Understanding Leadership: How Improvisation Forges Strong Leaders
“I’m going to be there for them. I’m going to have their back. I’m going to support them in every way.”
I want to offer a powerful example of true leadership. But first, because we’re currently in the midst of baseball’s 2022 postseason, an important disclosure:
I'm born, raised, and educated in Philadelphia and remain a lifelong Phillies fan.
For those of you who don’t follow sports and, maybe, don’t understand the pain involved with being a Phillies fan, I’ll sum it up with this statistic: the team was the first professional sports franchise - in US sports history - to amass 10,000 losses. So… the team has a rich history of erratic performance, epic collapses, and a few, glorious triumphs.
Incredibly, one of those triumphs is happening right now.
As of this post, the Phillies just won the National League Championship Series (or NLCS) against the San Diego Padres and are now headed to the World Series. This is the crown jewel in all of baseball and is known as “The Fall Classic”. The Phils haven’t made it to that pinnacle since 2009, so this is a big deal, a rare deal, and, some would say, a very unexpected deal.
The Phillies have, understandably, shocked the world of sports reporters and broadcasters. They began the season in ugly fashion, looking like the same group of talented but disconnected misfits that they looked like last year. And the year before that. And, unfortunately, the five years before that.
But this year, the team did something unexpected: they fired their manager.
In his place, they promoted his longtime friend - the unassuming Rob Thomson - to become the team’s Interim Manager. On June 3rd, 2022, the team’s President of Operations introduced Thomson to the press. At the end of the Q&A, a reporter asked Thomson an interesting question: What would he say to the team in his first meeting as their new skipper? Here’s the question and Thomson’s incredible response:
Emotional and Social IQ
Thomson’s answer is a 40-second masterclass on great leadership. Let’s break it down:
He says he’ll communicate to his players that he’s “going to be there for them… in every way”. That builds trust. Quickly. We’re usually willing to work exceptionally hard for leaders who make clear that they’ve got our backs and then demonstrate it. We’ll figuratively go to bat for people like that, right? So will the Phillies: literally. 😂
Thomson says he’ll get to know his players physically, mentally, and emotionally. He’ll do that, he says, because he wants to “better prepare them for performing at the highest level". Here’s a leader who not only understands that athletes are also human but also wants to help his players achieve their goals of winning.
Thomson concludes by revealing that the “only way” to learn about his players is by… “…communicating. Talking and listening.” Thomson’s emphasizing curiosity here: by seeking to understand more about the individuals on his team, he’s better able to inspire and motivate them to achieve their goals.
Of course, all this is smart to say when the cameras are pointed at you, but what about the results? What happened to the team once Thomson had time to practice what he preached? The team, it turns out, changed quite literally overnight:
They suddenly won eight games in a row, something that hadn’t happened for eleven years
They went 21-9 during Thomson’s first month of managing, a 43% win rate.
They won 40 victories in 59 games, a 68% win rate, the fastest for any manager in the Phillies’ 140-year history
The team went 65-46 to finish the season, a 71% win rate, one of the best records in all of baseball
As the season progressed, Thomson’s team continued to win games at higher and higher percentages. That kind of remarkable turnaround is only possible because Thomson is a mastermind leader. Yes, he’s smart about baseball of course, but that’s not what makes him successful. One of the secrets to his success as a leader is his emotional and social intelligence.
The Selfless Principle
When was the last time you heard your boss (or anyone’s?!) say that she’d like to get to know you mentally and emotionally? If you answered “never”, you’re not alone: leaders who communicate like this are rare. Curiosity about others requires empathy, caring, and a selfless approach. Unfortunately, most people who seek out leadership roles do so from the desire to have more power, control, prestige, or money. In other words, they’re driven by ego.
Team members see this and respond to this: they see when “leaders” place their own success over the success of the team. As a result, they rightly lose interest in and respect for the leader. Thomson understands this deeply. As a result, he BEGAN his tenure by telling his team that he was going to have their backs and support them in every way. Then, he worked to back that promise up with results.
“As a skipper, you want everybody to respect you, and at the same point, you need to understand that you have to give that respect back to the player. We are human beings and we are grown men here. If you respect me, I’m going to respect you back. It’s something Thomson does a really good job at — communicating.”
Calm in The Storm
Yelling, screaming, and panicked responses when things go wrong all communicate messages to the team. Those behaviors suggest a lack of faith in the process or the people involved. It also creates chaos. When that happens members of the team not only have to navigate their jobs but also deal with other people’s strong emotions and personalities. That takes its toll and, over time, causes team members to disrespect those kinds of leaders. A culture of fear causes team members to exit and find other teams.
Thomson knows this and studiously avoids this at all costs. His players have noticed and embraced him. So has the city of Philadelphia. Not surprisingly, the press is now writing about him. He’s been featured in The Athletic, Forbes, and the NY Times.
“He’s calm, cool, and collected – he’s got a poise about him. Nothing speeds up on him and I think when you have that in the driver’s seat it kind of wears off on the rest of your club.”
The Leadership Recipe
From Dale Carnegie to Simon Sinek to Cy Wakeman to Tony Robbins to countless others: leadership skills are in high demand because humans are complex animals and bringing them together is a real challenge. The Phillies’ new Manager Rob Thomson keeps it simple by employing these three ingredients
Get curious. Strive to deeply know and care about the people on your team.
Leave your ego at home and put the team first.
Be the calm in the storm. Your steadiness will inspire others to relax and do their best work.
In short, great leaders like Thomson understand that curiosity, discovery, and communication are essential for a thriving and successful team. The Phillies’ turnaround seems miraculous, but it isn’t really. They’ve got incredible talent, yes, but they’ve got something more: a manager they respect. And love. Yes, love. They even made and wore t-shirts to honor how they feel about him.
Be Like Rob
There is NO BETTER tool for learning and practicing the art of good listening and communication than improvisation. None. Improvisation, which is often “played” with games and exercises that involved the mind and body, requires participants to:
Deeply listen to what’s being said
Understand what’s being communicated non-verbally
Connect on a human level with one another
Agree with the context of what’s happening at the moment
If you’re a manager, director, Senior Vice President, or C-Level executive reading this - or you'd like to be at some point in your career - I urge you to learn how to communicate compassionately and humanely to become respected as a leader.
Be like Rob. To start your journey, sign up for one of our classes, and let's help you prepare for the kind of leadership that will inspire others.
Every career has a pinnacle of success. We’ll help you get there.
The Phillies, moments after punching their ticket to the World Series on Oct 23, 2022
Executive summary
Understanding Leadership: How Improvisation Forges Strong Portland Business Leaders and Strong Business Leaders EVERYWHERE.
Improv? For business? Look no further than the world of sports to understand why. Improv in Portland is essential: it teaches the VERY vital team-building skills that are so vital to professional sports franchises: get curious about your teammates; put your team first; be the calm in the storm to inspire others. If you're seeking Portland management training or Portland executive training or you're in Portland Human Resources, get in touch: improv workshops are the way to learn these skills.