Leaders Eat Last

Good teams become elite teams when their best players AREN’T above the little things.

Leaders Eat Last

In case you have been living under a rock, Vanderbilt recently won the College World Series! 

The series against Michigan was full of big moments and spectacular plays, however, something very powerful happened after the championship was won and spot light was turned off…

Now some of you may be thinking…what’s the big deal? It’s only picking up trash. And that’s fair…he is only picking up trash.

But please consider this thought…how you do the little things is how you do everything. 

The fact that a team leader would prioritize something like this, after winning a national championship, shows the type of culture that Vandy has which clearly plays a massive role in their success.

Good teams become elite teams when their best players AREN’T above the little things. Whether it’s picking up trash, reading the practice plan in detail, or taking pride in finishing every single rep of their workout…the little things are taken care of.

On elite teams, NO ONE is above anything.

On good teams, the better players are allowed to do what they’d like.

On bad teams, everyone can do whatever they’d like.
When you add up the thousands of little things that a player and a team do or don’t do…over the course of a season, it REALLY adds up (or doesn’t add up!).

If you want to be an elite player…if you want to play on a truly elite team…realize that means holding yourself and your teammates to elite standards. A million “little things” bound together can create one serious force to be reckoned with. It all starts at the top. Be obsessed.

PS-Please note that en elite team doesn’t mean the most talented team…but we’ll talk more about that another time.

Ken Spangenberg, Director of Baseball, Maplezone Sports Institute