The S&C Coach role in culture: Part Two - Cultivate — BASC

Take home message

CULTURE ALWAYS REQUIRES WORK. BE AN ACTIVE CONTRIBUTOR.

For Coaches

Culture is a system, so too are the tools to cultivate.

For Athletes

Follow good examples of culture. Be a good example of culture.

It’s interesting that the word culture has origins in cultivate, the notion of care and preparing soil for crops. You do not cultivate once. It is constant if you want sustainable growth. You ‘reap what you sow’.

Culture. Environment. Whatever you wish to call it, it’s a popular topic, as though it is the secret sauce for success. A book like “Legacy” which explores the culture of the NZ All Blacks shares important stories and characteristics ingrained and developed over a long time. It is not implying culture was the reason for success (the team comprised some players amongst the best of all time), but suggests some cultural lessons. Whilst I don’t think culture is the secret sauce, it is certainly important. In my line of work, a good culture can make the pursuit of goals easier because there are shared and agreed upon values of what we do and don’t accept. A good culture sorts issues out quickly, if needed to at all.

Here are two processes that I’ve leaned towards of late that I believe are very important in cultivating culture. One is what I like to call “The Third Person In” rule and the other is the “Corporal Barnes” (from “A Few Good Men”).

It’s my understanding that in ice hockey, two players can fight as long as they want (I don’t know if that is true, but go with me here). The player that gets in trouble is the 3rd player in. Because when they come in, it is now a two on one, so another player comes in to even it and before you know it, it is no longer a game of hockey but a brawl on skates. The third player determines if it is a one on one tussle or a brawl. I find team culture can be like that and I have seen it work to reinforce culture - towards bad or good. For example, say our culture is to “Sweep the sheds”. I can ask a player to help tidy up the bench. That player can tell me, “No”. If the bench gets tidied by the group or me alone is now up to the Third Person In. If the Third Person says, “They don’t have to tidy up”, then I’m on my own and with less authority and respect than before and we have a culture that is on a negative spiral away from what we said we stood for. If they say, “Help tidy up”, then it gets done. It’s not quite that simple, but that’s a general guide.

I find myself trying to build the culture by actively being the Third Player and “suggesting” to someone they should go first. I’m lucky in my role that I’ve been around a while and have a bit of respect among the players and staff, so I can be a strong Third Player. So if I see something that goes against our culture, I ask a player (Player A) to sort it out (Player B). Player A knows the right thing to do, but if their request of Player B does not quite go right, that I’ve got their back and as the Third Player, we sort it out two on one. A couple of things happen here.

Ideally, Player A sorts it out, culture strengthened. Player A gets positive reinforcement of strengthening culture, they know they always have my support and Player B is reminded that anyone can call anything out. However, Player B says “No” then I step in (now it’s a two on one) supporting Player A, and (hopefully) the ‘sheds are swept’. This fixes the problem (eg. bench gets tidied), gives Player A positive reinforcement for dealing with less than desirable culture, reminds Player B what is not acceptable, Player A knows they have my support for the future, and we reflect on how to do it better next time when a Third Player is not available. A lot of wins either way.

The “Corporal Barnes” is based on a scene from the movie “A Few Good Men” (I won’t get into it here whether or not you should have seen it - you just should). Corporal Barnes is a witness being questioned by the prosecuting lawyer (Kevin Bacon), where to find the process “Code Red” in the Marine Handbook (in the movie, Code Red is a form of group punishment that soldiers administer to each other without due process from superiors, for indiscretions, such as constantly being late, or not maintaining equipment, etc. In the movie, the punishment went wrong and the marine subjected to the Code Red died). Corporal Barnes is unable to show the prosecuting lawyer the section in the book about Code Red as there is none - it is not official, it does not exist; in writing. Having proven Code Red does not exist, the prosecuting lawyer rather confidently struts back to his desk. However, en route, the defence lawyer (Tom Cruise) yanks the book out of the hand of the prosecuting lawyer and passes the book back to Barnes asking him to turn to the page with the directions to the mess hall (the dining hall). The witness, puzzled, tells the defence lawyer that it is not in the book, there are no directions. Perplexed, the defence lawyer asks how the Corporal trained all this time without a meal? If he ate, how did he know where to go for dinner? Barnes paused and then replied, “I guess I just followed the others”. [here is the scene: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N16YkjFVAyE].

There are habits, routines, ways of acting, that some of our players do, unsure exactly why, when or how we started doing it. They just followed the others. I am fortunate to be part of a culture that started well before me. So long that a lot of what we do is just what we do because we have always done it. And now not doing it is unacceptable. Now, doing something a certain way because that’s how it has been done isn’t always good. Luckily, this group started on the right path. But it is everybody’s job - from coach to rookie player, even S&C coach - to keep on that path, no matter how hard it might be.

A way I continue to develop our culture is to constantly have equipment for the warm-up (training and gym), ensure recovery is always scheduled, and the use of imagery, stories and education. I try to ingrain a lot of the S&C, and culture, in the group so that it is automatic. So that rookies just follow the others’ example. I make sure the leaders and senior players (who are very good), don’t slip, ensuring that they become unconscious role models for the squad. Every now and again I will step back and see where the pack is led. How long before they stray from an S&C non-negotiable. I’m happy to say that it is often a long time, but it is important to test them to see where the cracks in culture appear.

Photo by GreenForce Staffing on Unsplash

Last point. As an S&C coach, if I were to provide great programming yet lousy culture, I would not be very good. Conversely, to be great at developing and supporting culture, yet a terrible S&C practitioner would also be rather useless. I find it hard to separate the importance of being a good S&C practitioner and contributor to culture. I’m trying to “grow” athletes and people. I’ve also found that growing culture is like “growing” your kids. You keep nurturing bit by bit, day by day, hardly noticing the change. Until one day, that relative you see only at Christmas remarks, “How much they’ve grown!”, and I reply, “I guess so now that you mention it”. That’s team culture too. Bit by bit, day by day, keep reinforcing the little things. Then one day you will notice just how far it has developed.

“But BA,” you say. “Easy for you. You are lucky with your team”. Perhaps. But as an S&C coach, working on culture is a lot like the Chinese proverb about tree planting. The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.

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Thanks again. BA.