MANAGEMENT


According to one peak-performance expert and former pitching coach for two major league teams, “Our job as coaches is to keep people fo- cused and motivated. Coaches don’t just hope for the best; they proac- tively identify the skills it takes for athletes to perform at their highest levels and then train them – men- tally as well as physically.” This expert started out as a pitcher himself, but, while getting a college degree in psychology, he realized he was more interested in applying behavioral science to sport. During his time with the majors, he helped a number of pitchers – including Pedro Martinez, Barry Zito, Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, Johan San- tana, Tom Glavine, and Roger Cle- mens – achieve peak performance. His successes have been chronicled in two books: Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis (W.W. Norton & Co., 2003) and John Feinstein’s Living on the Black: Two Pitchers, Two Teams, One Season to Remember (Back Bay Books, 2009). He later joined New Jersey-based Spring Lake Technologies as an advi- sor and speaker, where he brought his “pitching professor” principles to the business world.


How to Exceed Expectations KIM WRIGHT WILEY


The job of a coach is not to provide the “rah- rah,” but to help a player develop strengths and mitigate weaknesses. The job of a sales manager, who also coaches the team, is the same. Properly prepared sales reps feel confident in any situation, are able to think on their feet, and don’t freeze up on calls – because the coach has prepared them well for the game.


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GREATNESS HAS THREE SIDES In the process of analyzing what separates a good pitcher from a great pitcher, he developed the Peak Per- formance Triangle. The first two sides of the triangle (representing skills/ competencies and physical condition- ing) are self-explanatory, but the third side (representing performance-based behaviors) is the often-overlooked psychological part of the game – the mental and emotional skills that allow an athlete to climb from mere compe- tence to peak performance. “The great thing about the tri- angle is that you can plug it into any career – whether you’re a Broadway star, a teacher, a baseball pitcher, or a salesperson,” he says. “In terms of business, people understand that they must have certain skills and com-


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