Thread by @dklineii

Sean McVay is the winningest active NFL coach.

He's 35 years-old & 3 other current NFL head coaches worked for him.

Sean McVay's leadership principles for Competitive Greatness🧵

I polled Twitter to ask which young NFL coaches they most wanted to learn from.

What I didn't realize:

The other 3 had all worked for McVay:

- Matt LaFleur
- Zac Taylor
- Brandon Staley

Luckily, he won the poll. The loyalty of his players. And a lot of games.

Here's how:

More than anything McVay emphasizes systematic development.

Each year, the team assembles in camp and the progress through three phases:

-> Establish an Identity

-> Improve Technique & Master Our Systems

-> Come Together as a Team

His blueprint is a series of principles, "McVay-isms" refined over 5 seasons that are:

- Written on walls
- Printed on t-shirts
- Repeated so often players' children know them

Most importantly: they build a culture block by block through common language & shared understanding

1/ Build a Solid Foundation:

- Character -> get the right players

- Connected -> create shared experiences

- Consistency -> show up every day

- Communication -> engage clearly

Lesson: Be selective with your talent, intentional with your culture

McVay-ism: "Our rule — be on time."

What it's not about: timeliness.

What it is about:

- Time as the molecular building block of consistency

- The character of people whose identify as being on time

- The connection built through mutual respect of each other's time

2/ Consistent Process, Consistent Progress:

- Daily Improvement -> 1% better
- Daily Excellence -> no shortcuts

Lesson: Set inspiring targets, build consistent habits to meet them

McVay-ism: "Embrace the suck."

Borrowed from the Navy Seals & @brentgleeson. Good company.

Lesson: Going through the pain builds strength, awareness and advantage.

Need more inspiration?

This is a key tenant in @iammarkmanson's classic:

https://twitter.com/iammarkmanson/status/1316132908906684416

3/ "We not me"

The one McVay-ism that has risen to the cultural level.

It doesn't require explanation to get intellectually:

Be humble, selflessness, put the team first.

But players say it's bigger than that once you experience it.

Lesson: Mythology creates powerful stories.

Best example of "We not me"?

McVay's first coordinator hire, Wade Phillips, began coaching in the N.F.L. for 10 years before McVay was born.

-> The priority was hiring the best person.

-> Even when that meant bringing an obvious successor in-house.

Lesson: Show don't tell.

4/ High Standards:

- Planning
- Practice
- Preparation
- Performance

How does he direct this effort?

-> Know his players strengths
-> Build the system to capitalize
-> Simplify the game away from weakness

Lesson: Leaders should simplify & amplify, not command & control

McVay-ism: "The standard is the standard."

"We set the bar and there are no excuses. "It's hard to explain!" said a former player. "You just kind of know from experience."

Growth -> Contagious pursuit of an unattainable standard.

Lesson: Can you make excellence the mission?

5/ Poise + Confidence

With the talent, culture, process and standards in place, what's left come game day?

Mindset

-> Confidence: believing in the process, in each other

-> Poise: staying within their system, not bending to a competitors

Lesson: Find your advantage mindset

McVay-ism: "Situational masters."

You can win just by recognizing & reacting to the circumstances first:

-> Reading coverage
-> Not going out of bounds
-> Giving up an obvious TD to slide & end the game

Equal athletes. Better prepared.

Lesson: Compete on what you can control.

6/ Competitive Greatness

In McVay's system, all of these blocks lead to Competitive Greatness.

Simple, brilliant & 100% aligned to the ambition of his team.

Lesson: Do your pieces add up to meet the core mission?

McVay-ism: "Urgent Enjoyment

Watch any interview streamed from this @RamsNFL's head coach's office and you see this one is displayed.

Urgent - who knows what tomorrow holds

Enjoyment - for the love of the game

Lesson: What's upper right in your 2x2 matrix?

My Favorite:

"Show your team you care, and they'll give you everything they have."

-> Ask them about goals, journey, experiences, when they excelled.

-> Listen with intention & use what you learn to improve the experience.

-> Give them your time, attention, empathy & respect.

Quotes:

-> Humble: “If we're going to ask our players to be coachable, we've got to be coachable as coaches as well.”

-> Curious: “Once you stop learning, you're going to stop growing.”

-> Accountable: “If I can't admit a mistake, then what does that represent to our guys?”

REFERENCES

McVay himself is incredibly consistent:

cnbc.com/amp/2019/02/02…

nytimes.com/2019/01/31/spo…

theramswire.usatoday.com/2020/06/21/nfl…

theringer.com/2021/10/20/227…

inc.com/john-eades/ram…

TL/DR

1/ Foundation
-> "Our rule - be on time"

2/ Consistent Progress
-> "Embrace the suck"

3/ "We not me"

4/ Standards
-> "The standard is the standard"

5/ Poise + Confidence
-> "Situational Masters"

6/ Competitive Greatness
-> "Urgent Enjoyment"

The Rams have won twice as many games under Sean McVay as they've lost (58-29).

Every year, players change and coaches get poached by other teams.

But "great talent makes great coaches".

In the right system.

Follow @dklineii for more practical management & leadership lessons.

Epilogue: "Winningest"

My logic:

- Average NFL Coach tenure ~3.5 yrs
- So I picked 5 years as a big enough sample.
- He's won the highest % among today's coaches.
- If you drop to less, @CoachMLaFleur is > .800 🤯

Note: Bill Belichick 1st 5 years? 36-46 (.451)