You Win in the Locker Room First: The 7 C's to Build a Winning Team in Business, Sports, and Life (Jon Gordon)

My son had been coaching high school girls’ basketball for several years when the opportunity to coach a college team was offered. So when the opportunity came to read You Win in the Locker Room First, The 7 C’s to Build a Winning Team in Business, Sports, and Life by Mike Smith and Jon Gordon, I decided I would take it. I wanted to understand all I could about coaches and coaching successfully. Instead I found myself embracing the principles for myself. These 7 principles will work anywhere in life where one is willing to make the application. The book is co-authored by Mike Smith, former head coach of the Atlanta Falcons and Jon Gordon, a bestselling author and motivational speaker. The book bounces between the two – one offering his experience in the sports arena, the other applying the same wisdom to business and life. This book is easy to read, whether or not you coach or even have sports knowledge. I thoroughly enjoyed all Mike Smith shared, finding him to admit his mistakes humbly. His stories were inspirational and will be valuable to those coaching as he fully understands the dynamics of unity in a team. And yes, I did find myself texting quotes to my son as I wanted him to glean from every principle as he began his new journey. “As a leader, it is so important that your words equal your actions. You must do what you say and say what you do.” (Mike Smith) “Culture drives expectations and beliefs. Expectations and beliefs drive behaviors. Behaviors drive habits. Habits drive the future.” (Jon Gordon) “Every team has the same goals. So it’s not your goals that will lead to your success but your commitment to the process, one game at a time, that will define your season.” (Mike Smith) “Focus on the journey, not the destination.” (Mike Smith) “Leadership is a transfer of purpose, passion, optimism, and belief.” (Jon Gordon) “A coach can give the team the gift of belief or the curse of doubt.” (Jon Gordon) “Complaining is toxic to the team and locker room.” (Mike Smith) “Don’t change with the wind; instead, be like a strong-rooted tree that does not waver, regardless of what is happening around it. Be the kind of leader everyone knows they can trust and count on.” (Jon Gordon) “Complacency is a disease.” (Mike Smith) “Team beats talent when talent isn’t a team.” (Mike Smith) There were many thoughts which I found applicable for varied experiences in life – coaching, business, parenting, and mentoring. It is a book for everyone, for truly we are all “coaching” someone each day. I would recommend reading this book with a highlighter as there are many points you will want to go back to read again and again. *** A copy of the book was provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

If you think this book is not for you because, well, sports, you'll be surprised. Coach Mike and Jon have done a great job of translating winning in professional sports to succeeding in business. There's a reason sports metaphors dominate business - we all want to have a strong team, win, and achieve our personal best at work. Here's your playbook, filled with positive ideas and great techniques. Among my favorites: "Team beats talent when talent isn't a team." And if you are connected to coaching or sports, it's a must read. My husband is a sports massage therapist, and we bought a copy for each of the coaches he works with. It would be a great holiday gift for coaches or athletes in your life.

Simply amazing - we instituted The Energy Bus training at our company early last year to help deepen our culture and frame the way we interact with one another and with our customers, to rave reviews! Production efficiencies greatly increased and turnover dropped also. Employee engagement hit an all-time high so much so that we give potential new employees a copy of the book to read before we hire; if they identify with the message, they're probably a great fit. we don't hire those who don't identify. like all things, culture needs attention and nurturing. Great things eventually become taken for granted. What i loved most about Locker Room is Mike Smith's parts (sorry Jon, you know we love you!!) - his insights in arriving at the Falcons and identifying a tremendous cultural need, implementing Energy Bus training for everyone who touched the organization and this delivering great success were immediately relatable to me. What is most valuable are his insights in what happens when you stop following those rules (or the 7 C's, in this case) - they went from league champions to back to back losing seasons because they'd forgotten their culture and lost their way. we are now in process of developing a Locker Room training program for our 100+ employees that is rolling out next month. Jon's books are invaluable but i find this one even moreso thanks in large part to Mike's real-life experiences. I can't recommend this book highly enough.

Good book and easy to read and stay engaged. Extremely sports related and only talks about the real world/business world in about 5% of it. BUT, the sports references and lessons can be converted to business. Good read for leaders

The book was phenomenal. The simplest things that we tend to ignore during our busy and daily life are explained in a simple and practical manner to make the most out of it. What I liked the most was about how important the team is and the culture it holds to winning than the talent itself. I would recommend this book to anyone who has the responsibility to lead a group of people towards a goal and would like to learn how to have a better chance of achieving it.

If you want your team to com together with common goals and focus, this book is a great start. It gives you the tools to create positive team culture. Use this with my leadership groups and it really helps.

Good book for anyone who can relate to the analogy in American football. Very simply written and therefore easy to read. This is positive for anyone who wants a light (bedtime) read. People who want something more in depth should not have too high expectations. I would buy it again, even though I would have liked a little more depth and content. For those who have higher academic standards, then Peter F. Drucker is a must read anyway :)

Not a big book but has lots of ideas for the new coach. It reinforced a lot of my current thinking

Good book for coaches