As a 58-year-old man, few people will ever know how hard I work to remain relevant. Few people that is, unless you’re getting older and been there yourself. That is why the following story resonated with me so much and I feel has incredible value to all aging leaders.
On Friday evening, February 24th, Golden State Warriors star player Klay Thompson hit twelve 3’s on the way to scoring 42 points and leading the team to a 116-101 win over the Houston Rockets. A video of his performance can be seen by clicking the video above.
The Athletic’s Anthony Slater then wrote an interesting profile on Thompson which you can read here. In this article, we get a glimpse of five ways the 12-year veteran and overcomer of two major injuries has evolved and remains relevant to the Warriors organization.
For Aging Leaders To Evolve And Remain Relevant They Must First Acknowledge They Need Evolve
This cannot be taken for granted. As many leaders grow older, they also grow stubborn and stale. But not Thompson. He is humble and self-aware enough to know changes need to be made. He acknowledged, “Steve (head coach Kerr) was just telling me about how my game needs to evolve as I get older. He used Michael Jordan as an example, how when he got into his 30s he became an incredible low post player. Not saying I’m Mike, but I’m saying I can evolve in other areas.”
For Aging Leaders To Evolve And Remain Relevant They Must Be Willing To Change
This too cannot be taken for granted. Thompson will be a first ballot Hall of Famer when he retires. He will go down as one of the greatest shooting guards ever to play the game. But time and injuries have caused his skills to decline. Thompson was then willing to self-sacrifice and change positions to help the team continue to succeed. Depending on the opponent, Thompson now plays either small or power forward.
For Aging Leaders To Evolve And Remain Relevant They Must Remain Grateful
As mentioned, Thompson missed two full seasons with knee and Achilles injuries. Now able to play again, he is grateful and reflective. Thompson noted, “I always reflect on the years that I was not playing and think about the times that I just was on the sideline watching. It was a weird time. Now, it’s easy to put everything in perspective and appreciate nights like this and just appreciate being able to move my body and play with great pace, great flow and not even hesitate or think about anything.”
For Aging Leaders To Evolve And Remain Relevant They Must Be A Great Teammate
Entitlement and arrogance are not attractive qualities for aging leaders. One of the things aging leaders can do to evolve and remain relevant is champion the efforts of their teammates.
Thompson said. “I try to be encouraging on the bench. I actually saw a great video of (UConn women’s coach) Geno Auriemma talking about his players and how he might not let the girls get in (the game) if they don’t show great body language, how he watches game film and he observes his players if they are engaging on the bench, if they’re being a great teammate. That resonated with me a lot. (Earlier) this year, I’d be in my own feelings because I wasn’t shooting the ball well or I didn’t feel like myself. After hearing that, you know, Geno’s been around so much greatness, I just reminded myself to be a leader. I’ve been here so long. I’ve got to lead. I’ve got to use my voice.”
Being a great teammate has allowed Thompson to continue to lead. The same will be true for you.
For Aging Leaders To Evolve And Remain Relevant They Need A Coach
Few aging leaders will ever evolve and remain relevant without help. You will need a coach. Thompson takes full advantage of the team’s head coach Steve Kerr and assistant coach Bruce Fraser. He said, “Those guys are straight shooters. They wouldn’t tell me I was capable of those things if I wasn’t. That really resonated with me and I’m going to continue to try to rebound at a high rate and playmake the rest of my career.”
We need people in our lives who will shoot straight with us and tell us what we are capable or not capable of.
Conclusion
Evolving and remaining relevant is quite difficult. But if you are willing to get a coach, make necessary changes, be grateful and a great teammate, you may remain relevant far longer than you ever imagined.
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