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Send us a textThe FTGN Merch Store is Live!! Help Support the site with official FTGN Gear!In this episode, Joe welcomes Sam Walker, author of The Captain Class: A New Theory of Leadership, to dive into the world of leadership and team dynamics. Sam shares the surprising insights from his 11 years of research, studying over 25,000 teams since the 1880s, to uncover what truly makes teams great and sustains their success.Together, they explore the counterintuitive behaviors and traits that separate extraordinary leaders from the rest, challenging many traditional notions of leadership. Whether you're leading in sports, business, or the military, this episode is packed with practical lessons for creating and sustaining high-performing teams. Sam and Joe discuss:The seven key traits that define elite captains and sustain team success.Why leadership isn't about talent, charisma, or speeches, but about behaviors.The concept of “carrying the water” and why great leaders often work in the background.How to regulate emotions and use them effectively to inspire and guide your team.Why strong team cultures are essential, and how to ensure people thrive within them.The importance of being “relentlessly boring” to conserve energy for what matters most.How these principles apply to military, business, and other high-stakes environments.Tune in to hear how you can redefine leadership, uncover your team's hidden potential, and apply Sam's “cheat codes” to create lasting success in your own organization.Sam Walker is an author, keynote speaker, and strategist who helps organizations strengthen their leadership selection and development practices, build stronger cultures, and create more cohesive and enduringly successful teams.He has worked with a Super Bowl-winning NFL franchise, several high-achieving national, Olympic and NCAA-champion sports teams, a national law enforcement agency, elite U.S. military special forces units, one of the world's largest money managers, one of the world's leading surgical hospitals, one of the world's largest media companies and the commanding officers of a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier. His most recent book, The Captain Class, is a meticulous analysis of effective leadership based on the traits of the captains who led the 17 most dominant teams in sports history. The book has become a cult classic, beloved by men and women worldwide who apply its principles to leading and building teams. A special thanks to this week's sponsors!Veteran-founded Adyton. Step into the next generation of equipment management with Log-E by Adyton. Whether you are doing monthly inventories or preparing for deployment, Log-E is your pocket property book, giving real-time visibility into equipment status and mission readiness. Learn more about how Log-E can revolutionize your property tracking process here!Exray a veteran-owned apparel brand elevating the custom gear experience. Exray provides free design services and creates dedicated web stores for units.Onebrief, the transformative software platform redefining operational plan
What can business leaders learn from the best sports teams that have had success for decades?In this episode, Sam Walker joins host Bill Gallagher to discuss the leadership secrets of the world's most successful sports teams. From the unassuming captains who drive dynasties to the cultural pillars that make teams legendary, Sam shares powerful insights for business leaders. Sam Walker is the guy who cracked the code on what makes great teams tick. As a former global sports editor at The Wall Street Journal and author of the bestselling book The Captain Class, Sam's obsession with leadership and teamwork has taken him into locker rooms, boardrooms, and beyond.Topics explored in this episode: - The surprising importance of unassuming captains in driving team success.- Why Michael Jordan's leadership wasn't the key to the Chicago Bulls' dynasty.- How a culture of winning defines teams like the New Zealand All Blacks.- Lessons from the 2004 Red Sox and their dramatic midseason turnaround.- Why team success often depends on "invisible" leadership work behind the scenes.- The value of dissent and conflict in building a strong team culture.- How Ted Lasso humorously portrays key lessons about leadership and team dynamics.- Why great leaders prioritize collective success over personal recognition.- The Cuban women's volleyball team's dominance and their innovative approach to practice.Chapters in this episode: (02:20) Meet Sam Walker(05:10) The Role of Captains in Sustained Success(09:50) Bill Cartwright and the Chicago Bulls(15:00) The 2004 Red Sox Story(19:45) The New Zealand All Blacks(27:50) The Cuban Women's Volleyball Team(40:06) Leadership Lessons from Ted LassoThanks to Sam Walker for being on the show! Sam will be the keynote speaker at our upcoming SCALING UP LIVE event on June 10-12, 2025 in Denver, Colorado: https://chiefexecutive.net/scaling-up/ Connect with Sam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-walker-captain-class/ Learn more about Sam: https://www.bysamwalker.com/ Get Sam's book, The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World's Greatest Teams: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0812997190 Bill Gallagher, Scaling Coach and host of the Scaling Up Business podcast, is an international business coach who works with C-Suite leaders to achieve breakthrough growth. Join Bill in the Growth Navigator Coaching Program: https://ScalingCoach.com/workshop Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.LinkedIn.com/in/BillGallBill on YouTube: https://www.YouTube.com/@BillGallagherScalingCoach Visit https://ScalingUp.com to learn more about Verne Harnish, our team of Scaling Up Coaches, and the Scaling Up...
Imagine spending eleven years interviewing, researching, conversing, and combing through the best sports teams in the past 200 years in hopes to find a common thread amongst the best of the best.That's exactly what Sam Walker did.Sam Walker is an author, journalist, and leadership expert best known for his book The Captain Class, which explores the traits of exceptional team captains and their role in driving elite success. He is also a founding editor of The Wall Street Journal's sports section and has received acclaim for his in-depth research and story telling. Sam also spends time working closely with the best teams, organizations, and leaders all around the world to help gain a competitive edge in their industry. Topics-The in-depth research of finding the best 17 teams of all-time-Most surprising finding during eleven years of research-Why the most talented athlete isn't the best captain-The importance of the coach and captain relationship-Breakdown of Sam's top two captains in the sport of basketball-Common traits of the best captain of all-time-Advice for coaches to take this insight into action Download my FREE top 40 book list written by Mindset Advantage guests: www.djhillier.com/40books(this is new)Purchase a copy of my book: https://a.co/d/bGok9UdFollow me on Instagram: @deejayhillier(I'm no longer using the mindset advantage IG channel. I just want focus on my page). (I post the podcast reels there too)Connect with me on my website: www.djhillier.com
In this episode of The Volley Pod, Tod and Davis start with briefly discussing their experiences in the Coastal Conference, focusing on the competitive nature of the league. They introduce the '46 Challenge' drill aimed at improving both offensive and defensive skills in volleyball. The conversation then shifts to the 'Tether Method,' a technique for enhancing out-of-system play, emphasizing the importance of tight sets and player positioning. Finally, they explore leadership principles from the book 'The Captain Class,' highlighting the significance of character in team success. Skill of the Week: The 46 Challenge One of Tod's 'Deserted Island Drills', "The 46 Challenge" drill is discussed this week. This drill focuses on out system play for both sides of the net and it has a really cool "get back in system" scoring system. Scenario of the Week: The "Tether" Method for out of system play The Tether Method represents a shift in mentality and execution for out of system play. Tod and Davis talk about this way of playing and the changes it brings to the game. The Art of Coaching Volleyball videos from this week: htt:ps://www.theartofcoachingvolleyball.com/out-of-system-offense-and-defense-drills/ Marie Zidek from DePaul University https://www.theartofcoachingvolleyball.com/hitting-scoring-off-the-block-drill/ Mark Barnard https://www.theartofcoachingvolleyball.com/hit-more-line/ Blog from Kyle Mashima (SoloStats and Rotate123) Resource of the Week: https://www.bysamwalker.com/the-captain-class The Captain Class by Sam Walker is an interesting look at a number of championship programs and their leaders. It may make you rethink what a leader is and how they behave.
Today's +1 features wisdom from Sam Walker. Heroic: https://heroic.us ← "Heroic is the best self-development platform in the world." — John Mackey, co-founder & former CEO of Whole Foods Market Want access to more wisdom in time? Get access to over 1,500 +1's (just like this!) and 650+ Philosopher's Notes (distilling life-changing big ideas from the best self-development books ever written) and a LOT more with our Heroic Premium membership. Learn more and get 30 days free at https://heroic.us
View This Week's Show NotesStart Your 7-Day Trial to Virtual Mobility CoachJoin Our Free Weekly Newsletter: The AmbushSam Walker is the author of The Captain Class, a critically acclaimed portrait of the men and women who led the most successful dynasties in sports history. He works as a team building consultant and leadership coach for professional, national and collegiate sports teams; elite military units; national law-enforcement agencies; global NGOs and large companies across many industries. Walker spent two decades at The Wall Street Journal, where he served as a leadership columnist, chief sports columnist, global sports editor and deputy page one editor. He attended the University of Michigan and lives with his wife and two children in Los Angeles.Sam spent 11 years researching the most successful teams to determine the winning formula and the results were unexpected yet actionable. If you want to understand leadership, team culture, and what makes great teams great, this episode is a must listen.SPONSORSThis episode of The Ready State Podcast is brought to you by Momentous, a leading high-performance lifestyle company making the best supplements and sports nutrition products for individuals looking to optimize all parts of their lives. One of our favorite supplements, Collagen Shots, are back in stock! It's a clinically valid collagen peptide and we always travel with them because they are so easy! Go to livemomentous.com/TRS and use code TRS for 20% OFF your first purchase.This episode of The Ready State Podcast is brought to you by LMNT, a tasty electrolyte drink mix with everything you need and nothing you don't. That means lots of salt — with no sugar. We are still abuzz about LMNT Sparkling now available to everyone. All the electrolytes you need, in the MOST festive beverage you've ever tasted. If you love LMNT, this is going to blow your mind. Go to DrinkLMNT.com/TRS and check it out!This episode of The Ready State Podcast is brought to you by Sleepme. The Chilipad bed cooling system is your new bedtime solution. It lets you customize your sleeping environment to your optimal temperature, ensuring you fall asleep, stay asleep and wake up refreshed. Kelly credits the Chilipad mattress topper with revolutionizing his sleep. Go to sleep.me/TRS and use code TRS and save up to $315!This episode of The Ready State Podcast is brought to you by Cockpunch Coffee. Created by our friend Tim Ferriss, Cockpunch Coffee is roasted on a Bellwether Roaster, creating the lowest carbon footprint coffee available today. All proceeds go to Tim's nonprofit foundation, Saisei. If you want to get some delicious coffee that gives back, go to cockpunchcoffee.com/TRS and use code TRS for 20% OFF your first purchase.
As a young man, he fled the racism of Louisiana. His father could take no more: violence or exile was the next step. He began what at first was an unpromising basketball career before becoming the most inspirational leader in the history of the NBA.On the final part of The Captain Class, Joe and Dion look at the extraordinary life of Bill Russell. Russell was the man who shaped the Boston Celtics even as he was being racially abused by his own fans. He had no interest in fame or the trappings of celebrity but as a captain he found a higher purpose for himself and his team.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/To get in touch with the podcast: info@freestatepodcast.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
When Leinster missed a drop goal in the final seconds of the European final were they just unlucky? Or were they, like Mayo, missing chances or losing three finals in a row because something fundamental was missing? On Free State today, Joe and Dion continue their exploration of the great teams and captains in sport.Is team spirit just an illusion glimpsed in victory or is there another reason why these team succeed and others experience relative failure? They look at what the great teams had in common, the factor that drove them towards relentless success and why luck had nothing to do with it.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/To get in touch with the podcast: info@freestatepodcast.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Roy Keane drove Manchester United and Ireland on through the force of his personality. He was the most important player in Alex Ferguson's side but was he a man apart or the invisible essence of the team? On Free State today, Joe and Dion debate Roy Keane and where he belongs in the captain class. They look at those who led a different way, who didn't let heart attacks or jibes about being a water-carrier stop them leading.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/To get in touch with the podcast: info@freestatepodcast.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
What is it that unites the greatest teams in sport?What is the factor that ensures a team remains successful over a prolonged period?When the American journalist Sam Walker began to study the greatest teams in sport, he found a common denominator that shocked him.On Free State today, Joe and Dion discuss Walker's book The Captain Class and the individuals who drove the greatest teams, even if, in one case, it resulted in his testicle being ripped out.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/To get in touch with the podcast: info@freestatepodcast.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this episode, Joe discusses the concepts of certainty and uncertainty in the contexts of jiu jitsu and life. He explores the idea that certainty can be boring and that the pursuit of certainty often leads to fear, anxiety, and doubt. He also touches on the role of coaches and the value of asking the right questions. The host draws inspiration from a book called The Captain Class and shares insights from the show Bluey. Joe concludes by encouraging listeners to embrace the mystery and infinite nature of life. Takeaways Certainty can be boring and may lead to fear, anxiety, and doubt. Coaches can maximize their value by developing the skill of asking the right questions. Competition in jiu-jitsu brings out intense emotions, but it is part of the infinite game of life. Embracing the mystery and uncertainty of life can lead to a more fulfilling experience. Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Training Reflections 06:01 The Nature of Fear, Anxiety, and Doubt in Competition 12:47 The Paradox of Certainty and the Desire for Surprise Work with me: https://www.bjjmeditations.com/schedule-a-coaching-session Train at Princeton Brazilian Jiu Jitsu: https://www.princetonbjj.com/ Read more of my work on Substack: https://joehannan.substack.com/ Follow BJJ Meditations on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bjj_meditations/ #bjj #jiujitsu #stoic #stoicism
Our guests today are Cody Newton and Dr. Doug Cleveland. Cody Newton is a serial entrepreneur, having started or been involved in over 20 companies, including professional sports, franchising, direct sales, and the energy markets. He is dedicated to democratizing renewables, carbon credits, and recycling for home and business owners in his latest project with Carbon X Solutions. Dr. Douglas Cleveland is a trained Anesthesiologist from the University of Chicago with a Medical Economics Certificate from the Harvard Business School. Doug is also an entrepreneur with expertise in process and operational efficiencies and shares Cody's passion for the energy and renewables space and the impact it can have on the environment. I found this story fascinating, as two entrepreneurs with vastly different backgrounds saw the same problem and figured out a way to complement each other with their diverse approaches to business. They built a team and tackled a problem many experts said was impossible. This conversation will highlight the complexities and challenges of starting a new venture when everyone around you says it can't be done. If there is one thing I have learned from all these interviews, it is that entrepreneurs almost always have to defy the odds and many naysayers along the way to launch a product or service that is new, innovative, and world-changing.Learn more at www.CarbonXSolutions.com Show Notes:3:00 - Doug begins by sharing how he entered his entrepreneurial journey. He shares how he started out in med school to become an anesthesiologist and started practicing anesthesiology but became restless to do more and learn more.6:00 - Doug shares his background, where he got his various degrees, and where he completed his professional training.7:00 - Cody shares his background of growing up in a small farm town, embarking on getting a degree from Kansas State and pivoting to become an entrepreneur. 13:00 - Doug discusses breadth vs. depth in the medical field and how that translates to his entrepreneurial journey.Quote: “Riches are in niches.” 16:00 - Doug and Cody share some “key lessons” they learned early in their careers that would be valuable to young people starting out in their careers to help speed up their entrepreneurial journey. They share the 26:00 - Cody and Doug share how they discovered carbon credits and why they were led to participate in this “green movement” to help the environment, as well as businesses and homeowners participating in this movement.31:00 - Cody discusses the posture of his heart toward smaller and medium-sized businesses when involving them in this industry. He shares his goal to make this attainable for small and medium-sized companies to utilize this business opportunity. Quote: “We can expand this green revolution faster as we make it more accessible.”40:00 - Cody shares the story of how he found himself in the right spot at the right time to make a partnership and how this reflects the entrepreneurial experience of living intentionally in everyday life. Quote: “If you always plant seeds, the harvest will come over time.”“If you're passionate about something, the worst thing you can do is keep it inside.”42:00 - Doug chimes in and shares his story when meeting Cody and beginning their partnership.48:00 - Cody and Doug discuss the struggles and obstacles they have faced and had to overcome throughout their journey. They share what they have learned from that process.54:00 - Bob asks how they balanced seeking counsel and guidance while pursuing their goals when they may have been advised not to.Quote: “The experts don't always have the same vision that you do… take what they say with a grain of salt.”59:00 - Doug and Cody share what they foresee the next 3-5 years to look like for this industry and talk about what they hope to accomplish in these future opportunities. 1:07:00 - Bob asks Doug and Cody to share their favorite books“Boys in the Boat” by Daniel James Brown, “The Obstacle Is The Way” by Ryan Holiday, “Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius, “Intentional Living” by John C. Maxwell, “Seize The Day” by Danny Cox, “Elon Musk” by Walter Isaacson, “Carbon Trade” by James Prosper, “The Captain Class” by Sam Walker, and “The Bomber Mafia” by Malcolm Gladwell1:15:00 - Bob asks Doug and Cody what words of encouragement they would give to a class of MBA students amidst the complexity of our current marketplace and what they would share to inspire them in their careers.
Today, Anne and I are talking about what makes for a good team captain, and I’m drawing pretty heavily from a book by Sam Walker titled The Captain Class: A New Theory of Leadership. Anne, is it fair to say you are pretty down on discussions about leadership? I hope to bounce back and forth […]
The Captain Class is a wonderful book by Sam Walker. Sam studied the most successful teams in the history of sports. He then researched to find out what made them successful. What did he find out? They all had a phenomenal team leader with similar traits. #1 - Extreme Competitiors, #2 - Aggressive Play, #3 - Did the thankless jobs/Servant leaders, #4 Low key demeanor, #5 - Excellent non-verbal communicators, #6 Strong convictions and courage, and #7 - High Emotional IQ. Listen to this podcast where we dive into more detail about his findings. Captain Class Book Steve Collins is the varsity Boys Basketball Coach at Madison Memorial High School in Madison Wisconsin. He is in his 25th year as a varsity coach. has a coaching record of 461-113. His teams have won 14 conference championships, has 4 state runner up finishes and 3 State championship in 10 State appearances You can find him www.teachhoops.com www.coachingyouthhoops.com Coaching Store Free Facebook Group (Basketball Coaches) Twitter Youtube Greg Berge is the Varsity Boys Basketball Coach and High School Principal in Lake City, MN. He is in his 29th year of education and 18th year as a varsity coach. Greg has a career coaching record of 334-117. His teams have won 11 conference championships (9 straight), two section championships, and one 3rd place state finish. He writes daily online with actionable ideas about Coaching, Leadership, Culture, and Teams. He also writes a free weekly newsletter, has published four books, and has released the Team Leader OS: The Ultimate Leadership Resource for Coaches (a course and many resources to develop your team leaders). Links below: Follow on X (formerly Twitter): www.twitter.com/gb1121 Website: www.gb1leadership.com Team Leader OS: www.gb1leadership.com/team-leader-os Free Weekly Newsletter: gregberge.beehiiv.com Digital Books/Free Resources: gberge.gumroad.com Books on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3PphN3H https://amzn.to/3EriGlQ https://amzn.to/3Lao68u https://amzn.to/3Z5SEhN Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Etienne Nichols is a mechanical engineer, PMP-certified project manager, the host of the Global Medical Device Podcast, and the builder of the Greenlight Guru MedTech Excellence Community. In this episode, he shares a plethora of advice and great stories, including why gratitude and curiosity matter so much, how writing helps you to identify what you truly believe, his passion for furthering the medtech industry, and how an article he read changed his life. Guest links: https://www.greenlight.guru/podcast | https://www.greenlight.guru/etienne-nichols-thankyou | https://www.linkedin.com/in/etiennenichols/ Charity supported: Polaris Project Interested in being a guest on the show or have feedback to share? Email us at podcast@velentium.com. PRODUCTION CREDITS Host: Lindsey Dinneen Editor: Tim Oliphant Producer: Velentium SHOW TRANSCRIPT Episode 009 - Etienne Nichols Lindsey Dinneen: Hi, I'm Lindsey with Velentium and I'm talking with MedTech industry leaders on how they change lives for a better world. Diane Bouis: The inventions and technologies are fascinating and so are the people who work with them. Frank Jaskulke: There was a period of time where I realized, fundamentally, my job was to go hang out with really smart people that are saving lives and then do work that would help them save more lives. Diane Bouis: I got into the business to save lives and it is incredibly motivating to work with people who are in that same business, saving or improving lives. Duane Mancini: What better industry than where I get to wake up every day and just save people's lives. Lindsey Dinneen: These are extraordinary people doing extraordinary work, and this is The Leading Difference. Hello and welcome to The Leading Difference. I'm your host Lindsey, and I am excited to introduce you to my guest today, Etienne Nichols. Etienne is a mechanical engineer and PMP certified project manager with a wealth of experience in the medical device industry. He's worked with Fortune 500 and startup medical device companies and has taught classes on quality management systems and design controls for Regulatory Affairs Professional Society and American Society for Quality. He is a frequent speaker at MedTech conferences, the host of the Global Medical Device Podcast, and the builder of the MedTech Excellence Community. Thank you so very much for joining us, Etienne. I'm so excited to have you here on this show today. Welcome. Etienne Nichols: Thank you. I'm excited to be here as well. I'm super pumped to be with you today. Lindsey Dinneen: Awesome. Well, I would love, if you wouldn't mind starting by just telling us a little bit about yourself and your background and how you got to where you are now. Etienne Nichols: Sure. I guess if I was to break down as simple as possible, I'm the host of the Global Medical Device Podcast, and I say that partly because we just interviewed Dan Purvis, the CEO of Velentium on his book, "28 Days to Save the World." Loved that, but, anyway, just had to throw that out there because I'm just such a big fan of you guys as well. Okay. To your question, specifically, my background, the word background can meet a lot of things. I just finished a book called "Livewired" by David Eagleman. He's a neuroscientist at Stanford. He basically says, our brains aren't so much observers of reality, but filters. So we filter out our past, we hone in on certain things. Okay? I say all that to say when I think of background, I imagine a picture of Mona Lisa, what's in the background? You think Mona Lisa, what's in the background? Only things that matter to Da Vinci. So I'd like to tell you a quick story. It might not seem super relevant, but this is a story of kind of help shape who I am. When I was in my early twenties, I thought I was in love, but it turned out that it wasn't meant to be. So as an early 20 something without a fully grown prefrontal cortex, I did what any self-respecting Oklahoman would do. I signed up for Terry Don West School of Bull Riding. Terry was a world champion bull rider 1985 to 2003, and he had a school outside in Henrietta, Oklahoma. So I went there. I was the only city kid there. After a few rides, like I literally got on multiple bulls and I got on one where it laid down in the shoot, it was bucking around and laid down in the shoot and it, it was dark down there. And my brain immediately said, "abort mission, jump outta here, jump outta the shoot." And I jumped out and I was terrified. Terry ran over, he yanked me by the collar, he stuck his gloved finger in my face, and he said, "you never ever ever get off a bull in the shoot." And so I, I'd say that story to say, when I think about background, that was a pivotal moment in my life when I thought, you never give up. You know, no matter how dark or scary it is, you never give up. So that, that was one of the things that before I was engineer, that was one of the pivotal moments. I'll talk about my real background, I guess that's more traditional. I'm a mechanical engineer by trade. Before coming to MedTech, I worked in aerospace, the steel industry, so both regulated and unregulated. I'm gonna close my window because I actually have a rooster right outside my window. Lindsey Dinneen: I've been enjoying him. Etienne Nichols: But I've worked in manufacturing regulatory. I actually got my project management, professional certification on a regulatory project product development. Finally was a project manager of a drug delivery combination product. So, all of those things before I came to Greenlight Guru, which is where I am now. I've worked with dozens of companies to help them set up and implement their quality management system. And so as I mentioned before now, I manage the Global Medical Device Podcast. So it's been a really fun ride. Lindsey Dinneen: Awesome. Yeah. And a very eclectic ride. It sounds like you have come at this in a very unique way. Okay. I would love to hear a little bit more about your story on joining Greenlight Guru, because I recently read a post on LinkedIn about it. I just thought, "wow, what a great story." I'd love if you'd share that with us. Etienne Nichols: Sure. This was several years ago. I was working as a project manager for a drug delivery combination product company. I walked into the VP of Engineering's office. He and I were talking about some things that were going on, and I thought, I need to do a little bit of research. I went back to my computer. I started looking for an article, and that was when I first stumbled across Greenlight Guru. I came across the article, "DHF Versus DMR Versus DHR." It's a helpful article because FDA and their acronyms, if you're familiar with those. So after reading that article, I did what anyone would do. You know, you reach out to the author, thank them for their writing. And so I, I reached out to Jesseca Lyons who was the author on LinkedIn, and I told her I really appreciated the things that she had written, and she just responded, "yeah, you're welcome." The very next day she posted, "Hey, we had a great quarter last quarter, and by the way, we're hiring" and I thought "hiring?" So I clicked on the link and it looked really interesting and I just applied on the whim. I was not looking for a new job. I wasn't interested in getting a new job, but I wanted to learn more about this person and their company. And after my first interview with her, she literally put a Zoom meeting on my calendar that afternoon. Three days later I had an interview with Tom Rish. Four or five days later, I had an interview with Fran Cruz, who was the VP of Customer Success at the time. And I basically had an offer in less than 10 days, I I believe. So, Jessica and I joke about that article changing my life a little bit, but it's a really good article. But it's been a fantastic ride and I've really enjoyed my time at Greenlight Guru. And I'll say one other thing, it felt like a big risk at the time to move because I was in a great position. I loved the company I was working for. I really respected the CEO. But after looking at this company, it felt like a risk, but the more I thought about it, it was so in line with what I really loved doing: content creation, interacting with customers directly, and the potential to get on stage and speak on the podcast or at conferences. I felt like it was a bigger risk not to take this job. So this is something that I would throw out to some of the listeners is you may be facing different career steps and there's always a risk no matter what you do, but you always have to think about the risk of not taking a risk. And I think that's something we sometimes forget. So I dunno if that answered your question. That's the story as least as it's coming to me at the moment. Lindsey Dinneen: No, That's a great answer. Yeah, I love those collisions, I like to call them. All of a sudden, things work out, but it takes intention, right? You read an article and then you reached out to the author and that led to a series of events, and here you are. But, I just love when those, those kinds of things happen. Those stories are my favorite. Etienne Nichols: Yeah. It makes me think-- oh, I'm probably gonna butcher this-- but the definition of luck is when preparation meets opportunity. Lindsey Dinneen: Yes. Etienne Nichols: And I think if you're always preparing, you, you may or may not be lucky. The opportunity may or may not arise, but when they do, you know, you almost have an obligation to take that sometimes. Lindsey Dinneen: Absolutely agree. Yeah. A theme that I have picked up on from following your work on LinkedIn and whatnot is gratitude. And I would love if you would share just a little bit maybe about your philosophy behind it, because it seems like something that you often express gratitude, whether it's to the author of an article that you appreciated or it's to an interviewee that had a particularly inspiring thing to share. I just have noticed that theme throughout your work, and I would just love to hear your perspective on it. Etienne Nichols: Wow. I actually got like little chills when you were saying that because I don't think anybody, nobody's ever mentioned that or called that out. So I'm glad that's showing through, for sure. I'm really thankful, I'm thankful that's showing through. It's funny, let me rewind to a period in my career that I thought this was one of the toughest parts of my career. It, looking back, it was one of the toughest. I was in a situation where I was leading a project that if this project did not succeed, many, probably dozens of people would be laid off because the company wouldn't be able to support them if this project didn't succeed. That was my perception. And I think even looking back, I think it's accurate. So, I was really stressed at the time. We were working 60 plus hours a week, me and my team, And during that time, I honestly thought a lot about giving up. I never gave up. I told my wife, no matter how hard it is, I've gotta finish this. And then, if it's still difficult, after we're done, we're gonna move on. And that is what happened. We brought the project to fruition and moved on. But during that time, I remember standing outside a conference room and I stared at an empty whiteboard and I looked at that whiteboard and I thought someone should put something in there. So I put just a question. "What is your definition of success?" I believe that was the first question. A few days later, I walked by again and lots of people had answered that with their different definitions, and I thought, huh? I took a picture, went home, and I wrote a memo. I said, "what is your definition of success? This is what you said." I went back to work and I sent this out to, I don't know, 20 different people. I didn't know who had answered on the whiteboard and I wrote a lot of these different things and people kept telling me you know, appreciate you translating our words into this memo. Just kinda your giving it your own thoughts. By the time I left that company, I had over a hundred people who I was, you know sending a Monday memo to, and I learned somewhere along the way that people don't mind getting a little bit of encouragement. During that time, the way I was able to get through the stress was every morning I would write that Monday memo. I would think about those things people were saying, and I would try to focus, what am I really grateful about these people? And that's really what helped me get through. So, that was kind of a circuitous way of answering your question, so I'd like to be a little bit more succinct here in the, my last couple phrases here. There is, there's a lot of scarcity in the world, but gratitude really shows you what you have. When you start looking and comparing your life to other people's, it's easy to wish you had this, wish you had that. When you're grateful for what you have, you start recognizing all the things that you do have. And so it's more of an abundance mindset. So that's been my philosophy. I believe gratitude is at the heart of of an abundance mindset. Lindsey Dinneen: Yes. I love that. Thank you for sharing that. And that story is pretty awesome. So was that maybe the start of your content creation journey? Etienne Nichols: Yeah, I do think that. Oh,, if you'll let me go through another story, which is Lindsey Dinneen: Yes, please. Etienne Nichols: When it comes to content creation I'm a big believer in writing and having a writing practice of some sort. So, to answer your question just directly, yes. that was the beginning and I learned the value of writing every morning. In fact, at that time I was very disciplined. I have three kids now, I'm not quite as disciplined. I would get up at 4:45 every morning. I would go work out and then I would stop at a coffee shop on my way to work. I would write for 30 minutes, and then I would go to work. That was before the pandemic, coffee shops closed. And it was before kids and all these different things, but that's when I started writing. Fast forward to Greenlight Guru. I was working with different customers and I was loving what I was doing. Occasionally I would post on LinkedIn just a long form article about, this is something I learned about, I don't know 21 CFR part 820.40 document controls. Why do you need to show a Rev A to Rev B? Why do you justify those changes? All these different things. I've just wrote an article about that, and I would do that every now and then. Well, while I was in that position here at the company at Greenlight Guru, the CMO, Nick Tippmann reached out to me and said, "Hey, we're thinking about building a community and we want you to build the community. I've been watching what you post on LinkedIn." So this is a guy I'd never met before. He's within my company, but he saw what I was doing on LinkedIn, the content creation. At the same time, the founder of the company, Jon Speer reached out to me and said, "Hey, I've watched some of the things you wrote on LinkedIn. Wondered if you'd be interested to be a co-host on the podcast." And so these are two separate situations happening at the same time because of the content creation. Now I'd been writing for years up until this point. And I'll tell you one more thing about writing is it helps you identify what you truly believe, what you actually think. You may think something, but once you write it out, you may change your mind or tweak it slightly. And so that really helps. And so I've been doing this for multiple years and it got me to a point where two different people approached me and I was able to accept that, and it's been really fun. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. I love that story. When you had the opportunity to do the podcast, was that something that you felt immediately comfortable taking on? Was that something that took a little bit of a learning curve, or how did that work for you? Etienne Nichols: The way I would describe it was terror. I had never met the founder of this company. And not only was I meeting the founder, we were interviewing the best in the field-- people like Mike Drews or your CEO, Dan Purvis. Every time I saw those names on my calendar, the pit of my stomach would ball up and I'd go through some breathing exercises, do some squats, whatever. And it's okay, we could do that. But, when you get scared like that, to me, you, you have to qualify it a little bit, but a certain amount of that fear, to me says this is the right direction for me. And the same thing happened at multiple points in my career that sort of confirmed this is the right thing and that little bit of fear is one of 'em. You can look at it as fear, but you can also be excitement because I'm reaching beyond my grasp, and if I keep reaching, I'll grow and I can actually reach this thing. So that's how I looked at that. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. Yeah. I love that. I was once told by a friend that she felt that whenever you were nervous it was because you cared. And so use that nervous energy to do a really good job because it can be harnessed, right? That fear, that, that nervousness, but it's not a bad thing, it's just along for the ride. It's there to help give you a little extra boost and that's okay. And I've always kinda liked that. Etienne Nichols: So I'm curious about you because I love talking to other podcasters, so I just, if we could flip the script just for a minute. I'm curious how you handle that nervousness or is, are there any specific things you do? Lindsey Dinneen: That is a great question. Yes, I still do get nervous. And it does depend on the situation, but I think one thing that I have learned is that being yourself, being just normal and natural and a little vulnerable and a little bit not polished is actually a lot more relatable to people than being perfect. And I'm not perfect. My interviews will never be perfect, but I can do my best and I can be me. And the more that I embrace that, the more comfortable I am. Etienne Nichols: Oh, yeah. I think that's great. The one thing that I I can't remember who told me this but curiosity-- you talk about like what is the opposite of love? Is it hate? Some people may say hate, but I actually think it's indifference. Indifference to me is the opposite of love. So what's the opposite of cowardice or being afraid? The opposite of that isn't courage, because you have to be afraid in order to have courage. To me, the opposite of being afraid is curiosity. Someone may disagree with me, but that's the way I banish fear is, man, be really curious. " Why did I react that way? Or what are they really trying to tell me?" And instead of thinking, oh, this person's title is this, and this, I'm like, "what are they actually saying?" This is really interesting. So that's how I look at that. Lindsey Dinneen: I love that. That's great advice too, just in general because curiosity allows you to explore and exploration is always a success, right? It doesn't lead to failure, it's just a way to learn more about the world around you. Etienne Nichols: Absolutely. Lindsey Dinneen: Well, okay, so you have mentioned that there have been a couple of moments along your journey that I guess confirmed to you that this is the right path. But I'm curious, specifically in the medtech industry, what is it that drives you, that gives you that passion to continue doing what you're doing? Etienne Nichols: Yeah, I can tell you a couple different things. So the spark I would say happened when I was in college. I broke my arm and it was a go-karting accident. And I went to school with arm in a cast. But before I got my arm in a cast, the guy's name was Garrett Watts, the hand doctor who put me back together, and he knew I was a mechanical engineering student. He talked to me about the Synthes DePuy, I don't can never pronounce that word, but the little piece that was going to be placed into my arm with different screws and talked about the physics of it really fascinated me. I thought, man, as a mechanical engineer, I could contribute to this industry. That would be great. That was a spark. Then when I met my wife, she has had a pacemaker since she was 11. So, I've seen her through multiple surgeries to get new pacemakers. And every time I see that, it's man, I am so thankful somebody developed this medical device. There have been other times when I had to watch a loved one go back to the OR, and just talking to the surgeons afterwards and learning about the things that they have to go through. I want their life to be easy. I want them to be able to do their job efficiently. And so I really am passionate about the medtech industry for those reasons. You know, I love all of the things that go into engineering. I will never be the best at those things. And I kind of had to realize that somewhere along the way. The people who are really the best at anything are the people who do it for a living and also do it for a hobby. And those are the people you want in your life in different roles leading technically and things like that. But when it comes to MedTech, I realize I could be passionate about this product because I know the end user is going to be truly affected by this. Not only some unknown person, it could even be my wife, my son, anybody I love could be affected by this. To me, MedTech is really personal, and that's what confirmed this industry. For different roles, I see myself as, I just want to help the industry and so whatever role I can be in, whether that's mechanical engineer or a project manager, or a regulatory consultant or a podcaster. However I can help further the industry to where we work more efficiently and more streamlined in a way that produces safe and effective medical devices. That's the role I want to be in, whatever that role is. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. You've mentioned having opportunities to be in leadership roles, to lead teams, and we've had that discussion in regards to gratitude specifically, but I'm curious, how would you define leadership? Or what does it mean to you? Etienne Nichols: That's a good question. And so two things come to mind. And they're actually both books, and so you don't have time to quote an entire book, but all my best thoughts came from someone else. And so even that's a line from someone. But the two books I could think of first one is "Leaders Eat Last," I believe it's by Simon Sinek. And it's really the idea that leaders are meant to build others up. In fact, actually, a third book comes to mind. That's "28 Days to Save the World" by your CEO dan Pervis. That's a fantastic book. I really recommend that one as well. And I'm not just saying that because it's your, it's your guy. He covers so much ground in that book. It really was something that you almost need to read multiple times. But the second book that I recommend is "Captain Class" by Sam Walker. So he talked about the captains of teams. So usually when we think of a leader, we might think of the CEO, we might think of the executive team, and those certainly are incredibly important. But the "Captain Class" by Sam Walker, he's actually a sports journalist, if I'm remembering all of this correctly. He analyzed all of the great sports dynasties, not just someone who wins one off, but he gave certain parameters as to what he would define as a team sport and a team and a dynasty, and all those different things at the beginning of his book. But he talks about " what do they have in common?" And he looked at the coaches, he looked at the budget, he looked at the manager, he looked at the location, all these different things. And the thing that he found that was really consistent across all of these dynasties was the captain of the team. It might not be the best player. It might not be the person who's most outspoken, but it's that person who brings a certain energy and can recognize when things are going sideways or things are changing, and he somehow tweaks the team in such a way that they can reorient and get back on track. So you want your best player shooting hoops, shooting those free throws. They don't have to lead, they just do what they do. Put your best players in the positions where they can excel. But the captain, like I said, they may not be the best player. They may not be the best person on the team, but they're the person who's kinda like the glue, who gels everybody together. And so those two different concepts are what I think of a real good leader. Number one, leaders eating last, and the second one being that glue who's able to look at a bird's eye view and determine what direction we need to go in, what attitude adjustment needs to happen. I'll give you one more little anecdote that you may have heard before, say you have a bunch of people working their way through a woods cutting with axes trying to get through the woods. The manager is the one running around saying, "Hey, do you have the right ax? Do you need this sharpen? Do you need this? Let's help you out." It's still a servant role, but the leader is the one who climbs the tree and looks up and says, "Hey guys, I think we need to go in this direction." So that's the leader in my mind. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. So the visionary and the person who is the cheerleader and motivator and helps bring people together towards a vision. Etienne Nichols: Yeah, so my, my dad actually told me something once that he probably got this from someone else, I'm not sure, but he said, " you know, Etienne, a leader without followers is just a guy taking a walk." And some of us are just taking a walk, but a leader is someone who people are willing to follow too. So yeah, there's lots of different facets. It's a good question. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. So you mentioned curiosity before, which I think is a really important theme. And so I'm wondering how that plays into your continued growing and learning as a leader yourself. Obviously, you have had a bunch of different roles even within the industry and through various companies and I'm sure each one of them has prompted you to learn and grow in different ways. So, how do you continue to prioritize that these days? Etienne Nichols: Yeah, that's a good question. I've gotta speak to your question about curiosity first. In every role that I've been in, one of the things that's really important to me is to understand how this role that I'm working in interacts with every other role in the organization. I'll give you a quick anecdotal story, I guess, for that. I was at one company where they put me in a cubicle that was right outside the break room, and that's a terrible idea. You do not put an engineer right outside the break room. The people had to walk out of the break room and either turn left or right or go straight into my cubicle. Since I was new, they told me that my cubicle was cursed. Nobody had managed to be there for more than three months. And nobody knew why. It's just cursed. I'm like, okay. Well, I figured out pretty quick why. It's because I started writing down how many people came into my cubicle to say hi to me, and it was in the 30 to 50 people a day and I was not getting things done. Just a few minutes with each person, and that becomes hours a day. So I realized quickly that this is a problem or an opportunity. And so I tried to treat it like an opportunity. The next engineer who came into my desk or came into my cubicle, I said, "Hey, can you help me with this thing I'm working on my spreadsheet?" And they said, "oh yeah, you just do this, and this." And my 15 minute task turned into a one minute task. And so that happened multiple times. Pretty soon I was getting more things done than pretty much anyone else on my row. And so being curious about what that person knew was really important to me. And I realized it clicked in that role early on in my career. And I said, man, I need to learn what everybody in the company does. And so I started actually making a running list of who is everyone in the company and who do I know. And I put a check mark next to their name and I said, "okay, I gotta meet this person and find out what they know. Meet this person, find out what they know." It wasn't all me. When I came to that company, this is actually a really fantastic practice that this manufacturing company had done. They gave me a list of every machine in the entire company. And so we had multiple buildings, you know, out there. And they said your first job is to find every machine, learn who runs it and what product it touches and how that machine interacts with that product. And that's a big homework assignment. So if I wasn't interested, that would've been hard to accomplish. So, between my situation being outside the break room and my forced interest in the manufacturing floor, I decided to make it a personal goal of mine to meet everyone in the company and to learn exactly what they do, a little bit selfishly, to see if I could make my job a little bit easier to learn what they knew and so forth. And so that really helped. And that really reinforced the importance of curiosity. Lindsey Dinneen: That's a great story and I'm sure you looking back are also quite aware, obviously of how things evolved in your own career. But it's fun to hear it from an outside perspective and go, okay, I see how certain things that you did, maybe just because you were curious, led you to be in a position now where you are comfortable-- maybe still get nervous-- but in general comfortable talking to all sorts of different people cuz hey, you were just going around meeting everybody, learning what they do anyway. Etienne Nichols: Oh yeah. It's crazy to look back. When we look back, we can connect the dots easily, but when you're in that soup, you're in the moment you're like, oh, my life is a mess. You're not really exactly sure. But yeah, yeah, you nailed it, that's true. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. And then nowadays your continued learning and growing as a leader in the medtech industry? Yeah. Etienne Nichols: So the way I answer that, the way I prioritize it is it's true. We all, we only have so much time in a day. It's difficult to get those things in. I try to double dip as much as possible. And so what I mean by that is, let me give an example. The best way to learn something is to teach it, right? When I was approached, I looked at myself, I said, "Etienne, you don't have what it takes to do these things." And that was just my honest assessment of myself. But I said, but I'm gonna take this on and I'm going to get what it takes. And so, after I was in the role a little bit, I started looking at the different conferences I could potentially go to learn more about these things. And you might make the argument, okay, going to a conference. That's a continuing improvement, right? You can learn there. Well, that wasn't good enough for me. So, I have a specific story about this. There's a conference called CMX. It's the number one conference for community building, I believe. I found that and I thought, "okay, I want my company to send me to this conference, but I don't just want them to send me, I want to speak on stage, even though I've been in community for only a few months." I'm going to come up with a problem that I've faced and a problem I've solved, and I'm going to write a proposal for me to speak at this conference. So I sent it in. I sent my proposal in and they wisely said, "no, but you can moderate a panel." I thought, "okay, well that's good enough." So I went to the industry. I moderated the panel, but because I was speaking and I was gonna be on stage, I now had access to all of the voices in the industry who were speaking. So I sent them all messages, tried to socialize with them prior to going to that event. And I now have dozens and dozens of really valuable connections in the industry to that specific subset of an industry. So that's one example. Another example I'd give is double dipping. I gotta describe something real quick. So there's something that I learned early on. Have you ever heard of " The Seven Spoke Wheel of Life" by Zig Ziglar? Lindsey Dinneen: I don't know that I have. Etienne Nichols: Oh, man, you've got to check that out. Lindsey Dinneen: Okay. Etienne Nichols: So I learned this in college, lets see if I can remember them all. But see, he has the Seven Spoke Wheel of Life. Essentially, what he says is there's seven spokes. You have family, career, intellectual, social, financial, physical and spiritual. I think I did it unless I repeated something. So all seven of those spokes essentially make up your life. If you have a broken spoke, you have a flat tire, just think of it that way. So I looked at that and I said, "okay, well, I go running with different people and we usually chat about the same old thing." So I said, I'm gonna start using this Seven Spoke Wheel of Life as much as possible. And so the next guy who I went running with, I told him about the seven spokes. I said, why don't we pick a different spoke every time? We'll just talk about that while we run our 10 mile run or whatever it is. And so we would do that and we'd cover more ground. And so when I say double dip as much as possible it's making those different spokes cross over each other. So that was, let's say, intellectual. Maybe I'm gonna meet with some engineers to go running. So that's a physical thing. That's an intellectual thing. It's a social thing. I have now met three needs in one interaction. Or maybe I'll go to a coffee shop in the morning. I have a book club that I meet with every week to discuss a book that we're talking about. So there's a social interaction, there's our intellectual interaction and it forces me to be reading. If you can double dip, even the podcast-- I get to practice my public speaking. I get to extend my career perhaps. But also meet with people like you, Lindsey, and other people in the industry, and it's really fun. So double dip as much as possible and don't feel bad about it. Lindsey Dinneen: Oh, that's great advice. I really like that. I like, I like the double dip because that's a little better than multitasking, right? Because we're actually not wired to do that. But I really like your idea of combining a couple of different things together for the win. So. Etienne Nichols: Yeah, and I love that categorization. It helps me anyway to kinda have that seven spokes, so you kind of differentiate for yourselves. Okay. This truly is doing multiple things. it's beneficial for me anyway. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. Just pivoting a little bit, just for fun. Imagine someone were to offer you a million dollars to teach a masterclass on anything you want, doesn't necessarily have to be in your industry, but it could be. What would you choose to teach and why? Etienne Nichols: A million dollars! Oh, okay. Well, So the thing that comes to mind for me is listening and I know it's a soft skill. And if I thought long enough, maybe I could come along something technical and specific to medtech. But for right now, listening comes to mind. So few people really listen. And sometimes I struggle with this myself, but most of the time we're just waiting for our turn to talk and you've actually done a really good job. I'm actually pretty impressed with your capability and your listening. It's really cool, Lindsey. But a lot of times when we think we're listening, we're coming up with that next thing to say, but instead if we're able to ditch those lines and listen with your whole body, your whole mind, your whole soul, make this person in front of you the most important person in your life. That changes everything because what I've realized is people are willing to give me the amount of attention I give them and not a whole lot more. And so, you've really gotta learn to listen to, to really succeed. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. I love that. And actually to your point, I'm curious how do you manage that as a podcast host and when you're moderating panels and things like that because part of your job does entail a certain amount of preparation. So how do you balance the two? Because you, you wanna get to the questions that are important for you, but then you also, of course, wanna be actively listening so that you can have a real conversation. Have you found a good way to balance that? Etienne Nichols: It is really difficult. If anyone ever says moderating a panel or moderating a podcast is easy, I don't know that they really know what they're talking about. It takes a lot of focus. I go back to a quote, I guess, I think it's, was it Eisenhower who says "planning is everything, plans are nothing." And when you go to a, an interview like that or a panel is a good example. I'm glad you mentioned that. When you go to a panel, you probably have a list of questions that you want to get to, but it's hard for our brains to remember every one of those little points that we want to ask. So if you instead focus on the overarching theme that you want to cover, and this is the advice I give people, is focus on the overarching theme and then when you're talking to those people, you have your initial question, you'll ask that question and they'll answer, really listen, because most likely the gold is somewhere in that question that they asked. I'll see if I can think of a example. If they're answering a question about the time that they, took a company public and it was pretty stressful at the time. They managed to get it public. They signed all the papers and now they're retired, but they're really excited because now they're advising other people. I'm like, okay, there's something stressful. I heard them say that. I wanna know, what did your wife think when you decided to take that public? What did your executive team, or what did the people who work for you think? I may have a list of questions, but I really want to dive in and just treat it like a conversation keeping in mind the overarching theme of the panel. So I dunno if that answers your question, but that's how I approach it. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, I really like that. And something that came to mind as you were talking about the overarching theme was sort of in tandem to that-- maybe the idea of what do you hope the audience will gain from it? So if you have that perspective of I want the audience to feel inspired or I want them to know more about this particular topic by the end or whatever, then that can help guide the conversation too. Especially if it doesn't go quite the way you anticipated. Etienne Nichols: Yes. I love that you said inspired or I want to make them feel inspired because that's a really good point. I told someone this recently, man, everything on the panel you could probably Google. Sometimes there's really good tidbits, but for example, Dan Purvis and I, we did the the interview a few weeks ago and it was a fantastic interview and you could go and read his book and maybe get a lot of the anecdotes that he told us about. But you're not gonna get the feeling of passion for the industry or excitement for the future and all these things. And so, that's really what a lot of these live events will give you. It gives you a feeling to move you forward and we think, "oh, that's wishy-washy. We're technical, we're engineers," but you can't forget that we're humans. We're driven in a certain way. And so these interactions that make our job easier, a lot of that is softer skills or softer experiences and not necessarily hard technical things. As important as those are, you have to have the things that pull you forward. So I love that you mentioned that inspiring the audience and things like that. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, definitely. So speaking of inspiration, I suppose, what is the one thing you wish to be remembered for after you leave this world? Etienne Nichols: I think it's interesting that we even want to be remembered. When I'd step outside myself and look at myself, I'm like, why do you wanna be remembered? But you do. And so I can't really get rid of that. That's fine. So when I think about that, the answer I think I would have is the strength of my kids. I heard someone say this once. See if I can remember exactly how it goes. I want my son to be the strongest man at my funeral. It's my job to make that happen. When I think of being remembered, I think about being remembered through my kids. There's another ancient writing that goes something like, "like arrows in the hands of a warrior so are the children of one's youth." So being a good dad, that's probably the most important thing to me in my life. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. And then final question, what is one thing that makes you smile every time you see or think about it? Etienne Nichols: Oh, It would have to be my daughter. She's 13 months old now, and if a rainbow could become a person, that person would be Darcy, my daughter. Lindsey Dinneen: That's wonderful. I love it. Oh my gosh. Thank you so very, very much for joining me today. This has been so much fun. Speaking of inspiration: lots of it, lots of great advice and your stories are fantastic. So thank you so much for sharing all of that with us. Etienne Nichols: Absolutely. Yeah. Thank you so much, Lindsey. I really appreciate you inviting me onto the podcast and excited to work together in the future. Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, and we are honored to be making a donation on your behalf as a thank you for your time today to the Polaris Project, which is a non-governmental organization that works to combat and prevent sex and labor trafficking in North America. So I really appreciate you choosing that organization to support and just again, thank you so much. We just wish you continued success as you work to change lives for a better world. Etienne Nichols: You're so welcome. Take care. Lindsey Dinneen: Of course, and thank you also to our listeners for tuning in and if you're feeling as inspired as I am right now, I'd love it if you share this episode with a colleague or two and we will catch you next time. The Leading Difference podcast is brought to you by Velentium. Velentium is a contract design and manufacturing firm specializing in the development, production and post-market support of diagnostic and therapeutic active medical devices, including implantables and wearables for neuromodulation and other class three indications. Velentium's core competencies include electrical design, mechanical design, embedded software, mobile apps, contract manufacturing, embedded cybersecurity, OT cybersecurity, systems engineering, human factors and usability, and automated test systems. Velentium works with clients worldwide from startups seeking seed funding to established Fortune 100 companies. Visit velentium.com to explore your next step in medical device development.
Mano Watsa is the President and Owner of PGC Basketball, the largest educational basketball camp in the world. PGC Basketball has taught over 125,000 players and coaches how to be leaders on and off the court. Mano brings his sports and business experiences to the podcast with stories and advice on thinking like a coach, communicating, and making a difference in people's lives. Listen to learn how to focus on the thing you can do best. “Part of the beauty of the game is your individual contributions combined with working together as a team … where five players become like a fist, not five individual fingers … and they play together as one.” - Mano Watsa https://bit.ly/TLP-339 Key Takeaways [2:51] Mano's journey has been a joy, but anytime you're pursuing a vision, there are all sorts of challenges along the way, as well as opportunities. It's often the challenges that don't surface publicly. Mano has never seen a successful team or individual that has not had to overcome adversity, and he is no different. [4:20] PGC Basketball's founder, Dick DeVenzio, who played college basketball at Duke University and went on to play and teach the game across the world, created the Point Guard College with the point guard in mind. The point guard has to be the coach on the floor. They have to be able to run the show for their team and get their team to work together and play together. They have to “think the game.” [5:01] PGC teaches players to be the smartest player on the floor by equipping them with how to think like a coach, how to make good decisions that lead to winning basketball, and how to lead their team. Jan and Jim recall guest Sam Walker's book, The Captain Class, on how the greatest sports teams in history have one thing in common, captains who were the coach on the floor. [6:13] Mano says PGC teaches players not only how to lead by example but to be effective communicators, inspire their teammates, hold teammates accountable, challenge them, and raise the standard for their teammates. Anyone leading a company, team, or family, is the point guard for that company, team, or family. [8:23] Jeremy Lin came to the NY Knicks and started the Linsanity era. Overnight Jeremy Lin was on the cover of nearly every magazine and was a household name as the first Asian-American in the NBA. Suddenly he's scoring 38 points against Kobe Bryant at Madison Square Garden. He had a successful 10-year NBA career. [9:08] Toward the end of Jeremy Lin's NBA career, Mano had the privilege and opportunity to support him in the realm of mindset and his approach. Mano has been inspired by Jeremy Lin's story, his passion, and his commitment to the game, giving back to the game and making a difference in the world. Jeremy Lin is now playing professionally in China. [10:18] John Wooden won 10 national championships at UCLA and was named Coach of the Century. John Wooden epitomized what it means to be a coach and make a difference in the lives of young players. Mano and his business partner at the time, Dena Evans, had the privilege once of spending a remarkable morning with Coach Wooden. They immediately wrote down all they had learned from him. [12:30] Jason Sudeikis revealed that having John Wooden's Pyramid of Success on the wall of Ted Lasso's office is purposeful. [13:30] Five players that work together can be more effective than five talented individuals who don't work together. Individual performers can significantly influence the outcome of the game, but they also depend on the performance of their teammates to determine the outcome of the game. It's a beautiful thing to see players willing to pass up a good shot for themselves for a great shot for a teammate. [15:38] Michael Jordan was the best player in the world. His teammates said they found it difficult to play with him because his standards were so high. He had competitive greatness. He was at his best when it was needed the most. It's helpful on a team to have a player that drives everyone toward winning. You need others who complement that person's nature to make sure everyone gets along. [19:30] Mano helped the Mully Children's Family organization in Kenya build a sports gymnasium. There are over 2,000 children under their care. Mano has been over there with them multiple times and loves their work. When he sees where these kids have come from and their optimism, even with what they lack, it gives Mano a perspective of gratitude and wanting to make a difference in the lives of others. [21:05] Denny Crum, former coach of the University of Louisville, was honored recently. One of his players stated that they never saw him get upset. He never yelled at his players. They called him Cool Hand Luke. He was always encouraging and supportive. He was a teacher to his team. [22:01] PGC founder Dick DeVenzio taught to use a six-to-one ratio of encouragement to constructive criticism. It's a lofty standard. As a coach or leader, it's so easy to see where others may be falling short but people thrive off encouragement. Connect with team members before correcting them. Always make deposits before you make withdrawals. As leaders and parents, think about the “bank account.” [24:15] Great coaches don't try to make everything a priority. If you try to make everything a priority, nothing is a priority. You can't be great at everything, on the court or in business. But you can be great and world-class in something. You have to let some things go and focus on others. [25:02] Great coaches don't single players out unnecessarily. This goes for leaders and parents, too. Praise publicly and criticize privately. Good coaches and business leaders do a good job of not embarrassing and humiliating their people. They praise publicly and if they have to give criticism, they do so quietly and privately. [25:43] Great coaches don't hold back when they're wrong. They're willing to admit mistakes. That takes humility and vulnerability, in practice and games. Get beyond your ego. Be willing to admit you don't have it all together. [26:56] At PGC, they follow a commitment-based culture. Part of Mano's commitment statement is that he's a joyful work in progress. Accepting himself as a joyful work in progress allows Mano to admit mistakes and admit that he will always be a work in progress. [27:38] Past guest, Michael Bungay Stanier, told of a Legos bridge-building problem. Most people added pieces to solve the problem but the most expedient solution was to remove a piece. What's on your plate? What are you going to take off your plate? Mano notes that when we say “yes” to something, we say “no” to every other alternative. That helps him to be discerning about what he says “Yes” to. [29:18] Mano decided recently that if it's not a “Hell, yeah!” it's a “No.” One of the mistakes Mano made in the early years of growing PGC was wanting to pursue every opportunity. In attempting to pursue every opportunity, they didn't maximize any given opportunity. Mano learned as he grew as a leader to stop good things to focus on a great thing. [31:54] As coaches or business leaders, you can't give all the encouragement that your players or staff need. To fill the gap, PGC introduced celebrations. Every staff meeting, no matter how many meetings are in a day, starts with 60 to 90 seconds of gratitude. It's an opportunity for somebody to acknowledge a thing or project that the team or an individual has done well. People encourage each other. [34:50] Mano frequently tells his staff, “If you're winning at work but losing at home, you're losing.” Mano and PGC care about the staff as human beings and want them to win at home. If someone is not winning at home, their work will be compromised because everything bleeds over. When you're at home, shut off work, slow down, and be present with family. [36:04] After reading In Praise of Slowness, Mano stopped college coaching to focus on PGC. He wanted to be present for his family. Another decision he made with his family was to limit the participation of their children in sports and activities. Their highest value was in spending dinner time together as a family and playing together. They prioritized family time over competitive sports. [39:02] Mano's listener challenge: As business leaders, we must ensure that we're doing everything possible to support our employees and teams. One of the ways we can do that is by helping to ensure that they're able to bring their best possible selves to work each day. [39:24] For employees to bring the best version of themselves, they need to feel cared for, supported, and encouraged, and they need to be given space because if we're just driving them hard all the time, we're going to wear them down, especially in this world where many people just don't feel settled. We can create a good environment while pursuing goals and lofty objectives and still helping our people. [41:21] Closing quote: Remember, “Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” — John Wooden Quotable Quotes “I've never come across a winning team, or anyone who's been highly successful in anything, that hasn't had to overcome significant adversity. And I'm certainly no different than that, in terms of adversities.” — Mano “We like to think that a point guard isn't just a position on a basketball court. Somebody leading a company is the point guard of their team. A quarterback is the point guard of their football team. … If you're leading a family, you are the point guard of your family.” — Mano “The point guard has to be able to influence behavior in order to get desired outcomes. They have to be able to lead and communicate effectively.” — Mano “The beauty of the game [of basketball] is that five players who work together can be more effective and more successful than five talented individuals who don't work together.” — Mano “In basketball, it's a small enough team that you can significantly impact the outcome of the game by your individual performance but you can't entirely impact the outcome because you have to be dependent on your teammates.” — Mano “Part of the beauty of the game is your individual contributions combined with working together as a team … where five players become like a fist, not five individual fingers … and they play together as one.” — Mano “There are so many life lessons that come out of the game when players are willing to put aside their individual agendas for the betterment of the team.” — Mano “You need a range of diverse personalities to really make a team as effective as it can be. But to have somebody that drives winning and drives outcomes is really, really valuable.” — Mano “People thrive off encouragement. No one has ever received too much appreciation or too much encouragement. And one of the principles that we teach to coaches … is connect before you correct.” — Mano “Every good leader … looks for opportunities to celebrate, to acknowledge, to praise, to encourage, and appreciate far more often than they do providing any constructive criticism.” — Mano “It actually builds trust when we're willing to be vulnerable when we're willing to demonstrate that level of humility. It's hard because it requires getting beyond ourselves and it requires getting beyond our ego.” — Mano “One of the things I've realized, both in business and in my personal life: I just don't have it all together.” — Mano “When we say ‘yes' to something, we're actually saying ‘no' to every other possible alternative.” — Mano “If it's not a ‘Hell, yeah!' it's a ‘no.'” — Mano “What gets scheduled gets done.” — Mano Resources Mentioned Theleadershippodcast.com Sponsored by: Darley.com Rafti Advisors. LLC Self-Reliant Leadership. LLC Mano Watsa PGC Basketball Dick DeVenzio The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World's Greatest Teams, by Sam Walker Jeremy Lin NY Knicks John Wooden VIP's Cafe John Wooden's Pyramid of Success Ted Lasso Michael Jordan Documentary The Last Dance on Netflix Michael Jordan Phil Jackson Look: A Practical Guide for Improving Your Observational Skills, by James H. Gilmore The Mully Children's Family Denny Crum and Louisville Basketball Michael Bungay Stanier In Praise of Slowness: Challenging the Cult of Speed, by Carl Honore
Julie Chickering sits down with Brian to share the best gift books for the Scrum masters in your life. Overview We all have those books on our bookshelves that we’ve had for years and still refer back to time and time again, or that new title that we’ve just read that blows our mind with the way it makes a new concept more relatable. Julie Chickering is a Certified Scrum Trainer (CST), PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP), and a traditional Project Management Professional (PMP). Today on the show, Julie joins Brian to discuss the most valuable books they’ve read, the lessons they’ve learned from them, and the best ones for giving to the Scrum Master in your life this holiday season. Listen now to discover: [01:06] - Today, Brian and Julie Chickering will be sharing the most valuable books we’ve read. [02:10] - Julie shares how a book called Two Beats Ahead is helping her learn to let go of her creations. [04:00] - Julie shares an interesting story of how Beyoncé invited musicians in for collaboration and how that opened her mind to learning from her community. [05:07] - Brian shares why Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great by Esther Derby and Diana Larson is his #1 book recommendation for Scrum Masters. [06:29] - Julie shares why she’s also a fan of Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great for the mix-and-mash recipe for creating menu selections. [08:06] - Julie shares why The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups insight into the three main things that make high-performing teams high-performing is her favorite book to give to the leaders on her list. [10:36] - Brian shares the three things from Daniel Pink’s Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us that align with Scrum. [12:34] - Julie shares how she learned to flip the script, start with the hard topics in a conversation, and finish with the positive from Daniel Pink, as included in his book, When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing. [15:53] - Brian shares why Dan Pink’s books are most enjoyable via audio. [16:15] - Julie shares how a podcast interview with author Scott Sonenshein led her to his book called Stretch: Unlock the Power of Less -and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined, which helps teams unlock their potential to achieve more. [17:11] - Brian shares Frédéric Laloux's concept of the different colors of organizations as laid out in his book called Reinventing Organizations: A Guide to Creating Organizations Inspired by the Next Stage of Human Consciousness and how we can better enable change in organizations. [18:57] - Julie shares a book she recommends in Scrum Master class that’s great for sports fans called The Captain Class by Sam Walker, which walks the reader through what makes great sports teams great. [22:15] - Brian shares why sports analogies are great for teaching Scrum. [23:28] - Julie shares how even the Rolling Stones delve deep into figuring out how to improve. [24:30] - Why retrospectives are a great tool for improving the outcome of any mission. [28:25] - Brian shares why we still need to adjust to the current climate, even when the goal remains the same. [30:11] - Brian shares books by recent guests on the show, including Lead Without Blame: Building Resilient Learning Teams by Tricia Broderick, Strategise by Roman Pichler and Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition (Addison-Wesley Signature Series (Cohn)) by Lyssa Adkins. Listen in next time when Scott Dunn will be on the show. References and resources mentioned in the show Two Beats Ahead by Panos A. Panay and R. Michael Hendrix Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great by Esther Derby, Diana Larsen The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups by Daniel Coyle DRIVE by Daniel Pink | Animated Core Message Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing by Daniel Pink The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward by Daniel Pink Stretch: Unlock the Power of Less -and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined by Scott Sonenshein Reinventing Organizations: A Guide to Creating Organizations Inspired by the Next Stage of Human Consciousness by Frédéric Laloux The Captain Class by Sam Walker Lead Without Blame: Building Resilient Learning Teams by Tricia Broderick Strategise by Roman Pichler Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition (Addison-Wesley Signature Series (Cohn)) by Lyssa, Adkins Mountain Goat Software Agile Mentors Community Scrum Alliance Subscribe to the Agile Mentors Podcast on Apple Podcasts Want to get involved? This show is designed for you, and we'd love your input. Enjoyed what you heard today? Please leave a rating and a review. It really helps, and we read every single one. Got an agile subject you'd like us to discuss or a question that needs an answer? Please share your thoughts with us at podcast@mountaingoatsoftware.com This episode's presenters are: Brian Milner is SVP of coaching and training at Mountain Goat Software. He's passionate about making a difference in people's day-to-day work, influenced by his own experience of transitioning to Scrum and seeing improvements in work/life balance, honesty, respect, and the quality of work. Julie Chickering is the brains and brawn behind JC Agile Consulting, believes that Lean and Agile practices are packed with potential — to enable positive culture change, business agility, and breakthrough results. Julie is a past president and board member of the Agile Project Management Network (APLN), a Certified Scrum Trainer (CST), PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP), as well as a traditional Project Management Professional (PMP).
Julie Chickering sits down with Brian to share the best gift books for the Scrum masters in your life. Overview We all have those books on our bookshelves that we’ve had for years and still refer back to time and time again, or that new title that we’ve just read that blows our mind with the way it makes a new concept more relatable. Julie Chickering is a Certified Scrum Trainer (CST), PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP), and a traditional Project Management Professional (PMP). Today on the show, Julie joins Brian to discuss the most valuable books they’ve read, the lessons they’ve learned from them, and the best ones for giving to the Scrum Master in your life this holiday season. Listen now to discover: [01:06] - Today, Brian and Julie Chickering will be sharing the most valuable books we’ve read. [02:10] - Julie shares how a book called Two Beats Ahead is helping her learn to let go of her creations. [04:00] - Julie shares an interesting story of how Beyoncé invited musicians in for collaboration and how that opened her mind to learning from her community. [05:07] - Brian shares why Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great by Esther Derby and Diana Larson is his #1 book recommendation for Scrum Masters. [06:29] - Julie shares why she’s also a fan of Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great for the mix-and-mash recipe for creating menu selections. [08:06] - Julie shares why The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups insight into the three main things that make high-performing teams high-performing is her favorite book to give to the leaders on her list. [10:36] - Brian shares the three things from Daniel Pink’s Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us that align with Scrum. [12:34] - Julie shares how she learned to flip the script, start with the hard topics in a conversation, and finish with the positive from Daniel Pink, as included in his book, When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing. [15:53] - Brian shares why Dan Pink’s books are most enjoyable via audio. [16:15] - Julie shares how a podcast interview with author Scott Sonenshein led her to his book called Stretch: Unlock the Power of Less -and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined, which helps teams unlock their potential to achieve more. [17:11] - Brian shares Frédéric Laloux's concept of the different colors of organizations as laid out in his book called Reinventing Organizations: A Guide to Creating Organizations Inspired by the Next Stage of Human Consciousness and how we can better enable change in organizations. [18:57] - Julie shares a book she recommends in Scrum Master class that’s great for sports fans called The Captain Class by Sam Walker, which walks the reader through what makes great sports teams great. [22:15] - Brian shares why sports analogies are great for teaching Scrum. [23:28] - Julie shares how even the Rolling Stones delve deep into figuring out how to improve. [24:30] - Why retrospectives are a great tool for improving the outcome of any mission. [28:25] - Brian shares why we still need to adjust to the current climate, even when the goal remains the same. [30:11] - Brian shares books by recent guests on the show, including Lead Without Blame: Building Resilient Learning Teams by Tricia Broderick, Strategise by Roman Pichler and Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition (Addison-Wesley Signature Series (Cohn)) by Lyssa Adkins. Listen in next time when Scott Dunn will be on the show. References and resources mentioned in the show Two Beats Ahead by Panos A. Panay and R. Michael Hendrix Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great by Esther Derby, Diana Larsen The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups by Daniel Coyle DRIVE by Daniel Pink | Animated Core Message Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing by Daniel Pink The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward by Daniel Pink Stretch: Unlock the Power of Less -and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined by Scott Sonenshein Reinventing Organizations: A Guide to Creating Organizations Inspired by the Next Stage of Human Consciousness by Frédéric Laloux The Captain Class by Sam Walker Lead Without Blame: Building Resilient Learning Teams by Tricia Broderick Strategise by Roman Pichler Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition (Addison-Wesley Signature Series (Cohn)) by Lyssa, Adkins Mountain Goat Software Agile Mentors Community Scrum Alliance Subscribe to the Agile Mentors Podcast on Apple Podcasts Want to get involved? This show is designed for you, and we'd love your input. Enjoyed what you heard today? Please leave a rating and a review. It really helps, and we read every single one. Got an agile subject you'd like us to discuss or a question that needs an answer? Please share your thoughts with us at podcast@mountaingoatsoftware.com This episode's presenters are: Brian Milner is SVP of coaching and training at Mountain Goat Software. He's passionate about making a difference in people's day-to-day work, influenced by his own experience of transitioning to Scrum and seeing improvements in work/life balance, honesty, respect, and the quality of work. Julie Chickering is the brains and brawn behind JC Agile Consulting, believes that Lean and Agile practices are packed with potential — to enable positive culture change, business agility, and breakthrough results. Julie is a past president and board member of the Agile Project Management Network (APLN), a Certified Scrum Trainer (CST), PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP), as well as a traditional Project Management Professional (PMP).
In the last guest of our short series, inspired by the Rugby League World Cup, we're joined by the humble, hard-working and high-performing Sam Tomkins, the captain and talisman of England's men's team who are aiming to win the coveted trophy later this month. In Sam Walker's brilliant book, Captain Class, he identified that the best teams have great captains, those who play on the edge, make others better and step up at crucial moments. Sam is certainly a leader who does this and much more but, as he explained to us, this has not come easily. He was never identified as a great talent, having to pay to play at Wigan Warriors whilst holding down a full-time job as a green-keeper at a local golf course. Whilst he was there, he refused to compromise and kept his dream of representing his boyhood team alive. His willingness to do the work in the shadows, the hard, relentless grind in the toughest of sports distinguished him and prepared him for the moment when luck met opportunity and he got his shot. Sam was a central figure in Wigan's renaissance, winning Grand Finals and Challenge Cups before deciding to stretch his horizons and test himself in New Zealand. He returned to Wigan and led them to further glory before once again, being stepping outside his comfort zone by moving to France with Catalan Dragons. Sam's story is packed with incredible lessons, inspiring messages and insightful observations from his climb to the summit of world sport. (HP Plus subscribers can enjoy a special extended version on this episode) Listen back to the other episodes in the series;Sam Burgess: https://apple.co/3sG3g7vLindsey Burrow: https://apple.co/3TPl6RwJamie Peacock: https://apple.co/3WKhphZ- - - - -OUT NOW! The High Performance Daily Journal - 365 ways to become your best! smarturl.it/HPJournalWe're back on Tour in 2023! Sign up to the Circle and get early-access - all details: https://www.thehighperformancepodcast.com/live2023 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dr. Marianne Lewis is renowned for her research on the paradoxes of leadership and is coauthor, with Wendy Smith, of Both/And Thinking: Embracing Creative Tensions to Solve Your Greatest Problems. The conversation covers how we can learn to think about paradoxes, and why tension is necessary for balance - and to achieve innovation. https://bit.ly/TLP-326 Key Takeaways [2:14] Marianne grew up with a father in academia. She was determined not to be a professor in academia. In her rebellion, she came to the Midwest to find her space. And she loves Cincinnati and is absolutely in academia, studying leaders. [3:51] Marianne addresses why “both/and” thinking is essential for emotional balance and rational behavior. [5:25] Marianne refers to James March's teachings about the complexity and messiness of the world we live in and bounded rationality, meaning there's just so much one can take in. We do what we need to do to get by in a busy, complicated, messy world that pushes us toward looking at our tensions and dilemmas as “either/or” trade-offs. [7:08] A few years ago, Marianne and her team built a psychological “instrument” they call a paradox mindset. They've studied thousands of people in multiple languages. From their observations, it appears that the way we think is learned. Your ability to manage tensions appears to do with how often you deal with tensions and how much you try to embrace and work through them. More study is to come. [9:45] Paradox thinking and systems thinking are related. A “both/and” thinker tends to think more in systems, looking for interactions and feedback loops. Systems thinking involves looking at complexity in context and in new ways. “Both/and” thinking adds to looking for the value in tensions as you work through the complexity to find more creative and more lasting solutions to your problems. [11:18] There are tensions between things and between systems, but the important tensions are between individuals. Marianne has worked in this field for 25 years, 20 of them with Wendy. They found three factors that intensify the experience of tensions: Change. Today is becoming tomorrow faster. Scarcity. As soon as you feel that you're slicing the pie thinner, you feel tension. Plurality. A multiplicity of stakeholders with pressures that differ. [12:13] We're in the perfect storm of change, scarcity, and plurality. We are living in tensions in our lives, organizations, and society. The tensions are interwoven across levels and facets. [13:48] Vicious cycles reinforce errors in our thinking. Marianne talks about three vicious cycles: Going down the rabbit hole, or deep ruts of behavior. Overcorrecting in the opposite direction. Polarization. Shouting, diminishing each other, and doing anything but listening. [15:47] Get out of the trench by asking, “What are they thinking? What are they seeing? Can we learn?” [16:43] Virtuous cycles are reinforcing tendencies that help us navigate tensions. Marianne sees two patterns of virtuous cycles. One is Creative Integration, taking the best of two extremes, such as radical innovation and efficiency, and putting them together creatively. Marianne compares this to a mule, stronger than a horse and smarter than a donkey. Creative integration is rare. [18:13] The second pattern of virtuous cycles, Dynamic Balancing, is more common. Marianne compares this to tightrope walking; looking to the horizon while dealing with the present tensions. Don't panic in tense moments; keep moving forward. You'll learn as you do it. [21:01] Help people understand why embracing tensions and creative friction fosters opportunities for creativity, learning, and older innovations, moving forward. Marianne tells of Paul Polman when he was CEO of Unilever, who said Unilever would double its profits by reducing its environmental footprint. On every issue he discussed, he wanted to have tension on the team. He was provocative and purposeful. [24:22] “Either/or” and “both/and” thinking are both about decision-making. Uncertainty is potentially paralyzing for “either/or” thinkers. You don't know what the right solution is and the right solution tomorrow may be different. But the point is to keep making decisions, having the confidence and the humility to know you can move forward, whatever the results are. Keep in mind your higher purpose. [26:06] The boundary around the tensions is what holds the elements together. Marianne is seeing an existential crisis in academia and business that strikes her as a lack of meaning. We need to be pushing harder on finding that boundary. [26:43] Is work a transaction of time for money, or does it have meaning and legacy? You serve other people and make their lives better. Leaders need to create an environment where people want to come and bring their best. If a company has a bunch of people in transaction mode, Jan puts it on the leaders. Marianne says it's key for that leader to tap into why they are there. Make the transactions matter. [29:02] Marianne addresses the role of leaders to help us out of the malaise in our society, even in this wonderful world. First, ask why we feel that malaise. Richard Farson wrote of the paradox of rising expectations. At the lowest state, there's no hope. As people realize the potential, as hope grows, the bar raises and people see what could be! The frustrations and protests rise. [30:20] The frustration should be encouraging to leaders. If your people are silent, either they don't care or they are so far below the water that they don't have time or energy to complain. The complaining is because people see that we could be ever better. The world is so polarized because we have very different views of how we get there. You get turf warfare between different sides with different ideas. [31:09] If we could agree that we all want a better world. There are lots of paths to get there. How do we listen and learn from each other? We need leaders, ourselves included, to make sure that raised bar says it's about wanting a better world. It's not about the how, it's about what we want. Let's have good debates and get the friction in the room and think about how we get there. [31:54] Sam Walker, author of The Captain Class, told about a study he did of the most successful sports teams in history. They had captains with unique characteristics that helped build the teams. They dealt with task conflicts and process conflicts but avoided personal conflicts at all costs. When people focus on the task or process, it is productive, not a personal attack. [33:20] Marianne discusses two sides of conflict: the destructive and the empowering. The difference is your focus: the person, feeling the emotion, or the task, the higher purpose, what you want to get done. When you focus on the person, things escalate in a way that is not productive. Some of us are going to have to model the way with different leadership styles. [34:31] Marianne is grateful every day to have a colleague like Wendy Smith. One of the reasons their partnership has been so productive is that they are really different. They have all sorts of differences but they found a lot of similarities. They want a better world, they believe in learning and innovation. While they were writing their book, they found themselves in many late-night deep discussions on challenges. [38:37] Marianne's challenge to listeners: Start paying more attention to the questions you are asking. Are you asking “either/or” questions? Those questions immediately limit your options. Start asking more “both/and” questions, such as, “How do we make this world more sustainable and more productive?” [39:35] Closing quote: Remember, “How wonderful that we have met with a paradox. Now we have some hope of making progress!” — Niels Bohr Quotable Quotes “We tend to define things by what they're not. We think in terms of contrast. … You're either ‘A' or ‘Not-A.' So we think in terms of opposites, even if those opposites aren't actually direct contradictions. … The way we think … influences the way we feel.” — Marianne “We're wired to have these heuristic shortcuts, these cognitive biases. … What we feel is completely logical but it might not be.” — Jim “People who have a greater paradox mindset, especially when they're working or living in a world of tensions, … are more productive, more creative, and happier; more satisfied. … They see tensions as opportunities.” — Marianne “We use the analogy of a mule, which is stronger than a horse and smarter than a donkey.” — Marianne “I think about friction in two ways: 1. It can produce drag, or 2. It can produce traction.” — Jan “One way to think about how you hold together your tensions is [to ask] ‘What do you want this to be in the broader world?'” — Marianne “I'm sensing an existential crisis. I see it, whether in academia or business, and that strikes me as a sense of lack of meaning. We need to be pushing harder on ‘What is that boundary?'” — Marianne “For all the rising expectations going on around us and the frustration, the lack of listening and compassion is painful to me.” — Marianne “We wanted to write this book; we did not want this to be a purely business book. These same patterns and tools work at the individual level as a mother, as a friend, and we have seen powerful examples working at the societal level. ” — Marianne “I don't want you to think what I think but I'd love us to be aligned with what we want in the end goal.” — Marianne Resources Mentioned Theleadershippodcast.com Sponsored by: Darley.com Rafti Advisors. LLC Self-Reliant Leadership. LLC Marianne Lewis, Ph.D. Carl H. Lindner College of Business at the University of Cincinnati Both/And Thinking: Embracing Creative Tensions to Solve Your Greatest Problems HBR Press James March Systems Thinking Donnella Meadows Peter Senge Paul Polman Unilever Richard Farson Management of the Absurd: Paradoxes in Leadership, by Richard Farson The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World's Greatest Teams, by Sam Walker
Sam Walker is the author of The Captain Class, a profile of the captains of the 17 greatest dynasties in sports history. He is a columnist, keynote speaker and teambuilding consultant for corporations, military units, nonprofits and professional and Olympic sports teams. Over two decades at The Wall Street Journal, Walker served as sports columnist, sports editor, deputy page-one editor and leadership columnist. He attended the University of Michigan. He lives in New York with his wife and two children. Sam had a number of amazing insights during our conversation. Some of them include: “I've been blessed and cursed at the same time by being easily bored” (4:55). “When you walk in a door that you've never been through before, you see that people are dealing with a lot of the same things, the same issues, the same stresses” (8:35). “The book is really about what are the real qualities of effective leadership” (15:30). “The big threat to great leadership and sustained excellence is rarely a lack of ability, it's burnout” (16:20). “I need to be effective as a leader, but I also need to be efficient” (17:45). “You need to understand your superpower and your kryptonite” (18:45). “[Great leadership] is behavior. It's what you do. It's not anything you're born with. It's making the right choices in the right contexts” (20:40). “These captains don't over celebrate. They're almost more relieved when they win because they feel like that's how things are supposed to go” (24:05). “Everyone talks about Michael Jordan being a leader except Michael Jordan” (25:30). “I don't think the instincts of being a great captain and the instincts of being a great coach are really the same” (28:20). “No one has studied more dynasties than me. That's what I do. I seek out these dynasties because I want to understand long term successes” (29:40). “There are three things which I have always called the contagious behaviors of the boss or leader: relentless effort, toughness, and emotional control” (32:35). “The things that I notice about these great leaders is that they're not obvious leaders” (34:10). “Leadership is about what you do not who you are” (34:25). “These captains had very good relationships with people” (37:15). “There's no two dynasties that have had exactly the same culture” (43:45). “Be the best version of who you are, not of who you want to be” (45:25). “What is your unique culture?” (48:30). “Leadership is about this intense one-on-one communication where you talk as much as you listen” (54:15). “The act of being heard makes people feel safer” (55:25). “All of these great dynasties had a superstar who was rarely the captain” (59:15). “There's three phases of a dynasty: the building phase, the committing phase, and the maintaining phase. These three phases are completely different” (1:09:00). Additionally, make sure to check out Sam's website and to follow him on Twitter and LinkedIn! Thank you so much to Sam for coming on the podcast! I wrote a book called “Shift Your Mind” that was released in October of 2020, and you can order it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Additionally, I have launched a company called Strong Skills, and I encourage you to check out our new website https://www.strongskills.co/. If you liked this episode and/or any others, please follow me on Twitter: @brianlevenson or Instagram: @Intentional_Performers. Thanks for listening.
In his fascinating book The Captain Class, Sam Walker found that not one of the 16 most successful captains in the history of sport, was the teams' star player, scoring the goals. In fact, all of them shared a less showy style of captaincy. They led from the back. This finding is in contrast to the enticing ‘Roy of the Rovers' image of what great leaders are like. In this episode Rob explores why leading from the back is so effective and he shares examples of very successful fundraising leadership in this style. And he explains three practical things that leaders of fundraising teams can do to improve their ability to lead in this way, including a technique that empowers others to be at their best. If you'd like to get in touch or share this episode with other charities, THANK YOU VERY MUCH! You can find me on Linked In or on twitter I am @woods_rob. And you can find lots more free resources, training courses and the Bright Spot Members Club, on our website, www.brightspotfundraising.co.uk.
What behaviours and traits from the leader, help your team raise their game and perform at their very best? To answer this question, leadership expert Sam Walker sought out 16 leaders whose results were outstanding in the highly competitive field of professional sport and studied the traits they shared. He reveals his findings in the fascinating book The Captain Class. Inspired by what Walker found, in this episode Rob explores two traits found in the 16 most successful captains in the history of all team sport, and shares examples from very successful fundraising leaders who share these characteristics. The traits were a) consistent, low key, practical communication (NOT inspiring Churchillian speeches!) and b) extreme relentlessness. I hope you find these stories and principles helpful in relation to your own leadership / fundraising roles. If you'd like to get in touch or share this episode, thank you! You can find me on Linked In or on twitter I am @woods_rob. You can find lots more free resources, as well as details of our training courses, on our website, www.brightspotfundraising.co.uk.
What do the Collingwood Magpies, the New Zealand All Blacks, Barcelona Football Club and the New York Yankees have in common? They're all members of author Sam Walker's list of the 16 greatest sports teams ever. It's not the talent, the coach, or the strategy that made these teams great – it was the Captain. Syd Coventry, Richie McCaw, Yogi Berra, and Carlos Puyol led these teams to eternal greatness, and what made them great captains is not what you think… Sam Walker is The Wall Street Journal's deputy editor for enterprise, the unit that directs the paper's in-depth page-one features and investigative reporting projects. A former reporter, sports columnist, and sports editor, Walker founded the Journal's prizewinning daily sports coverage in 2009. In addition to The Captain Class, he is the author of Fantasyland, a bestselling account of his attempt to win America's top fantasy baseball expert competition (of which he is a two-time champion). Show Notes 9:00 How Sam came up with his list of the World's Greatest Teams 14:45 The Captain with the unconventional skill set 22:00 Why the best player is not the best candidate for captain 24:05 Who is the most important player on Barcelona according to Sam 30:00 Many times we bypass the “water carriers” for great players and miss the boat 39:30 Which “club” had two teams that made the top 16 greatest of all time? 46:00 The goal is Sustained Excellence not Winning Championships 48:30 Sam's advice to coaches- Look for the charismatic connector 51:45 Sam's advice to athletes – It's all behavior. Study leader behaviors 58:00 Finding Sam Finding Sam Website – By Sam Walker Twitter – @SamWalkers His Book on Amazon – The Captain Class This episode is sponsored by GoodSport! GoodSport™ is a natural sports drink that delivers superior hydration backed by science with a delicious thirst-quenching taste. And what's really cool about it, is that it's made from milk. It turns out, milk is packed with electrolytes and has been shown to hydrate better than traditional sports drinks and water. GoodSport ultrafilters milk to remove its protein and harness its electrolytes, carbs and vitamins to provide superior hydration in a clear and refreshing beverage. GoodSport™ has three times the electrolytes than traditional sports drinks with 33 percent less sugar. GoodSport™ is lactose free and provides a good source of calcium and an excellent source of B vitamins. I really enjoy GoodSport™ but what gets me most excited is the brand's commitment to fostering a positive sports culture aimed at getting and keeping more people in the game. GoodSport™ supports athletes with naturally powerful hydration and celebrates the natural good that comes from sports. GoodSport™ – Grab the Good. Check it out at goodsport.com. This week's podcast is also brought to you by our friends at Sports Refund. Many of you probably buy trip insurance, every winter I buy ski pass insurance, to make sure that if I get injured I can get my money back on that expensive investment. Well, many of us spend thousands of dollars on our kids sports club fees, but what if they get hurt? In many cases you cannot get your money back, but now with Sports Refund you can. And it's not just for long term broken bones or torn ligaments. It is only a 14 day waiting period, so you even get a refund if you roll that ankle or pull a hammy! For just pennies on the dollar, you can make sure that if your child gets sick or injured and misses a month or more you can get your money back, or your club can get paid. It's a great product, just go to www.sportsrefund.com/game and get your free quote, and if it sounds good you can either get your club to sign up, or you can purchase on your own. Become a Podcast Champion! This weeks podcast is also sponsored by our Patreon Podcast Champions. Help Support the Podcast and get FREE access to our most popular online courses, a $300 value. If you love the podcast, we would love for you to become a Podcast Champion, (https://www.patreon.com/wayofchampions) for as little as a cup of coffee per month (OK, its a Venti Mocha), to help us up the ante and provide even better interviews, better sound, and an overall enhanced experience. Plus, as a $10 per month Podcast Super-Champion, you will have access to never before released and bonus material, including: Downloadable transcripts of our best podcasts, so you don't have to crash your car trying to take notes! A code to get free access to our online course called “Coaching Mastery,” usually a $97 course, plus four other courses worth over $100, all yours for free for becoming a patron. Other special bonus opportunities that come up time to time Access to an online community of coaches like you who are dedicated listeners of the podcast, and will be able to answer your questions and share their coaching experiences. Thank you for all your support these past four years, and a special big thank you to all of you who become part of our inner circle, our patrons, who will enable us to take our podcast to the next level. https://www.patreon.com/wayofchampions
In this episode, Coach Taylor talks the leadership qualities your player needs to have to succeed! ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️ Resources below! ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️ The Captain Class by Sam Walker
Sam Walker's The Captain Class is an unabashed iconoclastic reevaluation of how we look at leadership and talent in sports, business and life. Enjoy! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coachcahillshow/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coachcahillshow/support
„Extrovertierte sind die besten Führungskräfte“ Laut einer Studie aus dem Jahr 2006 sind 65 % der Top-Führungskräfte davon fest überzeugt. (Harvard Business Review) Fakt ist: Einige der größten Führungskräfte sind introvertiert. Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Barack Obama, Elon Musk, Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein und Mahatma Gandhi. Den größten Fehler, den ein Introvertierter machen kann, ist zu versuchen, sich wie ein Extrovertierter zu verhalten. In dieser Folge spreche ich daher über die folgenden Themen: Definition und Unterschiede: Introversion und Extraversion Wie du herausfindest, ob du introvertiert bist Stärken introvertierter Persönlichkeiten Was eine introvertierte Führungskraft auszeichnet Show Notes: >> Newsletter für Ingenieure: schmaddebeck.de >> Kurzvideo - Karriere beschleunigen mit LinkedIn: schmaddebeck.de/linkedin >> Bücher: "Still" - Susan Cain, "Kopfsache" - Patrick Hundt; Videos: "How to leverage being an introvert" - Simon Sinek, "The Power of Introverts" - Susan Cain; Podcast: "Are you part of the Captain Class?" - Tony Robbins
There is a wealth of information on what leadership looks like. But I really believe this book hits upon an aspect of leadership that you might not have considered. Author Sam Walker devised stringent criteria for choosing 16 top performing sports teams and asked himself a very definite question - 'What, if anything, do these teams have in common?'. His discoveries are insightful because they are unexpected but when you hear what he figured out about what real leaders are you cannot help but think 'Of course that's what a leader is!'. Get on our mailing list at www.usebecause.com/subscribe
EMPATHY IS HARD WORK. IT LEADS TO BURNOUT. EMPATHY IS ESSENTIAL IN A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS, HOME AND IN OUR GOVERNMENTAL OFFICES.
From the CYBO archives. For new episodes visit https://www.blog.goldmedalsquared.com/podcast
Will Malde swings by the show to discuss the idea of a captain, what makes for a good captain, and how to leverage these ideas for the betterment of a team.
Gavin shares his first leadership book recommendation and tells us why it's worth reading.
The greatest teams in sports history had one thing in common: a captain with an unconventional set of skills and tendencies. Listen to this episode to discover the core qualities of the Captain Class -- from extreme emotional control to tactical aggression and the courage to stand apart.
This week, Rob talks about an inspiring work of literature, ’The Captain Class: The Hidden Force Behind The World’s Greatest Teams’ by Sam Walker; a work that sells itself on the proposition that “A great leader is not what you think" KEY TAKEAWAYS Teams don’t find success through the efforts of one person. But sometimes one person can act as the “magic ingredient” that causes a team to coalesce into its finest form. This is the “captain class” theory. It is an interesting phenomenon, that those fitting the criteria of the “captain theory” are not necessarily the best players. It is more about their effect than their talent. The true “captain class” are the ones who play on the boundaries, and who push others in creative, supportive ways. There is no substitute for support. Those who provide the hidden leadership are the ones who “box ears and wipe noses" BEST MOMENTS ‘If anything’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well’ ‘It's the culture and the management at the club that matter’ ‘When they play, they play to win, and they play on the edge’ ’These people carry water!' VALUABLE RESOURCES Leader Manager Coach Podcast The Captain Class by Sam Walker ABOUT THE HOST Rob Ryles is a UEFA A licensed coach with a League Managers Association qualification and a science and medicine background. He has worked in the football industry in Europe, USA and Africa; at International, Premiership, League, Non-League and grassroots levels with both World Cup and European Championship experience Rob Ryles prides himself on having a forward thinking and progressive approach to the game built through his own experience as well as lessons learned from a number of highly successful managers and coaches. The Leader Manager Coach Podcast is where we take a deep dive examining knowledge, philosophies, wisdom and insight to help you lead, manage and coach in football, sport and life. CONTACT METHOD https://www.robryles.co.uk/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMPYDVzZVnA https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertryles/?originalSubdomain=uk Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/robryles See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.
Sports is a great laboratory for teams in general. For "The Captain Class", Sam Walker did twelve years of research to answer the question, "What makes great teams great?" He looked at 25,000 teams in 35 categories since the 1880's to get his answer. His results are something we can all use to our advantage. Music - "Adam's Song" (music only) by Bev and Cliff Nelson, Adam Gubman. "Driving" (full song) by Bev and Cliff Nelson.
Former Captain of the Ontario Reign, Derek Couture, joins Cameron and Zach for the latest episode of the Reigny Day Podcast. The Calgary native reveals some of the highlights and lowlights of his career both on the ice and off! From Saskatoon of the WHL, to Székesfehérvár of the Austrian Erste Bank Hockey League and ultimately the Ontario Reign of the ECHL, Couture saw almost everything the hockey world has to offer. Derek still resides in the Inland Empire and his love for the Reign and their fans hasn't wavered.Never miss an episode by subscribing today at LAKings.com/podcast.
Many sports teams throughout history have boasted a roster of all stars and scored a few titles. But only an elite handful have achieved true, lasting greatness. In his decade-long study of the best sports teams in the world, author Sam Walker has identified the one common factor that led to their sustained success—an extraordinary captain. Listen as he shares what sets the best captains apart and how you can become the kind of leader that leads your team to success that lasts. entreleadership.com/podcast The Captain Class by Sam Walker The Motive by Patrick Lencioni The Five Fixes to Get Your Team to Act Like Owners - Free Training Review this episode for a chance to win a $25 Amazon gift card As an Amazon Associate EntreLeadership earns from qualifying purchases. Want expert help with your business question? Call 844-944-1070 and leave a message or send an email to podcast@entreleadership.com. You could be featured on a future podcast episode!
The difference between leadership and management | A new dawn for the DRL | Giving autonomy vs taking control in a work from home environment. Episode 83 of the Leaders Sport Business Podcast is brought to you by Onside Law. As a gesture of help, the specialist law firm is offering a number of free sports law clinics for those grappling with issues arising from Covid-19. Request a free session here. This episode of At home with Leaders features a conversation with newly installed Drone Racing League President Rachel Jacobson (conversation starts at 17:19). The former NBA SVP of Global Partnerships became one of a small number of female presidents in sport when she started the role earlier this week. Founded in 2015, the Drone Racing League now has broadcast deals with NBC, Sky, ProSeibenSat.1 and Youku, and has put on eye-catching events in venues such as Alexandra Palace in London, BMW Welt in Germany, and Chase Field in the US. Also joining James Emmett and David Cushnan for this episode is the Leaders Performance Institute's Matthew Stone, who gives an insight into how leaders from across the sports performance world are coping with their current environments. We hear from England Rugby coach Eddie Jones, and Wall Street Journal writer and author of The Captain Class, Sam Walker (conversations start at 7:45), both of whom have been featured recently on the Leaders Performance Institute's own line of podcasts - a series of at home conversations with the biggest names from across the world of high performance. On the conversational agenda: - Knowing when and how to devolve organisational autonomy; - The difference between leadership and management; - The political leaders who have made an impact recently; - Onboarding into a leadership role during Covid-19; - The DRL's focus on innovation, its virtual product, and its STEM programme; - How David Stern and Adam Silver paved the way for Rachel Jacobson.
"It's hard for great leaders to get the credit they deserve because, by definition, if they do their job well then nothing happens." Journalist and author, Sam Walker, is musing on the notion of leadership at this time of global crisis. "There's a perception that leadership is what you do in a crisis; how you respond," he continues. "But we forget that leadership by its purest definition is what you do when there is no crisis; between crises, it's what you do in terms of planning for the next one. "There's an argument that a crisis, especially one on this level, is a failure of leadership." Walker, who is the author of The Captain Class and a columnist for the Wall Street Journal is the latest guest in our new minseries of podcasts brought to you today by our co-hosts Matthew Stone, Leaders' Senior Product Manager, and Steve Gera, the CEO of Gains Group, which helps some of sport’s greatest teams and athletes maximise the value of their data and technology. At Home With Leaders brings you a wealth of guests drawn from across sports performance to explore how they are adapting to the new normal, attempting to thrive and contribute to the eventual reboot of the sports performance landscape. Walker, direct from his home in Long Island, New York, also discusses: - Why he feels we have forgotten what competent leadership looks like [4:30]; - Leaders such as Jung Eun-kyeong and Anthony Fauci, who have grown as leaders during the pandemic despite not conforming to our conventional view of leaders [8:00]; - The qualities that make deputies, such as Fauci, become so revered at this time of crisis [18:00]; - Why the idea of rivalries in sport will be unhelpful as we emerge from the pandemic [25:30]; - Whether or not leaders will learn humility in the future and be less prone to bombast [33:00]. Steve Gera: Twitter | LinkedIn Matthew Stone: Twitter | LinkedIn Further listening: At Home With Leaders - Eddie Jones Listen above and subscribe today on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher and Overcast, or your chosen podcast platform.
Two books, one topic. When it comes to leadership can there ever be consensus? In both of these books there is a lot of overlap in what the authors consider and look for in a leader. Namely, it is not the charismatic superstar or the one who give rousing speeches. It is more subtle than that. When you are looking for a leader you are looking for the one who will perform very specific tasks.... Legacy: Learn to lead like an All Black. 15 key components from the inner workings of the greatest team in Rugby. In this episode we dive into how the All Blacks cultivated an atmosphere of humility and self-discipline both on and off the pitch and used it as a strength to conquer their sport. The Captain Class: There is a wealth of information on what leadership looks like. But I really believe this book hits upon an aspect of leadership that you might not have considered. Author Sam Walker devised stringent criteria for choosing 16 top performing sports teams and asked himself a very definite question - 'What, if anything, do these teams have in common?'.
There is a wealth of information on what leadership looks like. But I really believe this book hits upon an aspect of leadership that you might not have considered. Author Sam Walker devised stringent criteria for choosing 16 top performing sports teams and asked himself a very definite question - 'What, if anything, do these teams have in common?'. His discoveries are insightful because they are unexpected but when you hear what he figured out about what real leaders are you cannot help but think 'Of course that's what a leader is!'.
Sam Walker is The Wall Street Journal’s deputy editor for enterprise, the unit that directs the paper’s in-depth page-one features and investigative reporting projects. A former reporter, sports columnist, and sports editor, Walker founded the Journal’s prizewinning daily sports coverage in 2009. For this episode, he dives into his book, The Captain Class - a bold new theory of leadership drawn from the elite captains who inspired their teams to achieve extraordinary success. Named one of the best business books of the year by CNBC, The New York Times, Forbes, strategy+business, The Globe and Mail, and Sports Illustrated. Now featuring analysis of the five-time Super Bowl champion New England Patriots and their captain, Tom Brady. The seventeen most dominant teams in sports history had one thing in common: Each employed the same type of captain—a singular leader with an unconventional set of skills and tendencies. Drawing on original interviews with athletes, general managers, coaches, and team-building experts, Sam Walker identifies the seven core qualities of the Captain Class—from extreme doggedness and emotional control to tactical aggression and the courage to stand apart. Told through riveting accounts of pressure-soaked moments in sports history, The Captain Class will challenge assumptions of what inspired leadership looks like. Key Takeaways [3:05] Sam looked up to sports teams and famous locker room speeches as a youth, but he found that most teams do not run the way he thought. [5:40] In his book, Sam looked at teams who had sustained success over a number of years and exhibited characteristics one wouldn’t expect. [8:10] Sam researched his book with certain assumptions about teams, but was pleasantly surprised. He realized as he did more research, that he really had a lot to learn about how leadership really works. [10:25] Some of the qualities and characteristics that team captains had were: Extreme doggedness and focus in competition Aggressive play that tests the limits of the rules A willingness to do thankless jobs in the shadows - Humility A low-key, practical and democratic communication style - They were boring people privately. Motivates others with passionate nonverbal displays - Practical communication style. Strong convictions and the courage to stand apart Ironclad emotional control [15:40] The hardest lesson Sam learned is that if you want to be a great leader, you have to be okay with getting zero credit. Other people may be the face of the company/team; other people may get the better promotions over you and you have to be okay with that. [20:05] There are two types of aggression. There’s the kind of conflict that’s really personal and it’s always toxic. If a leader engages, it will destroy the team. There is also something called task conflict, which can get very heated, but is never personal. It is always with the good of the team in mind. [25:10] When you put successful people together and they’re all working towards a goal, it ends up being a lot of fun, and it should be! They have a level of trust with their teammates and a level of humility among the group that allows them to not worry about the small stuff. [28:15] A lot of people believe Michael Jordan was a great leader. It was actually Bill Cartwright who was the glue that held everyone together. [30:35] We reward heroes, but that is just an indicator that the team dynamic failed. We think working late nights and making sacrifices is a good thing for the company, but if it’s just one man pulling the cart, you’re not succeeding as a leader. [37:10] Leaders who are on great teams and have seen sustained success are running 90 miles an hour, foot on the gas, all the time. There is no such thing as a slow day for these leaders. [43:35] Sam challenges you to think about all the managers you’ve had over the years and read this book and re-rank them based on the qualities listed in his book. Quotable Quotes “The team is so much more important than the individual.” “There are a million ways to win, but every single team who had sustained success had the same characteristics.” “If you really want to be a great team leader, you have to be completely content that you’re not going to get the credit you deserve.” “Will I be content if the team wins? Is that enough for me?” “Team leaders, were often in defensive roles, and were not the face of the team or the first person you’d expect.” “Even if you don’t always do the right thing as a leader, just knowing what you’re supposed to do is half the battle.” “Emotional control is a big one. These leaders had the ability to be passionate and show emotion, and then shut it off when it was no longer helpful.” “Tom Brady said, ‘It’s actually very simple. You do your job so that everybody else can do theirs. That’s it. That’s the secret.’” “It’s about putting the same amount of effort, whether you’re winning big or losing badly. It’s about showing a consistent approach to your work.” Bysamwalker.com The Captain Class: A New Theory of Leadership, by Sam Walker Instagram: @WeStudyLeaders LinkedIn: @TheLeadershipPodcast Facebook: @westudyleaders Twitter: @westudyleaders Website: The Leadership Podcast info@theleadershippodcast.com ~~~~~ ~~~~~ Strategic Partners The Leadership Podcast is proud to announce a new initiative with thoughtLEADERS to provide very short podcasts called Chalk Talks. They’re bitesize hacks on common (but challenging) leadership issues. Interested in learning more? You can only access the Chalk Talks by subscribing to our mailing list at The Leadership Podcast. Beyond the Uniform offers over 300 free episodes to help military Veterans succeed in their civilian career. This includes overviews of potential career paths, deep dives on necessary skills to succeed, and reviews of other free services that support the military Veteran community. You can find more info at BeyondTheUniform.org.
The greatest teams in sports history had one thing in common: a captain with an unconventional set of skills and tendencies. Sam Walker, author of The Captain Class, has unearthed a new mold of leadership that doesn’t always mean the best or the most bombastic individuals. Listen to this episode to discover the seven core qualities of the Captain Class - from extreme emotional control to tactical aggression and the courage to stand apart.
I speak with The Wall Street Journal's leadership columnist Sam Walker on this episode. Sam founded the Journal's prizewinning daily sports coverage in 2009 and is a former reporter, sports columnist, and sports editor. Sam also consults with companies and teams about building better leadership cultures and has authored the hugely popular book "The Captain Class" which looks at the link between the seventeen most dominant teams in sports history. And it's this book that we mainly focus on during our chat. We speak about the relationship between a captain and the coach; the culture of winning; Sir Alex Ferguson; the role of a coach; the traits of highly successful captains; delegating leadership skills; and body language and projecting the right emotions.
Follow My Lead: Developing the Leaders of Tomorrow with John Eades
“It’s hard for a lot of managers to lower themselves in relation to the team.” In season 19 episode 8 we are joined by Sam Walker. He is a columnist for the Wall Street Journal and author of The Captain Class; which documented the greatest teams of all time and the captains behind them. You can follow more of Sam's work bysamwalker.com and follow him on twitter @samwalkers. During the show we cover: - Why there such an intersection between business and sports - How the Captain Class came to be - Why Captain’s are so important - Why communication is so important for leaders today - Can anyone learn about the traits fo great captains - What you can learn from Michael Jordan and Bill Cartwright - How to think about the development of your team
When Sean read Sam Walker’s book The Captain Class:The Hidden Force that Creates the World's Greatest Teams he knew he had to feature him on What Got You There. Sam’s book uncovered that the 17 most dominate teams in sports history had one thing in common… Each had the same type of captain. Get ready to dive deep with with Sam and learn the traits of these captains and how you can use that to improve your team or organization! *Questions for the solo podcast email info@whatgotyouthere.com* http://whatgotyouthere.com/ NEW SPONSOR TEN THOUSAND- www.tenthousand.cc/wgyt 20% off with discount code "WGYT" Pure Spectrum CBD 10% off with discount code “WGYT” https://www.purespectrumcbd.com/?ref=227 GlobeKick 10% off with discount code “WGYT” https://globekick.com/ 15% off Four Sigmatic with discount code "WGYT" http://foursigmatic.com/wgyt https://www.bysamwalker.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-walker-captain-class/ https://twitter.com/SamWalkers https://twitter.com/SeanDeLaney23 https://www.instagram.com/whatgotyoutherepodcast/ https://www.facebook.com/whatgotyouthere/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/sean-delaney-00909190/ Intro/Outro music by Justin Great- http://justingreat.com/ Audio Engineer- Brian Lapres
Sam Walker is the author of The Captain Class, which has been recognized as one of the business book of the year by CNBC, The New York Times, Forbes, strategy+business, The Globe and Mail, and Sports Illustrated. Sam's groundbreaking work has led to him being engaged as a leadership mentor to the Chicago Bears and their young quarterback, Mitchell Trubisky. Sam is also the author of Fantasyland, and is the founding editor of The Wall Street Journal's prizewinning daily sports coverage. You can find out more about Sam at: www.bysamwalker.com Where Others Won't is recorded at Apollo Studios in downtown Toronto. It is produced and edited by Adam Esker. You can book Cody to speak, buy the Where Others Won't book, or learn more about Cody's background by visiting www.codyroyle.com This episode is sponsored by Leaders In Sport, and they have a special offer waiting for you at www.leadersinsport.com/cody
"Your listeners are better fundraisers."Kenneth and James head back to old haunts this week and bump in to Rob Woods for a chat through his latest blog post on incredible Captains. Rob describes the surprising traits which make them so successful plus how to harness the power of a raised eyebrow, perfect listening and stealing other people's ideas. The guys learn about the phenomenon of social loafing, fighting your ego when answering questions and identifying as an ugly duckling. Talking of whom, Kenneth tries not to talk during meetings and James seeks help for his Sunday-League Team. This packed episode also features references to Liz Tait, Charles Pegram, Joe Jenkins and surprisingly, John Wayne. We also discover how to secure free bottles of wine in New York and what it takes to drink 56 coffees in a week.---You can find us on www.domoregood.uk or follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Get in touch if you'd like to feature or star on the show. It goes without saying really but the episodes contains our opinions - essentially things we overheard in meetings, stole from presentations and read in magazines. Thanks for listening.---Further ReadingRob: brightspotfundraising.co.uktwitter.com/woods_robThe Captain Class - Sam WalkerCulture Code - Daniel Coyle
"Your listeners are better fundraisers."Kenneth and James head back to old haunts this week and bump in to Rob Woods for a chat through his latest blog post on incredible Captains. Rob describes the surprising traits which make them so successful plus how to harness the power of a raised eyebrow, perfect listening and stealing other people's ideas. The guys learn about the phenomenon of social loafing, fighting your ego when answering questions and identifying as an ugly duckling. Talking of whom, Kenneth tries not to talk during meetings and James seeks help for his Sunday-League Team. This packed episode also features references to Liz Tait, Charles Pegram, Joe Jenkins and surprisingly, John Wayne. We also discover how to secure free bottles of wine in New York and what it takes to drink 56 coffees in a week.---You can find us on www.domoregood.uk or follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Get in touch if you'd like to feature or star on the show. It goes without saying really but the episodes contains our opinions - essentially things we overheard in meetings, stole from presentations and read in magazines. Thanks for listening.---Further ReadingRob: brightspotfundraising.co.uktwitter.com/woods_robThe Captain Class - Sam WalkerCulture Code - Daniel Coyle
In this episode, we are joined by Rajath K, our co-host who is trying to become a professional basketball player. We discuss a host of topics like why he chose to go down this path, why an athlete requires a strong mentality and how injury can affect you mentally. We discuss a great book called Captain Class as well. Have fun!
In this episode, Caleb and Todd talk with Sam Walker, The Wall Street Journal's deputy editor for enterprise, about the greatest teams in sports' history and the captains who led them. ------------- *Guest Links* ------------- [Sam Walker on Twitter][1] [Sam's website][2] [The Captain Class by Sam Walker][3] [Steve Kerr, the Golden State Warriors, and the Art of Sharing Power by Sam Walker][4] ----------------- *Links Mentioned* ----------------- [Legacy by James Kerr][5] [Great at Work by Morten Hansen][6] ----------------------------------------- The Learner's Corner Recommended Resource ----------------------------------------- [The 10X Rule by Grant Cardone][7] ----------------- *What We Learned* ----------------- The best leaders and teams in sports right now. Becoming great is a completely different process than sustaining greatness. LeBron James as a captain. Captains on sports teams don't have to be superstar players and are sometimes role players. Coaches aren't the one factor that make dynasties. Captains don't like giving speeches. There are two kinds of conflict: personal conflict and task conflict. All conflict is not the same. When it comes to freakish success, lavish spending seems to have little to do with it. The only measure of a team that sustains greatness is that it got through the really rough moments. How people can apply the captain leadership style. What teams are positioned to go on a run? --------------------------- *New Episode Every Tuesday* --------------------------- Thank you for listening to the Learner's Corner Podcast. We hope you'll join us for next week's episode. Until next time, keep learning and keep growing. [1]: https://twitter.com/SamWalkers [2]: https://bysamwalker.com/meet-sam/ [3]: https://www.amazon.com/Captain-Class-New-Theory-Leadership/dp/0812987071/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1541124757&sr=8-1&keywords=the%20captain%20class%20a%20new%20theory%20of%20leadership%20by%20sam%20walker&dpID=51TMwDaLTDL&preST= SY344_BO1,204,203,200_QL70 &dpSrc=srch [4]: https://www.wsj.com/articles/do-coaches-matter-not-in-the-way-you-think-1525439615 [5]: https://www.amazon.com/Legacy-James-Kerr/dp/147210353X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1541125790&sr=8-1&keywords=legacy%20by%20james%20kerr&dpID=510UuDVY7pL&preST= SY344_BO1,204,203,200_QL70 &dpSrc=srch [6]: https://www.amazon.com/Great-Work-Performers-Better-Achieve/dp/1476765626/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1541125830&sr=1-4&keywords=great%20at%20work&dpID=513hGmlWxDL&preST= SY344_BO1,204,203,200_QL70 &dpSrc=srch [7]: https://www.amazon.com/10X-Rule-Difference-Between-Success/dp/0470627603/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1541125893&sr=1-2&keywords=the%2010x%20rule%20by%20grant%20cardone&dpID=41wkGWTxo7L&preST= SY344_BO1,204,203,200_QL70 &dpSrc=srch
This is a rebroadcast of our interview with Sam Walker, author of The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates The World’s Greatest Teams. Sam discusses his book, as well as the importance of captains and what makes for a great leader in the game of volleyball. @samwalkers patreon.com/coachyourbrainsout The post THE CAPTAIN CLASS with Sam Walker appeared first on Gold Medal Squared Blog.
In Season 2 Episode 33, Dr. Bubbs “rewinds” the tape and revisits highlights and key insights from world leading experts from the past two seasons of the show. In this instalment, Dr. Bubbs talks training athletes with Strength Coach Clance Laylor, sprinting and injury prevention with Sprint Coach Derek Hansen, the application of HIIT training in heart disease and markers of overtraining with expert Dr. Martin Gibala PhD. He then shifts gears to discuss muscle fiber types (and the confusion and myths in this area) with leading expert Dr. Andy Galpin PhD, and hears from Dr. Dan Pardi PhD on circadian biology and how it impacts health and performance. Finally, Dr. Bubbs rounds out this edition of REWIND by discussing brain and recovery with expert Dr. John Sullivan PhD and the mindset traits of elite captains with author of Captain Class and Wall Street Journal Sports Editor Sam Walker. Tons of great insights from this incredible group of experts!
Kevin Corrigan 00:27 Intro -Coach Corrigan's coaching journey -Coach Corrigan's biggest influences -Notre Dame defense philosophy -Riding and clearing and mentality of riding -Use of video in developing players -Recruiting 03:26 Coach Corrigan's Coaching Journey -30 years expierence -High school coach in Charlottesville -Assistant coach at Notre Dame -Randolph Macon College -Assistant Coach at Virginia -Back to Notre Dame -Always learning -Starting programs then vs. now -Growth of the game 07:59 Coach Corrigan's Biggest Influences -Coach Corrigan's Father -Watch any and all college sports practices -Coach Corrigan's son Will -Jim Addams -Bruce Arena -Egoless Clarity -End of the year tactics -Constant learning -Reading is key -Good to great -The Captain Class by Sam Walker 25:40 Notre Dame Defense Philosophy -Do no harm to yourself -Be fundamental -Defense can be controlled better from year to year -Evolution of Notre Dame Defense -Keep it simple -On the field decisions -Don't have to outsmart, but have to out execute -V hold philosophy 34:59 Riding and Clearing -It is a mindset -Work really hard at it -Ball pressure is single biggest key to riding 37:47 Using Film for Individual Player Development -Team film almost everyday for 15-25 minutes -Watching other teams -Use more film study for individual players -Only way to really know what happened 41:48 Recruiting -New rules -Kids can go out and play instead of having to perform -Opportunity to get better for longer -More development focus -Sandlot model is key -Multi sport athletes -Pickup game mentality needs to come back -You have until Sophomore year now to just get better -Advocates are needed but not everything -Development is the biggest thing
Thought you understood what makes up elite teams and elite team captains? Think again! Based on years of diligent research Sam Walker www.bysamwalker.com gives us fresh new insights on "A New Theory of Leadership"Welcome to the Business Builders Show with Marty Wolff on www.c-suiteradio.comIs your favorite team on Sam's elite 17 Top Tier teams? Is Michael Jordan listed as an elite team captain? What fun I had chatting with Sam and what a great book - THE CAPTAIN CLASS: A New Theory of Leadership.Learn more about Sam Walker at www.bysamwalker.comThanks for listening to the Business Builders Show with Marty Wolff on www.c-suiteradio.comWant to learn more about my work? Go to www.martywolffbusinesssolutions.comYou can call or text me with your comments or questions at 570 815 1626 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Gary catches up with highly acclaimed Wall Street Journal writer Sam Walker and talk about his phenomenal book, 'The Captain Class'. It was named one of the best business books of the year by CNBC, The New York Times, Forbes, strategy+business, The Globe and Mail, and Sports Illustrated. Sam challenges coaches to re-evaluate how they define leadership in their team and provides helpful strategies for coaches to implement at all levels.
In Episode 44 of Hidden Forces, host Demetri Kofinas speaks with Sam Walker, author of The Captain Class, about how our love affair with athletic performance is about more than rivalry. People love sports. As we love watching the teams we adore try and fight their way towards victory. Their wins are our wins, and we celebrate these triumphs with feelings of joy that are difficult to match or even describe. Their losses are equally ours, and the pain of those losses can feel like a personal failure. Much has been said about the psychology of sports, about those things that draw us in and keep us spellbound. However, scientists have failed to locate exactly what it is that draws us towards sports or, equally, what draws us towards the teams we love. Is it the rivalry and the satisfaction that comes through conquest and the defeat of the opposition? Is it the fun, the entertainment, or the freedom that sports give us to let go of the stress and struggles of daily life? Is it a kinship felt towards a particular player? According to Sam Walker, author of The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World's Greatest Teams, the answer is a resounding “no.” Human beings naturally gravitate towards communal displays of athletic performance. We crave friendly competition. But according to Walker, our love affair with such exhibitions isn’t really about rivalry or entertainment. Rather, as our lives become increasingly intermediated by computer interfaces, spectator sports provide one of the few remaining ways of experiencing the elegance and power of the human body. Herein lies the secret of our love affair with sports: In a world that is constantly changing, sports are a window into the into millions of years of evolution – the impulses, characteristics, and behavioral urges of our ancestors. Team sports, in particular, give us a front row seat to the unfolding drama of the human experience and the evolutionary forces that have shaped human selection. Over the course of this episode, Walker speaks with host Demetri Kofinas about what he has learned about the forces that shape the world’s greatest teams. The conversation is, in some sense, a search for the DNA of greatness. Producer & Host: Demetri Kofinas Editor & Engineer: Stylianos Nicolaou Join the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at @hiddenforcespod
Episode 22: “The Captain Class” by Sam Walker
What do the greatest leaders of all time have in common? You may think it comes down to a certain sense of charisma or some inhuman level of talent - because that’s what we’ve all been conditioned to think defines a leader. But superstars aren’t the same thing as super leaders. In fact, the greatest leaders often fly under the radar and are actually easy to miss. In this episode of the Tony Robbins Podcast, you’ll be hearing from renowned leadership expert and bestselling author, Sam Walker. A former reporter, sports columnist and sports editor, Sam founded The Wall Street Journal’s prizewinning daily sports coverage. And most recently, helped launch the Journal’s leadership column. He is the author of Fantasyland, a bestselling account of his time in Tout Wars, America’s top fantasy-baseball expert competition (of which he is a two-time champion). And in his latest book – The Captain Class – Sam profiles the greatest teams in history and identifies the secret sauce that drove these unconventional men and women to achieve massive success. Sam and our host, Ana Yoerg, do a deep dive into the behavioral and psychological traits of these individuals and how they have been the driving force behind some of the most legendary teams in history. They discuss the myths about leadership – and how to really identify and cultivate the leaders you see in your own organization. Because it isn’t always obvious. In fact, it rarely is. And as Sam reveals, once you do find these individuals, you need to understand how to effectively partner with them so that they assume a more autonomous role that can ultimately lead the entire team to success.
This week we talk with Max Hansen, the CEO of Y Scouts, a purpose-based executive recruiting firm. Max grew up in Glendale, Arizona and went to Northern Arizona University thinking football would be his future. He discusses that change in plan and what ultimately led him to the field of recruiting. Max covers a wide range of topics, including how to align purpose, values, leadership and culture within an organization and within your hiring process. He discusses being disruptive in the marketplace, connecting people and purpose, having an attitude of abundance, and winning the Gumball 3000. Also, be sure to check out Y Scouts co-founder Brian Mohr's own podcast - Built On Purpose - which takes a look at leaders in Arizona and beyond. SELECT LINKS FROM THE PODCAST The Captain Class by Sam Walker Human Elements Arizona Chamber of Commerce contact@azoriginals.net
This week’s guest was a tremendous interview! Sam Walker is The Wall Street Journal's deputy editor for enterprise, the unit that oversees the paper's in-depth page-one features and investigative reporting projects. A two-time bestselling author, Walker's latest book, "The Captain Class", set out to answer one of the most hotly debated questions in sports: Who are the greatest teams of all time? He devised a formula, applied it to thousands of teams from leagues all over the world, and when he was done, trimmed the best of the best down to a list of the sixteen most dominant teams in history. With the list in hand, Walker became obsessed with another, more complicated question: What did these freak teams have in common? As Walker dug into their stories, a distinct pattern emerged: Each team had the same type of captain — a singular leader with an unconventional skill set who drove it to achieve sustained, historic greatness. So he wrote a book that delivers to us this exact formula. On today's show, we talk about his discoveries, take a deep dive with into the history of success for each captain and team he highlighted in his book, and much, much more. Walker's ability to identify these counterintuitive leadership qualities of the unconventional women and men who drove their respective team's to success is phenomenal. A must-listen show. Suiting Up is a podcast that explores the psychology, playbook of tools, and strategies of the most influential people in sports, entertainment and business.
What is the secret to building a world-class team? Sam Walker boiled down the success of the world's greatest sports teams to a single factor: a great captain.
Sam Walker is The Wall Street Journal’s deputy editor for enterprise, the unit that directs the paper’s in-depth page-one features and investigative reporting projects. A former reporter, sports columnist, and sports editor, Walker founded the Journal’s prizewinning daily sports coverage in 2009. In addition to The Captain Class, he is the author of Fantasyland, a bestselling account of his attempt to win America’s top fantasy baseball expert competition (of which he is a two-time champion). Walker attended the University of Michigan. He lives in New York City with his wife and two children.
The Winning Youth Coaching Podcast: Youth Sports | Coaching | Parenting | Family Resources
In The Captain Class, Walker profiles the greatest teams in history and identifies the counterintuitive leadership qualities of the unconventional men and women who drove them to succeed. He began by setting out to answer one of the most hotly debated questions in sports: What are the greatest teams of all time? He devised a formula, then applied it to thousands of teams from leagues all over the world, from the NBA to the English Premier League to Olympic field hockey. When he was done, he had a list of the sixteen most dominant teams in history. With the list in hand, Walker became obsessed with another, more complicated question: What did these freak teams have in common? As Walker dug into their stories, a distinct pattern emerged: Each team had the same type of captain—a singular leader with an unconventional skill set who drove it to achieve sustained, historic greatness. Website/book: bysamwalker.com Twitter: @SamWalkers Thank you to our sponsors! - Lead 'Em Up - Save 10% using discount code 'wyccoaches' at leademup.com - Listen Now: Listen on iTunes: iTunes link Listen on Stitcher: Stitcher link Listen on Google Play Music: Google Play link - Quote The secret to winning is not what you think it is. It's not the coach. It's not the star. It's not money. It's not a strategy. It's something else entirely. – Sam Walker – The Captain Class Inspiration for the book Sam's little league team went undefeated, and he didn't realize it but that was the last team he would be the last time he would experience a sports championship, and it led him to being curious about sports championships. The 2004 Boston Red Sox was a group of crazy players, they were struggling mid-season, then they turned it on and went on to break the 100+ year curse and win a championship. This got Sam to wondering what the make-up of great teams really is. Coaches - Develop your leaders The commonality found in the world's most dominant dynasties was the characteristics of their captains The captain needs autonomy, to act as a middle-manager between the players and the coach On gameday - stop over-functioning, back off and let the captains run the show Youth coaches - Key characteristics to Develop Carrying the water - They shouldn't want to be the superstar, they should want to serve the team first. Relentlessness - Players who have one gear, no matter what the score is Communication amongst teammates - A rah-rah speech is not what works, you want a leader that has one-on-one interactions with their teammates, is intense, uses body-language, uses humor. Charismatic connectors. Introverts are often the best leaders! Choosing captains It often makes sense to not make the star player the captain. Being the star is burden enough. The person needs to be the coach's right-hand and, therefore it usually makes the most sense for a coach to pick the captain vs. the team voting. Remember when nominating them - you want someone who will stand up to you and not be afraid to express a dissenting opinion. Do you need captains on a team? Sam says absolutely yes. Just remember - it doesn't need to be the star. It needs to be the water carrier. Sportsmanship - The Cuban National Volleyball team Two types of Aggression: Hostile Aggression - Driven by hatred or a desire to hurt somebody - This is negative. Instrumental Aggression - Looks similar, but the motive is to win. It turns off as soon as the game is over. This can be positive. Parting Advice Find a partner - a captain - on your team -- Reviews are the lifeblood of the podcast!- If you like the podcast- please take 2 minutes to write a review! Click here - Ready to be an Awesome Youth Coach? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter: SaveSave SaveSave SaveSave SaveSave
Click Here To Leave A Review (takes 2 min) Take the FREE Winning Leader Assessment www.WinningLeader.io In part one of my discussion with Sam Walker, author of the new book 'The Captain Class', we discuss the following: What does the phrase 'Coach Your Best' mean to you? What are the criteria of what makes a successful team? What is meant by the term 'the Glue Guys' Why EVERYTHING Sam thought about leadership was completely backwards Why Coaches might not matter (Ch. 4) The Courage To Stand Apart- Communication (Ch. 10) The application of 'The Courage To Stand Apart' principle to high school sports How a high school coach can start finding better student athlete leaders with potential Plus more!
In Episode 81 of The Weekly Yes, And Podcast - Travis talks about what L.O.V.E Leadership is all about, and how recent research conducted at Google, as well as the recent book "The Captain Class" by Sam Walker further describes a different kind of leadership we are used to describing.
Sam Walker Boring & Dull May be the Secret to Your Championship Team This isn’t a podcast of sports stories, quotes or analogies. It’s a discussion of how championship sports teams became champions due to the efforts of an ‘unsung hero,’ that individual who (somewhat) quietly goes about their business while at the same time being the barometer of performance that everyone on the team wants to live up to. How do teams become great? It may not be from the obvious traits we tend to think of – the most charismatic leader/coach who is a great motivator and communicator. In fact, it could be just the opposite – that quiet person who is (dare we say) rather dull and boring. In his book The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World's Greatest Teams, Sam Walker happened upon the surprising insight that what we thought as obvious simply wasn’t. The greatest teams in sports history were not great because of charisma, motivation or inspirational communication. There was always that ‘odd duck’ who stayed below the radar yet had an internal compass that wouldn’t allow themselves or their team mates to quit or perform at any level less than their absolute best. Who is this person on your team? You’ll gain some ideas from this podcast. To read more about Sam Walker's book The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World’s Greatest Teams click the link. You can also follow Sam on Twitter and Facebook. If you'd like to buy The Captain Class from Amazon, click the link. Click here to check out our newest leadership development tool – LEAD – Leadership Education and Development Steve Caldwell is an executive mentor and coach to managers and leaders who desire to excel in their career and become the leader others want to follow. Steve is a leadership expert, host of the Manager Mojo podcast and author of the book Manager Mojo – Be the Leader Others Want to Follow. (www.ManagerMojo.com) Steve also coaches his followers not only on how to become great leaders, but how to effectively coach and lead their employees to find satisfaction and fulfillment from their jobs and life. Having started his work career at the savvy age of 13, Steve is also currently CEO of Predictive People Analytics based in San Francisco, CA, a firm specializing in helping leaders increase sales, reduce turnover, and attract key talent. (www.PredictivePeopleAnalytics.com)
What do the Collingwood Magpies, the New Zealand All Blacks, Barcelona Football Club and the New York Yankees have in common? They’re all members of author Sam Walker’s list of the 16 greatest sports teams ever. It’s not the talent, the coach, or the strategy that made these teams great - it was the Captain. Syd Coventry, Richie McCaw, Yogi Bera, and Carles Puyol led these teams to eternal greatness, and what made them great captains is not what you think… Sam Walker is The Wall Street Journal’s deputy editor for enterprise, the unit that directs the paper’s in-depth page-one features and investigative reporting projects. A former reporter, sports columnist, and sports editor, Walker founded the Journal’s prizewinning daily sports coverage in 2009. In addition to The Captain Class, he is the author of Fantasyland, a bestselling account of his attempt to win America’s top fantasy baseball expert competition (of which he is a two-time champion). Subscribe to the Way of Champions Podcast on iTunes Show Notes 9:00 How Sam came up with his list of the World’s Greatest Teams 14:45 The Captain with the unconventional skill set 22:00 Why the best player is not the best candidate for captain 24:05 Who is the most important player on Barcelona according to Sam 30:00 Many times we bypass the “water carriers” for great players and miss the boat 39:30 Which “club” had two teams that made the top 16 greatest of all time? 46:00 The goal is Sustained Excellence not Winning Championships 48:30 Sam’s advice to coaches- Look for the charismatic connector 51:45 Sam’s advice to athletes - It’s all behavior. Study leader behaviors 58:00 Finding Sam Finding Ryan Website - By Sam Walker Twitter - @SamWalkers His Book on Amazon - The Captain Class If you are enjoying our podcast, please help us out and leave a review on iTunes. How to leave an iTunes rating or review for a podcast from your iPhone or iPad Launch Apple’s Podcast app. Tap the Search tab. Enter the name Way of Champions. Tap the blue Search key at the bottom right. Tap the album art for the Way of Champions podcast. Tap the Reviews tab. Tap Write a Review at the bottom. Thanks so much, every review helps us to spread this message!
Chad Millman talks to Sam Walker, author of the new book "The Captain Class", about how identifying captains can help you make better betting decisions.
The Leaders Performance Podcast lands with a payload of insight from the recent Leaders Sports Performance Summit in LA on 11th March. Elite performance practitioners share their tips, reveal their blueprints, and detail the ingredients that have served them best in creating a recipe for success. In this edition: - Andy Walshe, Head of High Performance at Red Bull, talks America's Cup Sailing, exploding vehicles, and the future of Red Bull's eSports programme - Sam Walker, Wall Street Journal veteran and author of new book the Captain Class, talks Donald Trump as leadership material, captaincy traits, and why the best leaders don't often seem like the most obvious ones - Alex van Pelt, QB Coach at the Green Bay Packers, on Aaron Rodgers' incredible ability to relax into a trivia quiz - Travis Preston, Dean of the School of Theater and Artistic Director at the California Institute of Arts, on motivating star performers and taking the pressure out of the need to perform - Clay Helton, Head Coach of the USC Trojans football team, on engagining with young players and how to deliver bitesize, impactful lessons to increasingly distracted minds – Prof Dehra Harris, Medical Director of the Standardized Patient Program at Washington University
yo folks' this can be grabbed at a re-mastered level in 320kps. over at https://hearthis.at/bowdeeni-fish-x-ey/ghettofunk-freebee-jamboree-x/ ello x flippers and all so...thank you to the lovely fumans at Ghetto Funk all of these are now available for free dl! previously only record release too! x head over to ghettofunk.co.uk or their soundcloud page for more. I had never played some of these before, so my apologies if some are wrong speed? hey...i'm a fish! recorded and blended in order (well...assigned to fish by computi order), fueled by pink wine and performed on a traktor and an (S2 'tomy-price' turntables) unit. x tracklisting (out of respect for massive freebee business man!...and woman) below; 1.Father Funk - Emperor Groove - by Father Funk 2.Timothy Wisdom - Mama Said - by Various Artists 3.The Captain - Bam! – by The Captain 4.Poppin It - by Slynk 5.Slynk & Tom Drummond - Old School New School - By Slynk 6.Bobby C Sound TV - Devil In The Details - By Bobby C Sound TV 7.Father Funk - Jump On It - By Father Funk 8.Kool Hertz - Supadupa Bad - By Kool Hertz 9.Kool Hertz - Uh Oh - By Kool Hertz 10.Throwing It Wild - By B-Side 11.Hot In Here - By J-Roc 12.The Captain - Club Band - By The Captain 13.WBBL - Ryde - By WBBL 14.B-Side - Clap Ya Hands - By B-Side 15.The Captain - Kick That - By The Captain 16.Tonic - Thistle - By Tonic 17.B-Side - Stylin' - By B-Side 18.Father Funk - Take 2 - By Father Funk 19.G-Thing - By B-Side 20.Bobby C Sound TV - Home Schooled - By Bobby C Sound TV 21.B-Side - Yeah - By B-Side 22.Slammed - By J-Roc 23.Break It Down - By Slynk 24.Funk Ferret & Goodgroove - Rockin Rollin - By Funk Ferret, Goodgroove & DJ Soo 25.Tom Drummond - Pressure Cooker - By Various Artists 26.Fresh Witness - By WBBL 27.Kool Hertz - Originator - By Kool Hertz 28.Throw It Up - By J-Roc 29.Danger Machine - By WBBL 30.Playa - By B-Side 31.Talkin Bout My Baby - By WBBL 32.WBBL - Stephen! - By WBBL 33.Bobby C Sound TV - Beatcatcher - By Bobby C Sound TV 34.The Shaker - By Featurecast 35.WBBL - Mambo Baby - By WBBL 36.Been Real - By Stickybuds 37.Boomin - By Slynk 38.Dizzy - By J-Roc 39.Ikes School - By Featurecast 40.Slynk - Dancefloor Silly - By Slynk 41.Dreamer - By Featurecast 42.Slynk - We Come To Party - By Slynk 43.Check Menina - By WBBL 44.DJ Soo - The Message - By Funk Ferret, Goodgroove & DJ Soo 45.Funkanomics - Backyard Baby - By Various Artists 46.Smoothness - By Slynk 47.The Captain - Class & Style - By The Captain 48.Timothy Wisdom - Mama Said - By Various Artists, hehe repeat-sorry folks! 49.Kick It - By Featurecast 50.WBBL - Wooaahhhh Feat. B-Side - By WBBL 51.The Captain - Bam! - By The Captain, hehe repeat-sorry folks! hey, this fish always needs lovely work, if you hear of some, let we know...we fish can be quite useful... also available for land based opportunities x x big loves x