These notes are from the Don Meyer Leadership seminar and were sent to me by Steve Smiley. These are great concepts for both basketball coaches and basketball players.
-You can have anything you want, just not everything you want.
-Learn who you are and what your game is. Biggest turnoff is being fake.
-Effective better than Efficient.
-Your example isn’t the main way in leading others, it is the only way.
-Your example screams so loudly that they can’t hear what I am saying.
-“Leadership starts at the top.” Morgan Wooten
-Leadership: Like pornography, can’t explain it or describe it, but I know what it is when I see it.
-Pat Summitt: “Got to have guts to make the big decisions.”
-We are all free agents.
-TEAMS: Tough, Effort, Attitude, Motives, Servant Leaders
-Karl Malone missed 10 games in 14 NBA seasons.
-Find the need, fill the need. (What is – where you want to be = need assessment)
-Positive Leadership: Pessimist: “Things can’t get any worse.” Optimist: “Oh, yes they can.”
-2 types of people, energy givers and energy takers
-10 yr. stretch at Lipscomb, averaged 33 wins per season, after a win, couldn’t sleep-“how are we going to have an edge in practice tomorrow”
-Be Sound: teach fundamentals
-Be Solid: integrity, authenticity
-Be Simple: the more you think, the slower your feet get
-Not everyone can work the cash register, somebody has to sweep out the backroom. Sam Walton Story
-Study your opposition, but don’t be obsessed about your opposition.
-Humility precedes Honor
-Bum Philips, “If we make the playoffs, they will let us know.”
-Make up your own mission statement.
-Get praised and criticized when I shouldn’t.
-Simple Truths, 212 extra degree–Here is a link to the video that Coach Meyer is referring to:
(when you click the link, make sure that your speakers are on)
-Got to win when the ball doesn’t bounce our way.
-Start to watch the way successful coaches deal with people.
-People not changing: If the vaccine doesn’t work, quit applying the ointment to the infected area.
-You can whip a horse to run, but sometimes they will run faster if you whisper in their ear.
-Get mad, cool down, then act mad.
-“I don’t make decisions because they are convenient, easy, or popular, I make them because they are right.”
President of Notre Dame
Cancer Player: Malignant-cut it off
Benign-treat it and decide at end of season
Can’t decide-treat it as malignant (cut it off)
-Respond with wisdom, love, firmness and positive self-control when dissatisfied with the behavior, performance or response of others.
-Discipline and Demand without being Demeaning.
-“Huberis” to the extreme
-an arrogant leader who never thinks they are wrong / “and let me make this clear” / very difficult to play for
-“Cows don’t take days off.” Pat Summitt
-Hurts me to leave a task undone.
-Selfishness will kill your team.
-Just because you are elected doesn’t mean you can lead.
-You can elect your team captions, but your players will pick your leaders.
-Internal Control: whoever controls the locker room, controls the team.
-Leadership: you have to let go of your ego, be a follower first, influence others
-You must meet someone in your life that expects greatness from you.
-Expect Greatness, Inspect for Greatness, Accept only Greatness.
-Your legacy: never have a legacy if you don’t give your power away
-Inspect Supervision: be there physically, be there mentally
-Internal Leadership (characteristics of Leaders)
1) Hardest Worker 2) Take of care of stuff off the floor 3) Let the coaches take care of everything else
-everyday need a soft rain (reign) of leadership, like an irrigation system, can’t be too hard, will break the corn stalks off, need a slow and steady drizzle everyday
-Great practice needed from 1) Head Coach 2) Point Guard 3) Best Player
-Al McGuirre came back to Marquette to talk to Kevin O’Neill who just took the job, told him that the Jesuits just took a vow of poverty, (not going to get paid much), all the friends you made shaking hands the first week will desert you after 3 years, (they are just hanger-ons), and that you better have great practices.
-A coach needs creditability to confront.
-Building a positive culture takes a long time, doesn’t take long to lose it.
-Handle wins/loses the same way.
-Cause / Self (must have a cause bigger than yourself)
-Process / Results (can’t be a scoreboard watcher)
-Nothing more harmful to a team than the lack of discipline.
-Dick Bennett Badger Basketball, 1)see the picture 2)sell the picture 3)everyone has to help paint the picture
-Don’t set long term goals, we have to be the very best we can be today.
-Word of mouth – best selling practice, but the hardest to accomplish
-Book “Art of War” Sun Tzu
Need proper disciple, Can’t fear losing, Must face it together, Prepare for the worst, expect the best.
-The teacher always learns more than the students.
Important Situations
Good Businesses (time spent on problems)
Urgent Matters 20-25%
Non Urgent Matters 65-80%
Bad Businesses
Urgent Matters 25-30%
Non Urgent Matters 15%
Non-important Situations
Good Businesses
Urgent Matters 15%
Non Urgent Matters 1%
Urgent Matters 50-60%
Non Urgent Matters 2-3%
*Be efficient by planning / prepare
McCormack’s Rules
1) get a system , any system
2) stick to it
3) write everything down
Meyer’s Rule’s
1) Plan the week on Sunday
2) plan the next day the night before
3) exercise
4) Say No
5) Take mini-vacations (long lunch, early leave)
6) keep a journal, not what you did, but what you learned
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