Twenty Seconds or Five Minutes

Twenty Seconds

Brendan Suhr on Culture, Buy-In, and Being the very best you

Brendan Suhr has been involved in various levels of basketball coaching, most notably in the NBA.

He did a podcast with Jon Gordon and here are some bullet points:

• There’s no limit to hard work. 
• If you want to be a winner, you have to be willing to do the work. You can’t skip steps. 
• Value the sacrifice. It helps you become and develop into the person you need to be. 
• Be open and willing to learn. 
• Never underestimate the power of relationships. Invest in others and have others invest in you. 
• Your work ethic, enthusiasm and positivity can surpass almost anything. 
• Be comfortable enough to have greatness around you. Hire the best people possible. 
• To be a good coach you must learn to connect with people. 
• Internal leadership is important for an organization to grow. The lost art of holding each other accountable. 
• To create Buy-In you have to create Believe-In (value others opinions, don’t tell them everything to do, let them contribute). 
• Take personal responsibility. Don’t try to always blame others. What is your role in it? 
• Shout praise, whisper criticism. 
• Don’t just tell people what they should do. Show them how. 
• When someone makes a mistake, correct the behavior. Don’t berate the person. 
• Command and Control is the old way. It’s now about Seek to Connect. To develop people, you have to be connected to them. 
• Your credibility and competency contribute to buy-in. You people have to believe in you to buy-into what you’re saying. 
• If you’re not learning from those you lead, you’re doing it wrong. 
• The notoriety of a coach comes from the execution of the players. 
• It’s never about you. It’s about your team, your employee, your child, or whomever you are responsible to lead.

Fire vs Poise - Interesting Take on Practice Setup

Pretty good read with regard to the way we practice. Block vs Random and then how should we go about our routines? Passion or Poise?

Fire vs. Poise
By: Coach Ron Wolforth


Is it any wonder young athletes are confused, frustrated, hesitant and/or unsure?


On one hand they routinely hear from their coaches, instructors and parents that it is absolutely imperative to do things with passion and emotion. They have to act with fire, fervor and enthusiasm.


On the other hand, they are also continually exhorted to keep their heads about them when the game gets tight. They are advised to be cool, calm and play with poise and self control.


So what is it? Passionate or Coolheaded? Emotion or Poise? Fire or Self Control?


The obvious answer is… “It just depends”.


The challenge is… it depends upon ‘what’ exactly?


The late Earl Nightingale may have offered us a clue when he said “History tells us, when it comes to excellence and superior performance, the path is clear. Identify what a majority of people do in any specific endeavor and then do the exact opposite. ‘Mediocrity’, by definition, is conventional thinking condensed down into a universal, standard operating procedure. Excellence then, in contrast, is behavior that is uncommon, atypical, extraordinary and unique.”


So the next question then becomes, “If fire and poise are both critical to success, how do we assist our young people in understanding when to unleash their passion and when to be imperturbable and stoic?”


Keeping Nightingale’s insight in the front of our mind, let’s look first at what is commonplace.


At practice and at training, the typical interaction and behavior is businesslike, pedestrian, routine, mundane, repetitive, unremarkable and monotonous.


In a game on the other hand, when the scoreboard is turned on, the behavior is considerably different. In the heat of competition, energy gets ramped up significantly. We see angst, tension, intensity, heightened emotions, celebration and reveling from both coaches and players.


So what do we at the Texas Baseball Ranch® suggest?


We endorse training and practice to involve a great deal of high energy… to have angst, tension, intensity, passion, celebration and intentional emotion.


We recommend that behavior in games should exude poise, control, focus, composure and presence of mind. Especially as the game gets to its most critical moments, exceptional performers are able to manage their emotions, remain present and execute their skills based upon the specific demands of the game.


In short:

In Practice / Training: Ramp the intensity, energy and emotion WAY up. Whenever possible, compete with consequences. Continually and constantly celebrate and reinforce what you want to see more of.


In the game: Remain focused, cool, calm and collected. Manage your emotions. Be strategic, intentional and purposeful. Stay level headed and remain in the present moment.


This is EXACTLY the opposite of what occurs all around the baseball universe every year.


We believe having fire, passion, emotion and enthusiasm is indeed critically important to success. It is our belief that emotion is even more important during the daily grind of practice and training. If athletes become accustomed to handling pressure, anxiety, tension, conflict and emotion during their regular work, they will be far better prepared to remain reticent and unflappable during moments of intense duress.


Botton Line: Be uncommon. In practice, when everybody is sleep-walking and going through the motions, be fiery and intense. When everybody is amped up in the heat of competition, instead be calm, unflustered, clear-eyed and level headed.




This will not happen by accident. It must be on purpose.

All In

Solid read from Athletes In Action

26  "And I will give you a new heart, …"

EZEKIEL 36:26 (ESV)

We have been given a new heart with the capacity to be “ALL IN” for the love of God and others, but we still fail daily to live out of this healthy position. What holds us back; where do we struggle?

Let’s examine more closely what the Bible says about the heart so that we can diagnosis our current condition and begin God’s supernatural rehab plan. Which statement best describes you?

ALL-IN Heart: I am able to love all of my teammates. Divided Heart: I love my teammates who love me. 

“Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart” 1 Peter 1:22 (NASB).

ALL-IN Heart: I can obey God, my parents and my coaches. Divided Heart: I am rebellious, stubborn, and disobedient.

“Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart” Ephesians 6:6 (NIV),

ALL-IN Heart: I am easily encouraged and joyful. Divided Heart: I am easily discouraged and depressed. 

“Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart” Psalm 119:111. “Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD” Psalm 31:24. 

ALL-IN Heart: I have godly wisdom for everyday decisions. Divided Heart: I struggle to make decisions.

“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” Psalm 90:12.

ALL-IN Heart: I willingly serve others. Divided Heart: I let others serve me. 

“Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people” Ephesians 6:7.

ALL-IN Heart: I always practice to the best of my ability. Divided Heart: I let my feelings control how I practice. 

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters” Colossians 3:23.

ALL-IN Heart: I reflect Christ in my actions and speech. Divided Heart: I reflect the culture in my actions and speech.

“I seek You with all my heart; do not let me stray from Your commands. I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You” Psalm 119:10,11. 

ALL-IN Heart: My desires are met by God. Divided Heart: I satisfy my desires.

“Take delight in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart” Psalm 37:4.

This is not a comprehensive exam, but it does tell us something about what a yielded, whole, ALL-IN heart should be experiencing in our relationship with the Lord, with others and with our sport.

Christian, when you struggle to be All IN, stop, pray, check the condition of your heart and listen to God’s leading. He longs to create in you a pure, undivided, supernaturally loving heart.

A prayer to consider: Lord, help my new heart to grow strong and whole, with no divisions