- The Great Coaches: Leadership & Life
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- Gail Goestenkors
Latest Podcast
This week’s Great Coach is former All American player and Coach Gail Goestenkors.
Gail was appointed as the Head Coach of the Duke Women’s program at the age of just 29, leading them for 15 seasons including 4 final fours and 2 national runners up. She was the ACC Coach of the Year on no less than 7 occasions, and on 3 occasions led the team to undefeated regular seasons.
In addition, Gail has led the University of Texas and been a coach for the USA Women’s team.
Gail holds the ACC record for the fewest games required to achieve 300 wins (just 387 games) and under her coaching her teams have gone on to win a total of 5 ACC tournament championships and 8 ACC regular season titles.
Gail has won a number of coaching awards throughout her career. In 2006 she was awarded both the Carol Eckman Award and the USA Basketball National Coach of The Year. The following year, in 2007, she was also the recipient of the Associated Press National Coach of The Year award.
During our interview, Gail shared her personal mission statement: cultivating environments of sustained excellence on the court, room and community and empowering women to become independent, confident and successful leaders.
She also spoke openly about the mistakes that she has made as a coach, and how she now uses those experiences to help others avoid similar pitfalls.
One final point of the interview that stuck out to me was the genuine enjoyment that Gail seems to get from mentoring young head coaches. Speaking about the beginnings of a mentoring relationship, she shared that her first focus is always to establish trust before aligning on ways of communication that will ensure that her mentee receives the information that they need to benefit and develop.
Gail’s passion for empowering others came over very clearly during our interview, and I think that this is one episode that will really appeal to any leader, coach or parent seeking to encourage a younger mentee or child.
As always, I would love to hear what you think!
Purpose Before Culture
Sir Graham Henry (or Ted, as he likes to be called) is one of the most successful Rugby Union coaches of all time, having cemented his legendary status during his time as the Head Coach of the New Zealand All Blacks.
Our interview with him was truly one for the books and an absolute privilege to host, but this 97-second clip in particular really resonated with me.
We always say that there’s no algorithm for leadership, but Sir Graham comes very close to disproving our theory, explaining how - under his leadership - the All Blacks began with a Purpose and then built a culture that focused on humility, integrity, and self-improvement in order to achieve it.
It’s a stunningly simple approach, and somewhat poetic when displayed in practice on the field.
If you enjoyed this clip, you’ll find many more on our website covering a wide variety of leadership topics - just click the button below to explore the library!
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When The Game Stands Tall
If you’re lucky enough to be in a country where you can stream it, then I highly recommend taking the time to watch “When The Game Stands Tall” on Netflix (or anywhere else that you can find it).
The story of high school football coach Bob Ladouceur and his attempts to keep his team united and successful in the face of tragedy, this inspirational film explores themes of connection, commitment and service to others.
Elevate Your Leadership
The coaching team at Elevated Leadership have lived and led teams in multiple countries, allowing them to see leadership from numerous and diverse informed perspectives.
We understand the challenge of having to step up and forward in times of uncertainty, as well as the pressure that arises from having to manage time, people, and expectations.
Get in touch today to learn more:
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