There may be no better model for excellence in leadership than the coach model, because no group of people works more effectively than a well coached sports team.
Watching a great coach working from the sidelines of a basketball court or football field, it’s difficult to miss one of the most important elements of coaching—feedback. Great coaches understand that to improve an athlete, they have to give each player honest, direct, and timely feedback on their performance.
But coaching feedback in sports is hardly confined to the playing field. Athletes receive feedback in video reviews. Coaches monitor player fitness, diet and metabolism. They go so far as to analyze their muscle fiber.
As a rule, the more specific the feedback, the more the players have at their disposal to improve their performance.
That’s why I call healthy feedback the Breakfast of Champions. It nurtures just like healthful food. To extend that metaphor, a champion’s breakfast must meet certain standards.
Feeding Good Feedback
If you take feedback seriously, both giving or receiving, you will indeed find you and your team thriving, just you do when you sit down and share a hearty breakfast of pancakes or bacon and eggs with a team of champions.
For more about giving and receiving the feedback that produces championship performance, see Feedback—the Breakfast of Champions.
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