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- Villanova Culture: A Culture that Wins
Villanova Culture: A Culture that Wins
Great Teams - Better Leaders - 123. 1 Thought; 2 Quotes; 3 Tweets. Newsletter about Leadership, Culture, Teams, and Success.
ONE THOUGHT...
Culture WINS.
Jay Wright is the recently retired basketball coach at Villanova. His teams have had amazing success even though they do not always bring in the most elite 5-star talent in the country.
Over a 5 year span without having a top 25 ranked recruiting class, the Villanova Wildcats won two National Championships.
Why did they win?
Culture.
But...Jay Wright had to learn it the hard way.
After the 2009 Final Four season, Jay Wright and his Villanova team had the luxury of getting some elite 5-star talent. They ended up getting a top 3 recruiting class in the country the following year.
So what happened next with this talent?
Over the next three seasons, Villanova declined until they had one of the worst seasons in the history of Villanova Basketball with a 13-19 record.
Why? They were drawn to talent over fit and culture.
"I got sloppy. After we went to the Final Four, it was easy to get guys. It’s the way I recruited. I didn’t explain to the kids what was expected. And I didn’t do a good job teaching them when they got here… I got lazy. I never took the time to make them understand why we did what we do. And why." - Jay Wright
They hit rock bottom as a program.
"We had hit rock bottom after that season… We weren’t true to our culture. It was on me,” - Jay Wright
After this rock bottom season, they re-evaluated why they had been successful. They went back to recruiting players that fit their blue-collar, hard-working, tough-minded culture.
Since this time Villanova has won 7 Conference Championships, 2 National Championships, and had many deep NCAA Tournament runs.
Culture Matters.
Culture is:
What you Allow.
What you Emphasize.
Every Day.
Coaches MUST be conscious of their Culture with every decision and every message they send. And they must do this EVERY DAY.
If not...your culture can turn negative in a hurry.
Coaches: Don't get distracted by the shiny new object. Focus on creating and building your culture every day.
Villanova Culture
Here are 5 direct quotes from Jay Wright that shed some light on their Team Culture and Team Leadership.
1: “We have a saying that everyone’s role is different, but everyone’s status is the same. It’s a reminder that no matter how bright the spotlight gets, we are all part of something much larger than ourselves.”
▪️WE > ME
▪️Be a star in your role
2: “The most important characteristic any of us have is our attitude. It’s a concept that permeates everything you do. We all bring our attitude to every situation.”
▪️Attitude is everything
▪️Be an energy giver
3: “We're not complex in what we do X-and-O-wise, but we do spend a lot of time on how we react mentally to every situation.”
▪️Simple Wins
▪️Mental toughness 👍
4: “If you think about how good you are as opposed to what the next challenge is going to be, then you’ve already lost. We have to stay humble.”
▪️Humble wins
▪️Gratitude matters
5: “After we won in 2016, the goal wasn't to win another [national title]. The goal was to keep our culture strong. We knew that for us, that was the best chance of winning it again. If we tried to win it another way, we weren't going to win it anyway.”
▪️Culture Wins.
TWO QUOTES...
"I shall pass this way but once; any good, therefore, that I can do or any kindness I can show to any human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again." - Emerson
"Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all-time thing. You don't win once in a while, you don't do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time. Winning is habit. Unfortunately, so is losing." – Vince Lombardi
THREE TWEETS FROM OTHERS...
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Jon Gordon on Twitter: "A simple but powerful truth and reminder the world needs today. Drop a ♥️ in the comments if you agree. What matters most is the size of your heart and the strength of your character.… https://t.co/J9GsP9FawW" — twitter.com
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Jeff Janssen 🇺🇦 on Twitter: "SUCCESS WANTS TO KNOW: 🤔 how badly do you want it? 🤔 how hard are you willing to work? 🤔 how well can you fight thru adversity? 🤔 how well can you work as a team? 🤔 how focused are you on the details? 🤔 how well you can handle success? HOW WILL YOU ANSWER? #CultureWins" — twitter.com
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Check out my Culture WINS eBook!
Why do some teams WIN year after year?
There are many reasons, but creating a Winning Mindset and a Winning Culture are two big ones.
This 42-page eBook (pdf) is loaded with 50 practical and useful ideas that coaches can use NOW to help build a Winning Culture and Winning Mindset in their program.
Some of these ideas include:
Create MUDITA
No Deposit - No Return
80-8 Rule
Be an MVT (Most Valuable Teammate)
Life is an Echo
Listen with your Eyes
Do Simple Better
NITE Communication
Cool Doesn't WIN
The Secret
1% Better
And much, much more.
This eBook is practical, purposeful, and written by a Coach and for a Coach. It is based on decades of coaching experience with very successful teams. I am very confident that you will pick up MANY strategies and ideas that you will be able to bring to your team and program!
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