Our Mushtaq Ali team was practicing at Gymkhana and I invited my old friend R Sridhar who has partnered Ravi Shastri and B Arun in coaching Team India and honing them into a fine winning unit. I felt it would be criminal not to use his time and he was kind enough to oblige.
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| R Sridhar with the Hyderabad team for Mushtaq Ali tournament |
Let me try and capture some highlights of his talk.
The difference between Professionals and Amateurs
He said that the difference between amateurs and professionals is that professionals are accountable and as such they behave in such fashion. They come 15 minutes early to the ground, because for them being on time is already being late. They have a hunger to perform, to prove, to be the best. He told the boys that they are all professionals and should behave like professionals.
Another difference he said between pros and amateurs was that amateurs do not ask questions whereas professionals are hungry for knowledge and ask questions.
Winning Culture - Fearlessness and Honesty
I asked him about the winning culture and he said it was about two things - fearlessness and honesty. He said teams that are fearless tend to be more aggressive (as they do not fear losing) and that in turn brings out other qualities like creativity and so on. On the other hand teams that are honest to themselves show a sense of purpose and that breeds resilience and character. Teams that are honest are good at giving and taking feedback, at helping one another.
I loved this messaging - fearlessness and honesty!
Right Men In, Wrong Men off
He conveyed this well through the story of soccer coach Pep Guardiola who would look back at the bench to see who was involved in the game and who was not and those who were not involved, were given marching tickets.
Be Selfish so You Can Help others
He spoke about how players should be selfish - which to me translates into taking their roles seriously and fulfilling them - not bout playing for themselves at the cost of the team. Only when you have fully performed your role will you have the bandwidth to help others.
Team Before Self
Of course he touched upon how one should align with the team purpose - the team is always higher than your individual goals.
Be Vulnerable
He spoke about being vulnerable to the entire team and how being vulnerable builds deep bonds within the team members. He started by sharing his own story of how he messed up once as a coach in a juniors match and they lost the game. He asked the others to share their experiences and be vulnerable and they all shared. I found R's lines most touching as he spoke with utmost honesty and revealed how a few seasons ago he was under pressure to perform and how would not even try because of the pressure. 'How will I succeed if I don't even try?' he said.
It was a beautiful session and R conveyed some really complex concepts so easily and relatably to the boys. Coach Ravi gave a vote of thanks and we made Aman gift him copies of my books and then we all assembled for a pic.
Thanks R. Wonderful stuff.
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