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"Give 'em the Ball." An Example of Great Coaching
Many years ago I learned a valuable lesson on leadership from a
very wise little-league football coach. I had volunteered as an
assistant coach for my son's 12 year-old peewee football team,
and with that responsibility was the opportunity to help the
head coach. This elderly coach had been coaching the entry-level
peewees for many years, even though his boys had long since
graduated from that level. His style clearly wasn't what I
expected. He was more like a lovable teddy bear than a
traditional linebacker, and more like a grandfather than a Vince
Lombardi "win at all cost" football coach.
I learned many principles of leadership and coaching in that
short season, but there was one concept in particular that
taught me an important lesson. It was the first time our players
had played organized tackle football. Many, in fact, lacked
basic football skills, but the league rules required that,
"every boy must play" a portion of each game. As a result, we
spent the majority of our practice time rehearsing a few fairly
simply plays and teaching the boys how to play the basic
positions.
The evening before the first game, the coach had a pizza party
at his home for the players. The boys had a good time, even
though they were obviously nervous about the first game just a
few hours away. As the party was about to end, the coach
announced that he had one last play he wanted to add to the
playbook. I was shocked, because I didn't think the boys could
handle the plays we had, let alone adding one more play at the
last minute. In addition, there wasn't any way we could practice
the play before the opening game the next day. He described a
simple running play with an unusual name: the "Jim Brown Play."
He explained to the boys that Jim Brown had been a running back
for the Cleveland Browns professional football team. He believed
Jim Brown was the best runner of all time: that's why this play
was called the "Jim Brown Play."
To my utter shock the coach added one last detail. He told the
boys that each of them had been assigned two positions, usually
one on offense and another on defense. That, he said, meant that
only a few boys would be given an opportunity to run the ball as
a running back. The Jim Brown Play, he explained, would be
different. He said that in any game any boy could come up to him
on the sideline and say, "Coach, I want to be Jim Brown!" And
with those words, he said, that he would find a time in that
game when that boy would get a chance to be a running back for
one play. I couldn't believe what I had heard, because there
were boys on our team who could barely walk and chew gun at the
same time. I thought that the "Jim Brown Play" was nothing more
than a recipe for disaster.
As people began leaving a few minutes later, the coach asked if
he could have a word with me. He said, "I could tell by the
expression on your face that you have a problem with my Jim
Brown Play."
Surprised that the coach could read me so easily, I replied,
"Coach, I'm afraid that too many boys may ask to be Jim Brown.
And if they do, we're in for a long season." With a thoughtful
look on his face, he replied, "To the contrary, I'm afraid that
not enough boys will want to try." Then he taught me a great
lesson in leadership as he added, "You're confused as to why we
are coaching
this
team. You seem to think that our primary purpose is to win
games, at any cost. That may be true on other teams, but not
here. Our purpose isn't to win games at any cost; rather, our
purpose is to give each boy an opportunity to develop his
personal character. And if it takes a couple of fumbles to do
that, it's worth the price, because when we finish with these
boys it isn't the won/lost record that will help them in their
lives, it's their personal character."
While I stood in his hallway feeling about six inches tall, he
continued, "There are only three things that can happen when a
quarterback hands the ball to one of our Jim Brown's. The boy
can drop to his knees and cry, he can fumble the ball, or he can
run as fast as he can toward the goal. Two of the three
possibilities aren't good, but I'll take that chance if I can
get a few boys to find the inner strength of character to run
hard toward their goal."
I don't remember what I said at that point, but I know how
embarrassed I felt at not having seen his wisdom before he had
to explain it. This wise coach was willing to sacrifice a minor
problem or two in trade for the opportunity to develop inner
strength of character in any boy willing to say, "Coach, I want
to be Jim Brown!"
As we progressed through that season I came to understand and
believe in the coach's wisdom. And today, I wonder how many of
his former "I want to be Jim Brown" players use their inner
strength and personal character in running hard toward their
goals.
At the pizza party I was initially worried that boys would want
to be Jim Brown. But after talking to the coach, I was worried
that too few boys would call the play. My fears had come full
circle. Only five boys made the decision that season to become
Jim Brown players. The others opted to reap the risks and
rewards of playing their assigned positions.
I remember vividly one game where my son, who mostly played as a
defensive back, walked up to the coach and said, "Coach, I want
to be Jim Brown!" I remember my feelings of both pride and fear.
Then, before the game ended I saw my son run on the field during
an offensive series and line up as a running back. When the ball
was handed to him my heart was in my throat, but he didn't drop
to his knees and cry, and he didn't even fumble. Rather, he ran
forward as fast as his little legs would carry him toward the
goal line. He only made two or three yards, but from the
expression on his face as he left the field you would have
thought that he had personally won the Super Bowl.
Now, 23 years later my son is a physician who has achieved his
goal of becoming a doctor. I wonder how much of his success is
at least related to the wisdom of a little league football coach
who said, "A person must have the ball in order to score the
goal." Do you let your employees have the ball, or are you
afraid they might fumble? There once was a coach would probably
say, "A few minor fumbles are worth the price of personal
growth. Give 'em the ball!"
About the author:
Dr. Richard L.
Williams is a retail consultant specializing in quality
improvement, performance coaching, leadership
development and organizational development/diagnostics.
Reference this article to receive a 50% discount off any of our
hardbound books.
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