Last One Holding The Chalk...Usually Wins!

(May 2008)

Assortment of plays, drills and ideas to help your program improve.

A look inside Steve Nash's 20-minute Workout. Good one to give your kids for the summer!

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You can purchase Steve Nash's 20-Minute DVD by clicking here.

Boston Red Sox Manager Terry Francona recently shared these insights and much more with the UNC coaches as part of the Carolina Leadership Academy. Here's your chance to learn from a two-time World Series Championship winning manager on what it takes to compete and win at the highest level.

1. First things first.

What do you say to your team for your first meeting of the season? For Francona, it's vitally important to establish his three core values at the first meeting each season. He tells his players,

- "Be on time. It's disrespectful to your teammates to be late and we don't tolerate it.

- You must respect your teammates, the coaches, and how the game is played.

- Never ever back down from a challenge.

If we can live by those three things and we have the talent, we think we're going to be okay."

These three principles are part of the core values that he feels are a critical part of a winning organization. What are the core values and principles that you feel are vital to your team's success? How do you communicate and reinforce those to your team from day one and throughout the season?

2. You don't have to have played to be a successful manager.

Ironically, Francona confessed that he believes you do not have to have been a good player or even have played at the major league level to be a good manager. Those things are fine initially, but they are not a prerequisite for success in the job.

"This is all about communication with players. Managers must be able to explain the game to players where they understand it and want to do it." That ultimately is how he defines the success of a manager.

Can you explain the game to your players so they understand it? More importantly, do your players want to do it after you have explained it to them?

3. Create the right culture in the clubhouse.

Like their crosstown friends the New England Patriots, the Red Sox have tried to build their team by signing the right guys to have on the field and in the clubhouse. Francona says, "You need to sign the right guys - guys who are professionals and who care about doing the right thing. It's these guys that we want to sign to long-term deals whenever possible."

Think about the kind of people you are bringing on to your team. Do they embrace and embody the kind of character and attitude you feel is important for winning on and off the field?

4. Wherever you are coaching is just as important as the Boston Red Sox.

Having spent several years as a minor league manager, including time with the Birmingham Barons when Michael Jordan tried his baseball experiment, Francona has a deep respect and appreciation for coaches at all levels. He calls it the greatest learning experience he ever had.

He reminds us that although we may not be coaching at the professional level and our teams playing for World Series Championships, what we do and the impact we have is still important to us and the people we coach. He says, "Wherever you are is just as important, whether you are in Birmingham, Arizona, or Boston. You care just as much about your team's success and are willing to put in the time no matter what level you are coaching."

It's true. You might not have the Green Monster in your outfield, million-dollar players on your roster, and millions of Yankee fans ardently rooting against you, but wherever you coach is certainly important to you, your players, and supporters.