Madison Keys' Triumph at the Australian Open: Four Leadership Lessons Learned

The Role of Coaching, Clarity, and Courage in Athletic Success

As a former college tennis player and now a leadership coach in collegiate athletics, I am both jaded and in awe of Madison Keys' amazing win at the Australian Open. In the exhilarating world of professional tennis, her victory is a masterclass in the blend of physical prowess, mental fortitude, and strategic brilliance that defines professional tennis. Beyond her undeniable talent and powerful gameplay lies a profound story of personal growth, clarity, and leadership—one significantly shaped by her husband and coach, Bjorn Frantangelo. Her triumph at AO is a testament to this delicate balance.

The Power of Influence

Madison Keys' journey to winning the Australian Open is not just a narrative of athletic excellence; it is also a story of personal transformation. At the heart of this transformation is Bjorn Frantangelo, who has played a dual role as both her husband and coach. His influence on Madison's mindset has been pivotal in her recent success.

Frantangelo's approach to coaching is deeply rooted in fostering self-awareness and clarity. He has helped Madison embrace a mindset of leaving everything on the court, giving her best with no regrets. This philosophy emphasizes the importance of playing with courage, a kind of courage that allows her to sleep peacefully at night, knowing that she has done her utmost.

Embracing a Powerful Strategy

One of the key strategies that Frantangelo and Keys have adopted is to harness and enhance Madison's natural power on the court. By focusing on making her power an overwhelming force, they have crafted a gameplay that is not only intimidating but also highly effective. This strategy, coupled with Madison's mental clarity, has been instrumental in her Australian Open victory.

As a leadership coach focusing on collegiate athletics, it is essential to recognize that such strategies are not just about physical training. They are about understanding one's strengths, honing them, and deploying them with confidence and precision. Madison's ability to leverage her power on the court is a direct result of this understanding and strategic application.

Leadership On and Off the Field

In collegiate athletics, we often talk about "how one shows up both on and off the field." This holistic approach to leadership is about more than just performance in the heat of competition; it is about being in tune with oneself, understanding what one wants, and recognizing what is important. Madison Keys exemplifies this approach.

Through the guidance of her husband and coach, Madison has delved deep into self-reflection. She has come to understand her priorities and what truly matters to her. This self-awareness has not only improved her game but has also allowed her to step onto the court with a sense of purpose and contentment. This approach ensures that she competes with a positive mindset, feeling good about herself regardless of the outcome.

 Finding Happiness and Contentment

Beyond the victories and the accolades, Madison Keys' story is also one of personal happiness and contentment. In Bjorn Frantangelo, she has found a partner who supports her both professionally and personally. This harmonious, loving relationship has been a cornerstone of her recent success.

Happiness and contentment are often overlooked by aspects of athletic performance. However, they are crucial in maintaining a positive mindset and sustaining motivation. Madison's ability to lead herself with happiness and a clear, well-defined mindset is a powerful lesson for all athletes. It underscores the importance of personal well-being in achieving professional success.

Leading by Example

Madison Keys' journey is a shining example of what it means to be a leader. She leads herself with a strong belief in her convictions, a dedication to giving her best, and a commitment to competing as a happy person. Her success at the Australian Open is a testament to the power of clarity, courage, and self-awareness.

As a leadership coach, there is much to learn from Madison's story. Her journey highlights the importance of understanding oneself, embracing one's strengths, and fostering a positive mindset. It also emphasizes the role of supportive relationships in achieving personal and professional goals.

Lessons for Collegiate Athletes

For collegiate athletes, Madison Keys' success offers several valuable lessons:

·       Self-Awareness: Understanding what you want and what is important to you is crucial for success. Self-awareness allows you to compete with a clear purpose and a positive mindset.

·       Strategic Application: Leveraging your strengths and developing a strategy that suits your unique abilities can significantly enhance your performance.

·       Supportive Relationships: Having a supportive coach or mentor can make a world of difference. Such relationships provide guidance, encouragement, and a sense of stability.

·       Happiness and Well-Being: Prioritizing your happiness and well-being is essential. A content and happy athlete is more likely to perform at their best.

Conclusion

Madison Keys' victory at the Australian Open is more than just a sporting achievement; it is a story of personal growth, strategic brilliance, and profound leadership. Under the guidance of her husband and coach, Bjorn Frantangelo, Madison has embraced a mindset of clarity, courage, and contentment. Her journey serves as an inspiration for collegiate student-athletes and a reminder of the power of self-awareness, supportive relationships, and a positive mindset.

As we celebrate her triumph, let us also reflect on the lessons it offers for all aspiring athletes. In the world of sports, as in life, true success is often a blend of talent, strategy, and a deep understanding of oneself. Madison Keys has shown us the way, and her story will undoubtedly inspire many to follow in her footsteps.

This article has been enhanced with the assistance of artificial intelligence. The AI has provided language and stylistic improvements to ensure clarity and readability.

A Culture Rooted in Understanding and Respect

I recently had the honor and pleasure to conduct workshops for Nanook Athletics at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, the main campus of the university system in Alaska.

In an area of such beautry, life has its challenges there. A must is a motor block heater to assure your car will start the next morning. And even when it’s outdoors, make sure there’s an outpost with a plugin for your vehicle.

Needless to say, thriving in such a climate that is hard and beautiful requires a deep respect for community, trust, and collaboration. At Nanook Athletics, teams grow with the support of team members and coaches so they can achieve shared goals.

Success is about hard work which is evidenced by determination and a strong work ethic. All value understanding, making an effort to appreciate diverse perspectives and experiences, which enrich our team dynamics and decision-making.

Needless to say the student-athlete experience at Fairbanks is rooted in this deep respect for others and the opportunity to grow as an individual leader.

Great Leaders Do Two Things

Happy Valentines Day.

I was struck by a February 12 article in Inc. about Patrick Mahomes thoughts on what makes Head Coach Andy Reid such a great coach. Emotional Intelligence (better known as EQ) is at work big time here.

I often talk about what a coach is and is not. A coach listens, enlightens, inspires, brings positive energy, and helps uncover clarity for individuals, may they be players, coaches, administrators, business people and the list goes on.

The article refers to these 7 words from Patrick Mahomes that say it perfectly:

“He brings out the best in me”.

It’s like don’t try to fit a square peg into something round. Well Coach Reid employed just the opposite - Let Patrick be Patrick, not asking him to change for our system. Let someone with great creativity, athleticism, and spark do his thing. Sounds simple but it takes confidence, and a clear understanding of the role Coach Reid believes he plays.

The article states: “Great leaders bring out the best in their people”.

Coach Reid scores high on on my EQ scorecard: his self-awareness (awareness of himself and his feelings), self-regulation (manages his emotions), social awareness (understands others-Patrick and team) and social regulation (manages this relationship beautifully).

We as coaches bring out people’s best when we do two things.

              We listen.

              We ask questions. Thoughtful, open-ended ones.

In this case, it’s not about Patrick changing, it’s about bringing clarity to Coach Reid’s expectations, and how it influences his processes that ultimately help the team and the greater good.

A great coach and leader!

My Top 6 Words for '24

My Top 6 Words for ‘24

Happy New Year! It’s that time of year we hear or heard “what are your resolutions?”. I get a bit antsy about it because what I say may change. So, I don’t feel compelled to have resolutions, allowing me to have some flexibility in how I operate.

But…

What I do think about are words that resonate with me and act as my sort of operating guideposts. They work or at least I think so. As a leadership coach serving the college athletic community, we often talk about self-awareness and its foundational importance to leaders. When we get in touch with ourselves, we are our authentic self. Isn’t’ that how we earn trust both for ourselves and others?

 Off I go, excited about what this year will hold for me and those I interact with.

Leading and performing my best “on and off field”.

 What are your top 6 words for ‘24?

What Do You Want from Leadership Development?

In our fast changing world, developing our young leaders is more important than ever. And what you do with student-athletes and other leaders is integral to their growth. Congratulations on your work.

Please take a few minutes to complete this survey. I will share the results anonymously and hope you will find it helpful.

Click here for survey

Three Things Guide Authentic Leadership

I often think about the parallels between business and elite sports leadership and coaching. Both have a defining feature of understanding people.

Yet, one main difference is that leaders in sports (coaches, players) perform live “every day” in front of roaring crowds and are subject to often the scrutiny of social media. Business leaders have very different venue often behind “closed doors”.

The sports leader sets the vision and values, employs a strategy, and ultimately selects the right people to execute. How do you really reach people/players so that they know you understand them and listen intently?

Authenticity is at the heart of connection and success. Sports leaders must be self-aware and mindful of others. Its when transparency reigns and belief set in. Because people must believe and trust each other. A teammate might employ this coaching mindset. Come to understand his/her teammate so that bond exists. Great teams of yesteryear like the Boston Celtics in the days of Bird, Havlicek had that special connection.

Authenticity starts with our:

                             1. thoughts

                             2. emotions

                             3. intuition

Sports and business leaders are often making quick decisions. But making informed decisions better guides our choices of what to do. That means being in tune with what’s really going on, how it makes you feel, and what does it say about what you want to accomplish.

An elite sports coach said recently that one needs to operate in PEAK environment for success to happen.

                                           Poised

                                                         Enlightened

                                                                        Adaptable

Knowledge-seeking

Authenticity is understanding yourself first and then how it shows up with others.

Happy Holidays

Wishing you a happy and healthy holiday and new year.

Thank you again for taking the time to read my posts and information. It is appreciated.

Best,

Tom

Six Ways to Give Thanks to Your Most Humane Quality

I recently listened to an interview with Satya Sadella, CEO, Microsoft. It struck me just how insightful this leader is about the world we live in today, his vision for innovation at Microsoft and in general. And he makes the case for empathy as the source of innovation. I appreciate it too.

Innovation is a big word. It might mean new products, services, processes and whatever else comes to mind. In college athletics, innovation might relate to the way teams collaborate to bring fluidity to their play, a coach develops fresh thinking about game strategies and culture building, and the department develops and raises money for student-athlete centered facilities that bring or revitalizes a program and for that matter the entire student body.

I just finished working with a SUNY college SAAC, where competing in Division III athletics is relatively new. We spent one session on empathy and culture, and we asked, “what’s the buzz about empathy”? My answer was just listen to brilliant minds of people like Satya at Microsoft.

Empathy is that most humane quality as Satya said. At our core, we are social beings. We want to relate to people, inspire thinking and let them know we understand, respect and appreciate their ideas.

As we enter the holiday season, I urge us all to consider and honor empathy, on and off the field. Like water, it is our source to be our best.

Here are six things to think about that might make your "source" come alive:

• Embrace gratitude

• Be at choice to make informed decisions

• Want to be curious

• Want to be an inquirer not an examiner of people

• Want to be our authentic selves

• Want to let our peers know “we got it”

When empathy thrives, we all flourish.

Happy Thanksgiving.

My5takes on Being an” Olympic Coach”

Despite all the challenges the organizers, coaches and athletes face the Olympic games are on. I often wonder with all the money a country spends to showcase this worldwide extravaganza, is it worth it? Unequivocally yes! And why is this? Because it brings out the best leader in us all.

Think about these 5 takeaways:

1.      Appreciation. We come to appreciate people from around the world and their cultures. This spirit, this mindset instills trust.

2.      Winning. It is inherent in every athlete, especially world class athletes who dedicate their everyday life for excellence in their discipline. Wanting to be better, motivated to push themselves to being the best, brings fulfillment and happiness.

3.      Coaching. We are all coaches. Of ourselves, and those we interact with, every day. Leading ourselves, learning to employ empathy in our interactions with others that brings joy and belief in all.

4.      Emotions. Competing is very emotional, and very human. We all wonder how athletes handle their emotions so they can optimize their performance. We know performance is about both body and mind. We wonder about how they tune in or tune out their competitors. We wonder, even without live audiences, how they react and feel about spectators who view livestreams, network broadcasts or other means. Getting in touch with our emotions is powerful and brings out authenticity and humility.

5.      Self- Awareness. The Olympics allows athletes, coaches, organizers, the press and spectators, to consider how we show up every day. No matter the challenges, getting in touch with ourselves, how we feel, how we respond, and why we do things the way we do, lets us all be human.

So, consider adopting the coach in you. Lead yourself, lead with your heart and bring a sense of spirit to your life, on the field and everywhere else. I think it makes us better and perform our best.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

Wishing you a safe, healthy holiday.

Especially this year, I recognize all that you do to provide a dynamic, learning environment for your students and student-athletes. It takes dedication, transparency and thoughtfulness to be there for them.

I am inspired to be part of this amazing community.

Why Energy Leadership Makes a Big Impact on Student-Athletes

The ELI reports about attitude/mindset not behaviors which are static.

At a recent Zoom webinar for student-athletes and conference SAAC members of the Landmark Conference, I focused on redefining leadership and breaking through walls and influences that hinder their productivity on and off the field.

Sarah Twiggs, Associate Commissioner of the Landmark Conference said, “We would like to thank Tom for coming back and presenting to our SAAC group”. “With a lot of unknowns happening right now, it is important to redefine leadership and how we can accomplish that both on and off the field.”

I also joined the 16 Landmark SAAC captains to review their personal and SAAC group Energy Leadership Index (ELI) report results. They discovered that shifting one’s mindset is a powerful tool. And with awareness of their report results, they are better equipped to choose what levels serve them better. Mindset drives behavior and performance.

The ELI is a tool that creates high impact through discovery about ones’ challenges, and insight about why and what action they can take to elevate how they want to show up.

Here is what some of the SAAC members shared about their experience:

"I learned a lot about myself and how my attributes lead to the type of leader and person I am. It was interesting to see the SAAC results, mine were exactly the same as our average. I am glad I had the opportunity to participate in this event and look forward to applying what I learned with my teams and SAAC organization."

"I really enjoyed the presentation. It was very interesting and informative. It was interesting to see how the different levels of energy relate to how I am on and off the field. I also enjoyed learning about the levels that I need to work on and how to move up the levels!"

"This ELI presentation was very interesting as it showed me the different levels that the score was referring to. It was good to be able to see what they meant and how my chart related to them and the analysis of each level can allow me to analyze my own energy levels."

"From the session, one of my main takeaways is that our energy leadership level comes from the way we perceive the events around us, and today's report was not permanent, but instead a snapshot in time. I enjoyed learning about how we can shift our mindsets to move between levels and how we can connect the dots between our leadership styles and our roles within SAAC and our athletic teams. I think this is really beneficial in continuing to develop a sense of self-awareness moving forward."

With these uncertain times, we are all challenged with inspiring, motivating and helping our student-athletes be their best leaders. Energy Leadership and the ELI are cost effective ways to impact student-athlete curiosity and help them make conscious choices about how to enhance their growth now.

If you would like to chat and hear more about Energy Leadership for your Student Athletes, coaches or staff, let’s talk.

How Energy Leadership Reveals How You Show Up On and Off the Field

At a recent Zoom webinar for student-athletes and conference SAAC members of the Landmark Conference, we focused on redefining leadership and breaking through walls and influences that hinder their productivity on and off the field.

Sarah Twiggs, Associate Commissioner of the Landmark Conference said, “We would like to thank Tom for coming back and presenting to our SAAC group”. “With a lot of unknowns happening right now, it is important to redefine leadership and how we can accomplish that both on and off the field.”

Finally, Hess joined the 16 Landmark SAAC captains to review their personal Energy Leadership Index (ELI) results.

Student-athletes discover why attitude drives behavior which effects their performance. The ELI is an empowering tool to do just this.

Here are some comments from SAAC members:

"I thought that it was very interesting learning about our own leadership styles and comparing them to the rest of the group, as it was clear that many of us lead in similar ways."

"My experience with ELI was positive. I learned a lot about myself and how my attributes lead to the type of leader and person I am. It was interesting to see the SAAC results, mine were exactly the same as our average. I am glad I had the opportunity to participate in this event and look forward to applying what I learned with my teams and SAAC organization."

"I really enjoyed the presentation. It was very interesting and informative. It was interesting to see how the different levels of energy relate to how I am on and off the field. I also enjoyed learning about the levels that I need to work on and how to move up the levels!"

"This ELI presentation was very interesting as it showed me the different levels that the score was referring to. It was good to be able to see what they meant and how my chart related to them and the analysis of each level can allow me to analyze my own energy levels."

"From the session, one of my main takeaways is that our energy leadership level comes from the way we perceive the events around us, and today's report was not permanent, but instead a snapshot in time. I enjoyed learning about how we can shift our mindsets to move between levels and how we can connect the dots between our leadership styles and our roles within SAAC and our athletic teams. I think this is really beneficial in continuing to develop a sense of self-awareness moving forward."

With these uncertain times, we are all challenged with inspiring, motivating and helping our student-athletes be the best leaders they want. Energy Leadership and the ELI are cost effective ways to pique their curiosity and help them make conscious choices about how to enhance their growth now.

If you would like to chat and hear more about Energy Leadership for your Student Athletes, coaches or staff, let’s talk.

Practice 5 Leadership Guideposts

I have been thinking a lot recently about the unprecedented times we are in. With social and societal challenges, uncertainty often makes us feel uncomfortable. As leadership, what principles or guideposts should we employ with ourselves and those we are associated with. Think about these five now because they are more important than ever.

As you build your awareness of these five, putting them in to action takes work. Start with a journal, and consider focusing on one of these five guideposts each week. Write down your thoughts, observations about situations, and what emotions came up for you in these instances.

1.       Seed your self-awareness

Without self-awareness comes isolation, no possibilities. With self-awareness comes perspective and choice. I have always said that choice is the most powerful position we can put ourselves in. Self-awareness is at the heart of emotional intelligence and by keying in on our emotions we are better able to assess with perspective that leads to thoughtful choices we make.

In the dynamic world of college athletics, especially today, seeding your self-awareness, will enable you to be sensitive to all stakeholders and make informed, authentic decisions.

2.       Aim to Build Your Curiosity…with Confidence

Authentic leadership is knowing that you do not need to know everything. Your are human. Also, there is no script for what is going on. We are in uncharted waters between how to manage through the pandemic and evolving discourse and actions about racial and societal injustices.

With curiosity comes authenticity. Defer to your colleagues/friends for input and insight.  Your ability to remain open to fresh ideas and perspectives will be welcomed and can help you nurture and earn their trust and confidence in you.

3.       Power Your Range of Abilities/Emotions

If you have ever taken a DiSC assessment, results measure your natural and adaptive behaviors. By adapting to situations, we begin to understand how best to relate and then use the breadth of our behaviors and emotions.

Key in on those traits e.g. humor, humility, patience to power the range of your capabilities. And more than ever now, we need to draw on our full arsenal of tools.  

4.       Respect Your Values

Your values power you every day. They inform why, how, and what you do. They make you you! Mind you, values change as you experience life. For example, student-athlete values might be different now and after graduation. For example, being on a college team centers around the importance of collaboration, teamwork, especially when team members want to win. On to life afterwards, other values will become apparent.

Many of us have not consciously written down our values. We act them out daily but have not really identified them. I have a simple, easy exercise I’m glad to send you. Just say “send Values Exercise”. Pack it away after you have completed it and think about revisiting it every few months. It is a way to check in with yourself and see if you are honoring those values.

5.       Embrace Listening to Learn

Ed Bradley, the 26-year correspondent on CBS 60 Minutes, once said, “Sometimes you just have to wait to talk”. Listening may just be one of our most important guideposts. Because authenticity, curiosity and many other leadership attributes get their cues from listening.

When we listen, we learn. When we learn, we are informed. Information gives us choice. We listen in three ways: Subjectively – response is disconnected and reflects on you, not them; Objectively – often referred to as the cheerleader, “I support you” and lastly, Intuitively – acknowledging what one said to let them know you listened”. Decide for yourselves what is the most productive way to listen and learn.

Take the time to question and be curious about yourself first, then your student-athletes and staff. With so many unanswered questions about the fall and beyond, leadership takes center stage. Decide how you want to show up.

The Marathon of Changing our Emotions

It’s our emotions first that drive our behaviors.

https://bit.ly/3fOiZc9

Make Meaningful Change - Black Lives Matter

I am aghast at the unforgivable killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd among many other injustices. Images are immensely powerful, and these incidents are a continuing part of the racial injustices that have existed. Black Lives Matter and I stand in solidarity.

We as leadership coaches are catalysts for growth through meaningful personal, professional, organizational and social change. We have open mindsets and want to challenge ourselves and clients to be the best and most productive people and organizations.

We are all leaders and so must ask ourselves, “what can I do to grow and support Black Lives Matter”?  I will continue to commit myself to a “coaching mindset” through which I will take stock of the following:

My values. Live by respect, integrity, equality, collaboration, humility, and community.

My listening skills. Listen to black coaches, athletic directors, and leaders of inner-city non-profit organizations, among others.

My learning mindset. I am and will amp up my curiosity about people, issues, and organizations so I continue be more informed and learn about racial injustices. Moving forward I will include relevant information in my communication channels. I will invite Black, Latino, Indigenous, and other relevant voices in my recorded conversations. They have much to share about leadership, experience, and life, relevant to all of us.

My empathy. I will pay special attention to understanding how people feel to build mutual trust.

Ed Bradley, former co-host of CBS 60 Minutes, once said, “Sometimes we just need to wait to talk”.

I am committed to listening and learning. I welcome all feedback or questions so we as a leadership coaching community in college athletics can continue to grow.

Get Clear on Your Choice for Change

It’s Your Choice to Change in Your New Normal

More than ever, we are in a situation now to discover and adapt to our normal in our New Normal. And normal means operating in unfamiliar and uncomfortable situations to connect and engage with our stakeholders: student-athletes, staff, coaches, the school community, alumni and family.

What’s the The PainGain Pivot™ and Why Now?

We all strive to influence and effect positive change, and ultimately it is to continue to build your culture and to motivate. Change requires clarity because with clarity comes choice and possibilities to help your decision. This is your pivot.

The Pain/Gain exercise helps you make this pivot if you want. You identify the pain and gain of a current and future situation. Success for this exercise is to clearly state the current and future situation. We encourage you not to put in negatives in the future situation because we don’t want bias. State the future in the positive. For example:

For deciding whether to continue in-person meetings:

            Current/Past = continue in-person meetings

            Future = do them virtually (as opposed to the negative “stop in-person”)

How Will This Exercise Benefit You and Your Team?

-        Gain clarity about your decisions and behaviors

-        Learn to lead teams with compassion to deepen relationships

-        You show up with a renewed sense of purpose and authenticity

-        Show up with a renewed sense of confidence

-        Inspire team curiosity and creativity 

How Does it Work?

You can work with Tom three ways

Each Pivot session starts with taking the Energy Leadership Index (ELI) Assessment to determine how you are showing up normally and under stress. It allows you to understand how to best change your thinking. 15 minutes online

Contact Tom for pricing and more information

How and What to Change in the New Normal

You are invited to a Zoom meeting on "How and What to Change in the New Normal" to make more engaging connections with your team.

When: Apr 14, 2020 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada) 

Register in advance for this meeting:

https://zoom.us/meeting/register/uJIsfumqrDMrSrfPcrh0MKYgI4VdRX2GXg 

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

What We'll Cover:

In our second session we will explore what the new normal looks like to you now and how and what you gain from making change.

At the end of the session we'll unveil a tool you can use to dig in to your pain and gain to change or stay the same. What this results in is a better picture on how you deliver the most productive and effective way to lead in your virtual world now to CONNECT AND ENGAGE with your student-athletes, staff and coaches.

How Are You Showing Up...Now?

As we enter a new normal with COVID-19 there are many uncertainties, especially for those of us in charge of leading young student athletes, your staff, and alumni. With many of us feeling isolated, now is the perfect time for some introspection.

-          What keeps you up at night now? Budgets, disappointment, fear, adjustment to distant learning, etc.?

-          How do your student-athletes think about this new normal?

-          What else can you do to maintain a sense of community and morale?

The Energy Leadership Index assessment provides insights into how we show up in life personally and professionally, how we deal with stress, and how you can turn that energy into positive and productive changes to best lead and impact those in all aspects of your life. This kind of understanding could not be more needed for our student athletes, staff and family in this ever changing time.

If you are interested in taking the 15-minute online assessment, please let me know. A follow up session can be scheduled to help you understand your report/results. Also you gain some clarity about how you view things and how changing those views would be productive.

The Playbook Lab is committed to the well-being of college athletics and all of those concerned.

I look forward to being there for you.

Tom

What Does Value-Based Goal Setting Look Like?

Values-based worksheet

Recently, I had the pleasure to conduct workshops at the NCAA DIII American Rivers Conference Student-Athlete Leadership Conference in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Around 80 attended, representing each of the member schools.

I got to thinking after it was over, why were they there? What mattered to them? What does success look like? With such busy schedules, college student-athletes make a big commitment to play athletics. Their daily lives are full: a robust course load, practice and game travel, plus add in a social life. They have fierce, competitive spirits to achieve success and their goals. No denying that. So, thinking about “defining success” needs a placeholder in their busy day.

Achieving or exceeding one’s goals is a metric for success. Yet, what’s a goal without a purpose. Much is written about value-based goals. Values anchor us and become our internal checkpoint to ensure we’re being consistent in what we do.

At our session, we spent time thinking about values and all were challenged with thinking about how well we live them. Values are only as good as the things we act on to fulfill this value. Think of values as our emotional compass, which give us purpose and guidance to what is important and not as important to us. Thus, when we are clear about our values we gain focus, confidence, and are more intentional in everything we do. Think about this, “When I show up with positive energy about my perceptions, values, and point of view, the things I look at and do change for the better and have more meaning.”

Take for example, if a goal was to travel with the team to Barcelona, then a value might be to travel and explore the world. Consider having your student-athletes and/or staff complete a chart like the one below. You can download it. They can list their values and their goals. And then they can chart how they met that goal – their metric of accomplishment or success.

By the way, we all have many goals. Challenge yourself to realize what’s important and not as important. That way the important things rise to the surface and become priority.

In the end we want to have clarity about our goals and by doing so, we become more thoughtful and mindful. Student-athletes have enough to do. Just remember keep it simple, be present with your thoughts so you increase performance and ultimately success, on the field and in life.

Download this values-based worksheet

Gratitude and Inspiration

I named him buddy. He brings holiday greetings to all.

It began as a subtle chest pain. Then even the least strenuous stationery bike ride hurt. I said to my doc, something’s not right here. "You know, I'm fit and still a competitive rackets player".

An echo stress test was totally abnormal, and then an angiogram told my story.

Quickly, to the operating table I went, for complete new plumbing (quadruple bypass). That was August. Good news, I feel just about as good as new! 

My guideposts for now and through 2020: Gratitude and inspiration.

I am so grateful for the team that made my recovery happen.

I am grateful to all of you who either have taken the time to read my periodic musings, and to those I have had the pleasure of working with.

I am inspired by you, your student-athletes and coaches, who everyday impart and share life-long lessons on and off the field.

Wishing you peace, goodwill, gratitude and happiness in the new year.

Best,

Tom