I love college sports and this
is an especially exiting time of year where young men and women are making
their final decisions as to where they will continue their athletic careers.
From field hockey to football, swimming to soccer, the anticipation is growing.
This has me thinking out loud that even though they are signing letters of
commitment, they are really just making a choice.
The real commitment is about to
begin.
The commitment I refer is not whether
they will join a team, but will they commit to become part of a team.
Specifically, will they support their teammates? Will they focus more on the
success of the team more than their own? Most importantly, will they be there
when their team really needs them?
Obviously, these are worthy
questions to answer for anyone who is joining any kind of team, whether as a
new member of a hospital staff, a new hire at a business, or a new teacher at a
school. But specific to the student athlete, that last question is especially important.
You see, it speaks to their level of intention to DO the things that will
ensure they will be there when the team needs them and NOT DO the things that
will threaten their team presence. Clearly, there were cases this year during
the college football season where the absence of key players for reasons other
than injury definitely impacted the team’s ability to compete and win.
When a student athlete fails
to keep their grades up or they fail a drug test, they let down their
teammates, coaches, and the institution. It becomes even more serious when
student athletes find themselves in situations where they run afoul of
institutional policies or break laws within the local community. Do people make
mistakes? Yes, but these behaviors are intentional acts not accidents. When a
student athlete finds themselves in difficulty, it all started with an
intentional decision to do so. They chose to think of themselves or some short-term
gain versus to choose the welfare of the team. It is just so incredibly sad to
me that a young person who started the next phase of their life with so much
promise and opportunity would choose to throw all that away.
It is my belief, that it does
not have to be that way. Before a student athlete ever hits the water, court,
or field to refine the fundamentals of their sport, the first thing they should
be taught are the fundamentals of morally courageous leadership. Legendary UCLA
coach, John Wooden, was famous for starting out the season by teaching players
the right way to put on their socks and tie their shoes. Isn’t that amazing? Before
they could leave the locker room and head to the court, they had to master this
basic skill first. Morally courageous leadership is to me, is that fundamental
skill that should be taught first before any scrimmage or practice. In their
defense, college athletes, especially marquee ones, are faced with all sorts of
temptations and distractions not of their own making. Boosters, fans, peers,
and disreputable sports agents often offer these young people a dizzying array
of perks and advantages. It stands to reason that the strongest defense against
such temptations is focused trainings and discussions on what they will
face but also provide them the encouragement and tools to avoid the negative
outcomes we read and hear about every season. It all comes down to taking a
good hard look at the expectations of their families and new teammates and deciding
that not letting them down is more important than giving themselves some undue
advantage.
When I do leadership training
focused on ethical issues, I often employ the use of guided imagery.
Essentially, I ask participants to close their eyes and imaging a series of
scenarios. So, if you are a newly committed college athlete, I want to take you
on a Guided
Experience.
First, I want to highlight the
positive reality you are
experiencing right now.
- How gratified you were to receive those recruiter visits and calls.
- How the world seemed to open up with new possibilities.
- Nervousness with meeting new teammates.
- Commitment to justify their selecting you and giving more effort than you ever thought possible.
- How excited you were when you started to receive offers.
- How proud your family and friends were the day you signed your letter.
- How happy you will be when you suit up that first day of practice.
But, there is an alternative reality that happens
all too often. A reality when you break a team rule or get in trouble so that
it caused your dismissal from the team. This is the reality where:
- Your residence hall room or at least your half of it is now bare.
- Packed suitcases and boxes waiting for a ride home.
- The look of disappointment on the faces of your family.
- The awkward interactions with teammates.
- The hole you left that the team now has to try to fill.
- When everything was great and now it’s not.
- Dreading going back home and figuring out what to do next.
- The plane or car ride home and the “If only’s” start to slam into your thoughts
- If only I hadn’t . . .
- If only I had . . .
- If only I listened . . .
- If only I stopped . . .
- If only I thought it through . . .
- If only I was brave . . .
- If only I could have that one moment back . . .
- If only I thought of my team first and myself second . . .
Don’t live your life with “if
only’s”! Live your life expecting success both on and off the field. Having worked with many student athletes, I understand the sacrifice, hard work, physical
pain, and emotional toil that is involved. Try to remember, however, that no
matter what division of play you are in, there are hundreds of young people
that would have loved to be where you are right now but for some reason could
not be. Honor them by being the best competitor and team member you can be.
As always if I can help you and
the people you associate with Get Better, Be Ready and LEAD OUT LOUD, I would
invite you to email me or to visit my website below and see if any of the
training or coaching experiences I offer can provide an impact, especially when
it comes to creating better teams! I am also pleased to announce the launch of
my first book, Leading Out Loud: Strategies for Raising Your Leadership Voice!
available on Amazon.com. Also, as a bonus, if you go to my Out Loud Strategies
website (www.outloudinc.com) and enter
your contact information, I will send you a FREE guide to establishing a
mentoring initiative program in your organization! Such an initiative would be
critical to add value to your organization!
Yours in Leadership,
Bill Faulkner
Principal Consultant – Out
Loud Strategies
Independent Coach, Speaker,
and Trainer with the John Maxwell Team TM
Email
= bill@outloudinc.com
Visit our website at: www.outloudinc.com
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John Maxwell Team, please visit
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