As we have started a new year, we were saddened to learn of the loss of the legendary manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Tommy Lasorda. With this news, it brought forth a time of reflection of who Lasorda was as a manager and the legacy he left behind. One of my favorite quotes from Lasorda was:
When you’re not playing up to your capability, you gotta try everything, to motivate, to get them going. All of them have to be on the same end of the rope to pull together. It’s playing for the name on the front of the shirt, not the back. Individualism gets you trophies and plaques. Play for the front, that wins championships. I try to remind them of that.
As a coach and athletic director, I tried to instill the above quote into the culture. The symbolism of pulling the rope was a great metaphor for young athletes. It was a great way to remind everyone that teamwork was at the center of all we were trying to accomplish. If we are pulling on opposite ends of the rope, then we are only fighting against each other. This served as a reminder to be a team and was a way to refocus the team.
As athletic leaders, we need to learn from the past coaches that left a major impact on our sports society. The lessons we can learn from them are invaluable and can help drive us to be better with our own programs. Every athletic leader brings a uniqueness to their program, and there was no doubt that Tommy Lasorda was one of a kind. There is still an opportunity for us to grow and understand the way former coaches went about their business to help us become well rounded as we serve the next generation of athletes.
Tags: Coaching