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Coaching for positive youth development.

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Level 5: Team Leadership

Level 4: Teamwork

Level 3: Self Direction

Level 2: Character

Level 1: Health & Fitness

Team Success

Positive Life Skills

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The Elevation Model of Athletic Development

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The Elevation Model

Coaching Team Leadership

Team leadership is an area where many athletes fall short.  They may have strong physical ability, competitive character, self direction, and a team commitment.   But they still hesitate to lead either because they do not how, they are not motivated, or they do not feel empowered .

We can help our athletes develop their leadership ability  by explicitly coaching the ten winning practices of team leadership in the Elevation Model.  We can strengthen our impact by helping our athletes understand the value of team leadership for team success and their own personal development. 

The Value of Team Leadership

These words from Coach K summarize the power of team leadership.  Every team needs strong team leaders to be successful.  The coach sets the overall goals, values, strategies, tactics, and environment for the team.  The team leaders extend and reinforce that vision in competition, practice, the locker room, and the community. 

These days, very few athletes come to us with a clear vision of what a team leader should do on a daily basis.  We can equip our athletes to become effective team leaders by coaching the ten winning practices outlined in this article.  But we also need to create an environment in which they feel motivated, empowered, and enabled to lead.  We need our athletes to know that:

• Leadership wins.  Some athletes will not lead (or follow) because they think leadership is nice but not necessary.  Teach your athletes that leadership is absolutely necessary for team success.  If people are unwilling to step up as leaders, the team cannot be successful.
  

• Leadership elevates.  Some athletes will not lead (or follow) because they perceive leadership as a  'power trip.'  Teach your athletes that leadership is not about power or superiority.  The job of a team leader is to elevate the team by serving the team in ways that build trust.
  

• Leadership is learned.  Some athletes (and many coaches) think leadership is a natural asset which 'cannot be learned.'  Teach your athletes that leadership can be learned and is learned by millions of people every day (including athletes).
  

• Leadership is everyone's business.  Some athletes think leadership is only the responsibility of a few designated leaders.  Teach your athletes that they do not need a title to be a leader  Everyone can and should lead by example - from the best player on the team to the last athlete off the bench. 
  

• Leadership lasts.  Some athletes think that leadership learned in sports ends with their athletic career.  Teach your athletes that they will be placed in all kinds of leadership roles - both formal and informal - in their peer groups, families, community organizations, and workplaces.  The leadership lessons they learn now will help them for the rest of their lives.
  

Winning Practices

Here are ten winning practices of effective team leaders.  Ideally, your team captains or other prominent team leaders should know and do all of them.  But even your role players can and should do most of them.

1. Think Team First

The first priority of a team leader is to think about the team before the self.  Winning team leaders ask: ‘What does my team need to become the best it can be?  And what can I provide to elevate our team to the next level?’  Team leaders should ask themselves these questions every day. 

2. Model the Way

We cannot expect to lead others if we cannot first lead ourselves.  And we cannot expect others do to what we will not do.  Winning team leaders model the way with what they do and say every day. 

3. Assure Execution

Winning team leaders first make sure they can execute their own assignments.  Then they help their teammates execute theirs.  Sometimes this happens with a quick word of instruction during practice or competition.  Sometimes more effort is needed, like taking time to help a teammate outside of practice.  Winning team leaders are always ready to help a teammate learn how to execute their job.

4. Drive the Energy

Every team goes through periods where their ‘emotional tank’ is either empty or overflowing.  When the tank is empty, the team has trouble mustering the intensity, pride, and enthusiasm the athletes need to play their best.  When the tank is overflowing, the team is so emotionally wired it cannot execute its fundamental tasks.  Winning team leaders use their voice and example to direct the team energy where it needs to be. 

5. Focus the Goals

Most teams have a set of goals for the season.  The problem, is, teams have a tendency to ‘lose their focus’ during the course of a season.  Winning team leaders make sure they know what the team goals are.  They use their voice and example to remind your teammates about what you want to accomplish together. 

6. Spread the Values

Teams usually have a set of team values which define the kind of team they aspire to be.  For example, ‘play hard, play smart, play tough, play together, play with honor, have fun.’  Winning team leaders sense when their team is losing its focus or motivation.  That's when they  remind their teammates of their team values – especially during difficult practices or contests.

7. Build Team Unity

Many teams suffer from a lack of unity.  This often happens when cliques are formed and some athletes are left out.  Winning team leaders make sure that every team members feels included and valued as a part of the team.  They do this in a dozen small ways every single day.

8. Encourage the Heart

At any given time there is usually someone on a team who is struggling. It might be injury, illness, lack of playing time, or personal problems.  It is not the job of a team leader to solve everyone else’s problems.  But a winning team leader does look out for his or her teammates and offer a word of encouragement to anyone who is feeling down.

9. Confront Challenges

Every team has its share of challenges – from injury, to illness, to losing, to personality conflicts.  Winning team leaders are able to confront these challenges in ways that build trust.  If the team is struggling with a serious challenge which needs attention, the team leaders should work with teammates and coaches to confront the challenge and come up with a solution. 

10. Celebrate Accomplishments

Teams need motivation to keep getting better, and one of the best ways to provide motivation is to celebrate team accomplishments. This includes not only victory celebrations, but also those accomplishments which are not captured on the scoreboard.  Even something as small as getting through a really difficult practice session can be worth celebrating.  Winning team leaders notice accomplishments and lead team celebrations.  And the celebration need not be anything elaborate – just a short team cheer within the locker room can do wonders for team morale.

Thanks for being a coach!

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Copyright 2008 Community Health Solutions, Inc.

Level 5 of the Elevation Model is about team leadership.  Leadership from the coach is fundamental to team success.  Leadership from the athletes themselves is also vitaly important. 

“Talent is important.  But the single most important ingredient after you get the talent is internal leadership.  It's not the coaches as much as one single person or people on the team who set highest standards than that team would normally set for itself.  I really believe that that's been ultimately important for us” - Mike Krzyzeswki, Duke University

Coaching Points

1. Our coaching success will ultimately rise or fall based on the leadership ability of our athletes.

2. A good way to begin coaching leadership is to define the concept in explicit terms and tell stories about how leadership wins in athletics and in life.

3. Equip your leaders with a clear job description - perhaps using the ten winning practices identified in this article.  Pick one or two winning practices at a time for focused improvement. 

4. Use T.E.A.M. Coaching and the coaching themes approach to coach your athletes in the winning practices of leadership.  Download How to Be a Positive Team Leader  as a guide for your athletes.