Long before Frank Beamer retired as one of the most successful active coaches in college football, he learned how to build a football program from his own college coach, Jerry Claiborne. Coach Claiborne was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame at the end of his long and successful career, an honor that his protege Frank Beamer will surely receive as well.
Coach Claiborne’s teams won the majority of their games. They weren’t always the biggest, fastest, or strongest players on the field, but they persevered with grit and mental toughness. The coach created a culture that knew the value of hard work, perseverance, dedication, and sacrificing for the good of the team. How did the coach get his players to buy into these concepts? He glorified the grind and rewarded those who embraced the process. He recognized players not just for their performance on the field, but for their outstanding effort and dedication in practice. The day-to-day activities were treated as though they were just as important as the game days.
The special teams squad, a vital but often overlooked part of every team, were coached by Jerry Claiborne himself. This gave these players confidence, and highlighted the importance of their roles to the entire team.
As Coach Beamer implemented this approach with his defensive coordinator they soon came up with a symbol to represent the importance of the blue-collar work ethic they wanted to instill in the players: an old, beat-up metal lunch pail. Just picture that classic image of the workers eating their lunch high atop the steel skeleton of a skyscraper – you know the type. The player who showed the most dedication and determination during practice in the week leading up to the game would get to carry the lunch pail into the stadium. At the time, the crowd wouldn’t know what it meant – but everyone else on the team would. This battered object became one of the most coveted awards a player on Coach Beamer’s team could get.
Coach Beamer also coached the special teams himself, which had the added bonus of causing all of the starters to want to play on this unit. Coach Beamer’s teams were legendary for the skill and ingenuity of their special teams.
What does this mean for you as an employee? The values instilled by Coaches Claiborne and Beamer are universally admired. No employer is going to disapprove of an employee showing hard work and dedication. Your employer may or may not be taking steps to try and foster this kind of culture within your workplace, but even if they are not investing in it you can invest in yourself.
Take a minute to think about your performance over the last six months or so. Do you think you would be awarded the lunch pail by your boss? Would you award it to yourself? If not, brainstorm some areas of your work where you could show a little more grit and determination, and then pick one to start tackling today. Slowly but surely build yourself up until you feel like your performance is worthy of the lunch pail.
Have a great weekend,
Ro