thoughts on a quote

“Never put players in a win-lose situation, always put them in a win-win situation.”

Failure is not a state of being… It is a state of mind.

Going into a new season (as a coach or player) or a new job, many people throw themselves into win-lose situations. The individual or those around them set goals, standards, and expectations. It is when those goals, standards and expectations aren’t met that an individual is viewed or views themselves as a failure. This is what causes a win-lose situation and causes an unhealthy environment with unhealthy competition.

            Sometimes people find themselves in lose-lose situations, which is caused by corruption and malicious intent. Lose-lose situations occur in environments or situations that lack integrity. The objective of success is lost and selfish materialism takes over. An example of a lose-lose situation would be taking steroids as an athlete. There may be short-term glory, but in the end every party involved will lose as a result.

            At all costs, as a leader you want to avoid both lose-lose and win-lose situations. Whether on the basketball court, in the classroom, or in the office you must put those in which you lead in win-win situations 100% of the time. By doing this you ensure the success of everyone around you and the organization. To do this you must teach/show that no shortcoming is enough to be called a failure unless the individual allows it to be. Even in a losing period an individual can succeed. No one is a failure (a loser), unless they allow a loss to destroy their focus and ruin their happiness.

            An example I can think of is the Butler Bulldogs and their coach Brad Stevens. I believe that Coach Stevens is a coach who always puts his players in win-win situations, which is exemplified by the play of his team leaders. In 2010, when Butler made the National Championship they were in a win-win situation. They were a Cinderella story and if they won it would be a miracle. If they lost, however, they would not be criticized because they had already exceeded expectations and succeeded in making it as far as they did.

            Going into the 2011 season, Brad Stevens could have been a common coach (and leader) and allowed his players to begin the season with a win-lose mindset. After a Cinderella moment a team is quickly forgotten, especially when their best player (In this case Gordon Hayward) jumps to the league. Coach Stevens could have lowered his standards and allowed his team to return to their non-contender mid major status, but Coach would not give in. Instead he developed a win-win attitude among his team and University.

            The attitude of his senior leader Matt Howard exemplifies that confidence and will which can be best developed in a win-win program. When there is no fear of failure is when you see gritty defense, Cinderella’s upsetting powerhouses, and in the 2011 NCAA’s exciting comebacks and buzzer-beaters. In 2011, Butler again fought and clawed its way into the National Championship for the second year in a row. When watching Coach Stevens’ team you can see that the players play without fear of failure because if they give their all, play harder and smarter than anyone else, then no matter what the scoreboard says, they will be a success.

            To develop a win-win system, a win-win situation, and a win-win mentality should be the goal of leaders in every aspect of society. To do this you need to teach those under you that failure is a state of mind, not a state of being. Failure occurs when an individual cannot see that giving his/her all is a success in itself. A win-win situation can occur even in a lost match because nobody is perfect, nobody will win 100% of the time, but you can succeed 100% of the time.

            As a leader, to put those who you are leading in a win-win situation, preparation is key. Like Shakespeare so simply puts it in Macbeth, “The readiness is all.” Preparing for success, preparing to win, is key but you must prepare in the right ways. First is developing a win-win attitude. Making sure that those in which you are leading have a healthy view on success and failure, and will put forth maximum effort at all times is the basis of a win-win attitude.

            Next as a leader you must always develop a win-win situation by teaching all aspects of your business strategy, game plan, assignments, ect… You must equip those around you with the skills to tackle the task at hand. In the case of being a role model you must equip those around you with the skills to change the world for the better.

Skills are important to have, but they are useless unless you know when and why to use them. Because of this a leader must always teach the importance of a skill and when and how to use that skill properly. If you master a skill and always use it properly you can never fail.

            The media, capitalism, and society today strive to create win-lose situations. They always want there to be someone who is gloried and someone who suffers. Of course this is what sells, but it is not what is best for the world. I try to live in a way that what sells, what brings in the money, what attracts the most attention is not my focus of attention. Sure these things play a role in my life, but I want to focus on what brings me happiness, and what makes me successful. What makes me successful is not the amount of money I make, what material goods I have, or what others think of me, but it is the happiness and contentment of my being.

            I give my all to understand the why and how I am using my skills so that I will never let myself, or more importantly anyone else down. I have put myself in a win-win situation. I hope that I can do the same for those that I lead