Leadership for the athlete in you

In this blog, I will share some observations that I have made about being and becoming a true leader. My observations were inspired by the mentors that have guided me in sports and my own experience as a leader on the football field. There is no doubt that the qualities that make a true leader on the athletic field also make a true leader off the field. Athletics, in my mind, are a metaphor for life.

LEADERS IN MY LIFE

As a child it was my Father who guided me in my journey to become a great athlete. As I grew up I met many coaches, friends, teachers, strangers that came into my life with such appropriate timing as if they knew I was seeking their guidance. The greatest leaders had a voice and demeanor that were impossible to ignore. They also seemed to have an intuitive understanding of the desire I had to accomplish all my athletic pursuits. The leaders that touched my life were able to inspire both self-BELIEF and an openness in me to continually grow as a person and as a player.

IN MY EXPERIENCE

From my experience with these mentors, I believe leadership has more to do with leading your own life and less to do with leading others' lives. Playing football for over 20 years, I’ve realized that you can be a leader from any position on the field. In fact, the team's success depends on whether players lead their position or not. All players, no matter what their role must take full responsibility for that role. This is what defines leadership - playing your role passionately, with integrity, and unshakable belief.

BEING AND BECOMING

I believe that the most elite athletes lead their lives by being fully present in the moment and by constantly striving to become great. I call this bridging the gap between BEING and BECOMING.

BRIDGING THE GAP

The gap between being and becoming can be described as the difference between who I am at the present moment and who I would like to become. All great leaders are constantly constructing the answers to both questions, with the understanding that both being and becoming are continuously evolving. True leaders have great insight and tend to be more aware of who they are than most people. They can identify their strengths and weaknesses and they are continuously on the path of self-discovery. They also have a crystal clear image of who they would like to become and what they would like to achieve. Their tremendous ability to envision the future can be seen in the way they run their life in the present, the way that they think, act, and make decisions. Furthermore, they seem to keep an internal timetable to provide themselves with clear and realistic deadlines. The clarity of their vision and timeliness of their pursuits allows true leaders to lead their lives with freely abounding passion and conviction. By balancing the time that they spend being and becoming they get the most out of themselves on the practice field, in the game, and off the field in life. They grow through each and every experience.

As a strength and conditioning coach, I am passionate about understanding what motivates athletes on and off the field. I use the leadership lessons that I have learned as an athlete to lead my own career and life’s work today.

Are you leading your life?

by Pete Athans

e: pathans@goibelieve.com

fb: Peter Athans