Providing Insights on Leadership and Success. Coach Bechler is a John Maxwell Leadership Team Member.
As a college student, I spent my summers as a life guard and camp counselor. During the weekends, the camp director would take the staff for boat rides around the lake. It seemed like every five minutes, he said, “See that turtle over there” or “Look at that turtle sunny itself on that log”. I don’t think I saw a turtle before he saw it at any point during that entire summer. Funny thing is that I also never saw a turtle on my own when I went out on the boat out without him.
Kevin Eastman is a corporate speaker and an internationally-known basketball clinician who brings his knowledge and experience in sports to the business world. He speaks on various topics, including championship culture, teamwork, leadership, motivation and individual success.
Over his 40 years in the game, Kevin has coached basketball at all levels, including 13 years in the NBA. He was a top assistant to Doc Rivers with the 2008 NBA World Championship Boston Celtics, and most recently served as an assistant coach and Vice President of Basketball Operations with the Los Angeles Clippers.
Kevin was raised in Haddonfield, New Jersey, and attended the University of Richmond, where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. He was a scholarship student-athlete at Richmond and in recognition of his unique qualities as a basketball player, the University created the Kevin Eastman Award. The award, which has been awarded just five times in program history, is given to a player who exemplifies the qualities of team leadership, dedication, and outstanding play. He was inducted into the Athletics Hall of Fame at both Haddonfield Memorial High School and the University of Richmond.
Dan Hughes is the head coach of the WNBA’s Seattle Storm. In just his first year with the Storm, he helped lead them to the 2018 WNBA Championship. Nobody has coached more games in the WNBA than Hughes. He has been the head coach of the Charlotte Sting (1999), Cleveland Rockers (2000-2003), San Antonio Stars (2005-2009, 2011-2016), and the Seattle Storm (2018-current). He has also coached both men and women at various college levels.
Don Yaeger is a keynote speaker, corporate business leadership coach, 11-time New York Times Best-selling author and long-time associate editor for Sports Illustrated. As a speaker, he has worked with audiences as diverse as Fortune 500 companies, associations and leadership forums on the subject “What Makes the Great Ones Great.”
He has written 25+ books with, among others, Hall of Fame running back Walter Payton, UCLA basketball Coach John Wooden, baseball legend John Smoltz, and football star Warrick Dunn.
Throughout his writing career, Don has developed a reputation as a world-class storyteller and has been invited as a guest to almost every major talk show – from The Oprah Winfrey Show to Nightline, from CNN to Good Morning America.
Last week, I attended the John Maxwell Team Live Event in Orlando and received my certification in coaching, speaking and leadership from the #1 Leadership Expert in the world (editor’s note – originally published on March 21, 2016). After 5 months of online training, these three days of workshops and live training were beyond insightful. I have always been a John Maxwell fan and have read many of his 100+ books. Now, I am licensed to teach his materials and add value to others.
The title on the front cover of our workbooks said “Leaders Growing Leaders”. That seems appropriate. As iron sharpens iron, we add value to others and help others lead significant lives. Leadership really is influence, as John teaches. Here ere are my seven favorite thoughts from last week’s conference.
Greg Tonagel is the head men’s basketball coach at Indiana Wesleyan University. Tonagel and the Wildcats have won three NAIA Division II National Championships in a five year spans with titles in 2014, 2016, and 2018. Since Tonagel took over the program in 2005, he has become the winningest coach in program history both in total wins and winning percentage. Prior to coming to IWU, Tonagel served as Director of Basketball Operations at Valparaiso University, where he also played for legendary Homer Drew and appeared in four NCAA Tournaments as the starting point guard. He also led his LaPorte High School team to the last single class state finals in 1997. Much of the unprecedented success of the Wildcats can be attributed to the culture Tonagel built at IWU. The IWU culture is built around two Biblically transforming principles; I am Third and Fearless. This has helped the influence of IWU basketball to extend far beyond the court. Tonagel and his staff have been committed to using basketball as a platform for discipleship.
Gary Reasons spent nine years as a linebacker in the National Football League. He was a fourth round draft pick in 1984 by the New York Giants and was instrumental in helping the team win two Championships, Super Bowl XXI & XXV. As a team leader, he was elected by his teammates to the NFLPA Board of Directors and was further elected by the Board and served 6 years as Vice President on the NFLPA Executive Committee. He is also an inductee into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Following his playing days, Gary has enjoyed a 23 year television broadcast career as a college football analyst with ABC Sports, ESPN, and FOX Sports. Concurrent to his broadcast work, Gary has utilized natural leadership, expert communication skills, and technology expertise to lead several prosperous businesses. Gary’s technology background includes solution strategy and development for global technology firms such as Hewlett Packard Enterprise Services and NTT Data.
Reasons is now a motivational speaker and consultant to businesses. He is the Co-Founder of PRO ATHLETES TEAM, where he serves as President and oversees all aspects of the organization. As a senior business executive, Gary has more than 20 years of experience within the IT industry and over 30 years of experience within the Sports, Media, and Entertainment industry.
In today’s episode, we discuss:
Mike Ganino is a culture & storytelling expert who helps executives, teams, and thought leaders communicate, connect, and engage. He is the author of “Company Culture for Dummies” and has been named a top 30 Culture Speaker by Global Guru. His unique experience as a hospitality and tech industry executive combined with his years as an improve actor help his clients and audience craft the kinds of stories that drive their culture, boost results, and increase sales.
Mike’s work as a professional speaker, communications coach, Emcee, and trainer has helped create memorable performances and events for companies like Big Fresno Fair, Snagajob, PeopleMatter, Uber, US Foods, American Marketing Association, and more. He is faculty member at Heroic Public Speaking where he works with authors, experts, and professional speakers to improve their storytelling skills. Mike’s the Head Performance Coach for TEDx Cambridge.
Audiences love Mike’s high energy, high engagement keynotes that fire them up to rewrite the stories happening in their organization. They leave with real-life strategies they can begin implementing immediately for improved culture that drives employee and customer experience.
Anna Lundberg is the author of the book, “Leaving the Corporate 9-to-5”, a book that compiles the stories of 50 people who have left their corporate jobs and have found success by doing so. She is also the Founder of the company, One Step Outside.
Anna used to work for P&G for more than 6 years and has been recognized as one of P&G Alumni’s “40 under 40”. After leaving P&G, Anna built her own startup to focused on providing digital marketing consulting to beauty and luxury brands like Burberry, Dolce & Gabbana, and Hugo Boss.
Today, Anna helps people who want to achieve meaningful success in their personal and professional lives by setting clear objectives, balancing their ambitions at work with their priorities at home, and managing their time and energy effectively. She helps people create business and build the lifestyle they love.
Eric Platte is the Vice President of Ticket Sales for the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks. He has been with the Hawks since 2010 when he graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Supply Chain Management. Eric is highly regarded for his innovative ideas for workplace culture and leadership training. Eric believes that leaders drive culture, culture drives people, and people drives business.
