Reader,
The words ‘high performance’ get thrown around a lot in sport, and more so as you work your way towards professional environments.
Arguably, there is a requirement for both coaches and athletes to ‘perform’ in the environments, but how do we create a place where people feel confident to be high performers?
Recently, I was fortunate to venture into an elite rugby league environment as well as two top AFL environments in Australia. The visit was a thought-provoking experience. I have always found it valuable to step away from football and look at other sports. Whilst there are often similarities in professional sport, often it’s the little things that can really stand out.
Examples of this on my recent visit were of a club that had very clear practices around mental skills, role modelling and player voice.
The level of openness, connection and joy was there for all of us to see and it gave the club a feeling of a successful, high-performing environment.
Whilst this may not be directly reflected in results right now, we got a sense that something was building as the club leaned into its extremely successful past whilst looking to the future. Other examples were built around the relentless pursuit of excellence, which was underpinned by consistency in their coaching approach.
Three Things to Consider
- Walk the walk. In order to create an environment for high performers, coaches need to model the behaviours required for success. Whether this is vulnerability, curiosity, empathy, leadership, connection or standard setting, these ingredients tend to be commonplace in environments I have experienced that have had or are having success. If the coaches aren’t demonstrating a mentality of getting better every day, why would players?
- Ownership is essential. Whenever I have been in environments where a loss feels like a funeral, or coaches are inconsistent with language and emotion, this tends to correlate with poor performance. Conversely, those environments where players have shared ownership, can be their authentic selves or speak up safely, have also tended to have a track record of success.
- Consistency is key. Whether it’s the constant search for excellence, or consistency around values, themes and messaging, creating a place that doesn’t get too high from a win or too low from a loss ensures a focus on process towards performance. Establishing clear principles to monitor performance against also helps, whether it’s physical data, or principles related to a style of play can give us a reference point to improve against.
One thing to try this week
If you’re working in a development context, consider how you could adapt some of the ideas above.
“Copy and edit” is likely a better approach than simply trying to replicate elite sporting environments where players are professionals.
Ensure you give players a platform to speak up, focus on constant connection-building, and knowing your players. If you feel these areas are gaps in your coaching, don’t wait until next season to start working on it.
One Critical Resource on the Topic
Check out this article from the PDP archives on the importance of effective leadership and trust at Birmingham City’s academy.
