A Vital Role

It is unlikely you will have a team or be on a team with nothing but game changers. Thus, playmakers play a vital role on any team. With mindset adjustments that evoke more consistent and productive behaviors, playmakers can elevate themselves to the status of game changer among their teammates. Remember, it is not a difference just in physical effort, but in mental strength, that is a key separator between playmakers and game changers.

Automotive and banking executive Dave Wilson Sr. explains his own evolution in this regard. But first, for perspective, here is a short background on this game-changing entrepreneur. Preston Ford Inc. was founded in 1975. Becoming a partner in 1981, Dave Wilson Sr. later bought out the original founder in 1992. Preston Ford has since evolved into the Preston Automotive Group with 13 locations representing nine brands. Preston Ford has been in Ford's Top 100 dealers over the years, ranking number 63 in the nation out of 3,200 Ford dealers in 2016. This prestigious distinction has gained nationwide attention due to the population of the town out of which Preston Ford operates (Preston, Maryland), which has a population of just over 700 people. The Preston Automotive Group has been recognized by all of the brands it represents for superior customer satisfaction and high sales efficiency. In 2014 Dave Wilson Sr. founded iFrog Digital Marketing, which services dealers found across the United States by managing all of their digital marketing needs. Wilson is also chairman of the board of Provident State Bank. In his own words:

The biggest difference between a playmaker and a game changer is that a playmaker celebrates after every win. When this happens, they lose focus of the long-term goal and get out of their zone.

The game changer, on the other hand, puts a check mark beside the accomplishment and looks for ways to keep moving his or her team forward to maximize results.

In my career, I have been the playmaker and the game changer. Early on as the playmaker, everything was about “I” and very little was about “we.” I would run around and put out fires and not teach my leaders what I did. Once everything was fixed, I would move on to the next problem, only to look over my shoulder and see that the fire was starting up again behind me.

I soon learned that I couldn't fix the problem, celebrate the win, and move on. I had to mentor my leaders and hold them accountable for our mutually desired results. Being the playmaker is like an addiction—getting high off the win and losing focus on the big picture.

As a game changer, the biggest win for me is watching my leaders win. We recently were recognized by Ford Motor Company for being one of the Top 100 Dealers in the country. My son and I attended this event together. Right before they called our names, I looked over to my son and told him he was going to receive the award for us. He said, “No, they are going to call your name.” He's a Jr., so I thought it would be very easy for him to step in. He kept pushing back, so I had to take the recognition.

When walking out of the event, I told him that this would never happen again, saying, “Next time, it is all yours—you and your team won this coveted award! This will never repeat itself.” He conceded and gave me his word that it would never happen again.

Later, as we both went to our rooms, I smiled to myself and realized how much I had grown over the years. I had become a game changer rather than a playmaker! I had moved from “I” to “we”—from “we” to a much better place! I don't need to take credit for anything. This feeling was and is so very heartwarming and gratifying. As a game changer you don't need the recognition; your real self-satisfaction is when your team maximizes its results and sets its sights on raising the bar even higher, as my son does as a result of my example.

You will have playmakers on your team. The key to leading them is keeping them in the zone and celebrating their wins with them, but also making sure that when the win happens, they don't ever think they have arrived and let complacency set in. In our organization, we say all of the time that “Complacency Kills,” and trust me, it does. A game changer is a leader who can harness playmakers, keep them focused, and win every day. The vision is clear for the game changer. When this happens, the playmaker becomes very close to a game changer and doesn't even know it. This is when you will see a dramatic shift in your culture for the better. Your team will become focused on a collective vision and team members will believe in their hearts that it can and will be accomplished through hard work and perseverance (Dave Wilson, pers. comm.).

Family First Life is one of the most dynamic and fastest-growing insurance enterprises in the United States, and the number-one distributor of Mutual of Omaha insurance. Family First Life's president, Shawn Meaike, has an energy and a passion for business and life that set the tone for the rest of the company. Meaike describes a key difference in mindset between playmakers and game changers as follows:

In my experience, the following attributes separate the “playmaker” from the “game changer.” The game changer consistently demonstrates strength all day, every day. Let me give you an example; I have a vice president, Michael, who is based in Atlanta and manages a team of over 250 people. Earlier this year, Michael was going through an extremely difficult time professionally where his business could have really suffered, but you would never have known it! Game changers don't display fear, weakness, trepidation, or ambivalence; they charge forward and inspire others to do the same. Michael increased his volume over 50 percent in three months while dealing with the biggest professional struggles he had ever faced. The key to his success was that none of his team members knew he was going through a difficult time. Game changers never look for others to tell them it is going to be okay; they are a rock of strength that keeps people intense every day (Shawn Meaike, pers. comm.).

Three Key Differentiators

In addition to differences in their levels of consistency, playmakers and game changers differ in other notable areas. Since there are too many to mention in a single chapter, I will focus on three:

1. The playmaker has a greater need for external motivation than the game changer. A playmaker is motivated more by external forces, and craves personal glory, excessive affirmation, and credit. When he or she does not get it, the person tends to pout and let up.

   To game changers, recognition is nice but is not necessary. They are their own harshest critics and have higher expectations for themselves than anyone else could have for them. They are much more intrinsically motivated. So for them, the pat on the back is great, but in their minds they say, “I'd have done it anyway, because that's how I'm wired.”

   Samar Azem grew up in Africa and moved to the United States 14 years ago when she came to study and play soccer. She played at Campbell University and is now their co-head coach for women's soccer. In the past 10 years, she has coached in more than 210 games and has been part of three championships as both a player and a coach. In Coach Azem's view:

   The playmakers as you've defined them encompass what as a coach I would perceive as a comfortable athlete. This person likely has a fixed mindset. They are unable to cross a threshold of mediocrity due to contentment with their current state or ability. These are typically the athletes that are externally motivated, and the effect of that rare spike in performance, though minimal, typically comes from an external variable (avoidance of punishment, drive for reward, etc.).

   In my experiences, the athletes that are defined as your “game changers”—that bring intensity day in and day out—are usually intrinsically motivated, even though it is unrealistic to think an individual can always bring “100 percent.” Even the greatest athletes often struggle to be 100 percent, 100 percent of the time.

   However, more times than not, the game changer is bringing a consistently high level of energy and drive. The separating attribute between the playmaker and the game changer, as you've described them, is the extrinsic versus intrinsic motivation in those athletes (Samar Azem, pers. comm.).

2. The playmaker is more “me” centered and selfish than the game changer, who is generally humbler and has a stronger team concept. To that end, a playmaker isn't overly concerned when a team member is struggling. This is because, in a sense, another's tough stretch makes the playmaker look better, and shines a brighter light on his or her performance. A game changer, on the other hand, competes more against him- or herself than with others, and is more global in concern for the elevation of all team members to a higher level.

   Arlington, Texas, is a region that is rich in competitive sports and is demanding of high performance, traditionally beginning in grade school and continuing on to professional teams like the Texas Rangers and Dallas Cowboys. Kevin Ozee, director of athletics for the Arlington Independent School District, notes, “Interestingly enough, the game changers that I have met have very low egos. Many of them are introverts. They are more concerned about improving their game with a sense of humility instead of the ‘look at me’ syndrome that we see so much today. Game changers put the team's need before their own needs. Game changers manage their focus more than managing their time” (Kevin Ozee, pers. comm.).

   Tom Crean coached the Indiana University men's basketball team for nine years. Renowned for his recruiting and player-development ability, Coach Crean has prepared men like Dwyane Wade, Steve Novak, Cody Zeller, Travis Diener, Victor Oladipo, Wesley Matthews, Noah Vonleh, Jordan Hulls, Christian Watford, Troy Williams, Yogi Ferrell, and more for careers beyond basketball at the college level. When describing the transformation of Yogi Ferrell, the Indiana University all-time assist leader, Crean observes: “There came a time in his senior year, when we came from 16 points behind to beat Notre Dame, when Yogi stopped trying to prove how good he was, and just realized how good he was, and allowed it to come out. When that transformation happens, a player realizes he is going to start to need the rest of his teammates more, and will help make them better. He understood the entire team had to flourish for us to get where we wanted to go” (Tom Crean, pers. comm.).

3. The playmaker strives for the extraordinary. The game changer focuses on doing the ordinary extraordinarily well. Because the playmaker loves the spotlight, he or she strives toward the spectacular. Not that doing so is a bad thing, but is it the best thing? The game changer believes that by becoming brilliant in the basics, and mastering the ordinary things that most others overlook or shortcut, he or she will become extraordinary in the process.

   The head football strength and conditioning coach at Washington State University, Jason Loscalzo, has had the unique privilege of training and grooming hordes of athletes over the years, some of whom attain game changer status. His observations on their attention to detail explain this third point well. Get your highlighter ready, because these insights are laced with pure gold:

   In my opinion, being a game changer is not about being extraordinary; rather, it requires the ability, drive, and motivation to do the ordinary better than the next person or the competition. They realize that games and competition are won by seizing the opportunity at hand. They don't wait for the right moment; instead they make the moment count. This trait creates consistency in effort and mindset. There is a reason why game changers never get bored with the mundane everyday basic tasks to stay sharp and ready. If you were to walk into any practice for college or National Football League (NFL) football teams, any boardroom in Fortune 500 companies, or any successful small business, you would be able to identify the game changers simply by watching how they practice the required basics of their craft. They are very detail orientated in even the most basic requirements. They are relentless at always challenging themselves and improving the mundane tasks. They realize that preparation is the key to success and that preparation is all that you need to be ready for the game-changing moment.

   It comes in the form of having a detail-oriented approach to the simple everyday tasks. When watching athletes train, one can pick out game changers simply by observing the body language and effort given to warm-ups, basic movement skill, and basic lifting techniques. Game changers are those who put the same energy, effort, and competitiveness into the ordinary as they do the energy, effort, and competitiveness in the fourth quarter of a tight game.

   The old adage that “big-time players make big-time plays in big-time games” is misleading and downright false. Big-time players make the plays that count in crucial moments because they make routine plays when others around them are caught up in the moment. Game changers are able to make those routine plays simply because they have prepared themselves to do so through practicing the ordinary so much that it not only becomes second nature, but it's what they compete at daily to improve. Their focus and intensely competitive nature draw them to performing at a high level all the time, not just in crucial situations. They happen to shine because they are perceived as being able to make extraordinary things happen when perception is focused solely on one defining moment. If perception were based on the game changer's everyday focus, there would be no extraordinary perception; instead it would be what is expected from an individual who trains for perfecting the ordinary.

   Even the everyday ordinary is an opportunity to compete. The Navy SEAL saying, “In times of pressure you don't rise to the occasion; you fall to your level of training,” is the mantra for all game changers whether they be elite military, Fortune 500, or part of a sports team. As the pressure mounts in any situation, the game changer is able to rely on and trust in his or her ability to perform because the focus is not on the moment or any possible outcome, but on his or her responsibility, leadership, and task.

   I have come across many athletes in my coaching career who fit this mold, but two of the most talented individuals in terms of being game changers by doing ordinary tasks better than their competition were both Boston College players—Matt Ryan and Luke Kuechly. Both men were absolute masters of their craft (practice and preparation) and relentless practice players. Their ability to prepare was uncanny due to one simple trait—they lived the process of preparation. They were two of the calmest individuals in the locker room on game day simply because their mindset and focus weren't on the moment itself, but on their responsibility for leadership and execution of ordinary tasks. And that calmness came because they spent their entire careers preparing for those moments. Practice wasn't different from games. Practice and games were both opportunities to improve their craft and leadership ability. Off-season workouts were no different than games or practice. They worked, and worked, and worked to fix and improve the little things and the tiniest of flaws that we saw as coaches and that they perceived as weak points in their game.

   One particular game at Boston College for Matt Ryan sums up his ability to focus on the ordinary routine tasks in pressure situations. On October 25, 2007, Boston College visited Virginia Tech in a Thursday night showdown with national implications. Both teams were at the top of their respected divisions in the ACC and both were top 10 teams (#2 BC vs. #8 VT). The weather that late October night was awful, to say the least, with heavy rain and wind. Through the first three and a half quarters of that game, it was a pure defensive battle with both offenses struggling not only due to the weather, but also due to brilliant defense play and coaching for both teams. We were down 10–0 with a little more than 3:00 left in the game. All night we had sputtered on offense and made little progress; however, on this drive Matt was finally able to get something working, and we scored to make it 10–7 with 2:11 left. We then executed a perfect onside kick, recovering the ball for one final shot at winning or at least a tie for overtime. I can remember looking over to where Matt was on the sideline and there was zero panic or nerves. He was simply rehearsing what our next drive would need to be in order to be successful. The ensuing drive saw Matt having to improvise and execute under immense pressure from a tremendous Virginia Tech front that created all kinds of problems for us. However, that is when he was able to shine, not because he was suddenly able to do extraordinary things, but because these were the very situations he practiced, visualized, and prepared for on a daily basis, year-round. With 11 seconds left Matt was able to scramble away from pressure, find time, and then find a wide-open receiver in the back of the end zone for the game-winning 24-yard touchdown pass. It was his ability to focus on making routine plays, not pressing or trying to do too much, that made him successful in that perceived pressure position. Although it took a team of coaches and players on those two drives in under 3:00 to win a huge game on the road, it takes key players making game-changing execution the norm when others around them are looking for leadership. His calm and routine play mindset not only focused him for the task at hand in that situation, but it focused an entire team to work together and execute the ordinary everyday practiced techniques and game plan.

   Luke Kuechly was a 17-year-old freshman linebacker out of St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, in June of 2009 when he stepped on campus at Boston College. That summer training cycle he would have gone completely unnoticed if it weren't for one defining trait that made him stick out over the rest in his incoming class—his thirst for how to improve simple tasks. He had no extraordinary characteristics physically. He didn't possess extraordinary movement skill or strength. He was a normal guy who would have blended into the crowd if he had let himself. He did, however, have an incredible knack for working extremely hard at basic, ordinary things. He was the kind of player who asked lots of questions and wanted to know how to do the basic things correctly. When he received instruction and coaching on movement skill, lifting technique, nutrition, etc., he executed his style of relentless attack on ordinary movements and knowledge. As a young college player, even before his first camp practice at Boston College, he displayed the drive to address ordinary tasks as game-changing opportunities. He would train and practice as if every situation was the same—the chance to win. His attention to detail in all aspects was unmatched in how he went about his everyday routine.

   Over the three years I had the privilege to coach Luke, it was obvious his development came from that basic drive. He put on the necessary weight, gained the necessary strength, and improved on the necessary movement skill because he didn't wait for the perfect moment; he made each moment the perfect time to improve. And it started with him executing ordinary movements, training techniques, and preparation to perfection. He approached warm-ups the same as third downs. He attacked basic lifting technique trying to perfect the movement that everyone else saw as “I got this.” He executed drill after drill and focused on the detail of each basic movement. If it wasn't right, he did it again and again until it was right—then executed it over and over with the same competitive approach as if he had failed the time before. He constantly watched film and broke down not only his opponents' but also his own tendencies and weaknesses. He took the time to focus on the ordinary details of success.

   There is no one particular standout moment I can point to to define Luke's display of game-changing ability; rather I can point to his entire career as a football player at both Boston College and in the NFL. At Boston College his ability to focus on routine ordinary tasks helped him achieve the following awards in just three years of playing:

   • Three-time first team All-American (2009, 2010, 2011)
   • Three-time first team All–Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) (2009, 2010, 2011)
   • ACC Athlete of the Year (2012)
   • ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year (2009)
   • Two-time Bowl Defensive Most Valuable Player (2009, 2011)
   • Butkus Award Winner (2011)
   • Lombardi Award Winner (2011)
   • Lott IMPACT Trophy Winner (2011)
   • Bronko Nagurski Trophy Winner (2011)
   • Jack Lambert Award Winner (2011)
   • FWAA 75th Anniversary All-American Team (2015)

   His NFL achievements include:

   • NFL Rookie of the Year (2012)
   • NFL Defensive Player of the Year (2013)

   These two gentlemen are only a small snapshot of the many I have coached, and am coaching to this day, who show this ability. Most of the athletes I have coached never made it to the professional levels of sports, but many have excelled in their chosen fields. All of those individuals have excelled because they all had that one, small, almost undiscernible trait—the uncanny ability to concentrate on doing the ordinary better than the next person. They realized that games are won and lost, careers are made or broken, and leaders are made and strengthened by handling business when no one is watching. When the “game” seems boring to most, they are still engaged and thirsting for improvement. They don't concentrate on extraordinary effort or ability. They simply take ordinary tasks and master them. They make the ordinary a competitive advantage over their competition. They take what many people see as boring, mundane, “it will take care of itself because I've done it a million times” tasks and put all their focus, energy, and attention into perfecting them even more. They never rise to the occasion in pressure situations; they simply just rely on their ability to execute simple, everyday technique and leadership skills to perfection. No matter what the profession, when the pressure mounts, people tune in to watch for either exhilarating victory or exceptional failure. When an individual rises above the rest, it is more about others falling than them rising (Jason Loscalzo, pers. comm.).

   In summary, the playmaker is often one shift in attitude, discipline, or mindset away from moving into a position where the status of game changer would dominate his or her personal and professional life. While playmakers want to get more, they often skip the vital trait of first becoming more. American businessman and business philosopher Jim Rohn pointed out the error in that thinking by suggesting that in order to get “more than you've got,” you must first “become more than you are” (Jim Rohn (a), AZ Quotes 2017).

   That being said, where in your thinking, habits, or daily routine must you become more in order to move into unstoppable game changer status? Since no one will—or can—do it for you, what will you do about it, beginning right now?

   When discussing what he prioritized when recruiting, Coach Crean put it this way:

   You have to look at their upside; do they have a high ceiling? You can't get hung up or overly excited about where they're at, but where they can go. Someone who really wants to compete at whatever they want to do, you can feel it. Yogi Ferrell always had that. Some guys can fake it, and eventually their lack of awareness, lack of being driven, and the need to always be pushed by someone else come out. People say, “Does he have a nose for the ball?” But it's really more like “Will he get his nose in the mix?” Some guys won't. They hate contact. Yogi never shied away from contact (Tom Crean, pers. comm.).

   How about you? Based on your attitude, character, desire, and willingness to develop necessary disciplines, how high is your ceiling? Will you shy away from the contact of change, risk, sacrifice, and discomfort necessary to move your thinking and performance from playmaker to game changer status? Will you shy away from contact, or will you seek it out?

Mission Unstoppable

To become an unstoppable game changer, consider and act on the following four key differences between the valuable playmaker and the essential game changer that were discussed in this chapter:

1. Being less consistent versus fanatically consistent.
2. Relying on external versus intrinsic motivation.
3. Having a mindset of pride and selfishness versus humility and team focus.
4. Seeking the extraordinary versus committing to do the ordinary both extraordinarily and consistently well.

As you evaluate your own mindset and performance, which of the tendencies dominates your daily thinking and actions more? What adjustments in thinking and performance will you make to spend more time in game changer status?

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