For five years, I was able to watch Coach Sidney Lowe at NC State
because I had a local radio station that carried his games and weekly
radio show. I got to see him up close and personally, and saw he was a
role model for how to conduct yourself in public. Whatever you think
of his basketball achievements, as a person I think that Lowe taught
many lessons that the socially challenged can learn from. Here are a
few that come to mind.
Be gracious in public. Treat other people with genuine kindness and
sincerity. Just because you are having a bad day, don't take it out on
other people. Don't let what other people say and do change the way
you conduct yourself. Treat everyone the same way, from the elite
power-brokers to the guy who has to interview you after a bad loss.
Have a vision and stick to it. Don't blow in the wind of different
opinions. Have a plan for what you want to achieve, and work towards
it steadily. Otherwise you'll just be reacting randomly to whatever
happens.
Help other people do their jobs, and be a professional. Lowe
cooperated with the media at NC State which covered basketball. Lowe
met his professional obligations, and didn't fob off his coach's radio
show on an assistant or something after a bad week. He made everything
go as smoothly as possible.
All other things being equal, experience is the key. In any game, or
career, the experienced players are the ones who win. In almost any
career, most people have a basic set of essential skills. The
difference that makes the difference is usually that experienced
people know when to use their skills to get results. Therefore, get
experience.
Learn from success and failure. When something is over, go back look
at both what you did right and what you did wrong. Never focus on only
one or the other.
Focus on the positive. The difference is that when you focus on the
negatives, you have no chance, but if you focus on the positives, at
least you can keep your chin up and continue making progress. Dwelling
on the negatives is not productive.
Be a realist. Deal with situations as they really are, not as you want
them to be in a perfect world.
Don't throw you own guys under the bus. The best leaders talk
positively about their guys in public, and handle issues behind closed
doors. (Bobby Cox of the Braves was masterful at this. He would say
something positive to the media about a player even if the team was
getting unconditional release waivers on him.) Lowe took a long time
to learn this. Early on, he would single out what certain players did
to lose a game. As time passed, he learned this was not a good idea,
and changed how he approached post-game interviews.
Sidney Lowe stepped down recently as coach at NC State. His exit,
under difficult circumstances (Debbie Yow is a one-woman difficult
circumstance), was one of the most gracious I've ever seen. He showed
his true character under stress. Even though he's gone, his lessons
will live on.
08 May 2011, 12:14 pm
