A Coach's Diary

In his book Win Forever , Pete Carroll talks about the process of creating his own philosophy.  He starts out by talking about the impact that John Wooden and his book, They Call Me Coach , had on him defining his personal philosophy.  Here is an excerpt regarding Coach Wooden and his philosophy: "He had figured out absolutely everything about his program - his belief system, his philosophy, his delivery, and a million other details that made that first championship possible.  He had figured it out so completely that he could re-create it year after year after year.  Even more important, he had done more than just become aware of all those details inside his own mind.  He had refined them to the point that he could explain them to the people around him.  I think a great part of his genius was that he was able to explain his beliefs and tie them back into a clear vision that brought it all together into a single team effort." Here is an excerpt of hi...

In chapter 6 of his book Win Forever , Pete Carroll talked about some of the difficulties he faced as the head coach of the New England Patriots.  After two seasons with the 49ers, the Patriots hired him in large part because they wanted to run their organizations just like the 49ers organization, the organization they hired him from.  On the 49ers, Carroll said: Whether it was office dynamics, travel arrangements, or schematics of their offense and defense - everything the 49ers did was first-class and professional.  They were consistently efficient and effective in every aspect of their team. Carroll wrote that he learned early in his tenure with New England an important lesson about the difficulty of implementing change in an organization.  When the Patriots organization showed skepticism in his philosophy change, he called on Coach Seifert and Coach Walsh, two guys he worked with in San Francisco for advice.  He wrote that Coach Seifert's...

In chapter 5 of his book Win Forever , Pete Carroll talks about the influence the coaching staff at San Francisco  had on his coaching style and his philosophy.  He was just let out of his contract with the Jets and was free to find a new coaching staff to join.   He was able to get on with the San Francisco 49'ers as their defensive coordinator. They were coming off a Super Bowl victory and were considered one of the premier organizations of the NFL.  He talked about his experience working for defensive minded coach George Seifert. Being a defensive minded coach himself, he easily could have micromanaged me, but instead he allowed me to call the defense and have an ownership of our scheme.  Along with that, we would often discuss how he managed his team and his staff in more general ways, as I was constantly thinking about how I would lead a team when given the chance again. Coach Carroll was also greatly influenced by former 49ers coach, Coach...

In the 4th chapter of his book, Win Forever , Pete Carroll talks about the lessons he learned as the head coach of the New York Jets.  He was promoted from a defensive coordinator to head coach, and he talked about how he wanted his players to perceive him in his new role.  Concerning that, he wrote: I wanted to show them that they were going to get the same coach they had had the past four seasons - someone who was positive, focused, and extremely competitive.  I believed that the only way we were going to win was as a single, united team. His philosophy was forming, but it was still undeveloped.  He know what he wanted to do, but he was still figuring out how to make it happen.  Here he talks about the vision he had for the Jets organization: The vision I wanted the team and staff to share wasn't about 'not failing' but about really searching within yourself and developing positive approach to wining.  I wanted every member of the team to think of...

In Chapter 3 of Pete Carroll's book, Win Forever , Coach Carroll talks a lot about the importance of athletes achieving a 'peak performance' in competition by playing with a 'quieted mind.'  A quieted mind is when a player is completely absorbed by the task, free of distractions, and the game is moving in slow motion. I once had a 'peak performance' in an interview.  I was approached to apply for a position as an assistant principal in my district.  It was a position that I probably was not completely ready for, as I was still a young teacher, but the administration in my district thought that I would be good for the position and that I should go for it.  I was fully prepared to answer any and everything that they threw out at me, and I did a good enough job to earn the position because of my performance.   I remember being in a zone in while they were firing questions at me, and the biggest reason for that was the way that my principal at the time hel...

In chapter 2 of his book, Win Forever , Pete Carroll talks about how his academic learning helped influence his approach to coaching.   Abraham Maslow and Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs made a lasting impression on how he approached getting the most out of his players.  Here is an excerpt on how Maslow influenced Carroll's viewpoints on player performance: "What I learned about Maslow's insights challenged me to start asking: What if my job as a coach isn't so much to force or coerce performance as it is to create situations where players develop the confidence to set their talents free and pursue their potential to its full extent?  What if my job as a coach is really to prove to these kids how good they already are, how good they could possibly become, and that they are truly capable of high level performance? What if players were able to perform exactly how they envisioned themselves performing?" I think as coaches, we have to identify our player'...

When the leader is clear and consistent about his philosophy's core values, it frees everyone up to do their best.  It frees top leadership to treat its middle managers in a whole new way.  When everyone understands the vision, the goals, and the overall system, they don't need the top boss always telling them what to do.  They can figure it out for themselves.  And for the middle managers, the is means that instead of being mere instruments for relaying instructions delivered from on high, they can get creative and share their own ideas.  Once they have the chance to find their own voices, their identity is now at the forefront.  The door then opens to competing not merely for the next promotion but to maximize their own potential.  Imagine how much energy this generates.  When everyone gets to contribute his maximum effort, it is transformative for the whole organization. Taken from Win Forever by Pete Carroll

The following article was taken from Pete Carroll's book, Win Forever.   At USC  Pete Carroll introduced "Three Rules," which became foundational elements for our program. Rule 1:  Always protect the team Rule 2:  No whining, No complaining, No Excuses Rule 3:  Be Early Rule 1: Protecting the Team This rule is about each individuals conscience and it holds everybody in the program accountable to the program and to each other.  Every decision is important and every decision can either hurt or help you, your teammates, and the team. Rule 2:  You Either Do or You Don't - There Are No Excuses Self-talk can be powerful and ultimately can create anticipated outcomes.  The language of the culture reflects the attitude of the culture.  If you're a culture of complaining and excuses, your actions and performance will reflect it. Rule 3:  Being Early Requires Being Prepared Being early is all about being discipli...

This excerpt is from the book by Pete Carroll title "Win Forever."  In these two paragraphs, he talks about the importance of everybody in the organization being unified and on the same page. I left the NFL knowing that wherever I ended up next, my job would be to coach every part of the organization and be sure that we all had one heartbeat, one voice.  I now understand that different cultures could exist in the front and back offices, but to succeed, these elements need to be in sync.  A head coach should be able to hire his own coaching staff if he wants a cohesive unit and also have a strong hand in selecting players.  Confidence and trust are vital to a successful organization, and leadership must be supported unconditionally - to the bitter end, if necessary. Ultimately, I learned that success in the NFL depends on all parts of the organization working together to field a championship team.  The competition is so intense and the level of expertise so...