The other day, I was watching a show called “Chef Wanted” in which two chefs compete for a position at a top restaurant by taking the helm for one night. I find it compelling because it’s nearly impossible for a chef to walk into a new kitchen with a new staff and develop the level of trust and rapport needed to churn out dozens of high-quality entrees in a timely manner. And yet, somehow they manage to do it.
But sometimes, things go terribly wrong. On a recent episode, an executive chef candidate buckled under the stress and berated his line cooks, hurling a barrage of insults that would make a Real Housewife of New Jersey blush.
“That’s how you speak to your staff?” asked the show’s host, Anne Burrell, an acclaimed chef in her own right.
He mumbled a response, and I thought right then, “This guy’s not getting the job.”
He didn’t.
But I also thought he could learn a thing or two about motivation from Herb Brooks.
Now, I realize that for most people, Herb Brooks might not be the first name that comes to mind. But when you grow up in a hockey family, you know all about the coach who led the US hockey team to a stunning upset over the Russians in the 1980 Winter Olympics.
To give a little back story, Brooks’ team of college kids was the ultimate underdog against the Russian squad of seasoned professionals. In fact, when the two teams played each other in an exhibition game on Feb. 9, 1980 (just 13 days before the ‘Miracle On Ice’), the Soviets crushed the Americans, 10-3. When the US team made it the medal round, it was surprising enough — no one gave them a chance at the gold.
But in addition to being an excellent coach, Brooks was also an amazing motivator. Below is an excerpt from his speech right before the game against the Russians:
“Great moments are born from great opportunity. And that’s what you have here tonight, boys. That’s what you’ve earned here, tonight. One game. If we played ’em ten times, they might win nine. But not this game. Not tonight. Tonight, we skate with ’em. Tonight, we stay with ’em, and we shut them down, because we can! Tonight, we are the greatest hockey team in the world. You were born to be hockey players — every one of ya. And you were meant to be here tonight. This is your time. Now go out there and take it!”
It’s easy to see how this could get a team’s juices going. And somehow, they pulled off the miracle. However, as many people forget, the US still had to play one more game; otherwise, the big upset would have been for naught. And so, with the team trailing Finland 2-1 entering the third period of the Gold medal game, Brooks gave a much shorter, much more succinct pep talk, simply stating:
“If you lose this game, you’ll take it to your grave… your (bleeping) grave.”
It was all he needed to say.
In an interview years later, Mark Johnson, the team’s leading scorer, said the second speech had an even greater impact on him. “Because of the magnitude of the game against the Russians, everybody was ready to go,” said Johnson. “The speech I remember more was the Finland game. It really put into perspective how far we’d come, and we didn’t want to [mess] it up.”
Luckily, they didn’t. And decades later, hockey is bigger than in the US than it had ever been, thanks to a group of kids who were able to seize the moment.
Like many great leaders, Brooks knew that there isn’t just way to motivate a team. You have to read the situation, know the personalities involved, and know what drives them at what moment.
In a recent interview, CIO Sarah Richardson relayed a story about a former manager who would send texts taunting her (jokingly) when the team fell behind on reporting metrics, knowing it would appeal to her competitive nature. “He knew I’d be motivated by doing well,” noted Richardson, who adopted similar tactics to inspire her team, knowing that were too proud to settle for anything but the best.
“You have to meet people where they are,” Richardson said. Once that happens, leaders can “make people feel like they could do things they never even envisioned or thought possible before.”
And it might not even take a miracle.
Share Your Thoughts
You must be logged in to post a comment.