But there's one final principle I have to share. Because you can have a great vision and you can be positive, but we still need to get our team on the bus and truly engaged. Because what I have found is that people follow the leader first and the vision second. And so if you're not someone that they want to follow, it doesn't matter how great a vision you have, it doesn't matter how positive you are, they're not going to get on your bus unless you take the time to invest in them.
and develop a relationship with them. Buy-in, all-in happens when we do three things. And there are three Cs, and I hope you'll write them down because they're simple and we can take it back with us to our clubs.
And the first C is we must communicate. Communicate. Communication is so important because communication builds trust.
Trust generates commitment. Commitment fosters teamwork. And teamwork delivers results.
It all starts with great communication. And remember this, where there's a void in communication, negativity fills it. Have you experienced that? We have to make sure that we fill the void with positive communication. I realize this at home too.
You know, we have to fill that void. We have to stay positive. make sure we're communicating.
My wife got me this book. She said we should read it together. I look at the cover.
It's called Have a New Husband by Friday. It's all about slowing down and communicating. But you know what? When we're busy and stressed, we don't communicate well, do we? We have to make sure we overcome the busyness and stress.
to make sure that we're investing in our relationships, to make sure that we're communicating. Because when we're busy and stressed, it's like we're driving our bus 100 miles an hour through life. And instead of taking the time to invite people on the bus, what do we do?
We run them over. We have to focus on great communication. Then we have to go to the next C. We have to coach them.
Focus on coaching. Everyone here, to me, I see as a coach. Someone who's here to mentor, to develop, to guide, to coach. people. You know, I was with Doc Rivers with the Boston Celtics before the season.
They used the energy bus last year. And I said to Doc, I said, what's the most important thing you do as a coach? He said, I communicate with my players and I make sure that I coach them to be better.
And everyone here could focus on that. You know, we remember the people who invest in us. We remember the people who coach us.
And I have found that when you succeed as a coach, it's not because we're great. great. It's not because you're great. It's because you bring out the greatness in others. And so much of coaching is that you believe in them more than they believe in themselves.
You don't see where they are. You see where they can be. And so you develop them.
You mentor them. You guide them. And you develop them. You bring out the best in them.
And when you do that, when they know you are there to coach them, to make them better, wow, they really get on your bus. I've worked with the Atlanta Falcons for the past five years. years. And one thing I've seen from Coach Mike Smith is he truly coaches his players. He is a coach first, and he invests in those players.
And those players, when they get on the field, they are playing harder, and they are more loyal to him. And it's the same thing with your teams every day. And the final C, caring.
We have to show our teams that we care about them. It's so simple, but again, the busyness and stress keeps us from caring about the people that we're supposed to care about. Remember that.
Focus on showing your team that you care about them, and they will buy in. will be all in. So how do we do that? We recognize them. We appreciate them.
We say thank you. Remember those two simple words, thank you. You know, companies spend billions of dollars on recognition programs, but you know what people really want? They want to be recognized. want a sincere thank you.
Just appreciate me. The number one reason why people quit their jobs is they don't feel appreciated. The number one reason why they stay is their relationship with their manager and their boss.
Now, do you have to challenge them? Yes. Do you have to sometimes push them?
Yes. Remember this. Not tough love, but love tough. See, I believe in tough love. But for it to work, love must come first.
If your team knows you care about them and you take the time to invest in them, they will allow you to push them. And that is what really creates an all-in team. It's that care, it's that love, it's that investment, it's that recognition, and it's that appreciation. And that makes all the difference when we do that, and we focus on that. And by the way, guys, I tried this at home, and it works at home too.
And I realize it's about the little things. Told you about my wife. Well, I called up Ken Blanchard, author of The One Minute Manager.
I said, Ken, I'm speaking all the time on the road, I'm traveling a lot, I come home, I'm exhausted, and what does my wife want? She wants a neck massage, Ken. I said, Ken, I deserve the massage.
What should I do? He said, John, give her a massage. He said, if you don't, someone else will. So guys, you know what I do now?
I give the neck massage. I help with laundry. I become really good at laundry.
I do the little things. And you know what I found? It's all about the little things that let our team know that we care about them.
And then I've created an all-in team. Remember this, rules without relationship lead to rebellion. Andy Stanley said it. Rules without relationship lead to rebellion. We focus on the relationship.
It allows us to create the team that we need to truly be successful.