To Coach or Not to Coach, that is the Question

If you are on a smartphone, hold phone sideways (landscape mode) 

Are you watching the Paris Olympic Games? 

The thing that we focus on is the athletes - the best of the best in their sport. And it makes sense that their coach (or coaches) are also the best of best for THAT sport. 

The dictionary defines a coach as a person who teaches and trains an athlete or performer to peak performance. Yeah well, OK. 

A coach needs to be able to understand people's strengths and weaknesses, and promote and maintain motivation in those that they work with. They use a variety of skills to analyse individual and team performance, and provide training to improve sporting results and output.

Effective Communicator & Teacher 

The effective coach is a coach who communicates well and exudes credibility, competence, respect and authority. A coach should be able to explain ideas clearly. Clear communication means setting defined goals, giving direct feedback and reinforcement the key messages.

In business, coaching is a partnership between coach and client. Coaches help clients to define and achieve their goals and objectives. The ultimate aim of coaching is to help people develop and improve performance.

"A good coach will make his players see what they can be rather than what they are." - Ara Parseghian.

"Probably my best quality as a coach is that I ask a lot of challenging questions and let the person come up with the answer." - Phil Dixon.

A business coach can have various roles depending on the context, but generally, a business coach helps individuals or teams improve their performance and achieve their goals. In essence, a business coach helps individuals or groups reach their full potential by providing guidance, structure, and support.

Let me give you three different examples of "coaching" that are very different: coaching olympic gymnastics, coaching olympic soccer (football) and then coaching football football (NFL). 

Coaches Laurent and Cecile Landi coached superstar US gymnast Simone Biles back to the Paris Olympics. According to "the Google" they will make several hundred thousand dollars salary for coaching. Once Simone hits the gymnastics floor - there is NOTHING that her coaches can do for her. She is 100% on her own. It's showtime. Simone Biles: FAMOUS and worth $20M+. Her coaches, not so much. 

When U.S. Olympic Men’s Soccer Team head coach Marko Mitrović named the 18-player roster plus four alternates for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games it marked marks the U.S. Men’s return to the Games for the first time since 2008.

“We couldn’t be more excited to have this group of great players and great people represent us at the Olympic Games,” said head coach Marko Mitrović. “It’s a special moment for all of us as they have worked their entire lives to reach this stage. Almost every player developed through our American soccer pathway, rising to become professionals and now they will live their dreams of competing at the Olympics. We’re grateful to the clubs that released their players in support of our mission. Our goal is to make our country proud and we will give everything for the United States.” Former player, he started his coaching career in 2011. Now Marko is making millions for coaching. 

And now, NFL Coaches and Coaching. Bill Belichick, Bill Parcells, Bill Walsh, Don Shula, Andy Reid, Chuck Noll, Vince Lombardi. The list is much longer of NFL coaches who have become famous. 

No. 2 all time in career wins, Belichick is the only coach in NFL history to win nine conference titles and six Super Bowls. Under Belichick's watch, the Patriots posted 19 consecutive winning seasons, 17 straight playoff seasons and 17 division titles. In his last year, Belichick made $25M, and will get ANOTHER $25M. Since he and Robert Kraft decided to amicably part ways, he will get those next $25 million he is owed without a problem. Nice exit package, Bill. 

What is Andy Reid's new salary?

Andy Reid Chiefs Contract Extension: $100M Over Five Years. Chiefs owner Clark Hunt vowed to make Reid the highest paid coach, with the previous mark the $90 million, five-year deal the Denver Broncos gave Sean Payton to lure him back to the NFL sidelines last year. Reid's new deal is expected to be worth in the neighborhood of $100 million over five years.

Put me in, Coach

Whether it is sports (or business) coaching the outcome determines the income. And, the more money involved, it seems the more control, influence, power the 'coach' has - the more responsibility. With Olympic Gymnastics, once the athlete hits the floor - it's all on them. The coach can only watch and hope that all of the training, all of the lessons, all of the - coaching - will produce the desired results. No control over outcome. 

Ah, but with an NFL coach, it's their team. The NFL Head Coach usually calls the plays from the sidelines. They can throw the challenge flag, they can call timeout. Most of the time, the NFL coach will hire/fire the players, hire/fire the assistant coaches, the staff. Usually it is a group decision (Owner, GM, Head Coach) but with NFL Football, the head coach is usually the boss. And, when you win - big and often - you make the big money. You can make Bill Belichick and Andy Reid money. Yes, the NFL is a BUSINESS, right? The 32 teams are valued at $163B, with the average team valued at $5.1B. And, the owners pay the coaches. And, the money comes from the fans, and from advertising. So, WINNING (not losing) pays all of the bills. Got it. 

Today's Sunday Blog is my first as a coach. A Business Coach. I feel that I have always been "a coach" all my life, but now I am a professional business coach. Actually getting paid for the craft. I give you: www.CXOdepot.com 

Remember Marv Levy? Marv is a Hall of Fame coach who led the Buffalo Bills NFL team to four consecutive Super Bowls, all of them losses in the 1990s. And Don Shula was the first head coach to appear in six Super Bowls, five with the Dolphins and one with the Colts. His six Super Bowl appearances rank second among head coaches (behind only Bill Belichick) and he has the most Super Bowl losses at four. Ah yes, the LOSSES in the Super Bowl. 

Do you know how hard it is to go to the NFL Super Bowl FOUR YEARS IN A ROW? The statistics of that? In my opinion, Marv Levy is one of the greatest NFL coaches of all time. Because, math. 

“You are what your record says you are” is a famous quote by former NFL head coach Bill Parcells that encapsulates his philosophy of excellence. Parcells said this in response to a question about a mediocre team's performance, and it's considered one of the most quoted sayings in NFL history. 

Some say the quote can apply to anyone who works in a performance-based business, especially sales teams. Others say it can also apply to every aspect of a person's behavior, such as how they spend money, take care of their health, or participate politically. 

I have been a coach all my life. Now, I'm getting paid for it. And I'm from the school of Coach Parcells. I am what my record says I am. Everything that I have learned since 1983. All the lessons from winning, and the lessons from losing. And now, I am "Teaching Everything I Know" for a non- zero fee. Professional Business Coaching. 

With business outcomes, guaranteed. That's my personal spin on professional business coaching. Ah, but if the (students/customers/clients) are paying you to WIN, then they need to be....... coachable. And with that, I'll end with another pearl from Coach Parcells: 

“If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries.”

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