Vault: Effective Communication

How Tell A Star From A Super Star Basketball Player

Most people struggle to understand the difference between an athlete that is a star and one that is a super star basketball player. In an NCAA March Madness pre-game telecast, the panel was breaking down the impact that Michigan State’s Draymond Green has had on the men’s basketball program. MSU head coach, Tom Izzo, said …

Be Precise: Praise vs. Acknowledgement

Okay… Allow me to preface this post by saying that I’m not (yet!) masterful at applying this concept. Far from it, in fact. I am, though, stretching myself into new possibilities as a teacher-coach. Great coaching matters. That’s what this lab is all about: experimenting with excellence. We’re on this journey together. In my last post, …

Positive Praise: Short-Term Results At The Expense Of Long-Term Success

Carol Dweck in her book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success speaks to what she calls a “fixed mind-set” versus a “growth mind-set”. Her work has been instrumental in outlining the transformational power that comes from changing how we – as coaches and athletes – think about failure. Watch this short video that shows the …

If You Don’t Know People You Don’t Know Basketball

To me there are four (4) pillars that must be developed in any athlete participating in competitive team sport: mental, physical, technical and socio-emotional. The latter of the bunch is, in my opinion, the most under-taught yet most important skill that will lead to championship performance. That is, a player’s or coach’s ability to effectively …

Avoid Mental Mistakes: Get Rid of These Two Sentences

Mental mistakes. If you want to minimize them, then take these two phrases out of your vocab: IT’s – “I’m tired” DFLI’s – “I don’t feel like it.” If you do, I’d argue that you will have essentially removed over 50% of the negative mental habits you’ll face as a high performance athlete. Those two …

The Power of Storytelling

This 17-minute feature had me enthralled. You see… I *love* great speakers – especially those that are able to deliver ideas in a way that makes the common, uncommon. You know what I mean? It’s those people who bring you to the edge of your seat and have you locked in when they speak (like this guy). …