Go watch Saban on ESPN+ if you have not already. It is an awesome documentary that I highly recommend to any football fan.
A couple of takeaways:
There were two things that Saban emphasized that I feel you always hear successful people say some version of.
One was that the process and being the best version of yourself are more important than the outcome. This is coming from a guy who won seven national championships, so his outcomes were really good. It is a great reminder to focus on controlling what you can control. The outcome is influenced by many things outside of your control, but you are fully in control of your process and being the best you can be.
The second piece of advice was a version of living in the moment. Saban’s philosophy – that he learned from a sports psychologist – was to focus on one play at a time. Since the average play in college football is six seconds, he would tell his guys to focus on winning the next six seconds. Players said it freed them to just focus on the moment and not get overwhelmed by the past or the future.
And a final great quote from Saban himself: “I think it’s a mistake if you’re in a leadership position and you let external factors and what others think influence your decisions and then you have to live with the consequences when you don’t make the decision that you thought was the right thing to do.”
I love this because he’s not saying to not listen to other people, but rather that when you’re the leader of a team or organization, you need to make the decision you think is best for the people you’re leading. Don’t let outside noise and people who aren’t in the building pressure you into making a decision that you don’t think is right. Especially when it’s you and the people you’re leading who have to deal with the consequences of your decision. That is one of the burdens and responsibilities of being a leader.
Overall, I am a big fan of Nick Saban and really enjoyed the doc.
