1 00:00:08,591 --> 00:00:10,510 Preparation. 2 00:00:10,510 --> 00:00:11,886 Boring. 3 00:00:11,886 --> 00:00:14,305 Unsexy? Maybe. 4 00:00:14,305 --> 00:00:17,976 But it's hard to argue about the importance of preparation. 5 00:00:17,976 --> 00:00:19,310 And if we want to be winners. 6 00:00:19,310 --> 00:00:22,147 And as leaders, create winning teams. 7 00:00:22,147 --> 00:00:26,192 Our guest today believes we must be ready to win. 8 00:00:26,192 --> 00:00:28,737 Which starts with preparation. 9 00:00:28,737 --> 00:00:32,449 Being ready with a clear and powerful preparation strategy. 10 00:00:32,449 --> 00:00:34,200 That's our conversation today. 11 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:36,828 And I'm so glad you're here to join us for it. 12 00:00:36,828 --> 00:00:40,040 Welcome to another episode of the Remarkable Leadership Podcast, 13 00:00:40,206 --> 00:00:43,418 where we are helping leaders grow personally and professionally 14 00:00:43,710 --> 00:00:45,962 to lead more effectively and make a bigger difference 15 00:00:45,962 --> 00:00:49,090 for their teams, organizations and the world. 16 00:00:49,174 --> 00:00:52,218 If you are listening to this podcast, you can join us 17 00:00:52,469 --> 00:00:56,473 live in the future on your favorite social platform. 18 00:00:56,639 --> 00:01:00,185 You can find out when those shows are happening 19 00:01:00,185 --> 00:01:03,605 and how you can get connected, and get other inside information 20 00:01:03,605 --> 00:01:06,691 about the show by joining our LinkedIn or Facebook groups. 21 00:01:07,025 --> 00:01:10,695 Just go to remarkable podcast.com/linkedin 22 00:01:11,154 --> 00:01:14,157 or remarkable podcast.com/facebook. 23 00:01:14,491 --> 00:01:17,577 And you can get in on all of the future action. 24 00:01:17,869 --> 00:01:22,040 Today's episode is brought to you by my latest book, Flexible Leadership. 25 00:01:22,332 --> 00:01:24,751 Navigate uncertainty and lead with confidence. 26 00:01:24,751 --> 00:01:29,172 It's time to realize that styles can get in our way, and that our follow in that, 27 00:01:29,172 --> 00:01:33,802 and that following our strengths might not always be our best approach. 28 00:01:33,968 --> 00:01:36,221 In a world more complex and uncertain than ever. 29 00:01:36,221 --> 00:01:40,058 Leaders need a new perspective and set of tools to create the great results 30 00:01:40,058 --> 00:01:43,061 that our organizations and team members want and need. 31 00:01:43,269 --> 00:01:45,688 That's where flexible leadership comes in. 32 00:01:45,688 --> 00:01:48,817 Learn more and order your copy today at remarkable 33 00:01:48,817 --> 00:01:51,820 podcast.com/flexible. 34 00:01:52,070 --> 00:01:55,031 And with that that's my cue to bring in my guest. 35 00:01:55,031 --> 00:01:56,533 His name is coach 36 00:01:57,492 --> 00:01:58,952 Matthew Mitchell. 37 00:01:58,952 --> 00:02:02,372 He is a Wall Street Journal bestselling author, speaker, three times 38 00:02:02,705 --> 00:02:06,459 SEC coach of the year, and the winning this head coach 39 00:02:06,584 --> 00:02:10,255 in the history of the University of Kentucky women's basketball program. 40 00:02:10,505 --> 00:02:14,425 The foundation for his team's achievements is the winning 41 00:02:14,425 --> 00:02:17,846 tools, principles, honesty, hard work, and discipline. 42 00:02:18,096 --> 00:02:20,473 Through his focus on the fundamentals. 43 00:02:20,473 --> 00:02:23,476 He led the program to new heights, winning seven seven 44 00:02:23,476 --> 00:02:27,063 winning seasons and UK's first SEC Championship in 30 years. 45 00:02:27,313 --> 00:02:31,901 In his new book, Ready to Win How Great Leaders Succeed Through Preparation. 46 00:02:32,110 --> 00:02:38,074 He shares proven principles from his work so that we can become ready to win. 47 00:02:38,074 --> 00:02:40,034 And just off the presses. 48 00:02:40,034 --> 00:02:44,706 He's told me he's going back to college basketball and will be coaching 49 00:02:44,706 --> 00:02:48,543 the University of Houston Lady Cougars starting this fall. 50 00:02:48,710 --> 00:02:51,045 Coach Matthew, welcome. 51 00:02:51,045 --> 00:02:52,088 Thanks for being here. 52 00:02:52,088 --> 00:02:54,007 Thanks so much, Kevin. It's great to be with you. 53 00:02:54,007 --> 00:02:57,635 I, appreciate the opportunity and looking forward to our time together. 54 00:02:58,386 --> 00:03:00,763 Well, for all of you, most many of you 55 00:03:00,763 --> 00:03:03,975 listening don't know this, but I am a huge college basketball fan, 56 00:03:03,975 --> 00:03:07,228 and I'm going to do my best to not make this all about me. 57 00:03:07,812 --> 00:03:09,105 Or about college basketball. 58 00:03:09,105 --> 00:03:14,027 I'm not going to ask him about flare screens or pick and roll offense. 59 00:03:14,819 --> 00:03:17,197 At least not while the cameras rolling anyway. 60 00:03:17,197 --> 00:03:19,199 So, listen, I'm so glad that you're here. 61 00:03:19,199 --> 00:03:19,866 And suicide. 62 00:03:19,866 --> 00:03:22,952 I enjoyed reading the book, and as I hinted, 63 00:03:24,579 --> 00:03:25,580 preparation, I 64 00:03:25,580 --> 00:03:28,583 think, isn't something that we often talk about. 65 00:03:28,583 --> 00:03:29,834 And yet it's incredibly important. 66 00:03:29,834 --> 00:03:32,420 And so I'm super excited for you to have that conversation. 67 00:03:32,420 --> 00:03:36,799 But first, beyond what I just shared in terms of bio. 68 00:03:36,925 --> 00:03:40,553 So what what led you to coaching 69 00:03:40,553 --> 00:03:44,557 college basketball and then and writing the book like writing books? 70 00:03:44,682 --> 00:03:47,977 Like sort of just a little bit more about the journey than I shared in the open. 71 00:03:48,603 --> 00:03:50,480 Sure. I, 72 00:03:50,480 --> 00:03:53,483 in my early 20s, was, 73 00:03:53,691 --> 00:03:57,820 sort of floundering and, and was lamenting that fact 74 00:03:57,820 --> 00:04:01,699 that I didn't feel like I had any focus to my high school basketball coach. 75 00:04:01,699 --> 00:04:03,993 And he said, Matthew, I think 76 00:04:03,993 --> 00:04:05,745 I always thought you'd make a good coach. 77 00:04:05,745 --> 00:04:08,373 So why don't you come back this year and help out? 78 00:04:08,373 --> 00:04:12,710 So that was 1994, and, the first time I stepped on the court, 79 00:04:13,086 --> 00:04:17,298 at a basketball practice with my mentor and coach, Coach Farrell Rigby. 80 00:04:17,590 --> 00:04:19,092 I said, this is this is it. 81 00:04:19,092 --> 00:04:20,677 This is, where I need to be. 82 00:04:20,677 --> 00:04:25,056 So that led me on a journey of just trying very hard 83 00:04:25,056 --> 00:04:26,724 to become competent in coaching. 84 00:04:26,724 --> 00:04:30,728 So it's very different coaching than it is playing and competing as a player 85 00:04:30,728 --> 00:04:31,729 as it is as a coach. 86 00:04:31,729 --> 00:04:37,151 And so one of the great pieces of fortune I had and blessings I had was I worked 87 00:04:37,151 --> 00:04:42,031 the University of Tennessee women's basketball camp there in the mid 90s. 88 00:04:42,073 --> 00:04:45,576 Coach Pat Summitt, the the, the all time great legend, 89 00:04:45,910 --> 00:04:49,372 was on a streak of three straight national championships and 90 00:04:49,956 --> 00:04:53,918 and just the program was at its absolute zenith. 91 00:04:54,669 --> 00:04:56,254 And I was in the middle of all that work. 92 00:04:56,254 --> 00:05:00,550 And summer camp never had any clue that that that my life would change. 93 00:05:00,550 --> 00:05:04,012 In the summer of 1999, she hired me as her graduate 94 00:05:04,012 --> 00:05:07,056 assistant coach, and it changed everything for me. 95 00:05:07,056 --> 00:05:07,390 Kevin. 96 00:05:07,390 --> 00:05:11,769 So that led me to, successful assistant coaching 97 00:05:11,769 --> 00:05:14,772 career Florida University of Florida for three years. 98 00:05:14,814 --> 00:05:16,524 University of Kentucky. 99 00:05:16,524 --> 00:05:20,320 And then I finally got, an opportunity to lead my own program. 100 00:05:20,320 --> 00:05:23,656 And that was first at Morehead State, where I developed the winning tools 101 00:05:23,656 --> 00:05:25,116 that you mentioned earlier, 102 00:05:25,116 --> 00:05:28,953 and then went on to return to Kentucky as the head coach for 13 years. 103 00:05:28,953 --> 00:05:32,832 So 15 years as a Division one head coach 104 00:05:33,374 --> 00:05:37,879 and, stepped away in 2020 for, just some time to, 105 00:05:38,796 --> 00:05:43,885 to, contemplate life and, and, and see what the next leg was. 106 00:05:43,885 --> 00:05:45,470 And so over the last four years 107 00:05:45,470 --> 00:05:49,265 have built a business and a consulting firm where we help people 108 00:05:49,265 --> 00:05:52,268 with their leadership and their team work and their personal growth. 109 00:05:52,560 --> 00:05:55,855 And, the book part of it came about as, 110 00:05:57,106 --> 00:06:00,401 just suggested on, getting my, you know, thoughts 111 00:06:00,401 --> 00:06:03,905 and philosophies on leadership down and, and, and available to people. 112 00:06:03,905 --> 00:06:06,074 So that's how the books, came about. 113 00:06:06,074 --> 00:06:11,162 And, it's been an incredible journey for the last 30 years. 114 00:06:11,162 --> 00:06:12,914 And I'm still learning new stuff 115 00:06:12,914 --> 00:06:16,000 all the time and excited about, a life right now. 116 00:06:16,501 --> 00:06:16,793 Okay. 117 00:06:16,793 --> 00:06:19,796 So now I have to ask, 118 00:06:20,088 --> 00:06:21,339 why? Back to coaching. 119 00:06:21,339 --> 00:06:22,632 I mean, you decided to step away. 120 00:06:22,632 --> 00:06:24,467 Did you always sort of think you'd go back, 121 00:06:24,467 --> 00:06:27,387 or is this just an opportunity that you couldn't pass up or. 122 00:06:27,387 --> 00:06:28,596 I'm just kind of curious. 123 00:06:28,596 --> 00:06:28,888 Yeah. 124 00:06:28,888 --> 00:06:32,683 So, it just such a big part of my life and a big part of my leadership and learn 125 00:06:32,683 --> 00:06:33,643 so much about it. 126 00:06:33,643 --> 00:06:36,646 And, my family, 127 00:06:37,063 --> 00:06:41,234 has really encouraged me as I've been on this journey as an entrepreneur and, 128 00:06:41,234 --> 00:06:44,320 and building the consulting firm that's had great success. 129 00:06:45,196 --> 00:06:48,324 My wife just always said, you know, I think what you do best 130 00:06:48,324 --> 00:06:51,702 is, is coach college basketball, and I don't want you to forget that. 131 00:06:51,702 --> 00:06:55,581 And now I've got, 14 year old daughter that's loving the game. 132 00:06:55,581 --> 00:06:57,625 And so I was coaching her in middle school, Kevin. 133 00:06:57,625 --> 00:06:58,835 And she said, dad. 134 00:06:58,835 --> 00:06:59,669 No, no. 135 00:06:59,669 --> 00:06:59,961 Yeah. 136 00:06:59,961 --> 00:07:02,463 It's, you know, she, you know, she she was the opposite. 137 00:07:02,463 --> 00:07:05,258 She was like, this is amazing. You need to get back to college. 138 00:07:05,258 --> 00:07:06,717 You don't need a middle school. 139 00:07:06,717 --> 00:07:08,761 You need to go back and coach college. 140 00:07:08,761 --> 00:07:11,764 And so that encouragement had me looking, 141 00:07:11,931 --> 00:07:14,559 or always open to the opportunity 142 00:07:14,559 --> 00:07:18,604 and the opportunity at Houston was was too good to pass up at all. 143 00:07:18,604 --> 00:07:20,857 The timing worked out. And so, 144 00:07:21,941 --> 00:07:24,819 I think it will even enhance, 145 00:07:24,819 --> 00:07:27,363 my leadership teaching because we're 146 00:07:27,363 --> 00:07:30,700 we'll be back to solving leadership issues in real time. 147 00:07:30,700 --> 00:07:33,703 And so I just think it's all come together great for for my career. 148 00:07:34,871 --> 00:07:35,705 I love that. 149 00:07:35,705 --> 00:07:38,666 And, you know, I get we get books all the time. 150 00:07:38,666 --> 00:07:40,793 But people pitch us to him to be on the show. 151 00:07:40,793 --> 00:07:44,589 Not necessarily you personally, but someone, on your PR 152 00:07:44,589 --> 00:07:46,507 in your PR organization or whatever. 153 00:07:46,507 --> 00:07:48,926 And I get the book title ready to win. 154 00:07:48,926 --> 00:07:50,261 I'm like, okay. 155 00:07:50,261 --> 00:07:53,264 And then I read preparation and I'm like, okay, 156 00:07:53,556 --> 00:07:56,476 now every time I get a book, I take a look, certainly. 157 00:07:56,476 --> 00:08:01,439 But when I saw preparation, that really sort of got me more intrigued. 158 00:08:01,772 --> 00:08:05,526 And there's, there's, there's more in the book than just preparation. 159 00:08:05,526 --> 00:08:09,322 But, that's where I want us to focus, because as I said in the open, 160 00:08:09,322 --> 00:08:12,825 Matthew, I think that too often we don't 161 00:08:14,035 --> 00:08:15,161 we don't think about it enough. 162 00:08:15,161 --> 00:08:16,537 We don't spend enough time with it. 163 00:08:16,537 --> 00:08:17,914 And as I was reading the book, 164 00:08:17,914 --> 00:08:20,124 I think you give us some really good stuff about that. 165 00:08:20,124 --> 00:08:23,211 I'm curious, though, from your perspective, both 166 00:08:23,211 --> 00:08:28,466 from the coaching world and the business world, sell us on 167 00:08:28,466 --> 00:08:31,469 why we need to be more thoughtful about preparation. 168 00:08:32,720 --> 00:08:33,221 Sure. 169 00:08:33,221 --> 00:08:37,058 I think what preparation does and what I've found over the years, 170 00:08:37,266 --> 00:08:40,686 and file this way under life is not fair. 171 00:08:41,145 --> 00:08:44,315 But if I, if I lack preparation, I'm 172 00:08:44,899 --> 00:08:49,362 virtually guaranteeing that I'm not going to be in position to to succeed. 173 00:08:50,071 --> 00:08:54,575 And, and when I do prepare and I start to do that 174 00:08:54,575 --> 00:08:58,746 and find a systematic way to prepare, Kevin, 175 00:08:59,038 --> 00:09:03,834 we begin to put ourselves in position to succeed more often. 176 00:09:03,834 --> 00:09:04,335 And then, 177 00:09:05,461 --> 00:09:06,087 even when 178 00:09:06,087 --> 00:09:09,090 we prepare and maybe we fall short of the goal. 179 00:09:09,924 --> 00:09:14,387 We are informed by we're open to the lessons that, that are learned. 180 00:09:14,387 --> 00:09:19,267 And so we talk a lot about in the book about getting your mindset around, 181 00:09:20,393 --> 00:09:22,979 just being a constant prepare. 182 00:09:22,979 --> 00:09:26,232 And when you do that, you're just going to put you're going to show up. 183 00:09:26,649 --> 00:09:31,279 And whether you meet the goal, reach the goal, or you fall short, 184 00:09:31,571 --> 00:09:32,071 you have 185 00:09:32,071 --> 00:09:35,116 you have now gone through a process where you're going to gain 186 00:09:35,116 --> 00:09:39,453 valuable information, whether it's a win or some people call it a loss. 187 00:09:39,620 --> 00:09:43,916 I've shifted away from from losing and to just lessons learned. 188 00:09:44,458 --> 00:09:47,169 And so that's where I think preparation over 189 00:09:47,169 --> 00:09:50,756 time is going to allow you to meet those goals 190 00:09:50,756 --> 00:09:54,343 and to achieve the productivity and everything that you're hoping to do. 191 00:09:54,885 --> 00:09:57,805 And it is absolutely true in sports, 192 00:09:57,805 --> 00:10:01,767 and I've seen that over a 25 year coaching career in athletics. 193 00:10:01,767 --> 00:10:06,939 But over the last four years in business, it's 100% true as well. 194 00:10:06,939 --> 00:10:10,693 And so the the building blocks of performance 195 00:10:11,152 --> 00:10:13,529 are really rooted in preparation. 196 00:10:13,529 --> 00:10:18,367 And we say in the book, preparation will powerfully position you to win. 197 00:10:18,868 --> 00:10:22,246 And we believe it's such a key to our success. 198 00:10:23,956 --> 00:10:25,791 So one of the 199 00:10:25,791 --> 00:10:29,170 things that I talk about a lot in the, in the world 200 00:10:29,587 --> 00:10:32,673 in, in, excuse me, in the sphere of being a leader, 201 00:10:33,758 --> 00:10:35,801 there's there's few things that we can control. 202 00:10:35,801 --> 00:10:37,136 I mean, obviously, except ourselves. 203 00:10:37,136 --> 00:10:41,265 And so most everything we do as a leader is, comes from a place of influence. 204 00:10:41,474 --> 00:10:45,186 So when I read the line, in the book where you're comparing 205 00:10:45,353 --> 00:10:49,398 preparation in casinos, I loved it because you said the house always wins. 206 00:10:50,107 --> 00:10:52,276 And I want you to connect these ideas together, 207 00:10:52,276 --> 00:10:55,321 because I think it's so important because I think it then connects 208 00:10:55,321 --> 00:10:58,324 to a even bigger leadership point as well. 209 00:10:58,324 --> 00:11:01,327 So when you talk about those two things together, what are you saying? 210 00:11:02,203 --> 00:11:06,582 Well, I think if you're in the, in the culture 211 00:11:06,582 --> 00:11:10,628 and, and the zeitgeist, you've heard that term, you know, the house always wins 212 00:11:10,920 --> 00:11:12,254 as it goes to casinos. 213 00:11:12,254 --> 00:11:17,927 And the point that I'm trying to make is that the casinos are are 214 00:11:18,010 --> 00:11:21,681 set up to they are prepared to be successful 215 00:11:21,681 --> 00:11:24,433 and they have a system and they have a method 216 00:11:24,433 --> 00:11:28,270 and they have marketing and they have, you know, the entertainment and all that. 217 00:11:28,270 --> 00:11:31,273 But at the end of the day, they are going to win 218 00:11:31,357 --> 00:11:33,067 and they have a method toward that. 219 00:11:33,067 --> 00:11:38,072 And so I'm likening that to our process of being prepared 220 00:11:38,531 --> 00:11:42,451 and where we may not, always win like the House does. 221 00:11:42,451 --> 00:11:48,124 It will get us into a process that sets us up and positions us 222 00:11:49,125 --> 00:11:51,794 more powerfully than if we didn't prepare. 223 00:11:51,794 --> 00:11:54,797 And so that's the concept that I'm trying to get across to people 224 00:11:54,797 --> 00:11:57,800 there is that we want to increase 225 00:11:58,300 --> 00:12:01,762 our chances for meeting the goal or meeting the objective. 226 00:12:02,179 --> 00:12:05,766 And when we follow the steps that are in this book, as I have, 227 00:12:06,434 --> 00:12:12,523 over my career, I've set myself up for consistent and sustained success. 228 00:12:13,065 --> 00:12:14,734 It improves our odds. 229 00:12:14,734 --> 00:12:16,777 Yes, we're better prepared. It improves our odds. 230 00:12:16,777 --> 00:12:18,988 You know, my dad never used to say the house always wins. 231 00:12:18,988 --> 00:12:22,575 He always used to say, there's a reason they have to pay for the electricity. 232 00:12:22,575 --> 00:12:23,743 The lights are always on. 233 00:12:23,743 --> 00:12:24,535 They're there. 234 00:12:24,535 --> 00:12:26,620 You know, he's saying something. 235 00:12:26,620 --> 00:12:29,623 And I think that point of 236 00:12:29,790 --> 00:12:32,501 how do we make how do we what are the things that we can do 237 00:12:32,501 --> 00:12:35,963 to improve our odds or our chances of winning? 238 00:12:35,963 --> 00:12:38,799 And certainly that could take us back to basketball as well. 239 00:12:38,799 --> 00:12:42,178 But as a leader, when we when we aren't in control, but rather 240 00:12:42,178 --> 00:12:45,264 trying to influence everything we can do to improve our odds. 241 00:12:45,264 --> 00:12:48,934 And certainly preparation is one of those things without question. 242 00:12:49,643 --> 00:12:51,645 So I think the thing 243 00:12:52,938 --> 00:12:55,733 that I will remember the most about the book, at least 244 00:12:55,733 --> 00:13:00,362 before we have this full conversation, because that might book other memories 245 00:13:00,362 --> 00:13:01,322 for me with this book. 246 00:13:01,322 --> 00:13:05,785 But the thing that I think hooks me the most of this book is the five levels 247 00:13:05,785 --> 00:13:08,788 of preparation. 248 00:13:08,829 --> 00:13:12,082 And, and I don't I've never heard it quite described in this way. 249 00:13:12,082 --> 00:13:13,793 I think it's incredibly useful. 250 00:13:13,793 --> 00:13:16,420 So can you walk us through that a little bit? 251 00:13:16,420 --> 00:13:19,507 And you've already used the phrase constant preparation, 252 00:13:19,507 --> 00:13:21,926 which is one of those levels, and we'll come back to that specifically. 253 00:13:21,926 --> 00:13:26,263 But can you sort of lay out the five and, and sort of help us 254 00:13:26,889 --> 00:13:30,643 see where we might be stopping? Yes. 255 00:13:30,935 --> 00:13:36,398 So I would say that most people who are interested in in our discussion 256 00:13:36,398 --> 00:13:41,570 today, or who would be interested in buying a book on preparation, most, 257 00:13:41,987 --> 00:13:46,033 I think, probably are not, at the first two levels. 258 00:13:46,033 --> 00:13:49,829 The first two levels, the first one is casual, which is basically, 259 00:13:51,413 --> 00:13:54,124 if I have a financial plan, I 260 00:13:54,124 --> 00:13:59,088 walk into the convenience store and I see the lottery is, is worth $42 million. 261 00:13:59,088 --> 00:14:01,006 And so, hey, here's, I'll make some money. 262 00:14:01,006 --> 00:14:02,174 I'll buy a lottery ticket there. 263 00:14:02,174 --> 00:14:04,844 And that's not really a lot of thought and preparation going on. 264 00:14:04,844 --> 00:14:07,513 The very casual approach to preparation. 265 00:14:07,513 --> 00:14:12,434 Cursory is totally surface, just a surface level, just the, 266 00:14:13,477 --> 00:14:16,063 the least amount of of effort 267 00:14:16,063 --> 00:14:19,984 you could give above being casual and so sort of totally disengaged. 268 00:14:20,317 --> 00:14:23,320 I'm just trying to make people, 269 00:14:23,654 --> 00:14:27,700 I'm trying to appear as if I am, as if I am prepared. 270 00:14:27,700 --> 00:14:30,703 And I did this a lot in my early career 271 00:14:30,744 --> 00:14:34,707 when I tried to rely more on charisma than competency. So. 272 00:14:34,832 --> 00:14:38,919 So those first two levels would be, I would suspect that 273 00:14:38,919 --> 00:14:42,882 most people have moved beyond that if they're interested in the book. 274 00:14:43,465 --> 00:14:47,136 I think where a lot of us live and where I'm trying to encourage people 275 00:14:47,136 --> 00:14:50,139 to rise above the level three, that's called 276 00:14:50,139 --> 00:14:53,225 a comply it level of preparation. 277 00:14:53,559 --> 00:14:54,852 And this is, 278 00:14:56,228 --> 00:14:57,771 a method 279 00:14:57,771 --> 00:15:01,817 of preparation, a level of preparation where I am really checking 280 00:15:01,817 --> 00:15:06,655 the box and I am people are telling me what I need to do there. 281 00:15:06,739 --> 00:15:09,158 Hey, this is due on Friday. 282 00:15:09,158 --> 00:15:12,870 This is due next Friday, and we just check the box 283 00:15:12,870 --> 00:15:16,624 and we do, what what the. 284 00:15:16,707 --> 00:15:20,502 The minimum standard is where we are not in hot water, 285 00:15:20,753 --> 00:15:24,131 and we're not, you know, we're not going against anything that's anyone saying. 286 00:15:24,381 --> 00:15:27,092 But we certainly have not gotten to level four. 287 00:15:27,092 --> 00:15:30,095 So level four is where I really wants 288 00:15:30,095 --> 00:15:33,098 people to aspire to live. 289 00:15:33,223 --> 00:15:34,308 If they're not there. 290 00:15:34,308 --> 00:15:39,313 And that is committed, that is being committed to preparation. 291 00:15:39,313 --> 00:15:42,358 And what this level does is I start to think 292 00:15:42,733 --> 00:15:45,778 more deeply about the performance I want to have. 293 00:15:45,778 --> 00:15:51,325 I start considering all the factors that could possibly, affect the outcome. 294 00:15:51,784 --> 00:15:54,912 And in my process, I am I am really, 295 00:15:54,912 --> 00:15:58,040 really committed to being fully prepared 296 00:15:58,707 --> 00:16:01,627 and I am going through the process that we describe in the book. 297 00:16:01,627 --> 00:16:02,920 And then the fifth level, 298 00:16:03,921 --> 00:16:06,006 is where I want us all to aspire to be. 299 00:16:06,006 --> 00:16:09,051 So we're trying to we're trying to live, I say in the book, between level 300 00:16:09,051 --> 00:16:12,096 four and five, and if you get to five, you're really, really, 301 00:16:13,389 --> 00:16:15,641 cooking with gas, you know, at level five. 302 00:16:15,641 --> 00:16:19,019 And I've encountered some of these people who have been so inspirational 303 00:16:19,269 --> 00:16:21,355 in, in life. 304 00:16:21,355 --> 00:16:23,857 And that's just a constant level of preparation. 305 00:16:23,857 --> 00:16:27,820 And that involves having really solid systems 306 00:16:27,820 --> 00:16:30,823 and all of the important areas of your business. 307 00:16:31,240 --> 00:16:32,992 And you have thought that through, 308 00:16:32,992 --> 00:16:35,995 and you have you have gone to the level of preparation 309 00:16:36,286 --> 00:16:39,289 that says that you, 310 00:16:39,623 --> 00:16:42,126 have a system really for how you're going to approach 311 00:16:42,126 --> 00:16:46,463 being prepared in all these important areas of performance. 312 00:16:46,463 --> 00:16:50,426 And so the, the five levels of preparation are just a way 313 00:16:50,801 --> 00:16:54,888 to, to have a leader think about, where they're landing 314 00:16:55,347 --> 00:16:58,434 and then giving them a pathway and some methods 315 00:16:58,434 --> 00:17:01,687 on how to improve that and get to that highest level of preparation. 316 00:17:02,730 --> 00:17:05,733 Would it be safe to say 317 00:17:06,191 --> 00:17:09,194 that, 318 00:17:10,237 --> 00:17:13,240 The majority of organizations, 319 00:17:14,199 --> 00:17:16,577 are at level three? 320 00:17:16,577 --> 00:17:19,580 That's been my experience when I've gone into companies 321 00:17:19,955 --> 00:17:24,001 and, and we're working through whatever challenges they're facing. 322 00:17:25,335 --> 00:17:28,422 It it is it is usually, 323 00:17:29,131 --> 00:17:31,884 the, the the leader or the CEO or the CEO 324 00:17:31,884 --> 00:17:34,887 or whoever, whoever I'm engaged with, 325 00:17:35,054 --> 00:17:38,557 they are possibly at a level four of commitment 326 00:17:38,557 --> 00:17:41,643 or a level five, but the organization is not. 327 00:17:41,643 --> 00:17:46,648 And so that's where we try to go in and, and really help them teach how to do that. 328 00:17:46,648 --> 00:17:50,778 Listen, if I ask everybody on the that that's, that's, that's watching us today 329 00:17:50,778 --> 00:17:51,987 or listening. Yep. 330 00:17:51,987 --> 00:17:56,116 If they thought it would be a good idea to be honest and business and work 331 00:17:56,116 --> 00:18:00,496 hard in business and have discipline around your business, everybody you know 332 00:18:01,538 --> 00:18:03,582 of position. 333 00:18:03,582 --> 00:18:06,585 Yeah, that I think all those things are important. 334 00:18:06,585 --> 00:18:10,297 What we do is we teach how to how to bring those alive 335 00:18:10,756 --> 00:18:16,095 in your business and, and where it connects in a more specific way. 336 00:18:16,428 --> 00:18:19,431 And preparation is one of the pillar points of hard work. 337 00:18:20,349 --> 00:18:24,394 You know, hard work does not mean I just go sit at my desk for ten hours. 338 00:18:24,394 --> 00:18:28,398 It involves some steps where you can make that effort 339 00:18:28,398 --> 00:18:31,401 come alive, and preparation is really the foundation, 340 00:18:32,111 --> 00:18:34,822 of being a really great producer and a and a 341 00:18:34,822 --> 00:18:37,825 and a person who gives great effort. 342 00:18:37,991 --> 00:18:40,994 In the book. You, 343 00:18:41,370 --> 00:18:43,455 you interview, you had a short interview, 344 00:18:43,455 --> 00:18:45,499 ask a couple of questions of Peyton Manning. 345 00:18:45,499 --> 00:18:47,835 Yeah. And, 346 00:18:47,835 --> 00:18:52,464 for those of you that might not know, Peyton Manning was, one of the best, 347 00:18:53,715 --> 00:18:56,802 professional quarterbacks in the NFL of all time. 348 00:18:56,802 --> 00:18:59,513 He's he's having tremendous success in business beyond that. 349 00:18:59,513 --> 00:19:01,682 And that's interesting as well at the end. 350 00:19:01,682 --> 00:19:04,685 But the first thing that you, the first thing he says, and 351 00:19:04,685 --> 00:19:07,813 you asked him about preparation because if you know anything about Peyton 352 00:19:07,813 --> 00:19:10,816 and having and living in Indianapolis, I know quite a bit about Peyton, 353 00:19:11,316 --> 00:19:13,902 as an observer for a number of years, 354 00:19:13,902 --> 00:19:16,697 he says, I've always been a big believer in work ethic and preparation. 355 00:19:16,697 --> 00:19:19,700 So he's oh, he's working those two things together, just like you just said. 356 00:19:19,950 --> 00:19:22,536 Here's the thing I found interesting, and let me just read it. 357 00:19:22,536 --> 00:19:23,954 Then you can comment. 358 00:19:23,954 --> 00:19:25,330 All competitors are looking for an edge. 359 00:19:25,330 --> 00:19:27,416 And I thought mine could come through preparation. 360 00:19:27,416 --> 00:19:30,502 I knew I wasn't going to be able outrun defenders, that's for sure. 361 00:19:30,627 --> 00:19:32,713 Or throw it the ball 80 yards down the field. 362 00:19:32,713 --> 00:19:34,756 But preparing harder and working 363 00:19:34,756 --> 00:19:36,884 harder gave me confidence I could find an advantage. 364 00:19:36,884 --> 00:19:41,180 And I think to me that's really interesting because regardless of 365 00:19:41,180 --> 00:19:46,935 sort of what else we see, we have in our at our fingertips and our toolkit at, 366 00:19:48,604 --> 00:19:49,688 you can you can 367 00:19:49,688 --> 00:19:53,775 always make the choice to prepare more effectively. 368 00:19:53,775 --> 00:19:55,152 There. 369 00:19:55,152 --> 00:19:59,281 Well, there's there's two things we're in charge of that 370 00:19:59,489 --> 00:20:01,491 I've learned as a coach, 371 00:20:01,491 --> 00:20:04,620 and I wish I could be in charge of the players on the team. 372 00:20:04,620 --> 00:20:05,662 I wish I could take over 373 00:20:05,662 --> 00:20:09,458 this and be in charge of this, but this is where we personally have to show up. 374 00:20:09,458 --> 00:20:11,877 Our attitude. 375 00:20:11,877 --> 00:20:14,755 I have to control my attitude 376 00:20:14,755 --> 00:20:17,799 because I tell you, I've told the players, I'll tell I'll continue 377 00:20:17,799 --> 00:20:20,886 to tell them if if it were up to me, everybody to have a great attitude. 378 00:20:20,886 --> 00:20:22,846 But it's unfortunately it doesn't happen that way. 379 00:20:22,846 --> 00:20:26,391 We have to own our attitude and then we have to own our effort. 380 00:20:26,391 --> 00:20:31,146 And those two things I think Payton captured just absolute 381 00:20:31,480 --> 00:20:35,234 perfectly hit the nail on the head and the concept 382 00:20:35,234 --> 00:20:38,237 behind interviewing him. 383 00:20:38,362 --> 00:20:42,407 He's a good friend of mine, but but he's, one of the top 384 00:20:42,407 --> 00:20:47,537 five quarterbacks in game winning drives in the fourth quarter. 385 00:20:48,038 --> 00:20:51,792 And that that really speaks to his level of preparation, 386 00:20:51,792 --> 00:20:53,460 because when the stakes were the highest 387 00:20:53,460 --> 00:20:56,463 and the pressure was this was the toughest, 388 00:20:56,505 --> 00:20:59,841 he was able to make decisions that led his team 389 00:20:59,841 --> 00:21:04,471 to more victories than virtually anybody else, in the history of the game. 390 00:21:04,471 --> 00:21:06,640 And so that fascinated me. 391 00:21:06,640 --> 00:21:08,141 And I wanted to dig into that. 392 00:21:08,141 --> 00:21:12,062 And I just thought he he gave some great insights on preparation. 393 00:21:12,062 --> 00:21:16,400 And, one of the highlights of the book and one of the real joys in me 394 00:21:16,400 --> 00:21:19,403 writing the book was, was having that conversation with Peyton. 395 00:21:20,529 --> 00:21:23,699 So I and and for those of you listening, if you're not, 396 00:21:24,866 --> 00:21:28,620 I hope that the, the occasional sporting reference is not keeping you 397 00:21:28,620 --> 00:21:31,623 from watching or listening if you're not a sports person. 398 00:21:32,040 --> 00:21:36,003 And yet I want you having a unique perspective 399 00:21:36,003 --> 00:21:39,423 that most of us don't have, and especially if you are a sports fan, 400 00:21:39,423 --> 00:21:42,426 I there's a couple of things I want to ask that maybe will be helpful. 401 00:21:43,635 --> 00:21:48,223 I would guess even the casual fan would say that in team sports 402 00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:51,560 we sort of have a pretty high expectation 403 00:21:51,560 --> 00:21:54,563 that coaches are going to prepare their teams. 404 00:21:54,771 --> 00:21:56,940 There's all sorts of conversation about how busy coaches are. 405 00:21:56,940 --> 00:21:57,774 They get all this stuff to do. 406 00:21:57,774 --> 00:22:00,944 But one of those things is the large amounts of preparation. 407 00:22:01,987 --> 00:22:04,239 What would you what would you tell us 408 00:22:04,239 --> 00:22:08,952 with your with your coaching hat on specifically 409 00:22:09,578 --> 00:22:13,665 about what what we need to know that you've learned from that specifically 410 00:22:14,291 --> 00:22:17,753 that will help the rest of us who aren't going to put a whistle on our neck. 411 00:22:18,462 --> 00:22:20,630 And coach a team. 412 00:22:20,630 --> 00:22:23,633 Well, what I learned that's that's very, 413 00:22:23,842 --> 00:22:26,678 that pertains so well to the business world. 414 00:22:26,678 --> 00:22:29,681 It's about preparation and how athletics, 415 00:22:30,849 --> 00:22:33,935 really can instruct us and inform us is 416 00:22:35,020 --> 00:22:37,356 we're competing, 417 00:22:37,356 --> 00:22:38,815 in some shape or form. 418 00:22:38,815 --> 00:22:44,154 We're competing to produce and to perform, whether that's in sports or business. 419 00:22:44,738 --> 00:22:47,574 What I found was, as a leader, 420 00:22:47,574 --> 00:22:53,330 the more time that I would spend on preparation 421 00:22:53,955 --> 00:22:57,209 in specific areas of what drove winning. 422 00:22:57,584 --> 00:23:01,004 And so the first thing that I think businesses have to do are 423 00:23:01,296 --> 00:23:04,800 what are the what are the what's the bread and butter of the business? 424 00:23:04,800 --> 00:23:08,553 What has to happen for us to be successful. 425 00:23:08,553 --> 00:23:11,640 So for instance, in basketball, all for us, 426 00:23:12,099 --> 00:23:15,519 one of the key indicators for us to win 427 00:23:15,519 --> 00:23:21,066 was the opponent turns the ball over or makes a mistake more than we do. 428 00:23:21,066 --> 00:23:22,609 It's called turnover margin. 429 00:23:22,609 --> 00:23:25,946 So our turnovers are low, their turnovers are high. 430 00:23:26,405 --> 00:23:30,909 And that was a very important part of our business that didn't mean that 431 00:23:30,909 --> 00:23:35,622 it was part of Purdue women's basketball's business or Tennessees part of this. 432 00:23:35,622 --> 00:23:39,668 But for Kentucky, that was a bread and butter building block of what 433 00:23:39,668 --> 00:23:40,210 we had to do. 434 00:23:40,210 --> 00:23:45,132 So having identified that, now I must prepare the team 435 00:23:45,132 --> 00:23:49,469 and that specific area and what are all the components that go into that? 436 00:23:49,469 --> 00:23:53,265 So I could I could give you a very long, boring story about all that. 437 00:23:53,265 --> 00:23:56,226 But but the point is, in your business 438 00:23:56,643 --> 00:23:59,771 what what is absolutely necessary 439 00:23:59,771 --> 00:24:02,023 because we can make a lot of things, Kevin, important. 440 00:24:02,023 --> 00:24:03,567 We can make a lot of things important. 441 00:24:03,567 --> 00:24:05,735 But what what is the core 442 00:24:05,735 --> 00:24:09,281 and the necessary actions in your business that must happen. 443 00:24:09,823 --> 00:24:13,785 And you have to identify those and really dig into those details 444 00:24:13,785 --> 00:24:17,998 and then get a plan and you're prepared because that's the place 445 00:24:18,290 --> 00:24:21,918 where the execution must be at its absolute highest level. 446 00:24:24,129 --> 00:24:24,963 I love that. 447 00:24:24,963 --> 00:24:26,256 I really do love that. 448 00:24:26,256 --> 00:24:29,676 Oh, I want to go back to constant preparation, because you have a formula 449 00:24:29,885 --> 00:24:33,180 to help us get to that level five of constant preparation. 450 00:24:33,305 --> 00:24:36,266 Do you want to share a little bit about that for a second? 451 00:24:36,308 --> 00:24:40,437 Well, what what the constant preparer 452 00:24:40,437 --> 00:24:44,024 that I learned from was a great fortune. 453 00:24:44,024 --> 00:24:46,776 I met this this, incredible leader. 454 00:24:46,776 --> 00:24:51,114 Tom and Ernie has become a great friend and mentor and who has developed, 455 00:24:51,656 --> 00:24:55,160 a very successful insurance business in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 456 00:24:55,619 --> 00:24:59,039 And Tom taught me how important, 457 00:24:59,748 --> 00:25:04,544 a system, a system is for you to be in constant preparation. 458 00:25:04,878 --> 00:25:07,881 And so he was like, Matthew, what are what are the 459 00:25:08,048 --> 00:25:11,384 what are the areas for you to be a great recruiter? 460 00:25:12,594 --> 00:25:13,845 Identify those 461 00:25:13,845 --> 00:25:18,308 and then start to build a system that's going to ensure 462 00:25:18,308 --> 00:25:21,561 that you're ready to complete those tasks with excellence. 463 00:25:22,270 --> 00:25:24,898 And that was the big key with with Tom was, was 464 00:25:24,898 --> 00:25:28,485 we are going to strive for excellence in these areas. 465 00:25:28,985 --> 00:25:32,447 And the more we're prepared, the better the tighter we get our system, 466 00:25:32,447 --> 00:25:36,284 the more the more dialed in your system is. 467 00:25:36,576 --> 00:25:39,287 Then that frees you up 468 00:25:39,287 --> 00:25:43,542 to be more creative, to be more thoughtful, to discover more 469 00:25:43,542 --> 00:25:47,504 because you're not constantly fooling around with just what is the process. 470 00:25:47,921 --> 00:25:51,466 And so systematization is so important 471 00:25:51,466 --> 00:25:55,512 for us if we really want to achieve that constant level of preparation. 472 00:25:55,512 --> 00:25:59,599 So Tom has a system for how his week's going to unfold 473 00:25:59,599 --> 00:26:01,476 and what percentage is going to be business 474 00:26:01,476 --> 00:26:02,936 and what percentage is going to be spent 475 00:26:02,936 --> 00:26:05,939 on him thinking, and what percentage is going to be, 476 00:26:05,981 --> 00:26:07,482 devoted to his physical health. 477 00:26:07,482 --> 00:26:08,942 And so all those things. 478 00:26:08,942 --> 00:26:14,114 So the so that was the big lesson and the story that I share in the book 479 00:26:14,114 --> 00:26:17,617 that I think is, is interesting about that part of the journey for me. 480 00:26:17,617 --> 00:26:20,078 And I'd invite people to really dig into that 481 00:26:20,078 --> 00:26:22,163 because I think it's some very useful information. 482 00:26:23,707 --> 00:26:25,125 I want to ask you one more question 483 00:26:25,125 --> 00:26:28,962 that that that starts with sports, but it doesn't need to end there. 484 00:26:28,962 --> 00:26:31,965 Right? So you talk in the book, 485 00:26:32,591 --> 00:26:35,844 there's there's a chapter about strategy and you talk a little bit about this 486 00:26:35,844 --> 00:26:36,261 and there's a, 487 00:26:36,261 --> 00:26:39,347 there's a story earlier and we won't I won't bother people with that story, 488 00:26:39,639 --> 00:26:43,685 but there's sort of from a, from a coaching perspective, there's, 489 00:26:45,020 --> 00:26:48,607 there's kind of two there's sort of two ways to prepare. 490 00:26:48,940 --> 00:26:52,569 Am I preparing based on what I know about my opponent? 491 00:26:54,613 --> 00:26:58,116 Or am I preparing based on our process 492 00:26:59,367 --> 00:27:01,494 mastering what we do. 493 00:27:01,494 --> 00:27:02,287 Right. 494 00:27:02,287 --> 00:27:08,168 And so before you answer, I want to share the story that I heard multiple times. 495 00:27:09,044 --> 00:27:11,713 And I believe it was told originally by Bill Walton. 496 00:27:11,713 --> 00:27:12,047 And he said, 497 00:27:12,047 --> 00:27:16,176 the only time I remember Coach Wooden really having us focus on the opponent, 498 00:27:16,176 --> 00:27:19,179 and I think it might have been Notre Dame was the game we lost. 499 00:27:19,512 --> 00:27:23,141 Coach Wooden's approach was very much about we're going to focus on us. 500 00:27:25,518 --> 00:27:26,019 And I'm 501 00:27:26,019 --> 00:27:30,106 curious because I think from a strategic perspective outside of basketball, 502 00:27:30,649 --> 00:27:33,443 this is a critical question for us to consider. 503 00:27:33,443 --> 00:27:37,364 How do you how do you what's your take about balancing those two 504 00:27:37,447 --> 00:27:40,450 because you're not ignoring the opponent. 505 00:27:40,450 --> 00:27:42,661 Right? Right. Yeah. 506 00:27:42,661 --> 00:27:43,578 Where are you. 507 00:27:43,578 --> 00:27:47,082 Where where do you when you're at your best 508 00:27:47,082 --> 00:27:50,168 as a coach, where do you where do you find that balance. 509 00:27:50,168 --> 00:27:52,962 And and what's your advice for us around that. 510 00:27:52,962 --> 00:27:57,425 So this is a great way to explain it is is through sports. 511 00:27:57,425 --> 00:28:01,388 But it totally relates to business and to your performance. 512 00:28:01,388 --> 00:28:04,724 And no matter what type of industry you're in. 513 00:28:04,724 --> 00:28:09,104 But so for the majority, the overwhelming majority of our time, 514 00:28:09,104 --> 00:28:13,400 we are focused on our process and what we are doing. 515 00:28:14,150 --> 00:28:15,402 We don't ignore, 516 00:28:16,986 --> 00:28:18,405 industry trends. 517 00:28:18,405 --> 00:28:23,076 We that's part of our process is to stay up, stay nimble, stay agile, 518 00:28:23,076 --> 00:28:26,663 and so you are you are absolutely examining the market. 519 00:28:26,663 --> 00:28:29,249 And and you can see what competitors are doing. 520 00:28:29,249 --> 00:28:30,667 But the majority of our time 521 00:28:30,667 --> 00:28:35,797 we are rooted in our process of what makes us successful. 522 00:28:35,797 --> 00:28:39,884 So defensively, it was it's very, 523 00:28:40,510 --> 00:28:43,054 much like what, Bill Walton was describing. 524 00:28:43,054 --> 00:28:45,306 We are trying to do what we do 525 00:28:45,306 --> 00:28:49,352 really well, and we believe that the the opponent has to adjust to us 526 00:28:49,352 --> 00:28:53,732 because we're so rooted in what we do and what our process is. 527 00:28:54,524 --> 00:28:57,861 That's where I think you get so great, because you are rooted in your 528 00:28:57,861 --> 00:29:02,741 fundamentals and you're not constantly changing to meet some moment 529 00:29:02,907 --> 00:29:07,537 that, that, that an opponent, poses to you or the market, opposed to you. 530 00:29:07,829 --> 00:29:10,665 You are you have done this over and over and over. 531 00:29:10,665 --> 00:29:11,958 Your fundamentals are solid. 532 00:29:11,958 --> 00:29:13,042 Your process is solid. 533 00:29:13,042 --> 00:29:15,253 So that's the majority of the time. 534 00:29:15,253 --> 00:29:19,716 Now in basketball, where we really start to dig in to the opponent. 535 00:29:19,966 --> 00:29:23,511 It's what we call special situations where, 536 00:29:24,512 --> 00:29:24,888 whether it 537 00:29:24,888 --> 00:29:27,891 be the end of the game, the end of the clock, 538 00:29:29,017 --> 00:29:32,896 a time where there's a pause and they're taking the ball out of bounds, 539 00:29:33,521 --> 00:29:36,107 that's not in the regular flow of your rhythm. 540 00:29:36,107 --> 00:29:41,654 We dig very much into the details there, and we prepare very hard, 541 00:29:42,113 --> 00:29:44,657 because at the end of the game, 542 00:29:44,657 --> 00:29:48,161 people start to get into some high pressure 543 00:29:48,161 --> 00:29:51,164 situations. And if you're not prepared, 544 00:29:51,372 --> 00:29:54,125 it's not exactly like the normal flow of the game. 545 00:29:54,125 --> 00:29:58,338 So you must be able to to identify what is the special situation. 546 00:29:58,588 --> 00:30:02,091 Watching the NCAA tournament this last year, end of game. 547 00:30:02,967 --> 00:30:06,012 It just showed people who were prepared and who were not. 548 00:30:06,012 --> 00:30:08,723 And so you've got to identify that in your business. 549 00:30:08,723 --> 00:30:12,018 What are those high stress moments that are a bit unusual. 550 00:30:12,852 --> 00:30:16,356 And then you must dig into the details and get your team prepared. 551 00:30:16,689 --> 00:30:17,649 And that was that. 552 00:30:17,649 --> 00:30:21,486 That's that's how I would, describe how we approach 553 00:30:21,945 --> 00:30:25,406 that balance of, of whether, how much time we spend on us 554 00:30:25,657 --> 00:30:28,827 and how much time we were responding to the market or to the competition. 555 00:30:29,619 --> 00:30:30,161 I love that. 556 00:30:30,161 --> 00:30:32,705 Thank you for, diving into that for us. 557 00:30:32,705 --> 00:30:35,792 I think it's really, really great advice. 558 00:30:36,251 --> 00:30:39,879 Is there anything that you thought I would ask 559 00:30:39,879 --> 00:30:43,258 or hoped I would ask that I didn't 560 00:30:44,425 --> 00:30:44,676 know? 561 00:30:44,676 --> 00:30:47,679 I think it's been such a great conversation. 562 00:30:47,679 --> 00:30:52,725 I think one thing I would mention that I would encourage people to read the book, 563 00:30:53,768 --> 00:30:57,856 that that has been a powerful event in my leadership 564 00:30:57,856 --> 00:31:03,528 and that I would like to share is a is is what, my pursuit of perfection 565 00:31:03,528 --> 00:31:08,575 did to my mindset, to my attitude, to my career. 566 00:31:08,867 --> 00:31:11,035 I was on a pursuit to be perfect. 567 00:31:11,035 --> 00:31:14,038 I was on a pursuit to be the best coach in the world. 568 00:31:14,163 --> 00:31:17,917 And that really opened up a lot of negative things for me. 569 00:31:18,042 --> 00:31:21,296 It opened up a lot of roadblocks, a lot of obstacles that I would face, 570 00:31:21,296 --> 00:31:24,299 because if you're trying to be perfect, you have to get it all perfect. 571 00:31:24,465 --> 00:31:26,175 All these things come into play. 572 00:31:26,175 --> 00:31:30,847 And so I, a few years back, made a shift from perfection, 573 00:31:31,014 --> 00:31:34,934 which in many ways would paralyze my leadership to, 574 00:31:35,143 --> 00:31:39,606 shifted to excellence, to pursuing excellence each and every day. 575 00:31:40,064 --> 00:31:42,233 And so in excellence, I'm exhilarated. 576 00:31:42,233 --> 00:31:43,568 I see all the opportunities. 577 00:31:43,568 --> 00:31:46,696 I'm not thinking about all the pitfalls that perfection brings to me. 578 00:31:47,071 --> 00:31:51,576 And so excellence is its own reward is a mindset that I, 579 00:31:52,744 --> 00:31:55,622 challenged the reader to, to adopt 580 00:31:55,622 --> 00:31:58,750 so they can really open up the power of preparation. 581 00:31:59,959 --> 00:32:02,295 I love that, and, 582 00:32:02,295 --> 00:32:05,298 I'm really glad that we had the chance to talk about that. 583 00:32:05,340 --> 00:32:08,259 A couple of things before we go. 584 00:32:08,259 --> 00:32:09,969 What do you do, Matthew? Coach. 585 00:32:09,969 --> 00:32:12,972 Matthew, what do you do for fun? 586 00:32:13,097 --> 00:32:16,059 Oh, gosh, I have a lot of fun. I, 587 00:32:16,059 --> 00:32:19,103 I, love music, and so I sing. 588 00:32:19,103 --> 00:32:24,025 I have the Coach Mitchell band and we play about ten, 12 times a year. 589 00:32:24,025 --> 00:32:29,238 And it it's it's as Kevin, it's as much fun as I could ever, think about having. 590 00:32:29,656 --> 00:32:33,159 And, it's like I tell people they're like, aren't you nervous to get up there? 591 00:32:33,159 --> 00:32:36,996 And I said, listen, I have more fun than any show that I play. 592 00:32:36,996 --> 00:32:38,247 I have more fun than anybody else. 593 00:32:38,247 --> 00:32:42,335 So I literally do it for fun and, and, and, and so that's a lot of fun. 594 00:32:42,335 --> 00:32:47,006 And then, I love to, to, my wife and I and kids, 595 00:32:47,006 --> 00:32:51,970 we love to, to travel and see new places and experience experience new things. 596 00:32:51,970 --> 00:32:55,056 I was a history teacher when I was the high school teacher and coach. 597 00:32:55,431 --> 00:32:59,435 And so I love, love history and, enjoy that. 598 00:32:59,435 --> 00:33:01,396 So, it is 599 00:33:02,355 --> 00:33:05,108 those are some of the things that I do for fun. 600 00:33:05,108 --> 00:33:08,236 I love that, the only thing you knew for sure 601 00:33:08,236 --> 00:33:12,156 I would ask you, is this what are you reading these days? 602 00:33:12,991 --> 00:33:17,495 I'm reading a couple of things right now, and so I'm always trying to read, 603 00:33:18,329 --> 00:33:21,332 something that I can learn from. 604 00:33:21,582 --> 00:33:23,960 And then, every now and then, 605 00:33:23,960 --> 00:33:27,880 I try to get myself a chance to read something that's, entertaining. 606 00:33:27,880 --> 00:33:32,969 So the Last King of America by Andrew Roberts is about King George the Third. 607 00:33:33,344 --> 00:33:37,932 That was the that that had a fascinating reign as the king of England. 608 00:33:38,433 --> 00:33:41,644 And, that's the history teacher in you coming out, right? 609 00:33:41,644 --> 00:33:42,270 Yeah, yeah. 610 00:33:42,270 --> 00:33:44,814 And so that's a really it's it's a huge book. 611 00:33:44,814 --> 00:33:47,817 It's, it's it's, taking some time to get through, 612 00:33:48,151 --> 00:33:49,944 but it's very, very interesting. 613 00:33:49,944 --> 00:33:55,408 And, is, is, makes me think so that one is, is happening. 614 00:33:55,908 --> 00:33:59,162 And then a good friend of mine, I'd love to plug her book is a novel. 615 00:33:59,162 --> 00:34:00,538 She's a first time author. 616 00:34:00,538 --> 00:34:02,206 Beth Pride is her name. 617 00:34:02,206 --> 00:34:05,960 And she's got a wonderful novel called Back to Blue Holly that is, 618 00:34:06,544 --> 00:34:07,754 that is a fiction book. 619 00:34:07,754 --> 00:34:09,756 But I'm so proud of her. 620 00:34:09,756 --> 00:34:12,884 And and it is such an entertaining read. 621 00:34:12,884 --> 00:34:16,095 And, I am about halfway through that right now, and just, 622 00:34:16,763 --> 00:34:20,266 I love opening that up every night, right before I go to bed. 623 00:34:20,266 --> 00:34:23,019 And so I'm having some fun with my reading right now. 624 00:34:24,020 --> 00:34:25,396 Back to blue 625 00:34:25,396 --> 00:34:28,066 Holly and the Last King of America. 626 00:34:28,066 --> 00:34:29,734 And ready to win. 627 00:34:29,734 --> 00:34:34,405 Yes. The links to all of those will be in the show notes for all of you, for sure. 628 00:34:35,948 --> 00:34:37,992 Coach, where can we learn more about your work? 629 00:34:37,992 --> 00:34:40,995 Where do you want to point people before we start to close up? 630 00:34:41,245 --> 00:34:45,792 Yeah, I'd love to invite people to listen to my podcast comes out every Wednesday. 631 00:34:45,792 --> 00:34:46,959 That's, real simple. 632 00:34:46,959 --> 00:34:49,170 It's called The Coach Matthew Mitchell Show. 633 00:34:49,170 --> 00:34:53,007 And we discuss, leadership and and life and personal growth. 634 00:34:53,007 --> 00:34:53,716 And we have a good time. 635 00:34:53,716 --> 00:34:56,260 And we have some fun guests on there, from time to time. 636 00:34:56,260 --> 00:34:59,263 So love to invite people to, to to 637 00:34:59,806 --> 00:35:02,767 go to that show coach Matthew mitchell.com. 638 00:35:02,767 --> 00:35:06,979 You can we have a ton of of of really accessible free resources 639 00:35:06,979 --> 00:35:11,234 for people to improve their leadership, but also some leadership content 640 00:35:11,234 --> 00:35:15,279 that can help your team, organization, business move forward. 641 00:35:15,696 --> 00:35:20,910 And, and then I'm on social, on the, all the platforms at coach Matthew Mitchell. 642 00:35:20,910 --> 00:35:23,788 So love for people to check out the winning tools 643 00:35:23,788 --> 00:35:26,415 and see what they could do to help them in their life. 644 00:35:26,415 --> 00:35:27,583 All right. 645 00:35:27,583 --> 00:35:29,585 Thank you, Coach Mitchell. 646 00:35:29,585 --> 00:35:32,588 Before we go, everybody, the question I ask you all every week 647 00:35:32,880 --> 00:35:36,217 and every week means this week two and it's 648 00:35:36,217 --> 00:35:39,470 the most important question I could ask you after you've had the chance to be, 649 00:35:40,012 --> 00:35:43,307 informed and inspired for 30 plus minutes. 650 00:35:43,307 --> 00:35:44,809 And that would be okay. Now, what 651 00:35:46,227 --> 00:35:48,271 what action will you take as a result? 652 00:35:48,271 --> 00:35:52,650 Because it's fine and dandy, if you will, to learn from this. 653 00:35:52,650 --> 00:35:56,445 And, maybe you leave with a good story and maybe leave with a nice, warm 654 00:35:56,445 --> 00:35:59,866 feeling and maybe you'll even lead with some new conviction. 655 00:35:59,866 --> 00:36:04,495 But until you take action, what point, will it have been? 656 00:36:04,495 --> 00:36:04,787 Right. 657 00:36:04,787 --> 00:36:06,414 So, like, maybe it's spending some time thinking 658 00:36:06,414 --> 00:36:07,915 about what the bread and butter in your businesses. 659 00:36:07,915 --> 00:36:09,584 Maybe it's thinking a little bit more about, 660 00:36:09,584 --> 00:36:11,919 are we focusing more externally or internally? Maybe. 661 00:36:11,919 --> 00:36:15,548 I don't know what that is for you, but I do know that there were plenty 662 00:36:15,548 --> 00:36:21,262 of nuggets here, and the transformation from you from an idea or an inspiration 663 00:36:21,262 --> 00:36:25,391 or some education to action will make all the difference. 664 00:36:25,391 --> 00:36:28,394 And I hope that you will do exactly that. 665 00:36:28,644 --> 00:36:32,648 Our guest has been Coach Matthew Mitchell. 666 00:36:33,316 --> 00:36:34,609 Matthew, it's been a pleasure to have you. 667 00:36:34,609 --> 00:36:36,402 Thanks so much for being here. 668 00:36:36,402 --> 00:36:36,819 Thank you. 669 00:36:36,819 --> 00:36:38,279 Kevin is awesome. 670 00:36:38,279 --> 00:36:40,364 I hope we can do it again sometime. 671 00:36:40,364 --> 00:36:42,992 I do too. And speaking of again sometime, 672 00:36:43,993 --> 00:36:47,330 wherever you watch this or listen to this, make sure you're subscribed 673 00:36:47,330 --> 00:36:50,791 and make sure you're letting people know that they want 674 00:36:50,791 --> 00:36:53,794 to come listen to because we're here every week. 675 00:36:53,836 --> 00:36:54,545 And next week 676 00:36:54,545 --> 00:36:58,966 we'll be back with another episode of the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.