As is always the case for a national coach, being a leader in one’s own home is the most challenging as it has to be done amid everyday pressures and extensive travelling. How do you balance this?
The toughest component of the work has been absenteeism from home. I have three young kids. Last year I was away from home 250 days of the year. So it does not bode well for a fully functional family environment. It has been a challenge and continues to be so. At this stage I haven’t found the formula that allows me to be successful at both.
Someone wondered why you accepted a job where you will be fired in four years. Seriously, being a coach is a career that is exceptionally unsure.
There is no long-term plan, because it is so results orientated. You sign a contract for two years, or whatever and that could be it. I manage this by not focusing on trophies, even though I am measured by it and accept it and the responsibility that comes with that.
I rather focus on leading people and helping them be the best they can be, and creating an environment for people to be as successful as they can be. If that brings trophies and success then I am grateful for that.
Do you look for more in players, other than the obvious talent and certain skills?
Yes I do. But we are somewhat restricted as resources are limited. We only have certain very talented players around. So, it is not as if I can say I have five guys from which to pick for one position, who are highly talented and can make it at international level, and I can now pick the one that fits into the team value system, the culture.
That’s what I would love to be doing. Sometimes we don’t have five but two or one. So you have to take that individual and work with him; try to get the best out of him; make sure your critical mass in your team is up in such a way that the majority of the individuals buy into the team value system and what it stands for.
In any team one is going to have mavericks that feel it is their show because they are the high performer who believes the team needs them.
How do you handle that?
They can be very destructive. In my limited experience there are two ways of dealing with it. You have to get that guy on your side or you have to try and create an environment where your senior players get him on side, because it might not always be able to be you.
Ultimately you don’t necessarily need the player completely on side. You just have to have him not be destructive, or the cancer in the team. If he starts trying to win people over or lobbying people over to a way of doing things then you are in trouble.
If he keeps to himself, pretty quiet, performs well, doesn’t get involved too much, not destructive, critical mass is up and don’t really need him in a leadership position, his accepting enough of the culture, I can work with such a guy.
What is it like travelling the world with these youngsters, who are on another wavelength from you, at a different phase of their lives?
I certainly wouldn’t want to be in any space where I am with the perfect set of people. I don’t coach or teach because of that. I want to be in the space where I am with a lot of very different people, because then you can influence and have a positive influence on people’s lives. I don’t want to be in a comfort zone.
I am in the people game. I don’t view my players as performance tools that must leave their “stuff” at home. They are human beings with issues, and it’s my responsibility to make them tick the best way I can.
One would think a national coach should preferably be from the same country so as to feel an allegiance towards country, yet you transcended this principle in India. How did you do that?
Whatever team, organisation or group, you have to understand that environment you are going into; what you need to do; how you need to shift as an individual; not how the people around you need to shift.
So I need to understand that space. Then ask: “Within my leadership philosophies, what do I need to do, say or be to these individuals, based on who they are as people?” That was an incredible learning experience for me in India and South Africa, two different cultures.
I felt the needs and requirements for the Proteas team were different to the requirements of the Indian team, within who I am as a person and my coaching philosophies. I ended up leading very differently.
Summarise your leadership philosophy?
What can I do in my personal capacity, mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually, within my power, as an individual, to positively influence a group of individuals to create an environment where people are happy and enjoy what they are doing and thrive, are highly successful?
You seem to be calm under pressure. How do you do that?
I think I hide it. I think we always feel it. What is important for me is when you become a person of influence, as a leader, people are looking at you; they watch you; follow your lead. So if you have poor body language and panic in it, yet you are an inspirational leader, by definition you are going to make your subjects panic as well. So if you have high intensity, panic, or whatever, I think it is going to affect your players.
But there is also an upside in that when you show great intensity that will come through into the team. I have always gone for the theory of just remaining neutral. The downside is that people criticise you for not caring enough. I’ll take that hit. At the end of the day my influence is what happens behind closed doors.
Favourite leadership books?
Jim Collins – Good to Great; Pep Guardiola – Another Way of Winning; Bill Welch – The Score Takes Care of Itself: My philosophy on leadership.