Parallel Principles of Performance

Yeah, yeah, so I love alliteration. Deal with it. :-)

Being a Husker fan has been an interesting thing this year. Being a Husker fan and making a roughly concurrent move with a new Husker regime has led me to do a lot of reflecting on leadership principles. When you're reading articles about Bo Pelini and Tom Osborne and the change they bring to a belaguered program (not that I'm saying the Lutheran Center is beleaguered, mind you), you can't help but examine your own performance and principles.

I like a lot of what I read about Tom Osborne and Bo Pelini. They both seem to have that ability to evoke the best out of people without browbeating or psychologically exploiting them. Of course, growing up playing football in Nebraska, I once dreamed of playing for Dr. Tom, but genetics got me there - I stopped three inches short of being tall enough to play O-line for the Huskers (by my admittedly less-than-scientific judgment). But there's a lot to learn from these excellent coaches and leaders of people all the same.

Like Coach Bo, I'd love for people to feel like I speak bluntly, with passion, without animosity except where "my kids" are concerned. Like Dr. Tom, I hope people someday see me as a man of impeccable integrity, humility and energy for helping others. Are these traits I can embody as a minister? I think so. Much of what I do is comparable to what Coach Bo does - I, too, train young people to give their best efforts, albeit in a much different arena and with a few thousand less screaming fans. Much of what I do is also comparable to being an athletic director - making schedules, promoting the program, finding people who will be a good fit in certain spots. There's a lot to be learned from the coaching world, good and bad, and I'm lucky to have two stellar examples to follow as a dedicated Husker.

Your thoughts? Folks you emulate from other professions that are similar to your own? Please add them in the comments!