Breaking down Josh McDaniels’ journey the Tough-Smart way

I grew up in Denver, Colorado. Like most native Denverites, I am a huge Denver Broncos fan. The Broncos have a rookie head Coach, Josh McDaniels. McDaniels has seen his share of adversity in his first season. Can we predict, at this early stage,  whether McDaniels’ tenure in Denver will be a success?Yes we can. I believe Josh McDaniels is well on his way to becoming an élite head coach in the N.F.L. Why? Because he is Tough-Smart. Let’s break down his journey the Tough-Smart way:

The Smart Zone

Step 1: Call to Action
Josh McDaniels’ call to action is singular and unequivocal: To coach an N.F.L. team to a Super Bowl Championship.

Step 2: The N.E.R.D. phase
McDaniels has this step aced. The N.E.R.D. phase likely began early on for Josh.  McDaniels, the son of a prominent high school football coach, has studied the X’s and O’s of football since he was a young child. He has easily eclipsed the 10,000 hour rule in his preparation to become an N.F.L. coach. A math major in college, Coach McDaniels is comfortable with nerd-dom. Long hours, tedium, extreme attention to detail and an obsessive/compulsive nature are part of his Tough-Smart D.N.A.

Step 3: Find a coach/Find a system

“I had been talking to Bill for a few years about being a head coach, and after I didn’t do any interviews during the bye week in the ’07 playoffs he said, ‘I will help you in any way I can to get you ready for all the other things that go into the job,'” McDaniels said. “Just being around him every day was going to help me from a football standpoint because I could see what he did and how he did it. But he was saying he would help me with some of the things that you won’t really get a chance to witness or understand or become knowledgeable about until you’re in that position.

“I remember when we first came back after our break, that very first day, that very first morning, he brought me into his office and he gave me five pages, typed, of all the topics and things that he felt like I needed to be educated about to become an effective head coach. I’m thinking to myself, here he’s got 10 or 12 days where he can do whatever in the hell he wants to do — we’ve just come off a season where we were 16-0 and lost in the Super Bowl — and the very first day back he gives me this? That was kind of like my bible.”

Josh McDaniels on his mentor, Bill Belichick

McDaniels gets an A+  on this step. Josh was personally mentored by Bill Belichick, head coach of the New England Patriots. Belichick is certainly a world-class coach, if not the greatest of his era. From all accounts available, McDaniels was an apt pupil, listening to and absorbing ALL of what Belichick had to offer. McDaniels was certainly given a rare opportunity, but there is no denying that: 1. He earned it (see Hustle) 2. He made the very most of it.

Stage 4: Hustle
Again, McDaniels receives an A grade. While only 32 years of age, the Broncos new coach has been in the NFL coaching ranks for a decade. McDaniels started as a low-level assistant for the Patriots.  While helping the Pats to three Super Bowl wins, McDaniels’ work ethic clearly distinguished him from other aspiring coaches.

Stage 5: The Wall
I believe this is the current stage of Josh McDaniels’ journey. The Wall is the stage where realize that your journey will definitely not proceed as smoothly as you had planned. You encounter adversity that no one could have predicted. You encounter scrutiny and criticism that test your resolve and your belief in yourself. The Wall forces you to question the very beliefs, the very system that got you to where you are. There is no telling how long The Wall phase will last. So far McDaniels has responded to hitting The Wall with relative grace.

Step 6:  Make it your own
Early on, Josh McDaniels proceeded with his new charge just as the Tough-Smart system would dictate:  1. Do things exactly the way your mentor taught you. 2. Hustle.  3. Anticipate hitting The Wall with a sense of opportunity and optimism.
McDaniels,  I believe, has come to the crucial “aha moment” that will move him beyond The Wall. Josh has begun to grasp that the  Patriots’ system, world-class as it is, can only bring him to the threshold of success. In the all important Make It Your Own Stage, the Broncos’ head coach will realize that he is Josh McDaniels — JOSH FREAKIN’ MCDANIELS, not a carbon copy of his mentor. He will realize that he possesses talent and insight that is unique in all the world. He will evolve. He will adapt. He will manifest his Call to Action in his own image.

Stage 7 – Introspection

Time will tell with this step. I believe Josh McDaniels story will be one of success, personal growth and fulfillment.

The Tough Zone

Josh McDaniels lives in the Tough Zone. Let’s analyse some of the aspects of McDaniel’s mindset that will be invaluable to him on his journey.

1. Overcoming your toughest Opponent: Ego
There is only one person who can stand in the way of Josh McDaniels’ Call to Action: Josh McDaniels (if you were thinking Jay Cutler we have some work to do). In order to enter the Tough Zone, one must overcome Ego.  This includes more than overcoming feelings of self-importance. Ego can rear its head as judgement, fear, anger,  blame, depression, selfishness, anxiety, etc.  Many in the media have accused McDaniels of “having a big ego.”  Guess what? Every human being on Earth has a big Ego.  However, everyone manifests it a different way. Our primary task in life is to overcome Ego. I believe Josh is doing a better job of overcoming Ego every day. Just look at the way he has expertly guided Brandon Marshal’s development from spoiled diva to team leader.

2. Overcoming the Victim Mentality.

“I wasn’t the most well-liked person in Canton,” he said. “I was a coach’s son who played quarterback. It was tough at times.”

Josh McDaniels gross under-representation of the pressure of growing up in football crazed Canton, Ohio

Coach McDaniels is not a victim. It is clear that Josh does not let things “happen to him.”  He is not overly concerned with others’ opinion of him. He does not subscribe to the concept of bad luck. McDaniels accepts 100% responsibility for everything in his movie. McDaniels  responds (much to the chagrin of the media) to “good” and “bad”  situations with exactly the same mantra: “We need to get better.”   Perfect.

Defining Success

Coach McDaniels focus at any given moment is on improvement.  He clearly understands that success is a direction, not a destination.  To Josh: PROCESS = PROGRESS = SUCCESS.  He consistently  avoids the “Are we there yet?” mentality. Analyse McDaniels comments at any press conference. They do not center on his team’s wins and losses. They focus on his team’s development.  Coach McDaniels realizes that his job as an N.F.L. head coach is not to win every game. His job is to constantly compel his team to more closely resemble a Super Bowl contender.

There are other elements of the Tough-Zone, such as Sharing, Removing Separation and Connecting with the Divine that I cannot address. I do not know Josh McDaniels personally. I’ll make you a bargain. If Coach McDaniels ever asks me to grab a beer with him, I’ll ask. I’m curious. How does your Call to Action stack up to Coach McDaniels’? Do you recognize places where you can get Tough-Smarter?   Here’s to a Broncos win continuing to get Tough-Smart.

Peace begins with me,

Coach Dave