High School Coaches: 6 Machiavellian Strategies to Help You Keep Your Job and Your Sanity!

There are a few things you notice these days when you watch a movie based on sports. The first is that, unlike the old days, there are organizations in Hollywood who understand sports and help to make sure that the movie is realistic. Remember the Titans, Radio, and Hoosiers, are three examples where clearly, the action, the uniforms, and the athletes and coaches all are very authentic- the parents are usually over the top though- which is not unlike reality either! In all of these stories, there is the coach, or more frequently, the new coach, who finds himself in a meeting with either the parents, or the fans down at the firehouse or Mom's Restaurant, or some archetypal location where the "Good Ole Boys" meet to chew the fat and second- guess the coach.

Generally, coaches who take over a program that has not experienced success in the past, or where the program is just beginning will have a much easier time than the coach who takes over a program with a winning tradition and lots of ex-players living and working in the community. In many places in America, what goes on with the local high school team is far more important to people than what is happening in the Professional Leagues or the Division One Colleges. A former Athletic Director at my school in upstate Pennsylvania in the middle of the anthracite coal country was scheduled to officiate the annual rivalry between two highly respected teams. An illness in the family caused him to have to cancel on a Wednesday before the Friday night game. Several "friends" called and told the athletic director that this was definitely going to affect the betting line in all of the bars for the big game- they begged him to reconsider because he "understood" their style of play and would not ruin the game with too many penalties.

For a coach who is new to a successful program, we strongly suggest that you invest $5 and purchase The Prince by Machiavelli. Written in the 16th Century and pretty much mandatory reading by all statesmen, politicians, generals, captains of industry, school superintendents, and yes, coaches, it is 110 pages long and filled with scenarios that will make you realize that to be an effective leader, one must have more than rugged good looks and a loud voice. Consider the following 6 cautionary and instructive strategies from the master himself. We will provide the quotation, then we will give the lesson in a contemporary setting. My site Corporate/transactional legal needs

1. On Being Proactive

"And so it is with state (TEAM) affairs. For the distempers of a state (TEAM) being discovered while yet inchoate, which can only be done by a sagacious ruler(COACH), may easily be dealt with; but when, from not being observed, they are suffered to grow until they are obvious to everyone, there is no longer any remedy. The Romans, therefore, foreseeing evils while they were yet far off, always provided against them, and never suffered them to take their course for the sake of avoiding war; since they knew that war is not so to be avoided, but is only postponed to the advantage of the other side."

So, Mr. New Coach, you perceive one day that an assistant coach who also applied for your job is moving a little slow when you speak, or not appearing to be as "on board" with the program as some others seem to be- nothing big mind you- just a hunch you have. Perhaps it has gotten back to you that this staff member has been "bad mouthing the program behind the scenes. Take another look at the Master's advice... Does he say to sit down with that person and logically discuss the matter with him or her? Does he say to have patience and try to "work" with that person? No, he advises that, while the problem is yet barely noticeable, or "yet far off", you take the appropriate steps to, as the Romans did, not let them "take their course" to avoid conflict- because conflict cannot be avoided, only put off, and the delay works to the advantage of the other side. Dismiss the individual quickly and with little fanfare. If you wait till later, your boss might treat it like a false equivalency and tell "both of you to sit down and work this out like gentlemen." You are the Head Coach. Make the change and move on! If your doctor found a tumor in the early stages would you tell him to keep it in for a while?!

2. Being a Change Agent

"And let it be noted that there is no more delicate matter to take in hand, nor more dangerous to conduct, nor more doubtful in its success, than to set up as a leader in the introduction of changes. For he who innovates will have for his enemies all those who are well off under the existing order of things, and only lukewarm supporters in those who might be better off under the new."

Wow- and you thought that the people in town would just love you because you are so sincere and such a nice guy. HMMM, now what? You need some friends- important ones at that. The world's hardest job is to introduce changes- remember Gene Hackman in Hoosiers- What, you are changing the defense? Or in football... Don't you know how we play it here? Our tradition is "smash-mouth," grind-it-out, football, not the "Chuck and Duck with all those scared-to-be hit wide receivers running around!

When Dick Vermeil became coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, he immediately asked "Concrete Charlie" Chuck Bednarik- a "God" in the Philadelphia Pantheon of sport heroes- to be an on the field coach of the team with no precise job description. Coach Vermeil simply said, "He's on the staff, because I want him right next to me when the street fight starts!"There's never a real "street fight" in an NFL Game- OK maybe in the Philadelphia grandstand- but that kind of talk- also employed by Buddy Ryan when he coached the Eagles works very effectively with Philadelphia Fans- and Dick, as well as Buddy, knew it. Know your community. Coach Vermeil was a student of small town public relations. He conducted several tryouts of local wannabees in his first year which led to the addition of the hustling, non-college football player "Philly Boy" Vince Papale to the roster. (See the recent movie with Mark Wahlberg- "Invincible") Later in the book, Machiavelli speaks to the value of a "few signal examples" by a leader to get the message across. To Philadelphia fans, golden- haired California born and raised Dick Vermeil is a native son- no other coach of any other sport to this day, has their picture on a billboard in Philadelphia. Dick still does- 25+ years after he retired from the Eagles. You might not be a Dick Vermeil, but at your awards banquet, can you have an old retired famous coach or player speak? Can you name an annual award after a famous person in the program from yesteryear? If the sport is basketball, can you name the annual Xmas Tournament after the famous coach that everyone still talks about in hallowed terms? How about having the old coach talk to the troops before the big game like Dick Vermeil did with Chuck Bednarik? You neglect this at your peril, Mr. New Coach.

3. Should you be Loved or Feared?

"And here comes in the question whether it is better to be loved rather than feared, or feared rather than loved. It might perhaps be answered that we should wish to be both; but since love and fear can hardly exist together, if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared rather than loved...Moreover, men are less careful how they offend him who makes himself loved than him who makes himself feared. For love is held by the tie of obligation, which, because men are a sorry breed, is broken on every whisper of private interest; but fear is bound by the apprehension of punishment which never relaxes its grasp."

Should you be loved, or feared? Well, don't go too heavy on the "feared" till you win some games, but, as Machiavelli asserts, it would be nice to be both, but if you can only be one of the two, "feared" might be the better choice. If you look closely at the quotation, you can see a part of the issue that is seldom talked about but may be equally important to the apparent main issue of whether to be feared or loved. Here is the problem... Even your faithful assistants will be less careful about deadlines, being on time for meetings, or generally pleasing you for example. Why? Because if they miss a deadline, you won't be upset. Ever hear someone say, "If I'm late my wife will kill me"? Nobody really gets killed, but everyone fears the grief that comes from not following an assertive person's expectations. However, you will always give another chance. You will always say, "Ahh, don't worry about it- just get it to me as soon as you can." So, those who work for you and even like you will never be worried. When the day comes that you lose it because people are late for a meeting, they will be puzzled at this volcanic reaction of yours.