More from Coach Bob Walsh

Coach Bob Walsh continuing in his series: "Championship Culture: Listen To Them"

It begins:

When you are trying to change a culture - or establish a new one - the steamroller approach is pretty popular.  If you are taking over a program that hasn't been winning, it's natural to blow everything up and make everything different.  Look, what you guys have been doing obviously wasn't working, so now we are going to do it my way.  There is some value in the shock treatment approach to changing the culture to make sure they know things will be different.  The guys who can't handle it will be weeded out and replaced with guys that are ready to buy-in. 

But there is an essential leadership element that I think you must have when building a championship culture: the ability to listen.  I learn the most about my team and my program from my players.  It might seem backwards based on the standard coach-player relationship model - you are the coach, they are the player, and they are supposed to listen to you.  But when you give your players a voice they'll give you great feedback and a great perspective on what is going on around your program.  You'll also cultivate leadership within your program...