Ordinary Heroes: Coaches Who Make a Difference

The NCAA Final Four Tournament is many sports enthusiasts' favorite time of the year. It certainly is for me. This year's games have been filled with more than the usual number of razor-thin margins and upsets. Big name schools appear again in '19; giant killers emerge and flirt with major upsets; "one and done" teams battle those with seasoned veterans. And in my family Final Four pool, I still stand an outside chance of finishing in the top three—$5 will buy a nice latte.

Subplots are fascinating. It is with high interest that we listen to terrific young athletes / young adults reflect on the game(s) and on their teams, and especially on the coaches who made a difference in their lives.

A college player of the year and NBA champion, Shane Battier shared with me in an interview several months ago who was "the best coach he ever had." It was Ed Battier, his father. As his coach in first grade, Ed certainly brought the technical skills to coaching: how to set a screen, how to block out for rebounds and move your feet on defense. But more important in Shane's view, he talked about what makes a great teammate, why hustle is so crucial to excellent play, what it means to be a good sport and how to always give your best every day, every practice, and every game.

I've been most interested in how early coaching has influenced many high performing athletes of high character. To understand a bit more about what qualities are key to successful youth coaches, we have surveyed 185+ coaches with a wide range of experience across different team sports in the U.S. Among other questions, we asked them what the key qualities or characteristics are for successful youth coaches. The top descriptors include:

Enthusiastic, caring, positive, organized, encouraging, respectful, approachable, smart, sense of humor, knowledgable.

Is that list surprising? Not really. Most young athletes and their parents would identify many of the same qualities, I think. The key as a coach of young kids is to define not only what qualities you intend to portray, but what specific behaviors and approaches to working with the kids reinforce them. How can we consistently match our values as a coach with our words and actions?

Watch the court-side behavior of the college coaches and their staff. Take stock of both the visible leadership we see from the star players and the unsung, quiet leadership of those on the bench. Appreciate that many or most of these young athletes had a couple of very significant, positive coaching influences early in their lives.

Ed Battier was one such influence.

Who was yours? Have you thanked them lately?

P.S. Coach John Swanson, thanks a bunch for all that you taught us! Gratefully, Jerry T.

"The best leaders have something in common: they make everyone around them better." Adam Grant, author of Option B, with Sheryl Sandberg.