I continue to find “nuggets of gold” in this Mike Leach book on Geronimo, the famous Apache warrior. It is rich with information.
A point that struck me yesterday reinforced a key aspect of any successful leader’s program. It ties in with the foundation of my coaching philosophy… the 5 P’s of Success. They are:
PROPER Preparation Prevents Poor Performance
Leach points to the Apache way of life as THE factor in creating great warriors. He points out that the Apache culture embraced Discipline, Practice and Daily Routine. Leach says that these were “all a part of their daily lives. Anything they wanted to be good at, they practiced and trained for with as much precision as possible.” Key word: PRECISION! This is what it meant by “Proper” preparation. You can’t just go through the motions and expect your players to improve! One of my coaching mentors hammered into me to “pay attention to details!” I know that this was a determining factor in the amount of success that teams that I led enjoyed. Why? Because I always looked to hire coaches who were excellent teachers. They knew how to instruct.
People talk a lot about “creating a culture” in our football programs. You need to find a culture that breeds discipline, toughness and competitiveness. You’d do well to study the Apaches under Geronimo’s leadership!
