Turns out, a lot.

While attending the Greater Pensacola SHRM monthly meeting last week, I heard University of West Florida Argonauts head football coach, Pete Shinnick, speak about “Creating a Positive Culture.” 

As I hit the elevator button, I was a little nervous the speech was going to be a callused, male-dominated talk about college athletics… but boy was I wrong. Shinnick was a captivating speaker, leaving the 80 people in the room with tons of advice we could bring back to our offices.

Shinnick started off sharing books that have impacted him and his team the most: 

— Energy Bus, Jon Gordon.

— Power of Positive Leadership, Jon Gordon.

— Built to Last, Jim Collins.

— How the Mighty Fall, Jim Collins.

— Good to Great, Jim Collins.

— The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, Patrick Lencioni.

Shinnick believes in Jon Gordon’s books so much that he invests in one per year for each one of his football players.

It makes you wonder: Are you investing in your team to build a great culture?

 

If you aren’t, Gordon’s books are a good place to start. As Shinnick said, when it comes to leading others, it’s important for your team to hear a voice outside of your own.

Gordon, best-selling author and national speaker, will be a keynote at EntreCon this year, set for Nov. 14-15. If you register before July 31, you’ll receive a copy of his best-selling book, The Power of Positive Leadership (Coach Shinnick Approved!).

Visit EntreCon’s Eventbrite page to see other keynote speakers, conference details, breakout tracks and more. Jon Gordon is, check out his Twitter account.  

It’s easy enough to read professional development books, but how do you get your team to actually implement them? 

Shinnick listed some important reminders for every leader to keep their team (and culture) in place:

— You’re the driver of your bus.

— No energy vampires allowed.

— Keep your ego in check.

— Get the right people on your bus.

— Continue the “Flywheel Principle.”

— The absence of trust means you need to move on.

— No one thrives on confrontation, but do not avoid holding others accountable.

A member of the crowd asked, “What do you do if you’re having a hard time motivating someone to do the things they’re supposed to do?”

Pete’s responses were:

— Ask them exactly what they want to be in five years. A manager? A senior leader? An NFL player? And when they answer, ask them how do their work habits reflect that. Giving open and honest feedback in evaluations is one strategy that can help.

— The other thing he reminds us, is a saying his Dad used to use: “Is the player injured, disgruntled or out of shape?” – I had to think about this one for a moment, but it did make sense in an office setting to. It’s all about finding the core of what the issue is and handling it accordingly.

Not every coach builds a team from scratch and sees success as the Argos have seen in two years without some sort of secret ingredient. And, believe it or not, Shinnick’s “secret leadership sauce” wasn’t written up on his slides. Rather, it was a few words that he spoke as easily and fluidly as his name: it was his personal mission.

It was just a few simple words, but it spoke so loudly to me. Every interaction he has with his team (encouraging words, telling a joke, team huddles, tough conversations), were all meant to have a positive impact and lead them to success both on and off the field.

Note the words, “on and off the field.”

Shinnick wasn’t just coaching them to be great football players, he was coaching them to be great husbands. Great fathers. Great students. He truly cared for their overall success, not just the success they achieved in uniform.

Of course managers care about their team members’ performance at the office, but what if you took it another step to help coach them on how to live a positive, successful life outside of the office as well?

Blurring those lines can be scary, but I believe getting personal builds trust. Besides, trying to balance our busy lives proves impossible for most of us. The reality is that our professional lives often bleed into our personal lives - and vice versa. So as a leader, why not take advantage of that to grow your team into something amazing?

So, as much as I want Coach Shinnick to be a speaker at EntreCon come November, I want him to be leading his team to the championship even more.  Thanks for reading and go Argos!