The Power of Joy: It can help you win a Gold medal

Like most of us, I was watching the Olympic games over the past several weeks.  It is always a joy to watch athletes do what they do best.  However, there was an interview that intrigued me.  It was an interview with several players and their coach (Emma Hayes) of the Gold medal winning USA woman’s soccer team.  During the interview, the players discussed how they managed their emotions as well as their focus to win the gold medal.  They also mentioned one other thing: joy.  They spoke on how their coach brought joy to the team.  When Coach Hayes spoke, she mentioned that she specifically wanted the team to enjoy the Olympic experience.  She mentioned that the team has to deal and process many stresses but she wanted to model joy for the team.  She felt it was one of her responsibilities.  When the games were close, she wanted the team to see that she was smiling and helping the team stay calm.  Wow…it got me to reflect on the leaders that I am coaching.  As leaders, you have pressure and stress.  Some that is self-imposed.  However, you need to ask yourself.  How am I modeling joy to my team?  If I am able to inject some joy into my team, what could that do to their performance?  Who knows,,,,it might help them win the gold medal!