Over 50% of the American population is under the age of 21. We are seeing similar stats globally as well. Whether you lead a church, business, non-profit or athletic organization, the ability to identify, enlist and develop next generation leaders will be critical to having a sustainable future.
Recently, I read a number of articles on next-generation leaders and what athletic organizations are doing to aid their development. As a person who leads a team heavily populated with millennials, I found the insights fascinating and applicable to my area of discipline. I wanted to make these learnings available to you.
The following are 11 Lessons On Successfully Leading Next Generation Leaders: These will help you lead better.
Sports Illustrated, May 2nd
Help Next Generation Leaders Learn To Fail – Jared Goff was the top overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft but his road to success was very difficult. In his freshman season at Cal, the team had a 1-11 record. Goff also took a physical beating. Ryan Tollner said, “What stood out to me was how unflappable he was. He just hung in there, taking shots – they blitzed him repeatedly – making throw after throw.” However, head coach Sonny Dykes said of Goff, he “never changed the way he prepared or worked, never really changed his demeanor much either.” Tollner concluded, “Certain guys don’t process the consequences of failure the way everybody else does. He’s one of those guys.”
Sports Illustrated, May 19th
Promote The Value Of Hard Work – Stanford Cardinals superstar Christian McCaffrey said, “The secret behind success isn’t as much of a secret as people think. It’s pretty simple. It’s working as hard as you can to accomplish what you want.”
Point To Already Successful Next Generation Leaders And Make Positive Examples Of Them – Head coach David Shaw said, “He (McCaffrey) is a manifestation of everything you preach as a coach. It makes it easy for me. I just say, ‘Do it like him.'” For the record, the Cardinals locker room slogan reads Greatness Is The Result Of Repeated Intentional Actions and Home Of Intellectual Brutality.
Sports Illustrated, June 29th
Focus On Making Next Generation Leaders Ask Questions, Not Answer Questions – The next great hockey superstar is Connor McDavid. Director of Scouting for the Montreal Canadians network TSN Craig Button said, “One of (McDavid’s) best qualities is that he’s always looking at the game, trying to understand it better asking, How could I take advantage of that situation? What would I do differently? He’s got a brilliant hockey mind.”
Help Next Generation Leaders Execute – Button said, “In all my years I’ve never seen his combination of flat-out speed combined with processing speed – the ability to understand what’s unfolding around him, where opportunity is, where danger lurks – and then the skills, the ability to execute.”
Sports Illustrated, August 15th
Force Next Generation Leaders Out Of Their Comfort Zone – UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen, the presumptive top pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, said, “I hate reading. But I’m trying to force myself because studies have shown that it’s literally the only way to matter-of-factly boost your IQ.”
Value Next Generation Leaders – UCLA head coach Jim Mora said of Rosen, “I know what I have here. Josh has a more pure throwing motion than just about any quarterback you’ll ever see. It’s a beautiful thing.”
Make Next Generation Leaders Part Of Something Bigger Than Themselves – ESPN analyst Trent Dilfer said of Rosen, “Everyone is depending on him buying into something bigger than himself. If he decides to do it, he’ll win the Heisman and the Pac-12 and be the first pick in the draft. He’s that talented.” To learn about how Dilfer is developing Next Generation Leaders, click 20 Practices Of Leaders Who Lead Leaders.
Sports Illustrated, September 26th
Position Next Generation Leaders For Success – Louisville Cardinals head coach Bobby Petrino said of Heisman-favorite quarterback Lamar Jackson, “Our job is to get Lamar to be a drop-back passer, to be able to throw the football and read progressions and dump the ball down, which he’s done a really good job of these three games. Then his athletic ability will show up even more because people have to play coverages to stop the passing game.” For more on Lamar Jackson read The One Thing You Must Be To Attract Talented Young Leaders.
Sports Illustrated, October 17th
Teach Next Generation Leaders The Importance Of Making Other People Better – UCLA Bruins freshman point guard Lonzo Ball says of his style of play, “As long as people want to play with you, you’ll have a good team. If you have a point guard that’s coming up and jacking (shots) every time, ain’t nobody going to want to play with him.”
USA Today, October 26th
Be An Encouragement Next Generation Leaders – Next Generation Leaders are also universally insecure. Their bravado is often a mask of very unstable upbringings. Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau said of his star-studded young team, “We’re young. We have pure hearts. We have to grow and mature, and I think that will happen.”
What is one thing from this list you learned to better lead Next Generation Leaders?
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