Great leaders… high-impact coaches in business and athletics… have the ability to be their best even when they are not at their best.
What exactly does that mean? Think about it this way.
Have you ever had one of those days as a leader where you just weren’t feeling it? You weren’t in the mood to deal with drama?
Maybe you had your fill of adversity and you were hoping for a day where your people just did what they were supposed to do the way they were supposed to do it… no questions asked?
Then there are those days where you are physically tired or worn down.
Or, maybe there is something going on at home or in your personal life that has you distracted, down, or mentally drained.
But… your team needed you… your people needed you. And, not just you… the best version of you on that particular day.
See, high-impact coaches are constantly trying to stretch and grow their people by encouraging them to go outside their comfort zone. When you do that, fear can begin to creep in their minds which can impact their level of success.
Again, they need you at your best regardless of what is going on in your world physically, mentally, or emotionally.
Why?
Because as a high-impact coach you support them WHEN THEY NEED IT, not just when you feel like it.
So how do you do that on the days when you are “off”?
Coach K
To answer that I will share one of the most valuable lessons I learned as a young coach from Coach K.
“Show the face your team needs to see!”
In other words… no matter how you are feeling or what is going through your mind, you embrace your commitment and responsibility to your people. So, present an image that will provide them confidence in the situation, no matter what the circumstances.
Give them whatever they need at that moment… a smile, humor, an ear to listen, anger, energy.
The confidence which they can draw from you will help them overcome the fear they face when operating outside their comfort zone which is huge!
What else?
This will deepen the trust they have in you, get them more emotionally attached, and continue to drive a powerful culture.
Takeaways
On the surface it seems as though there are two takeaways, simple on paper and yet powerful in practice.
- Be your best even when you are not at your best
- Show the face your team needs to see
These may seem obvious and like common sense yet so many leaders fail to execute these behaviors.
Why?
There could be a number of reasons… they are never taught… they are not prioritized… hard to hold leaders accountable to these behaviors… and the list goes on.
It does take work and it does take time. This is something I spend a great deal of time working on with my clients.
As always, I would be excited to answer any questions you may have!
Keep doing great things
This was originally published as a weekly newsletter from Ed Molitor, with The Molitor Group. If you’d like to receive the weekly newsletter, follow this link to subscribe.
