Providing Insights on Leadership and Success. Coach Bechler is a John Maxwell Leadership Team Member.
A strong culture requires trust and chemistry among all the team members. As coaches, we usually think of this in terms of our athletes. We look at team-building as something they do, as opposed to something we do.
If you’re trying to maximize the potential of your athletes, the coaching staff must be a cohesive unit that’s on the same page. You can’t expect our athletes to trust one another, communicate effectively with one another, or support one another if you’re not doing that as well.
As a coach, you’re constantly trying to lead your team as far as you can each season. This is true regardless of your resources or talent.
However, some coaches are blessed to be a part of programs that have high-performing individuals. High-performing teams usually have individuals that are more talented than most, but as coach, your role is to get the most out of them.
Michael Lombardi spent three decades in the NFL as an executive with the 49ers, Browns, Eagles and Raiders. From 2014-16 he was also an assistant to the coaching staff of the Patriots. In addition to his current work with The Athletic, he’s also worked for other media outlets, including Sports Illustrated, the NFL Network, NFL.com and The Ringer. He is a frequent guest on talk shows, podcasts, and NFL shows. Lombardi worked alongside such NFL legends as Bill Belichick, Bill Walsh, and Al Davis. He and basketball coaching legend, George Raveling, provide daily insights through their site The Daily Coach. The former Cleveland Browns General Manager also hosts his own podcast “The GM Shuffle” with Adnan Virk, and co-hosts a Saturday morning sports betting program on Sirius XM for Vegas Stats & Information Network. In late 2018, Lombardi released Gridiron Genius: A Master Class in Winning Championships and Building Dynasties in the NFL, featuring a foreword by Bill Belichick.
“I am not what happened to me. I am what I choose to become.” (Carl Gustav Jung)
“If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn’t sit for a month.” (Theodore Roosevelt)
Are you going through a mid-life crisis? “IT IS WHAT IT IS”
Have you been passed over for a promotion? “IT IS WHAT IT IS”
Is your girlfriend is a nag? “IT IS WHAT IT IS”
Your parents don’t understand you? “IT IS WHAT IT IS”
You say your husband doesn’t listen to you? “IT IS WHAT IT IS”
Are the people around you are idiots? “IT IS WHAT IT IS”
Hearing “It is what it is” makes me want to punch someone. And then when they’d complain, I’d just say, “Sorry, but it is what it is”