“We’re chasing winning. When you’re chasing winning, you’re just focused on that. Anything that’s a distraction outside of it you just don’t care about,” says Coach Kara Lawson. The barrier to entry for a championship team culture is incredibly high. Great coaches, players, and teams must develop and sustain an incredibly high attention to detail when chasing excellence. From my experience in leadership and coaching, numerous actions hold teams back from reaching their goals. Here are eight barriers to a championship team culture:
- Mindset: The first key barrier to a championship culture is mindset. To become a winning team and high-performer, it must first be visualized and developed in the mind. When uncertainty, doubt, and negativity overtake the positive, then it becomes a barrier. Develop strategies to maintain a positive mindset in the face of adversity.
- Blaming: The second key barrier to a championship culture is blaming. Players and coaches who blame others create a toxic environment for everyone. The blaming may start small, but it might eventually compound and filter throughout the team. Always look in the mirror and find ways to improve rather than blame others.
- Complaining: The third key barrier to a championship culture is complaining. Whether the complaints are about playing time, challenging practices, or the coaches, complaining creates an environment where the focus aligns with something other than winning and success. Hold others accountable to avoid complaining about situations they can’t control.
- Excuses: The fourth key barrier to a championship culture is excuses. The excuses might focus on mistakes, a certain drill not going well, why a play wasn’t made, or a challenging skill set. Excuses, rather than working through the challenges, hold players and teams back from reaching their goals. When adversity or challenges hit, avoid making excuses.
- Misalignment: The fifth key barrier to a championship culture is misalignment. Aligning the coaches, support staff, and all players with a larger vision and goals for the season sets championship teams apart. When some members move in one direction and others move in another, it’s challenging to end up at the same place. Develop clear goals and create alignment with everyone connected to the team.
- Lack of Details: The sixth key barrier to a championship culture is lack of details. Details develop the separation between average teams and great teams, and in some sports, that’s a matter of inches and contributes to winning or losing. Being unfocused in practice or drills creates the lack of attention to details that holds teams back. Always focus on being as detailed, specific, and focused during every repetition.
- Complacency: The seventh key barrier to a championship culture is complacency. Coach Nick Saban is known for consistently working against complacency. Complacency leads to undisciplined teams, less energy at practices, and mistakes in games. Coaches and players should work against complacency every day to uphold the championship standard.
- Ego: The eighth key barrier to a championship culture is ego. Players and coaches who aren’t coachable or willing to evolve hold the team back from success. This ego often leads to costly mistakes or an environment not conducive for high-performance. Consistently leave your ego at the door in order to find success.
While there are many barriers to a championship culture, these eight stand out as consistent issues holding teams back from success. Coaches and players should work against these barriers to success every single day. When teams commit to eliminating these issues, they’re saying yes to striving for a championship team culture.
What barriers hold teams back from winning championships?