There just isn’t enough time in the day.
I can’t be everywhere at once.
I can’t do it all.
Blah, blah, blah…… Excuses are like ______, everyone’s got one. Tired of hearing excuses from people? From your loved ones? From your kids? From your colleagues? From everyone?
Worse, are you tired of making excuses yourself? Coulda, woulda, shoulda.
The devil is in the details. At least that’s what they say. Ever stop & wonder what that really means?
The true leaders, the best leaders, they get it. They get that they are there to take care of their people. They get that they are there to know, understand, & learn more about their people. They get that there is no detail too small when it comes to leadership.
Sure, the great leaders welcome, tackle, & figure out the big-picture items. BUT they also know that to get to that level of leadership that they will need to embrace the work behind the scenes, the details, the stuff that many times gets ignored or overlooked.
There are so many things in life, & in leadership, that cannot be controlled. As the Head Coach of an organization the job is to win games. Winning, mostly, depends on the talent, chemistry, & effort put forth from the team’s players. Many times winning is hampered by injuries to these players, & majority of the time injuries are uncontrollable (especially by the Coach).
Pressure to succeed can be excruciating for some in leadership positions. The Head Coach, depending on the organization & situation, can be under immense external pressure from ownership, the front office, media, & fans. For many of the great Head Coaches (leaders) though, the internal pressure they put on themselves far outweighs any external pressure.
Whether you are the Head Coach or the CEO, eyes are always on you. The leader is under constant scrutiny to see how they act, how they behave, how they represent their organization.
All of these factors can combine to shake the confidence of anyone, & leaders are no different. Even though many of these factors that may shake a leader’s confidence are out of their control, the top leaders know that true confidence doesn’t come from an outside force. Instead, true confidence comes from the knowledge & belief that you are doing the right things, performing the correct habits, on a consistent, daily basis.
For the best leaders the practices & the habits that take place each day (“the devil is in the details”) ensure that the confidence needed to perform at the highest level possible will be there.
The Best
The best leaders try to be impactful each day. Impactful on themselves through great practices, routines, & habits. Impactful on others by organizing, collaborating, inspiring. Impactful regardless of title or position – who says the VP or the Assistant Coach can’t be impactful? Amongst many other reasons the fact that making a positive impact on someone else can also have a positive impact on yourself is reason enough.
The best leaders work to make this impact while staying humble. They aren’t out there blasting their positive impacts all over Instagram. They aren’t constantly sending out messages about “me” & “look at what I did”. They aren’t constantly glorifying their credentials & experience. Their actions & their character speak for themselves.
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Prior to his time with Kashbox, JP spent 28 years as an NCAA Lacrosse Coach (22 years as a Head Coach). During that span, JP had the opportunity to coach with & against some of the top lacrosse coaches in the country.
The best leaders do the work behind the scenes when nobody is watching (even if it feels like someone is always watching). They do the things that might not be eye-popping, but that they know make a difference.
The best leaders take notes! They listen, they study, they prepare. When push comes to shove & things get frantic they are able to slow down in the moment & refer back to their preparation. They are confident in those moments because they had the discipline to prepare for that moment.
The best leaders do the things that others aren’t willing to do or aren’t able to do. They are able to see the impact they can have by doing these things. They are able to go deeper, to gain more trust than others can because of their willingness & ability to do these things.
The best leaders understand that sometimes their people just want to be heard. They just want a voice in the process. It makes them feel valued, important, heard. They recognize this, & will take it 1 step further – they’re comfortable with their people doing their thing – especially when their people have proven that they are capable of doing it.
The best leaders think outside the box. They look at things from a different lens, & they try to use this lens to the advantage of themselves & their teams.
The best leaders are willing, able, & eager to grind when others aren’t. Weekends, Holidays, & off days become days to get ahead. Early mornings become the norm. When everyone else is in work mode, they are fine-tuning because they’ve already prepared themselves.
The best leaders visualize success. For themselves & for their teams. For them the power of belief is a real thing.
The best leaders care for their people & their teams well beyond the given situation. They aren’t transactional, they are transformational.
Finding the Edge in the Details
So as the best leaders thrive in all of these aforementioned things, they find their edge in the details. They get ahead by taking care of the little things, the little things that lead to the big things. One doesn’t all of a sudden show up in a transformational way, just as one doesn’t all of a sudden show up & make positive impacts on others. They put in the time & effort to recognize, embrace, & tackle the details.
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It’s by taking care of these small things that allows them the opportunity for the big leadership moments of impact. A diligent note-taker may find that an old note from a past season or a past board meeting can come full circle to have an impact on the current team or current meeting. It’s these small things that could very well snowball into a defining moment.
Taking care of the little things, & having the discipline to stay focused on these little things, can lead to the bigger leadership moments. To the successful sales pitch, to the Championship game win. The confidence gained from taking care of the details prior to the moment is priceless.
Taking care of the details so your people don’t have to empowers your people. An empowered group is a stronger, more confident group who can make something real happen. Any good leader recognizes the power of we over the power of me. People within your team or organization who share your vision, & who in turn can express your vision, but then follow through on your vision are invaluable. Teams empowered by their leader are stronger, more resilient, loyal, & sustainable.
Strength, resiliency, loyalty, & sustainability lead to longevity. A leader with longevity can now make more & more positive impacts in a meaningful way.
Never Finished
The job is never done for the best leaders. The best not only accept this, they embrace it, they celebrate it. A true leader never wants the job to be finished; they constantly look for new opportunities to help others. To make positive impacts. To make a difference.
This is the telltale sign of the true leader. When you find it, don’t let it pass you by.
Along with his responsibilities as an NCAA Coach, JP has also been a small-business owner for the past 22 years. He founded & built a successful lacrosse camp business that, in addition to camps, expanded into travel teams, clinics, lessons, & consultations.
In both of his careers as an NCAA Coach & small-business owner, JP has helped to teach, coach, mentor, & develop hundreds of players & coaches.
