessary step t success. BUT how do you fail constructively?
Not all failures lead to solutions, though. How do you fail constructively?
We’re taught to do things the right way. But if you want to discover something that other people haven’t, you may need to do things the wrong way. Initiate a failure by doing something that’s very silly, unthinkable, naughty, dangerous. Watching why that fails can take you on a completely different path. It’s exciting, actually. To me, solving problems is a bit like a drug. You’re on it, and you can’t get off
It’s also OK to QUIT something when your heart isn’t into it or when you see the writing on the wall.
ASK QUESTIONS. A LOT OF THEM
Albert Einstein, obviously a great thinker, would have been a great coach and entrepreneur.
To raise new questions, new possibilities, to regard old problems from a new angle, requires creative imagination and marks real advances in science.
EVERYONE needs to pause occasionally for self reflection.
What is your purpose on earth?
What should you stop doing?
What is your “lab” or “petri dish”?
BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF and OTHERS
Remember when I said about asking questions ? Here is a hard one-
ARE YOU PASSIONATE or DELUSIONAL?
Delusion is a double-edged sword. When it comes to productivity, tricking yourself can be your best move, but if your career is hurting other (more important) aspects of your life it might be time to re-evaluate your priorities.
Truth be told, I think the difference between passion and delusion isn’t even very distinguishable. I suspect many a coach has fallen too far down the rabbit hole without even realizing it. It happens to me. I convince myself my gym and my team is on the right track and then I get to a big competition and we blow it. Upset parents, upset gymnasts and upset coaches.That is my reality check. I was laser-focused on the belief I had to succeed no matter what, which led me to lose sight of reality. My story has a happy ending because I was able to wake up and get back on track.
TAKE BREAKS
Go for a walk, go surfing, go camping. Get your ass out of the gym . Unplug for a few days. Spend sometime with friends. It will keep you from going insane and help you refocus when you are back.
TAKE NOTES and STAY ORGANIZED.
If you are trying to delve deeper than surface level engagement, try taking notes.
I have always been a journal keeper. It might sound silly but putting some genuine effort into it- note taking, list making and reflection- it helps me stay organized and keep my focus onto what I am after. If we want to get focused, one old and obvious hack isto first go analog. What’s nice about a notebook and a pen is that your friends and colleagues can’t assault you with cat videos and humblebrags as you organize your day, unlike anything connected to the Internet.
There aren’t a lot of business books from a half-century ago that are helpful to gymnastics professionals today or have stood the test of time. Peter Drucker’s The Effective Executive , now available in a spiffy new 50th Anniversary edition, is one of the select few. In 1967, back before Millennials were a gleam in their parents’ eyes, Drucker declared, “The executive is, first of all, expected to get the right things done. And this is simply saying that he is expected to be effective.” That statement is obviously true for coaches as well.
Drucker is as relevant for coaches today as he was for business leaders the year after I was born (now you know my relative age). He approaches the study of business like a surgeon. His clarity of thought and language were a scalpel, which he used to dissect every aspect of management until he had revealed its essence. In The Effective Executive, Drucker applied that scalpel to leadership.
Drucker was convinced that leaders are made, not born. As a gymnastics professional there are five practices that can make you a more effective leader in your gym:
“Time is the scarcest resource,” wrote Drucker, “and unless it is managed, nothing else can be managed.” Successful coaches know how they need to spend their day. They dismiss or delegate any activity that doesn’t require their direct attention. If you really need something done- asks a busy person.
To identify the unnecessary time-sucks in your day, Drucker suggested jotting down everything you do in real time. Even better, these days you could get a time management app. Then, examine your activity entries and, for each one, ask yourself, “What would happen if this were not done at all?” If the answer is nothing (and it often will be, according to Drucker), stop doing it. If the task needs to be done, ask yourself if it could be done by somebody else. If so, delegate it. Repeat every few months to make sure you’re still spending your time wisely.
Effective coaches hold themselves “accountable for the performance of the whole,” wrote Drucker. By that he meant that they weren’t solely focused on their job performance or their own careers. Instead, the most effective leaders are team players who work hard to realize the strategic goals of their clubs or organizations.
Direct your focus to what you can do to maximize your contribution to the gym. Ask other people in the gym, [your] superiors, [your] subordinates, but above all, [your] colleagues : “What can I do to help you do a better job and make the gym better?”
Drucker preached a strength-based approach to talent decades before it became a corporate buzzword. This was possibly a lesson he could have learned FROM US! Effective coaches drive team productivity and results, by building on available strengths–the strengths of other coaches, the strengths of the facility, and one’s own strength.
Train yourself to focus on strengths instead of weaknesses by concentrating on what coaches can do rather than what they can’t do. Seek out only the best-qualified people, instead of those who play well with others or who appear to have no flaws (we ALL have flaws). And don’t forget to apply this practice to yourself–identify your own strengths and use them to improve your performance.
Long before we were all tethered to our smartphones, Drucker was warning leaders about the dangers of multitasking. He said that effective executives focus all their faculties on one achievement at a time. Why? “The more one can concentrate time, effort, and resources,” Drucker wrote, “the greater the number and diversity of tasks one can actually perform.”
To make the most of your concentrated effort, first prioritize your tasks. Prioritization is key. If you’re only working on one thing, you must make sure it’s the right thing. Effective coaches do first things first and they do one thing at a time.
Finally, Drucker said that effective leaders make sound decisions–that means no on-the-fly calls or going with your gut. Sound decisions, he said, come from using a repeatable, consistent process with clearly defined elements executed in a distinct sequence.
How should you approach decision making?
And a #1 song from 1967 for no reason at all:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vw40NMa_0RM
Productivity isn’t about getting more done, but about getting what matters most done. With this in mind, here are three habits productive coaches do differently to focus on what matters most.
Productive Coaches dump their to-do list
You need to prioritize to be productive. Many to-do lists prioritize the wrong activities. When I had my to-do list, buying milk was listed before getting meet entries in. YES- I needed to buy milk on the way home but MY JOB is to make sure all the meet entries are in. My list tended to give everything the same Importance. I needed to have a list of priorities.
A great alternative to a to-do list is a 20-80 List. A 20-80 List is built on the Pareto Principle, which basically states that 20 percent of your efforts create 80 percent of your results. Examples of the Pareto Principle are everywhere. In the gym you’ve probably experienced that 20 percent of people do 80 percent of the work, or event that 20 percent of your corrections get 80 percent of your results. Need an example closer to home? Look in your closet. You likely wear 20 percent of your clothes 80 percent of the time.
Draw a line down the middle of a piece of paper. Write “20 Percent” at the top of the left side and “80 Percent” at the top of the right side. From there, show favoritism by only listing what matters most on the 20 Percent side. All other items go on the right side. If you do it correctly, you’ll end up with only a handful of tasks on the left side of the paper. Those are the ones you need to get done first! They will produce 80 percent of what matters most.
Productive Coaches slow down under pressure
The best coaches I know practice a counterintuitive habit — they lead their team from a quiet place when more is added to their plate. While the implementation of this habit looks different with every coach, a couple overarching principles remain constant among the most productive leaders.
First, productive coaches create time and space to slow down before things get added to their plate. This time might be early in the morning or before they go to bed. The key isn’t when it’s scheduled, but that it has already been scheduled before anything extra gets added to their calendar. When tough issues arise, they don’t have to scramble to find time to address them because they have already schedule their lead-from-quiet time every day.
Second, they carve out significant chunks of time to lead from a place of calm and quiet. Although there is great value in taking 10 minute breaks throughout the day, productive coaches know these breaks are for taking breaks, not working. Short breaks are good for getting re-energized, but not for thinking deeply about leadership issues. When I am at my busiest- I still get up and run out to go grab a cup of coffee. It is just enough time to refocus. It’s only 10 minutes but it really helps me.
Third, the best coaches make a conscious effort to SLOW DOWN in times of stress. Inevitably obstacles will arise in meets and practice. A coach can ramp up, speed up, there by stressing everyone out around them (and lowering productivity). Or they can slow down, speak slowly and deliberately. Lay out the expectations and the new plan. This will help keeping some semblance of control.
The most productive coaches use simple math for their hardest problems. Perhaps what sets the most productive leaders apart is how they respond to adversity. Most coaches buy into the myth that the events of your day lead to your outcomes. They adopt an E = O mentality, thinking if events go their way, their outcomes will be good, but if events turn sour, their outcomes turn sour as well.
The problem with this equation is it’s based on what we cannot control: events. We don’t control the weather, the economy or the judges scores. Individuals who follow the E = O equation might as well add “= V” at the end because, if you allow your events to equal your outcomes, you’ll inevitably end up a victim. The real equation then becomes Events = Outcomes = Victims.
We need to realize this isn’t true and adopt the habit of approaching circumstances through an Events + Reactions = Outcomes equation. Originally taught by Dr. Robert Resnick and shared in Jack Canfield’s book, The Success Principles, E + R = O allows coaches to transform the way they lead by adding one letter to the E=O equation. That one letter empowers them and their team to win by reminding them to focus on the one thing they can control — their response.
You must commit to owning your response no matter what events you face. By adding this one letter, you can turn even the most challenging events into positive outcomes.
If you are going to move from average to exceptional you need to change your habits. Be more productive, prioritize your day and your practice. Try slowing down and owning your responses to events in practice and competitions. Your gymnasts and staff should mirror your behavior .
Finding your philosophy.
I had someone tell me once that if I were hiring someone I needed to hire someone with a philosophy that I could work with. I could teach them the rest. In our business, that is often an overlooked quality. A gym owner will look at someone’s accomplishments, their ability to spot. They (hopefully!) will do some investigating into their background, make some phone calls to past employers and maybe call some parents or former gymnasts. All of that is a good start but as gym owners or managers interviewing a potential employee you need to LISTEN. You need to have some in-depth conversations to find out if their philosophy in and out of the gym is compatible with yours.
Teaching them your system won’t take long. Educating them to be a BETTER coach should be an ongoing process. You are probably not going to change their philosophy. They can change their mind on whether to teach a yurchenko or tsuk first but their core values will remain the same.
In my professional career there were 2 books that helped me form my overall philosophy. Recently I was flying through Heathrow Airport in London and had some time to kill. I was walking by a book store and they had both of “my books” displayed in front. Don Quixote and The Prince. One is my HEART, the other is my HEAD. One is my coaching philosophy, the dreamer. The other is my business side. I bought both.
THE PRINCE
Over Christmas break my son and I were talking about The Prince. Few historical figures are as divisive and polarizing as Niccolo Machiavelli. The fact that this Renaissance philosophers works date back 500 years hasn’t blunted its impact or controversy one bit. Some view him as the father of modern materialism, inspiring people to do or say anything to achieve personal gain, i.e. the ends justify the means. Indeed, the word Machiavellian – derived from his most famous work, The Prince – has come to mean cunning, deceit, and manipulation.
I, however, see him as the world’s first great realist and a positive influence on modern politics and business. Machiavelli may even have been the first to apply empirical scientific methods to human behavior by making innovative generalizations based on experience, observation, and history. Many of his ideas for achieving long-term political success and power translate extraordinarily well into the business world.
I never realized how closely my own ideas on business and leadership resonated with his. It turns out that I’ve more or less been quoting the guy for years without even realizing it. Coincidence? Hmm.
Some Business Lessons:
Either treat people well… or completely destroy them.
Men ought either to be well-treated or crushed, because they can avenge themselves of lighter injuries, of more serious ones they cannot; therefore the injury that is to be done to a man ought to be of such a kind that one does not stand in fear of revenge
None of our businesses are islands. We are part of the communities we are in. You will have interactions with other businesses and other gyms. When we go to competitions you have the same 2 choices. Treat other coaches well. Or completely destroy them.
I prefer to treat all with respect. It is just the way I was brought up.
If you suspect someone could pose a future threat, deal with them now.
The Romans never allowed a trouble spot to remain simply to avoid going to war over it, because they knew that wars don’t just go away, they are only postponed to someone else’s advantage.
By nature I am a pretty non confrontation person. When confrontation is unavoidable, I’d rather face it now. Sometimes it is an angry parent, disgruntled employee or even another coach in the community.
Study the greats. That way, even if you fall short, you’ll end up good.
A prudent man should always follow in the path trodden by great men and imitate those who are most excellent, so that if he does not attain to their greatness, at any rate he will get some tinge of it.
A lesson that carries over from Don Quixote. I aim for great.
It’s safer to be feared than loved. But don’t go overboard with the fear thing.
From this arises the question whether it is better to be loved rather than feared, or feared rather than loved. It might perhaps be answered that we should wish to be both: but since love and fear can hardly exist together, if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved.
A prince should make himself feared in such a way that if he does not gain love, he at any rate avoids hatred.
I think FEAR is too big of a concept. It is more about respect. I want my gymnasts and my employees to be afraid to disappoint me.
Perception is reality.
Every one sees what you appear to be, few really know what you are.
The vulgar crowd always is taken by appearances, and the world consists chiefly of the vulgar.
Whether we want to or not, we are role models for our gymnasts and employees. How they perceive us is very important.
Smart people hire other smart people.
The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him.
If I ever find myself the smartest person in the room, I am in the WRONG room. I want to be surrounded by the best and the brightest. I give them actual responsibilities and hold the accountable. If they are successful- I want everyone to know it. If they are struggling, we will handle that behind a closed door.
Just do it.
It is better to be rash than timid, for Fortune is a woman, and the man who wants to hold her down must beat and bully her. We see that she yields more often to men of this stripe than to those who come coldly toward her.“All courses of action are risky, so prudence is not in avoiding danger (it’s impossible), but calculating risk and acting decisively.”
When it is time to make a decision, MAKE IT.
A few of my other favorite quotes
“It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles.”
“It is essential that in entering a new province you should have the good will of its inhabitants.”
“He who is highly esteemed is not easily conspired against;”
“Therefore the best fortress is to be found in the love of the people, for although you may have fortresses they will not save you if you are hated by the people.”
Finding your philosophy.
I had someone tell me once that if I were hiring someone I needed to hire someone with a philosophy that I could work with. I could teach them the rest. In our business, that is often an overlooked quality. A gym owner will look at someone’s accomplishments, their ability to spot. They (hopefully!) will do some investigating into their background, make some phone calls to past employers and maybe call some parents or former gymnasts. All of that is a good start but as gym owners or managers interviewing a potential employee you need to LISTEN. You need to have some in-depth conversations to find out if their philosophy in and out of the gym is compatible with yours.
Teaching them your system won’t take long. Educating them to be a BETTER coach should be an ongoing process. You are probably NOT going to change their philosophy. They can change their mind on whether to teach a yurchenko or tsuk first but their core values will remain the same.
In my professional career there were 2 books that helped me form my overall philosophy. Recently I was flying through Heathrow Airport in London and had some time to kill. I was walking by a book store and they had both of “my books” displayed in front. Don Quixote and The Prince. One is my HEART, the other is my HEAD. One is my coaching philosophy, the dreamer. The other is my business side. I bought both.
Don Quixote
You need to find balance between being the GREATER FOOL and being the LESSER FOOL. You need to be able to dream and to sometimes NOT see things like they are but as they should, or could, be.
The Greater Fool: Observation that any price (no matter how unrealistic) can be justified if a buyer believes that there is another buyer who will pay an even-higher price for the same item. This line of thinking causes and fuels stockmarket and commodity market booms and manias which, in due course, lead to busts and paranoias.
In fiction, the most celebrated Greater Fool is Cervantes’ great mock-hero Don Quixote, the delusional knight-errant who tilted against windmills which in his crazed imagination were evil giants which it was his duty to slay. Don Quixote is a figure of ridicule. In his futile foolishness he assumes heroic stature, for he persists, against all reason, to see the world not as it is but as it ought to be.
In marketing terms, the Greater Fool is the ultimate disruptive innovator, the greatest risk-taking venture capitalist who dares to bet against overwhelming odds and in doing so extends the boundaries of what convention has established as the realm of the possible.
In the gym the Greater Fool is the one with the ability to carry on down a failed (or failing) path taking it further than the ordinary fool. I would rather just be an ordinary fool. No one is perfect we make mistake but at some point we should be smart enough to learn from the success and failures of others.
“The greater fool is someone with the perfect blend of self delusion and ego to think that he can succeed where others have failed.” – Sloan Sabbith to Will McAvoy in “The Newsroom”
We have all seen coaches and programs that are headed down a failing path. Coaches who think that they can get gymnasts to the top level “their way”. They constantly are trying to reinvent the wheel. There is probably less than .001% of the coaching population who are actually innovative. We just collect drills and ideas from coaches who have been down this path before and add our own spice.
Maybe it is the Italian in me but I relate to COACHING a lot like I do to COOKING. Everyone in my family has a their own recipe for tomato sauce. Some are spicy, some add meat, some add a pinch of sugar. They are all good in their own way. As different as they are- They all start with tomatoes.
When you are teaching a new skill, remember to make sure that the basics are great. Add enough spice to hide any weakness and bring out the best.
I have great faith in fools — self-confidence my friends will call it. ~ Edgar Allen Poe
I will continue to be the lesser fool. I have always had the curse of seeing gymnasts not as they are but as they should be. I do not see a Level 3 or 4. I see a potential Level 9 or 10. Then I coach the child that way. Thinking past the current set of routines, focusing on the basics that are going to help them succeed long term. Sometimes this backfires, sometimes I put too much pressure on the gymnasts and sometimes I cannot hide my disappointment when we fall short. In the end, my feeling is that if I aim high and set my goal at being GREAT, if I fall short, we are still GOOD.
Poets and artists are Greater Fools, as are spiritual masters, scientists and philanthropists. They can afford to be the greater fool. As gymnastics professionals you cannot.
What then are Don Quixote’s three lessons in leadership that you can use?
#1 Imagination
Don Quixote did not just dream about those characters. He firmly believed in them, visualized them to be so, and acted with all his heart according to his beliefs.
In his mind, the reality was less what others thought they were, but what he himself imagined and believe them to be.
In the same way, good coaches need to go beyond the ordinary. They must have the vision and moral courage to pursue something that could be viewed as bold, daring and unconventional.
Good coaches must also hold on clearly to that Big Goal. They need to stick to it despite what naysayers may be saying, and brush off those negative voices.
Imagination is the first step to greatness.
#2 Commitment
A great coach must have the resilience and determination to be committed to his or her own goals, or committed to the cause which is pursued.
Commitment can come in the form of a strong stick-to-itiveness to whatever one believes strongly in. To become a master of the mundane. Or, It could also mean that you have a road map that you stick to, even when times were hard.
#3 Joy
Finally, and probably most importantly, it is vital to have Joy in one’s pursuit. It is impossible to be perfect in the gym. You are going to make mistakes. A sense of humor and an ability to laugh off life’s failures and get over them is always needed in any leadership role. You gotta love what you do and do what you love.
Like Don Quixote, coaches (and leaders) need to have a constant sense of affirmation and true enjoyment in what they do. Only when the pursuit of excellence is aligned with the desires of one’s heart would there be true resonance.
You need to have Passion with Perspective. You need to be all in. To make BIG changes you need to have BIG ideas. You do need something, or someone, to temper your ideas. You need to keep perspective. There are times we all get so lost in the IDEA and the DREAM that we lose perspective.
In times of crisis we can continue to make adjustments only to realize too late that it is TOO LATE. We become a Boiled Frog
Put a frog in a pot of water and turn the burner on. As the temperature of the water rises, the frog will adjust its body temperature accordingly. The frog continues adjusting with the increase in temperature. When the water is about to reach a boiling point, the frog is no longer able to adjust anymore and tries to jump out. TOO LATE. The frog tries to jump but is unable to do so, it has lost all its strength in adjusting with the rising water temperature…
Very soon the frog dies.
What killed the frog?
Many would say the boiling water. The truth is the frog was killed by it’s own inability to decide when it had to jump out
Every organization needs to adjust to events and to those unavoidable crises. The difficult part is knowing when to adjust and when to confront and face the situation. Too often club owners, managers or administrators adjust, adjust, adjust- only to realize too late that the water is going to boil.
We have to decide when to jump.
And jump while we still have the strength.
THE BOILING FROG SYNDROME
Put a frog in a pot of water and turn the burner on. As the temperature of the water rises, the frog will adjust its body temperature accordingly. The frog continues adjusting with the increase in temperature. When the water is about to reach a boiling point, the frog is no longer able to adjust anymore and tries to jump out. TOO LATE. The frog tries to jump but is unable to do so, it has lost all its strength in adjusting with the rising water temperature…
Very soon the frog dies.
What killed the frog?
Many would say the boiling water. The truth is the frog was killed by it’s own inability to decide when it had to jump out
Every organization needs to adjust to events and to those unavoidable crises. The difficult part is knowing when to adjust and when to confront and face the situation. Too often club owners, managers or administrators adjust, adjust, adjust- only to realize too late that the water is going to boil.
We have to decide when to jump.
And jump while we still have the strength.
There are leaders who back right into a crisis without recognizing that their situation is worsening. They’re not bad managers, but they’re often working under a set of paradigms that no longer apply, they are not getting enough information from enough sources and letting the power of inertia carry them along.
If they don’t realize they’re facing a crisis, they won’t know that they need to undertake a turnaround.
Sometimes managers underestimated how critical their situation is—or they were looking in the wrong direction or program. Others get caught up in the pressure for short-term returns that they neglected to ensure the organization’s long-term health.
In my VERY humble opinion, USA Gymnastics needs a CEO who has the VISION to lead and the ability to step back to review his or her own plans objectively. They need confidence but they also need to have great advisors and not be afraid of asking “Is this what I thought would happen when I first started going down this road?”. Acknowledging that your plan isn’t working is a necessary first step. No one will be able to see every issue or avoid every crisis. That is why you need to have a strong board and strong people in the office.
Rudy Giuliani phrased it well when he said, “It is in times of crisis that good leaders emerge.” It is at these times that you see who the true leaders are, which ones can take the pressure, and which ones get people rallied around a common vision forward, instead of giving in to the despair around them.
In the mean time we need to focus on some small victories in order to gain traction for the big win.
It is going to be a difficult decision whether to play a long game or a short game with the next CEO. Someone who can come in and make some BIG immediate changes. Replace top team members while finding and/or retaining the most talented. Or, go with someone more focused on a long game. Willing to make REAL and SUBSTANTIAL changes and initiate a long term plan and see it through. There is a good argument for either.
It is MUCH easier to just plow a garden under when you encounter a problem than it is to plant and nurture a garden. BUT WE ARE ABOUT CREATING. USA Gymnastics has a garden already planted. Right now there definitely needs to be some weeding done. Some plants need pulled, others need to be clipped back and some needs nourishment. You will need to spread some fertilizer . I posted the other day- If a flower isn’t growing – you change the environment, not the flower.
Just my thoughts and opinion for today
Tony
By now we have all seen the passenger physically removed from an overbooked United Airlines flight. This was a crisis that through better policies could have been avoided and certainly the aftermath could have been handled better.
I think we need to discuss something that way too many of us ignore.
During my time as a Coach, Club owner and Administrator, I have learned that there is one important skill every leader must internalize. And that is – Empathy.
Empathy: The ability to understand and share the feelings of another.
As USA Gymnastics found out. PR disasters can happen at any time. There’s only so much you can do to control the actions of everyone within the organization. But how you RESPOND to the crisis is completely under your control.
After the passenger was dragged off the plane, the CEO decided to point the finger at the customer (the passenger). CEO Oscar Muñoz offered that this was “an upsetting event to all of us here at United.” It’s bad enough when you’ve dragged and bloodied a customer. It’s worse when the reported cause was that you wanted to accommodate some of your own employees.
Muñoz wasn’t done. “I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers,” he said.
What? The customer wasn’t re-accommodated. He was treated like an animal.
Muñoz said that United would conduct a review. He said it would reach out to the passenger.
His remarks were accusatory and defensive:
“He was disruptive and belligerent”
“He refused to comply”
“We decided to re-accommodate him”
Furthermore, the former CEO of the parent company responded by claiming “immaturity” on part of the passenger. Regardless of protocol, context etc etc … when the outcome is as horrifying as a customer bleeding profusely – you simply MUST summon your empathy.
I believe CEO Oscar Munez may have been trying to put on a strong show of leadership by standing behind his employees. That’s great. As a business owner, I stand by my employees too, however, he failed to realize that he is not only responsible for his employees but also his customers. It has been reported that the passenger had a criminal record. That doesn’t matter. That is victim shaming.
Had Oscar Munez empathized with the man – who was subjugated by being dragged out of his seat and getting his face rammed into the handrest (through no fault of his own,) – I’m sure his response would have been different. If he had wanted to put on a show of leadership while empathizing with the customer, he could have said something like this.
The United Airlines employees followed protocol as advised, but the result was horrifying. We are investigating the matter with seriousness and looking into revising the protocols to ensure that an incident like this never happens again”
I’m no PR expert – but I put that together in about 90 seconds. This would have at the very least allowed customers to feel somewhat safe in traveling United Airlines again. Instead, CEO Munez decided victim blaming is the way to go. The PR backlash has been severe. With social media and influencers calling for the boycott of United Airlines. (Sound familiar?)
Share prices for United Airlines dropped by 3.3% – making them the worst performed in the S&P 500. And I have a feeling like there is more to come. Perhaps a lawsuit? Time will tell how events shall unfold.
If you were the CEO of United– how would you respond?
If you were the CEO of USAG how would you have responded?
I really want to know. I think we can learn from each other.
We can learn from each other to deal with these situations better when they arise.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Y8HdeHtOJs
This weekend was our Level 4-8 State Championships. Due to an April Fools Day Snow Storm I had to miss it because the other part of owning the gyms is to PLOW the parking lots. Looking at the smiling faces in photos on Facebook it reminded me WHY WE DO THIS.
Gymnastics is such a wonderful sport. I am often reminded by parents and former athletes that we have taught the WAY MORE than just a good handstand or vault.
I was 6 years old during the 1972 Olympics. I remember sitting on the living room floor with my mom watching the men compete.
The Japanese dominated followed by the Soviets. I remember watching Kato and Tsukahara on High Bar and Nikolai Andrianov and Nakayama on floor.
Clean lines matched with power.
I was struck with awe. I was hooked. I wanted to do that. I wanted to fly.
I asked my Mother how they got so high. What kept them in the air so long? My mother, who was once a gymnast, tried her best to explain the physics. How speed transferred into power.
When she left the room, I took the pillows off the couch and put them on the floor. Standing on the back of the couch, I stretched my arms up in my best imitation of Andrianov standing in the corner. I jumped down hit the springs and executed my first front tuck overshooting the landing zone of pillows taking out a coffee table in the process.
A few years and a few thousand hours of training later, I stood in the corner of the floor. I raised my arms in my best imitation of Peter Kormann and executed my opening pass. As I finished my routine I looked over at my coach. He smiled and shook my hand. My teammates gave me High 5’s. I looked toward the crowd and saw my parents smiling. I was invincible. I could have done my routine 20 more times that day.
It was at that moment that I realized what kept them in the air so long. It was Joy.
I try to carry that Joy into my life every day. With the children I coach, I want them to see that I love what I do. With coaches I work with I want them to see that I love working along side them. When I am teaching a clinic I want all the coaches there to know that they need to share the joy of teaching.
When it comes to making yourself happy, you need to learn what works for you. Once you discover this, everything else tends to fall into place.
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. Dr. Suess
Every year we have a group of graduating Seniors. I always get them a Dr. Suess book, “Oh The Places You’ll Go” . Each one of these gymnasts has been a huge part of my life. Part of my family. I take time with what I write to each of them. Here is an excerpt.
The first question I have for you is, “How did we get here so fast?” It feels like last week that you each walked into my gym. A little awkward, a little shy, maybe a little afraid of me. I remember looking at you and thinking, “this will be fun”.
I remember when my own children reached their senior year, they become, at times, hard to live with. They are trying to separate themselves and to assert their independence. I read that this transition makes going off to college easier on the parents. In the gym, it doesn’t EVER make it easier. When we see you show your independence and assert yourself; when we see you become another set of eyes for us and help out your younger teammates it is a constant reminder of how much we will miss you and what you contribute. Please know that I am so happy for you and I’m so excited for this new chapter in your life! My brain knows this but my heart feels something different.
Remember the things we taught you when you are faced with challenges because there will be bigger ones in college. Remember your morals, your values and your integrity. Hold on to those. Remember that you ALWAYS have a choice. Remember that the choices you make can and will be positive or negative and you determine that outcome. Take responsibility for your choices. Don’t blame others. Look past the moment. Be a leader. Be a friend. Study. Study some more.
Because of the internet, much of what you do will be posted in some social media. Choose wisely. Ask yourself, “Do I want this showing up in a few years?” “How do I want others to perceive me?” “Do I want a potential employer to see this?” “Do I want my grandma to see this?” “Do I want Tony to see this?” Think before you post! You will thank me, I promise!
Most of all, have fun and enjoy these years because as you will see, they will fly by all too fast! You will make lifelong friends during your college years. You will have some amazing opportunities come your way. Enjoy them! Take advantage of them!
You know me and you know I am always full of advice. Let me leave you with some. You can decide if it’s good or bad.
Peace-
Tony
Gymnasts have a way of showing their appreciation too. This was a senior essay from a gymnast in my gym.