Page 127 - How to Create a Winning Organization

Emotion Is Your Enemy
against UCLA. I expected this same emotional discipline follow- 109
ing a game—win or lose.
Obviously, you should feel good—even exuberant—when you
are victorious. Likewise, it is normal to feel dejected when the op-
posite occurs. It is excessive emotion that I deplore.
I am very leery of excess in most things—language, dress, hair-
cuts, and much else. But I especially dislike emotional excess be-
cause it produces inconsistency. You may have observed that
championship games are often somewhat disappointing because
neither team seems to be at its best. This is because championship
games produce great emotion not only in fans but also in players.
That emotionalism is often what brings down the quality of the
game itself.
My performance goal for our team was one of steady and tangi-
ble progress. If you drew it on a graph, the line would be rising
every day each week through the season until the players were the-
oretically at their finest on the final day of the season. There would
be no sharp spikes or peaks; no sudden drop-offs or letdowns. To
achieve this goal requires control of emotions. It starts with the
leader.

CULTIVATE CONSISTENCY

The hallmark of successful leadership is consistently maximum
performance. Emotionalism opens a leader to inconsistency.
Seek intensity coupled with emotional discipline. Display those
behaviors and then demand them from those you lead. A
leader with a volatile temperament is vulnerable. And so is the
team he or she leads.