Month: September 2025

Commencement addresses are an annual exercise in inspiring the next generation to believe in themselves and to create their own future. Of the many addresses I have heard recently, one line stuck with me.

Watch your own game films!

A.J. Brown stated this advice in an address to 2025 graduates of the University of Mississippi. Brown, an Ole Miss grad, is an all-star receiver with the Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles. As a football player, he spent a lifetime watching films of himself. His point was that watching yourself is not an ego trip; it’s an avenue to self-awareness. Something, as he noted, that is vital to anyone in leadership.

Brown’s point was to take stock of yourself as a means of understanding what you have done and what you might do better the next time. When players watch the films, they receive critiques of what they did and what they missed.

While few of us want to have our work put on film – or video – there is an alternative. Enlist the help of a peer coach, someone to serve as your spotter, who will watch you at work and regularly debrief you on what they observe.

Peer Coaching

Peer coaching is an exercise in trust. It is based on honest feedback. Here’s a framework to consider utilizing.

Select. Your peer can be a friend, but one who is willing to give you the straight dope on your actions and behaviors.

Observe. Watch how you interact with others. Keep an eye out for what others say about you to your face and behind your back.

Debrief. This step is the tough part. Your peer should discuss what you have done well as well as where you could improve. 

Selection, observation and debriefing are form the basics of peer coaching. What peer coaching can do is enable you to see yourself as others see you. It is natural for us to overlook some of our shortcomings because we perceive them as insignificant. 

Discover what you are missing.

For example, busy executives feeling the pressure of the moment will often jump in and finish the sentences of their direct reports. First off, this behavior is rude. Second, the executive’s closing may not be accurate. Third, and most importantly, behavior such as this will cause others to shut down. They will not bother to comment, which leaves the executive uninformed and essentially flying blind about the issue facing his team.

All too often, executives remain unaware of this bad habit, leaving them in the dark about it. A peer coach can point out what the executive is doing and point out the harmful side effects. 

Peer coaching can serve as a mirror to your behavior. Consider it the management equivalent of a game film, which reveals how others perceive you. Even better, this coaching enables you to take stock of yourself, make adjustments, and, in the process, become more attentive to how you connect with others.

First posted on Forbes.com 7.14.2025

Slump!

One of the words that bedevils teams at every level, but particularly in professional baseball, is in part because the season is so long.

Players experience them individually. Teams go through them collectively.

There’s an old saying that says baseball is like life, only more so. And that’s why watching how teams cohere, compete to win, and continue to persevere through the highs and the lows of the season makes it so instructive. And often it’s when times are most challenging that the best lessons emerge.

Slump in D-town

Take the Detroit Tigers. After a surprising finish last season, which saw them make it to the Division playoffs, the Tigers maintained their pace, posting the best record in Major League Baseball until just before and after All-Star Game when they went won one game in  13 tries.

What can be done? Evan Petzold, beat writer for the Detroit Free Press, did an extended interview with manager A.J. Hinch. His answers will reflect his long career in the game, as a World Series-winning manager with the Houston Astros, a catcher, and, yes, a psychology major at Stanford.

Face reality

Facing reality does not mean accepting it. “You can write a laundry list of things when teams aren’t going well about what’s going wrong.” Knowing what’s wrong does not mean you can fix it right away.

“It’s hard enough to press the reset button after a good time, where you win a series… The morale is good, but it’s tough on these guys.”

Competition is not going to make recovery from a slump easy. “Baseball is going to push back a little bit and make you play the next day and the next day and the next day.” No teams “we play [are] going to feel sorry for us. We’ve got to play better.”

Hinch likes what he sees in his players. “We’re not pouting and sulking… There’s a ton of togetherness. There’s a ton of guys trying to find solutions.” He adds something that every manager in any endeavor says: that it’s not effort, it’s “execution.” And that is hard.

Lessons to learn

All of us face slumps, times when no matter how hard we try, we cannot seem to make a difference. And so, when that happens, it is essential, as Hinch reveals, to take stock of who you are, what you can do, and what you need to do to improve and make changes when possible. Above all, you need to believe in yourself. Losing confidence erodes your ability to bounce back.

Hinch himself is no stranger to adversity. After winning the World Series with the Astros, he was suspended for one year for not doing enough to prevent his players from using video technology to steal signs from opposing teams. While he disapproved of what his players were doing, he accepted the consequences. “Because wrong is wrong, and it was very wrong, and I’ll make sure that everyone knows that I feel responsible. Because I was the manager and it was on my watch, and I’ll never forget it.” That mindset no doubt gives Hinch a perspective on resilience that is essential for leading through tough times.

As a fan, I hold out hope that the Tigers will regain their poise and continue on their winning ways. As a student of leadership, I am sure that the lessons managers like A.J. Hinch share will be valuable to anyone in management.

After all, Hinch believes in his players. “We’re trying to keep our chins up, keep our chest out and realize we’re still a first-place team. We’re one good win away from potentially taking off again.”

First posted on Forbes.com 7.27.2025