How Do You Lead A Unicorn? 17 Things Successful Leaders Know About Leading Top Talent.

Notice the wording of this post’s title, How To Lead A Unicorn – singular.  You will not be leading unicorns – plural.  A unicorn is unique, hard to find, and one of a kind.  By its very definition, there is nothing else like a unicorn.  Whether you are in ministry, sales, athletics, coaching, music, or any other profession, there is a unicorn.  Someone who is the best of the best, unique, and special.  And smart organizations do everything they can to secure their services.

But when you find a unicorn, you will discover they are not easy to lead.  Unicorns are bigger, stronger, smarter, and faster than everyone else – possibly including you as the leader.  You have to work especially hard to stay ahead of them.

In the April 8th edition of Sports Illustrated, the excellent basketball Chris Ballard wrote an article entitled How To Coach A Unicorn which profiles the relationship between Milwaukee Bucks superstar forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and head coach Mike Budenholzer.  If you want to know why Giannis is a unicorn, check out the video above.  I felt his insights were so insightful I want to share them with you.

The following 17 lessons on How To Lead A Unicorn:

1. You Must Be Creative To Lead A Unicorn – There has not been anyone like them.  Therefore, you must create the template on how to lead that individual.
2. You Must Have Credibility To Lead A Unicorn – On a scale of 1-to-10, a 9 or 10 talent will not follow a 5 leader for long.  While coaching the Atlanta Hawks for five seasons, Budenholzer led the team to four playoff seasons and was named the 2015 Coach of the Year.  Kyle Korver said, “He’s just a someone you want to follow because he’s not just a good person, but he’s great at his craft.”
3. You Must Spend Time With Your Unicorn – Relationships matter.  Immediately after being hired, Budenholzer scheduled a breakfast meeting with Giannis and the team’s other star Khris Middleton.
4. You Must Care About Your Unicorn As A Person – Budenholzer is not only highly competent but gives the impression he cares about the players.
5. You Must Have A Vision For Your Unicorn – At their first meeting, Budenholzer laid out his vision which was “Play faster. Shoot more threes.  Create space.”
6. Unicorns Are Incurably Curious – Giannis showed up to the meeting with a notebook full of questions which included how practices would be run, defensive philosophy, and who would run the offense.
7. To Lead A Unicorn You Must Remove The Bureaucracy And Red Tape – Unicorns needs space.  Smart leaders give them the freedom they need to showcase their unique talents.  Budenholzer modified his system to take advantage of Giannis’ talents.
8. Give Your Unicorn As Much Opportunity As Possible – Budenholzer asked his assistant coach Darvin Ham, “O.K., who’s the point guard?”  To which Ham replied, “Giannis.”  This flowed from Budenholzer continually asking, “How can we get the ball in his hands?”
9. Surround Your Unicorn With Talent And Resources – The Bucks added center Brook Lopez and forward Ersan Ilyasova.
10. Having A Unicorn Gives You As A Leader Multiple Options – Giannis is so versatile it allows Budenholzer to play him and other players in multiple positions and roles.
11. Unicorns Want And Need To Be Challenged – Budenholzer noticed Giannis had much room to improve defensively.  He gave him the ultimate challenge of not only improving, but winning Defensive Player of the Year.
12. Invest Resources In Your Unicorn – Regarding Giannis, Budenholzer said, “He craves ways to get better, craves information.”
13. Connect Your Unicorn With Other Unicorns – Budenholzer added, “he seeks out Hakeen Olajuwan, Kobe (Bryant).  He really believes in making those (next) steps… You have to seek people out to learn and grow.”
14. You Must Aligned And Attuned With Your Unicorn – For the Bucks to have as much success as possible, Budenholzer and Giannis must stay aligned.  Currently, they are.
15. Unicorn’s Need Encouragement – It has been my experience unicorns have an increased level of insecurity.  This is because they have the most people depending on them, the most to lose and be criticized for.  Giannis said, “I’ve gotten more confident.  I’ve gotten better.  And he’s like, ‘Keep shooting it.’ He’s yelling all the time to shoot the ball, and I’ve never had that before.  It’s a good feeling.”
16. Unicorns Allow You To Reset Expectations – Since the addition and emergence of Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Milwaukee Bucks have legitimate championship expectations.
17. Unicorns Are Attracted To Cultures Of Excellence  – Giannis’ contract concludes at the end of the 2020-21 season.  Ballard wrote on the team’s general manager Jon Horst plan to re-sign him, “Other franchises can promise brighter glares, glitzier supporting casts.  Horst hopes that by building a basketball culture akin to the Spurs’ and Warriors’ – inclusive, personal and ‘laser-focused on excellence.'”

What is one thing you learned about leading unicorns from Giannis Antetokounmpo and head coach Mike Budenholzer?

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