LEADERSHIP IS NOT A SPECTATOR SPORT

By Tyler Head

What does it look like to participate in your organization? 

As your company grows, what does it look like to stay involved with what really matters?  

As the distance between you and the day-to-day operations increases over time, how can you meaningfully stay in the game?  

I once heard a story of a baseball coach who made an impressive amount of effort to shake the hands of his players before every game for over twenty-plus years.

You see, this wasn’t just any coach. Ten or so years before, he worked hard to gather other lovers of baseball and invited them to be a part. He cared a lot about the sport and wanted others who shared this passion to participate in something bigger. So, he started a small local league with two teams of around 20 players. 

The Coach who had the original idea found two close buddies and invited them to coach these two teams, and empowered them to put together their own coaching staff. 

So, they did. 

However, the original Coach worked hard to remain present and encourage the coaches and players even though his responsibilities had moved from day-to-day operations to running the league as a whole. 

Even though his main job duties had changed, and he was no longer coaching a specific team, he’d stand at the entrance to the field and shake players’ hands before every game, pat them on the back, and or encourage in some way. He would look them in the eye, smile, and give a simple word or nod. Nothing ornate or overly challenging. He genuinely recognized them as valuable parts of the league.  

Ten plus years later, this same coach—now the leader of a multi-team league that supports over 25 teams with roughly 20 players on each team—hosts multiple tournaments a year at a massive complex where dozens of other teams come from all over to play.  

Somehow, someway, amid all other duties like managing a fifty-plus team tournament, coordinating trophies, vendors, coaching coaches, etc., he still finds time to ensure he creates intentional and strategic touchpoints that connect and support the members of his growing organization. 

Coach still manages to individually recognize players by sharing a smile, patting them on the back, or offering an encouraging word before the game.  

It could have been easy for Coach to be too busy with the day-to-day stressors. I mean, with 20 teams, roughly 3 coaches per team, and 17-25 players a team…that’s about five-hundred people practicing through the week and running around on tournament day.  

You see, this Coach knew that anyone willing to put their trust in him by joining the league and buying into the mission was committing to being a part of something bigger than oneself. 

So, the questions here for you, Business Leaders, CEOs, and Executives are: 

• Do your people know you care?  
• Are you connecting with them on a consistent basis?  

As Theodore Roosevelt put it, “People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” 

Join us Wednesday, August 10 at 11:30 AM Central Time to Learn How To Attract and Retain Good Employees: How to Lead Today’s Workforce. Click Here to register for this live webinar. 

Think of DRYVE Leadership Group as your organization’s guide to better walking with your people, developing a shared purpose, and cultivating a collaborative culture that will DRYVE better business results.