Jack Easterby on Decision Making
Jack Easterby is one of the country’s most respected leaders in sports management and sports leadership circles. He has been a chaplain, author, consultant and frequent speaker at conferences and seminars throughout the nation. Easterby is in his 5th season as a Team Character Coach as well as a Director of Team Development for the NFL’s New England Patriots in Foxboro, Massachusetts. In addition to his current role with the Patriots, Easterby has served in consulting roles for the National Football League, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Southeastern Conference, the University of South Carolina, Clemson University, the United States Olympic Teams, as well as being entrusted with dozens of head coaching searches at both power five and mid major universities for multiple sports. He is a trusted confidant to players and coaches alike. As a keynote speaker Easterby has spoken for hundreds of universities, at numerous graduations/public banquet events, and has hosted charity fundraisers for countless causes around the United States and beyond! As a curriculum builder and team building entrepreneur, Easterby’s strategies/philosophies have been adopted by a multitude of teams and organizations. In the media, Easterby has been recognized by ESPN the Magazine, The State Paper (South Carolina), FCA Magazine, Christianity Today, The Boston Herald, The Conservative Tribune, and Boston.com, as a trendsetter in his field. In 2011, Easterby, along with his family and supporters in Columbia, SC established The Greatest Champion Foundation which has been contracted to develop curriculums, team building strategies and sport ministries all over the country. Through his “on the ground approach” to chaplaincy and national ministry, Easterby has aimed to leave a legacy in multiple sports arenas in the form of a return to a “Kingdom Ethics” approach to leadership that teaches God’s comprehensive rule over every area of life.
Jack had a number of amazing insights during our conversation. Some of them include:
“Sports franchises have evolutions” (8:10).
“Every franchise is not going to evolve at the same rate” (8:35).
“No organization is one thing away” (9:10).
“We’ve got to be able to create a culture where everything is examined; everything matters” (9:30).
“Any good system, any good program, has evaluated all of the downsides. Evaluate the risk” (12:45).
“There’s a lot of fake deadlines out there now where people feel the need to answer things or do things in an expedient fashion where maybe they could delay a little bit and make time for themselves to get all of the facts on the table” (15:40).
“People feel a need for speed, and that’s not always a good thing” (16:50).
“If you want the empathy of those around you, if you want the empathy to be pervading emotion if you will, I think you need to be able to admit you mess up” (19:45).
“Sometimes a leader has to fall on a sword even though it may not be directly their fault” (21:50).
“One of the things that is absolutely cornerstone to good leadership is creating emotional stability in your group” (24:55).
“I have always looked at organizations as a team of teams” (31:45).
“It all matters” (32:50).
“Anyone in leadership can fall prey to mantras and phrases that have emptiness in them” (36:35).
“When I’ve looked back on the really good decisions I’ve made, they’ve been the ones I’ve vetted on every level” (39:10).
“The best decisions are made with multi-factorial inputs” (44:55).
“Sometimes a step forward is a step back” (49:00).
“Most organizations right now are realizing the need for a comprehensive database” (57:15).
“There is no greater action in the current climate, with sports or with business, than creating a unified database” (58:05).
“Our country in general is in the greatest need in the history of our country of high character people to be in leadership” (1:02:55).
“The most sustainable, long-term attribute of great leaders is they have consistent character” (1:04:05).
“We have to think about what we think about” (1:15:30).
Additionally, you can follow Jack on Twitter and find The Greatest Champion Website here.
Thank you so much to Jack for coming on the podcast!
Thanks for listening.
-Brian
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