Mike Krzyzewski, known as Coach K, is one of the greatest basketball coaches of all time. The Hall of Fame coach led the Duke University basketball team to five national championships, 13 Final Fours, 15 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) tournament championships, and 13 ACC regular season championships. He has the most wins of any Division 1 men’s basketball coach in history. He also led the United States men’s national team to Olympic gold medals in 2008, 2012, and 2016.
I heard an interview with Coach K in which he was talking about leaders having difficult conversations. He was talking about how sometimes even the most talented people in your organization get off track and need correction. He used an example from his time as the Olympic team coach to share his thoughts. Just before the 2008 Olympics, there was an exhibition game where Kobe Bryant, the best player on the team, was taking very bad shots. Coach K knew he had to address this with Kobe even though “that’s a confrontation you don’t want to have but you know you have to have.” Coach K had Kobe’s shots on tape so he brought Kobe in and showed him the shots he was taking and told him he couldn’t let him take those shots. Kobe said, “I agree they are really bad shots. Coach I won’t take them.” Coach K said, “I was so relieved. You don’t know how the most talented player is going to react.” But this is “really one of the most important things about being a leader, those shared moments, and if you can figure it out with that person, the relationship that you form with that person is deepened tremendously. So don’t look at those situations as ‘oh man I have to do it.’ Look at those situations and say ‘I have to do it and by the way we are going to get a lot out of this situation.’ So you as a leader have to go in as informed and as positive as possible and as open-minded before you make that decision on the course of action you are going to take.”
There is so much to take away from this interview. Some of the things that resonate with me are, first, Coach K was relieved that Kobe responded the way he did. Even the greatest coach of all-time was anxious about this difficult conversation and relieved when he got a positive response from Kobe. Second, even our most talented people need an adjustment every now and then. As leaders, we need to address those issues, even with our best performers. Third, when going into these conversations, be prepared like Coach K was. He had the tape so Kobe could see his behaviors and this was important for Kobe knowing that Coach K was correct. Lastly, be positive and open-minded when you enter these conversations. I am sure Coach K’s approach of being positive and open-minded also helped Kobe to respond so positively.
Difficult conversations are not easy. But they are necessary. If you prepare and stay positive, just like Coach K, you’ll get through these and reach a positive outcome, even with your best performers. If you have other thoughts about this interview with Coach K, please share them with us so we all can learn from them.
Thanks for reading,
Jim
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Jim Earle 