Simplify--Simplify--Teach--Simplify

SIMPLICITY

Pete Newell described two groups of coaches: those who believe in simplicity and execution and those who believe in surprise and change. Obviously, he and I are part of the simplicity and execution group
—Bob Knight

Simplicity and execution: How something is most effectively done.
Simplicity says, “Less is more.” It allows players to have a sense that there are specific techniques and strategies that are basic for their success—the success of the team. They gain confidence because of their familiarity and consistency of purpose.

Simplicity demands execution. If every athlete knows what to do and every opponent know what will be done, the anticipation is one of predictability. This is comforting for those who execute and seemingly comfortable for those who believe themselves to be ready to respond.
The coach who uses complex strategies and trickery cannot expect his players to execute them with any consistency, because they are not easy or familiar.

Simplicity says, “I will eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary can be perfectly expressed.”

The greatest truths are the simplest.

Simplicity is an indication of trust of what a coach believes in. No garnishes, no garbage. The desire to be clever sometimes overwhelms the understanding of how to be effective.

Emerson said, “To be simple, is to be great.”

Servant Leadership From Ken Blanchard

Simple leadership thought taken from Ken Blanchard's book about servant leadership.

Blanchard uses SERVE as an acrostic throughout the book.

S--see the future.

E--engage and develop others

R--reinvent continuously

V--value results and relationships

E--embody the values

Team Veteran's Day Handout

VETERAN'S DAY HISTORY

As part of our player development, we include handouts like this in our daily motivation section of our notebooks.

Veterans Day is an annual United States holiday honoring military veterans. A federal holiday, it is observed on November 11. It is also celebrated as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day in other parts of the world, falling on November 11, the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice that ended World War I. (Major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 with the German signing of the Armistice.)

The holiday is commonly printed as Veteran's Day or Veterans' Day in calendars and advertisements. While these spellings are grammatically acceptable, the United States government has declared that the attributive (no apostrophe) rather than the possessive case is the official spelling.

HISTORY

The U.S. President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed an Armistice Day for November 11, 1919. In proclaiming the holiday, he said
"To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with lots of pride in the heroism of those who died in the country's service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations."

The United States Congress passed a concurrent resolution seven years later on June 4, 1926, requesting that the President (Calvin Coolidge) issue another proclamation to observe November 11 with appropriate ceremonies. An Act approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday; "a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as 'Armistice Day'."

In 1953, an Emporia, Kansas shoe store owner named Alfred King had the idea to expand Armistice Day to celebrate all veterans, not just those who served in World War I. King had been actively involved with the American War Dads during World War II. He began a campaign to turn Armistice Day into "All" Veterans Day. The Emporia Chamber of Commerce took up the cause after determining that 90% of Emporia merchants as well as the Board of Education supported closing their doors on November 11 to honor veterans. With the help of then-U.S. Rep. Ed Rees, also from Emporia, a bill for the holiday was pushed through Congress. President Dwight Eisenhower signed it into law on May 26, 1954.

Congress amended this act on June 1, 1954, replacing "Armistice" with Veterans, and it has been known as Veterans Day since.

4 QUESTIONS TO PONDER

1. WHY?
a. When “why” gets powerful, the “how” gets easy.
b. Why=Reasons

2. WHY NOT?
a. What else do you have to do?
b. Why not see all you can see, do all you can do?
c. Why not engage in as many things as you can?

3. WHY NOT ME?
a. If ____ can do it, anyone can.
b. Change. Set up some simple daily disciplines.
c. Take full responsibility.
d. Don’t settle for less.

4. ASK FOR GOD’S HELP

Law of the Harvest--Life Is Set Up To Respond To Deserve

Life is set up to respond to DESERVE, not NEED

1. Life responds to what we deserve by activity.
2. We will get what we deserve in the long run.
3. In order to get what we deserve, in order to reap, we must plant.
4. We all need to plant and press the seeds into the ground, to reap the harvest.
5. We must learn to work with people who deserve it, not need it.
6. As leaders we must teach people how to deserve it. It takes steps in the right direction. Without steps in the right direction, there is no progress.

The Six Toughest Challenges of Being a Captain (in their own words)

1. Confronting teammates who are doing what they should be doing
a. Captains, like many people, dislike confrontation and find it easier to avoid difficult situations.

2. Coaches holding them (the captains) accountable when things go wrong
a. Captains may feel that they are being treated unfairly when they are punished for another teammate’s misconduct (it goes with the territory)

3. Maintaining the respect of both coaches and teammates when the two disagree
a. Captains find it difficult to maintain an allegiance with two different groups. It’s like being stuck between a rock and a hard place.

4. Teammates being jealous of their (the captains) leadership role
a. Teammates may feel that the captains were selected because of politics and hold that against the captains.

5. Teammates not liking them or the decisions they must make
a. Captains feel pressure and have a hard time choosing the hard right thing to do over the easy wrong thing to do.

6. Being expected to lead even when they are not playing or performing well.
a. Captains may feel that they don’t have the right to lead when performing poorly—“How can I tell someone else what to do when I am not getting it done myself?”

--Taken from Jeff Janssen Peak Performance

Coach Meyer 9/25/85 Rules On Winning

Taken from Richard Taylor’s notebook, In Buster Olney’s Book, “How Lucky You Can Be”

1. Work hard
2. Stick together
3. Have the right mental attitude.
4. Be positive; don’t criticize, look to compliment.
5. Improve every day, especially as a person.
6. “How badly do I want it?”
7. Know that no one can beat you; you beat yourself. Morale is what motivates the best to get better. As you think, so you shall be. A spirit of devotion and enthusiasm for the team and purpose…Until you find a purpose higher than winning, you will never win.

Jim Rohn's "BE's" On Refining Leadership Skills

Jim Rohn’s “BE’s” On Refining Leadership Skills

1. Be strong, but not rude. Rudeness isn’t strength.
2. Be kind, but not weak. Be kind enough to lay it on the line and tell the truth.
3. Be bold, but not a bully. Stride out front.
4. Be humble, but not timid.
5. Be thoughtful, but not lazy.
6. Be proud, but not arrogant.
7. Be willing to deal in the realities of truth.s

Marine Corp Team Leadership Principles

I came across some Marine Corp leadership information and guidelines. There's no better place to look at leadership training than the military.

Every waking hour Marines should be trained, schooled, challenged and tested, corrected and encouraged with perfection and teamwork as a goal. When not at war, Marines are judged in peacetime roles: perfection in drill, dress, bearing and demeanor; shooting; self-improvement; and most importantly, performance. No excuse can be made for the failure of leaders to train their Marines to the highest state of physical condition and to instruct them to be the very best in the profession of arms. Train with a purpose and emphasize the essential element of teamwork.
The sharing of hardships, dangers and hard work strengthens a unit and reduces problems, it develops teamwork, improves morale and esprit and molds a feeling of unbounded loyalty and this is the basis for what makes men fight in combat; it is the foundation for bravery, for advancing under fire. Troops don’t complain of tough training, they seek and brag about it.
Teamwork is the key to successful operations. Teamwork is essential from the smallest unit to the entire Marine Corps. As a Marine officer, you must insist on teamwork from your Marines. Train, play and operate as a team. Be sure that each Marine know his/her position and responsibilities within the team framework.

When team spirit is in evidence, the most difficult tasks become much easier to accomplish. Teamwork is a two-way street. Individual Marines give their best and in return the team provides the Marine with security, recognition and a sense of accomplishment.

Thoughts On Thinking

THINKING
1. Ideas—concept thinking
2. Suggestion
3. Organization—how do you think
4. Does it make sense in my: environment, circumstances, situations
5. Vision 20/20
6. Information
a. Gather
b. Acquisition
7. Attach your feet to your thinking

Accountability Thoughts From The Orange Revolution

Accountability

1. Quite simply, accountability means that a person, or a group of people, is responsible for an outcome—good or bad.
2. Members own their actions and outcomes.
3. Members of breakthrough teams see accountability as a positive. They personally embrace equal accountability for their successes and mistakes, because they have a voice in establishing expectations.
4. There is a critical difference between imposed and voluntary accountability.
5. The difference between imposed and voluntary is empowerment.

Raise Level of Quality Daily

Raise the Level of Quality Daily In:

1. Technique
2. Discipline
3. Attitude

Reading Screens Ideas

Reading Screens Ideas

1. Great perimeter players use screens to their advantage. Some players can’t get a shot off of the dribble, but are extremely hard to guard because they are active and know how to use screens to get open shots. We try to teach our players how to use screens to their advantage.

2. In general, we teach our player’s to react to what the defense is giving us. For example, if a down screen is set and the defender chases us, we will automatically curl. Conversely, if the defender goes ball-side to cheat the screen, we teach our player’s to fade.

3. We want our player’s to Wait, Read the Defense and then use a Change of Pace to make the appropriate cut. We want to use deception in our game, but once we commit to a cut, we must be explosive to beat the defense. There can be no separation between screener and cutter to allow the defense through. The cutter must put their shoulder on the screener’s hip. Before receiving the pass, the cutter must show hand targets.

4. The four types of cuts off of a basic down screen are—Straight, Curl, Fade and Back

5. Most players can only do 1 or 2 cuts successfully. Only the most complete multi-dimensional players can successfully use all 4 cuts to put themselves in a position to score.

Thoughts On Being A Great Coach

1. Team is an extension of the coaching staff
2. Each year improve every aspect of your program
3. Evaluate every year as your first year on the job
4. Teach team roles and coach them
5. Teach kids courtesy
6. Know players and what it takes to motivate
7. Don’t sit behind a desk and be judge, jury and executioner.
8. Touch 1/3 of the team daily
9. Make % plays vs Non % plays
10. Get past failure. Teach yourself and kids
11. Get past success
12. Be careful how you treat people
13. Ways to keep a team on edge
14. Be responsible for team
15. How can we lose? Then look for ways to win.
16. Think win all the time.
17. Can’t wait forever for potential.

5 Thoughts On Changing The Next 5 Years

5 Thoughts On Changing The Next 5 Years
From Jim Rohn

• In 5 years we will arrive. But where?
o A few daily disciplines changed will add tremendous value (Compound Effect)
o A refinement of disciplined thought
• To fix the next 5 years, we must come to grips with reality and truth
• Hoping without action is disillusion.
• Adjust our daily programs to take us where we want to go.
• Must translate response into results.