Capturing Lighting In a Bottle and SuspendingYour Disbelief

By: Brian Armstrong CCM Executive Search Consultant McMahon Careers Young Professionals Presented by McMahon Careers

Running a successful department in this competitive environment continues to grow increasingly difficult. Quality leaders are more difficult to locate, hire and retain as the job pool continues to shrink. Costs are ever increasing. Surely, we can count on the fundamentals of math to keep us grounded and find solutions to our greatest pain points – something as simple as 1 + 1 = 2.

But - what if what makes the good great involves suspending your belief in math? What if the answer lies in 1 + 1 = 3? Let me explain….

A few years back, I had the pleasure of seeing Bruce Springsteen in New York during his critically acclaimed “residence” on Broadway. During the performance, he suggests, in his tribute to the legendary E Street Band, that the concept of 1 + 1 = 3 is the essential equation of great music (specifically, rock and roll), great art, love and the universe. As he talked about it, I found myself thinking that great leaders and their departments should be included in this list with music, art, love, and music.

You may be asking “in what universe does 1+1 ever add up to 3?” In concrete, tangible terms it doesn’t, but the concept of 1+1=3 states that it is the intangible, the secret sauce, the mojo; whatever you call it that takes something to the next level and makes it great; so much so that it is greater than the sum of its parts. What makes certain leaders, and therefore the departments they run better than the sum of their parts? All organizations have warts, all leaders make mistakes, yet the best ones in the business are associated with organiza- tions and people that produce results that are consistently better than their peers.

Do these leaders work harder, longer hours, or take unfair advantages? No. But, they do seem to have an ability to capture lighting in a bottle and create a culture superior to their competitors. How? They manage each person differently focusing on their strengths. They allow individual autonomy, while keeping everyone focused on the longterm goal. These are the leaders whose employees want to come to work and are fully engaged at, because they are mentored and guided to succeed professionally, which we know is a key driver to intrinsic motivation. They create an environment where each department member can bring their unique attributes and greatest strengths and use them while successfully working within a team.

As Springsteen noted about this synergy, each member of his band, the E Street Band is uniquely qualified to play their instrument; and as such all of them are accomplished musicians in their own right. But together – TOGETHER -as a complete band they are fantastic! The band - the sum of the musicians is greater than its parts. So, employees who are talented and have solid strengths can actually be elevated to their fullest potential as part of a team: 1 + 1 = 3.

How does a team achieve greatness

while also maintaining employee individuality and autonomy? There must be individual practice to achieve team progress and consistent success. Individual practice relies on managers tapping into each employees’ strengths and placing them in a position to succeed alongside their coworkers one team member’s strengths help others to see their potential blind spots. Thus, the one team member can overcome another team member’s weakness. A leader capable of managing the individual towards a common vision sets goals and expectations, outlining everyone’s role within the team and how they contribute to the greater good. There must also be hard work these same successful leaders push their employees to be their best selves as a team and individually. If a leader is dedicated to helping their team reach their potential, they can challenge their team to become a little bit better every day. These leaders encourage open lines of communication and feedback; both across team members and up and down from team member to leader and leader to team member. If all the pieces are in place, let the magic happen.

So, if The Boss says 1+1=3, who is going to argue?

McMahon Careers offers career coaching and executive education programs for racquet sports professionals and executive search services for employers. The firm also manages and delivers all services offered through USPTA DirectorSearch. For information visit: mcmahoncareers.com or USPTADirectorSearch.com

Alabama

Our 2022 Winter Workshop was a success! A sincere thank you to everyone who joined us despite the rain. Our speakers were well-received and everyone felt they learned a significant amount. We also concluded the aernoon with an open discussion regarding our organizaon. For example, we discussed changing the me of year for our annual workshop. Aer significant discussion, we concluded that the winter me is sll best. Please be on the lookout for an announcement regarding the specific date of our annual workshop in the winter of 2023. Other excing and new ideas were discussed with one that is currently in the works. Please mark your calendars for the weekend of July 23rd. As of now, we are planning a trip to the Atlanta Open. We plan to travel as an organizaon for a fun-filled day of professional tennis. Depending on the number of parcipants, the USPTA will provide some form of compensaon for the day whether it be with ckets or travel. Be on the lookout for a signup form soon.

Giving back to the community more was another discussion point. One way to do this is to provide a free tennis clinic hosted by USPTA members. We plan to do this in the summer and will release more details regarding this soon.

Our goal for 2023 is to bring more value to your membership as well as to become more involved in the community as an organizaon. We’re excited about what this year will bring and we sincerely thank you for being a part of the USPTA.

workshop also included our yearly awards with some great efforts by so many here in Georgia. This July, we have already secured Jorge Capestany to fill our heads and our notebooks with great drills for all situaons, as well as entertain us with how best to grow our programs through instrucon and events. Other great speakers will fill the morning to help us grow and develop before we all head to the Atlanta Open pro tennis matches to watch some top-level tennis. You don’t want to miss this fantasc program that has huge take-home value for all professionals and coaches.

We are looking forward to hosng two more USPTA/ USTA Pro workshops in the second half of the year. Expect top quality events with fresh ideas you can take back to your clubs. The board is also keen to highlight some of the amazing pros and events going on throughout the state growing the game. Look for some spotlights in our upcoming Louisiana state newsleers!

Arkansas

USPTA Arkansas is excited for our annual pros workshop. Please get signed up early to ensure the highest quality workshop. Cost is just $20 for USPTA members, and $30 for non members. CLICK HERE to register with Ticket Tailor. All paid attendees will receive a USPTA logo shirt

The LR Open Challenger will be played this weekend.

Friday, June 2nd

8:00am-9:00 - USPTA business meeng for USPTA members

9:00am-11:00 - Ken DeHart, USPTA, PTR "7 Ways to Improve Your Players Performance & Your Communicaon Skills - Plus 5 Best Games"

11:00am-12:00 - Paul Pautsch, USPTA, - High School Tennis Associaon Round Table

12:00-12:45 - Lunch provided by ATA

1:00pm-3:00 - Ken DeHart, USPTA, PTR "4 Games for Strategy & What Happens When your Strokes Go On Vacaon"

3:00pm-3:30 - Robert Cox, USPTA , Former Arkansas Razorback Men’s head coach Watch LR Open Quarters in the aernoon/night with discounted ckets.

6:00pm Happy Hour/Food/socialize for all workshop aendees at local establishment TBD

Saturday, June 3rd

9:00 am- 10:00 - USTA and ITF official Sayra Thacker- rules/scenarios and the urgent need for more officials

10:00am-10:30 - Raul Bermudez, USPTA How to turn into a 27-year career.

10:30am-11:00 - TBD

Watch The Lile Rock Open

Georgia

We had a great turnout at our end-of-the-year meeng with 74 in aendance. Luke Jensen brought us his excing program of taking juniors to the next level and up to the pros, as well as some great drills to use to help our teams win consistently. Other top speakers filled out the day with valuable informaon on how to do what we do beer. The

Mississippi

I know most pros are currently planning summer camps. There’s an opportunity through USTA MS to get your new camp coaches trained and ready to take on summer work. The USTA L1 Workshop will be hosted by River Hills Club in Jackson on April 29-30,2023. If you are interested in this opportunity for your coaches, text me at (601)937-1086.

We are sll planning on hosng two small Pro workshops at the end of summer. Dates will be sent out soon.