When I was in Junior High my best friend was a huge Duke basketball fan. I’m not really a big basketball guy and if you saw me play you’d know why. During the years of our friendship Duke was in the beginning stages of being led by the now legendary basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski.
Years later he wrote the book Leading With the Heart. Interestingly enough since writing that book he has led his teams to three more of their five national championships. What are the keys to his success? I am not going to share all the principles he shared, but allow me to highlight a few that will help you in your leadership.
The Plan is a Guide
“Any blueprint to leadership has to be used as a guide.”
Leaders continually make plans. Leading up to a game coaches will watch film and develop a plan, coach their players on the plan and start the game implementing the plan. Then the unexpected happens. A key player gets injured. Penalties are racking up.
At work we know this disruption more now than ever. Many organizations had well thought out plans for multiple years at the end of 2019. Then the world shifted dramatically. The original plan now became a guide or got completely thrown out. As leaders we must be careful not to get attached to our plan and always be learners. Willing to adapt, learn, and grow. Lose the attachment to the plan and continually learn
Calm in Crisis
“[Leaders in crisis] stay calm, stay focused, stay positive, stay confident, and utilize their best people.”
This is great advice we have heard, but there is a tight rope we must walk as leaders that Coach K discusses. For the people you lead to trust you they must know you. An easy way for them to know you is by being open. Do you admit when you’ve made a mistake and accept responsibility for it?
We are all human and when those we lead know we make mistakes the pressure to be perfect decreases so they have freedom to risk, grow, and learn. If we mess up and still pursue excellence those we lead will see the model and catch the expectation.
The other part of this tight rope is showing your team the face they need to see in crisis. I was talking with a group of leaders and one said that he will be open about struggles with those who are at the same leadership position as he is. This is his safe space to be completely authentic because in a crisis the leader’s job is to instill confidence even amidst doubt.
Find the Heart
“Leaders have to search for the heart on a team, because the person who has it can bring out the best in everybody else.”
No matter what you lead, someone is the energy for the team. At first this is your job as the leader and vision carrier, but over time effective leaders find torch bearers. They find people who will help their team continue even when they feel like giving up. These individuals help bring passion to the cause.
Coach K mentions Bobby Hurley as the heart of one of his teams. He was the individual who Coach K had to create an atmosphere that players felt free to share their heart. Krzyzewski understood that if he created the right atmosphere on his team for people to express themselves it would empower others. When our teams are allowed to work from their heart and not just their head the results are multiplied.
These are just three of the lessons we can learn from Coach K’s experience. How are you doing in each of these areas? Do you cling too tightly to your plan or try to control your team so much they do not feel free to express themselves and how do you show up during stressful times? Need help processing this? Contact me for a no cost to you thirty-minute thinking partner session to help you raise your leadership capacity. Lead Well.
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