Patience – The Steeler Way
Be patient. Mean Joe Greene was drafted in 1969 by the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the team actually fell from 2 wins to only 1! The next year they drafted Terry Bradshaw and won 5. In 1972 Greene was tired of the slow progress and QUIT after the fourth game (the...
2 Takeaways from the Final Four
I had the privilege to speak to the Florida Atlantic basketball team a couple of years ago. They were gracious and attentive, and I enjoyed sharing with them on building teams and culture, simply trying to reinforce what they were already hearing from their...
Lessening Super Bowl Distractions
Such an exciting times for members of the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles! Last Sunday both qualified for the Super Bowl, and they are heading to Glendale, Arizona for the game. We went through the same thing twenty years ago when I was in the scouting...
Fired Into the Great Wide Open
This week in 2004, I was fired by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Bruce Allen had just replaced Rich McKay as General Manager, and I was a "McKay Guy," weary from two years of internal battles between head coach Jon Gruden and Rich (as well as the rest of us in the...
Backdating Goals
I'm sure Tony Robbins might not approve, but I've been known to backdate my goals. Yes, backdate. (Yes, having actual, forward-looking goals or a "One Word" is good, but stick with me - this is different.) At the end of December, I'll think about things that have...
Gratitude Builds Resilience
Want more energy? Want to feel more upbeat? Want to experience a release from the challenges of the day? Find things to be grateful for. Robert Emmons, professor at the University of California at Davis, has found that practicing gratitude not only affects our...
Twists and Turns of the UNCommon Variety
I'm sure my Duke Football teammates will think I'm nuts. (I probably am, but I'd argue for other reasons.) A week ago, I found myself on the practice field at the University of North Carolina, where my daughter is starting graduate school. We visited with Mack Brown,...
I Thought It Was Only Ice Cream
I thought we were just getting ice cream. I certainly didn't think I'd be getting a reminder in mission, vision and values. Our youngest daughter had rowed in the state sculling competition earlier that day, so here we were, figuring we'd chase dinner with ice cream...
You Can’t Aim It
A friend often reminds me of that truism, one that was taught to me when I was still playing baseball myself. When I pitched, I was taught to "throw it, don't aim it," which sounds a little strange on its face. The concept is simple and makes sense: focus on your...
Spring Cleaning Our Alignment
There’s a beautiful oak tree in the median in front of our house. It’s an old live oak with branches that meander and cause us to sweat a bit during hurricane season. So far, the only issues we’ve had with it have been out front cleaning up its leaves. Early each year...
Death By Inches
Under a clear, blue sky, a man sprints to catch a speeding train. He has fired a machine gun and thrown grenades at his pursuers - Nazis - setting other traps and charges for them as well. Now, he has almost caught up with the German transport train that he and his...
No Credit?
I looked around the locker room at the major college basketball team. They'd just come off the court after another grueling practice. Their effort had been great, their coach had assured me. It was a good group on the court, in the weight room, in the classroom. Good...
Fired
“Now we just have to win it again.”
I was reminded of those words recently as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Kansas City Chiefs to win the most recent Super Bowl. When they were spoken eighteen years ago, we were about 35,000 feet over New Mexico or West Texas, a landscape of dusty red rock passing beneath our flight. I was holding the Lombardi Trophy…
Coach Cutcliffe
Even hanging in my closet, relationships are what matter. I’ve got an eclectic closet, with shirts, shorts and hats sporting logos ranging from the University of Maine’s hockey team to Colorado State, Virginia Tech, Maine and Florida Atlantic’s basketball teams, the...
Situational Leadership
No, no. I'm not talking situational ethics. As Tony Dungy and I discussed in The Mentor Leader, there are times where our leadership approach will vary as a result of external forces. This wasn't a new concept from us. As I understand it, Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard...
Cut Day
The six years that I worked in the NFL, this was the most dreadful day, when rosters had to be trimmed from 80 players to 53. So many dreams crushed, or at least momentarily sidelined. And not the dreams of people who had no business being there...these were the best...
Win It Again
“Now we just have to win it again.”
I was reminded of those words recently as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Kansas City Chiefs to win the most recent Super Bowl. When they were spoken eighteen years ago, we were about 35,000 feet over New Mexico or West Texas, a landscape of dusty red rock passing beneath our flight. I was holding the Lombardi Trophy…
Starting a Streak
A good friend just broke a long sobriety streak, one that was just shy of twenty years. To his credit, he immediately pushed through the emotion of it and owned up to the lapse, but I suspect he was crushed, breaking a streak that long…
Platform Thoughts
The basic concept of “platform” is that each of us has a unique sphere of influence that no one else can fill in the way we can.
No one…
Moral Victories
Moral victories?
I was pondering the other day – again – what do you do when nothing seems to be going your way? Or when you’re completely outmatched before you take the field?
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