With the NFL season beginning this Thursday with Los Angeles Rams hosting the Buffalo Bills, I felt it was a good time to revisit one of my favorite leadership moments from last year. On June 9th I had the good fortune of playing a very small role in The Flying Coach Podcast co-hosted by the NFL Network’s Peter Schrager and eventual Super Bowl-winning head coach Sean McVay.
What you are about to read is an excerpt from my book 2021: The Year In Leadership – The Stories of Faith, Athletics, and Business Which Inspired Us All. If you haven’t purchased your copy yet, you can do so by clicking HERE or on the image provided.
I hope you enjoy the book, the start of the NFL season, and the following post about Sean McVay’s truest measurement of performance.
On Thursday, June 3rd at 7:05 PM EST I sent the email you see below:
The Flying Coach Podcast is hosted by the NFL Network’s Peter Schrager and Los Angeles Rams head football coach Sean McVay. I have long been a fan of Coach McVay and his innovative approach to leadership.
As noted in the email, one thing I am particularly interested in is the time period of 2010 through 2013 when he was an assistant coach with Washington under the leadership of Super Bowl champion Mike Shanahan. In addition to Coach McVay, the staff also included current NFL head coaches Kyle Shanahan and Matt LaFleur. Thus the question shown above.
I have hoped one of the respected football authors would write about this period of history. For instance, Gary Myers tweeted me that one of the assistants would have to win a Super Bowl first. I respect his opinion but am interested in learning the leadership principles from Coach Shanahan and his former staff NOW!
As I was on a long drive to Southern Alabama on Wednesday, June 9th, I was listening to that week’s edition. Then I heard the following words when asked what was the first email of the week:
“This question is from Brian in Woodstock Ga….” Needless to say, a wave of excitement came over me!!! Not only was my question selected on a well-known podcast but I was about to get some of the insight I was looking for.
Coach McVay’s answers did not disappoint. As you will learn from the comments below:
Consistency Is The Truest Measurement Of Performance
- Consistency Is Easy To Say, Hard To Do – “The main thing that stands out about Coach Shanahan is the consistency. It’s easy to say, hard to do.”
- “The way that we define consistency is it is the truest measurement of performance.”
- You Must Be Consistent In Your Expectations – “He consistently expected the same thing.”
- You Must Be Consistent In Self-Leadership – “He was consistent in his standards he upheld in himself as a leader, as a head coach.”
- You Must Demand Consistency From Your Team and Fellow Leaders – “He demanded that of the players and I thought he really demanded that of his coaches.”
- You Must Be Consistent In Knowing Every Detail Of Your Organization – “You wanted to work hard because you knew he was on every little detail that was going on. There was no stone that was unturned.” Coach McVay later added, “Coach was the true CEO head coach. He knew everything that was going on.”
- You Must Be Consistent In Maintaining Culture – “There was a healthy competitiveness that our staff had among one another in that environment he created.”
- Consistency Is Contagious – “The consistency and standards that he upheld day-in and day-out is something that I’ll forever take with me.”
- Consistency Means Having A Commitment To A Philosophy – “A commitment to a philosophy… He’s one of the original coaches who married the run and the pass.”
So I leave you with this question, is your leadership marked by consistency in the 7 following areas:
- Self-Leadership
- Culture
- Expectations
- Leading Others
- Knowing Details
- Reproducing Yourself
- Commitment To A Philosophy
If so, you are likely achieving a true measurement of leadership performance.
***The previous post is a slightly-edited excerpt from my book 2021 The Year In Leadership: The Stories Of Faith, Athletics, Business, and Life Which Inspired Us All. To get dozens and dozens more leadership lessons and stories, click HERE or on the image below to order your copy or copies for your entire team today!!!