One of the most mythical moments in sports leadership is the halftime speech. This is traditionally been thought of as a time for significant changes and inspirational messages which lead to championship victories. One of my favorite Hollywood depictions of the halftime speech comes from Remember The Titans. Watch the clip below:
But the truth of what happens during halftime is often completely different.
A Legendary Leader
I am loving Carlo Ancelotti’s book Quiet Leadership: Winning hearts, minds and matches. If you are not familiar with Ancelotti you should be. Ancelotti is the most successful manager in UEFA Champions League history, having won the trophy a record five times, plus two more when he was a player. He is also the first and only one to have managed teams in six Champions League finals. Ancelotti is also the first and only manager ever to have won league titles in all of Europe’s top five leagues.
On pages 198-200, assistant coach Paul Clement said, “Carlo was excellent at halftime.” He then he broke down Ancelotti’s process. It provides an excellent template for all leaders on making mid-month/quarter/annual adjustments.
The following is a 5-Step Process for What The Greatest Coaches Do During Halftime:
Cool Down and Collect Your Thoughts
Less-successful leaders are often reactive, not Ancelotti. He views halftime as “the period to help the players.” Ancelotti would initially leave the players to emotionally decompress, get treatment, and talk amongst themselves.
While the players were decompressing, Ancelotti would go to a side room and have a brief time of solitude to collect his thoughts. I image he was likely reviewing opposing team lineups, scouting reports, his team’s own execution, and how the game itself was unfolding.
Clement added, “Carlo saw the dressing room as a combination of a sanctuary for the players and the place where he did his work. He would take himself away from it when necessary and he would think.”
Gather Additional Information
John Maxwell’s Law of the Inner-Circle teaches us that those closest to the leader determine the success of the leader. In addition to collecting his own thoughts, he would then solicit feedback from his trusted assistant coaches.
Clement noted, “He would listen to me and the other assistants, take that in, and maybe there would be a bit of dialogue between us. Carlo would then go back into the main dressing room and deal with facts.”
Deal With Facts
In the movie Reagan, President Ronald Reagan, played by Dennis Quaid, said, “Clarity is power.” Ancelotti would agree. He did not traffic emotion, just the facts needed to help his players. This is something many leaders should learn from.
Clement observed, “He would make it clear, with just two or three points, no more than that. There was no waffle, no cliches… It was all to do with the tactics.”
Communications with top performers should be crisp, clear, and compelling. Do not delve into emotion or hyperbole.
Delegate One-On-One Coaching Conversations
Ancelotti would then leave the responsibility of individual halftime conversations about tactics to his assistants. He was responsible for culture-building and high-level communications.
Clement said, “He would leave me and the assistants in the dressing room to do little one-on-ones with the players about things we had discussed earlier.”
Give Final Reminders
After a time of individual conversations, Ancelotti would return for a final word before heading back out onto the field.
Clement remembered, “We would come back in from the warm-up and he would have a presence again. He would be giving reminders to people and we’d have a huddle, then out we’d go.”
Conclusion
Whether you lead an athletic organization, business, ministry, or non-profit, Ancelotti gives leaders a wonderful template for communicating mid-month/quarter/annual adjustments.
- Don’t React. Isolate and Collect Your Thoughts.
- Gather Additional Information.
- Deal With Facts.
- Delegate One-On-One Coaching Conversations.
- Give Final Reminders.
This is how one of the most successful coaches in history manages halftime.
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