When it comes to leadership, there are several parallels between business and sports: managing different personalities, striving for success, dealing with adversity and—most of all—navigating constant change. Kirk Muller, assistant coach of the Washington Capitals, is uniquely qualified to lend his perspective on all of these facets.
Muller spent 19 seasons in the National Hockey League. A six-time All-Star and instrumental member of the Montreal Canadiens’ 1993 Stanley Cup championship team, Muller also has an extensive coaching résumé, including a stint as Head Coach of the Carolina Hurricanes.
Sylvain Brisebois, Head of National Sales Strategy, BMO Private Wealth, recently sat down with Muller to gain some insights on leadership.
A summary of their discussion follows.
Adapting to a New Environment
We’re in a time of transition. For many of us, returning to the office after the last 18 months is akin to a player returning after a long offseason. Some of our skills may have gotten a bit rusty, or maybe working remotely has inhibited our ability to develop new ones. For professional athletes, Muller said it’s about being in shape before arriving to training camp. A similar principle applies to the rest of us.
"If you really want to get a good start to a season, you don't start day one at training camp,” he said. "The second thing is - be humble. Don't be afraid to work on this stuff that you're not strong at. Respect the fact that you're not going to be great at everything. Work on the weaknesses of your game in the summer so that when the season hits, you're firing on all cylinders.”
For many people, this will be their first time heading into an office with their coworkers. As a new coach with the Flames, Muller is himself adjusting to a new workplace, something that he’s accustomed to after playing for six teams in his career. "The biggest thing when you walk into a new environment is you respect the people who are there,” Muller said. “I always found it interesting to come in and learn from them and see how they operate and what their visions are.”
Keeping It Simple
We’ve all had to deal with adversity, particularly over the last 18 months. We see professional athletes navigating challenges all the time, such as slumps, injuries and disappointing losses. The key is to stay motivated. But that can be difficult during trying times. How does Muller help players bounce back?
"When you're going through tough times, the number one thing we preach is go back to simplicity,” Muller said. “Also, you can't underestimate communication. Don't worry about the end result. Pull back a little bit and say, ‘Hey, how about if I just do these two or three simple things tonight? And if I do that, maybe my game gets a little bit better.’ You reinforce with positive energy when things are going bad. You focus on the day-to-day process rather than the end result.”
Establishing Relationships
When you’re working at the highest level of any professional sports league, teams are populated with various—often outsized—personalities. In many cases, a team member’s personality or philosophy may clash with others, including the manager’s. The trick is to get all those individuals from different backgrounds, experiences and motivations to work toward a common goal. It’s often no different in a business context. For Muller, the key is to build relationships with an eye toward helping each individual maximize their potential.
“You have to understand that you deal with a lot of professional athletes that have been very successful since they've been young,” Muller said. “Your challenge as a coach is to think outside the box. I’ve got to build a relationship with these people, because at the end of the day, all I want is for that person to produce the maximum he can and give you results. Find a way to get that guy to maximize his potential to help the team win. You have to find a way to push those buttons in different ways and think outside the box so that if you understand him and how he perceives the game differently than you, that he gets the same results that you want.”
A similar dynamic is at play when dealing with a team member who’s struggling to perform. Developing a rapport from the beginning goes a long way toward establishing trust. "Building relationships so the player knows that when you come to him, you’ve got his back,” he said. "Whether you're working in an office with people or you’re working with a sports team, you've got to build a relationship with your players or your coworkers. So, when things aren't going well, they're always looking for solutions and an ally. So, you already have that. Now you're able to show him some of the things he's not doing well and why he's not performing well, because he trusts you. He's going to be so much more receptive to learning from you because he knows, ‘I know you want me to perform here.’”
Stepping Away from the Game
Retirement is another transition that we often find difficult. For a professional athlete, especially in a physically taxing sport like hockey, retirement comes early in life. But whether you’re a hockey player or a business owner, retirement can be a difficult time. Work is something that often helps define our lives. It also provides a particular rhythm to daily life. Suddenly losing that defining characteristic and breaking familiar patterns can be challenging. This is another instance in which preparation ahead of time can be beneficial.
"You're used to such a pattern in your life of when you eat, when you train, when you play, when you travel,” Muller said. "It's a major part of your life. It’s not only your job, it's your whole lifestyle. So, when that comes to completion, all of a sudden that's gone. The biggest piece of advice I would give is don't wait until your career is finished and then get back up the next day and say, ‘OK, I'm going to start my second life.’ Take a little bit of time when you’re still active in your career to try to branch out and try different things. Take a little time when you're free to challenge yourself in these different areas. Stay in something you have a passion for and that you want to be involved with. If you’re willing to put the time in, then that’s a pretty good sign that that’s something you want to get involved with after your career is over.”
Muller and Brisebois covered a lot more ground in their conversation, including Muller’s perspective on how the game has changed over the years, some reflections on his playing career and his advice to young players getting ready to enter the league.
You can watch the full discussion here: A Conversation with Kirk Muller
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