I love football. Being a Colts' fan, my respect for Payton Manning has followed him to Denver. Though he is "only 38" years old, he is getting close to retirement, as that is practically ancient for the NFL. In today's sports news (NBC Sports, NFL.com, Kevin Patra), Payton lamented about what he knows he will miss most when he leaves the field as a player.
"Sometimes I sort of kick back and I pause and I
think what sorts of things would I miss the most if I
wasn't playing," Manning said.
So what would
Manning miss the most?
"Being in the huddle," Manning said. "That's what I missed most when I was injured, I'll say that. I mean, there's no other type of unity or bond that I think any other job can provide. I know there are meetings, there are video conferences. But that huddle, because of where it takes place: it's often on the road, in the middle of the field, in front of 80,000 people, it's unique."
"When you don't play football
anymore, you can broadcast, you can coach, you can be in management, whatever,
but you are not allowed to go into the huddle anymore," Manning said.
"That huddle is just for players. You can go into the locker room after the game and you can speak to the team, but I think any retired player would probably tell you they miss the huddle."
This is particularly interesting to those of us who know that Payton almost single-handedly instituted the "no-huddle offense" in the NFL. Why would someone who is known for NOT huddling say that he values the huddle so much? He responds,
"That huddle is just for players. You can go into the locker room after the game and you can speak to the team, but I think any retired player would probably tell you they miss the huddle."
As a teacher for 20 years and coach for the past six, I can tell you that what I love most about teaching and coaching has been "the huddle." In the classroom, "the huddle" is the time where you feel the sense of classroom community that you have worked so hard to foster; someone will say/do something that shows their connection to the group, the learning, and the investment you have collectively made. These are the moments that we live for as teachers. If my coaching job ended, I would likely return to my own full-time classroom, and I know that I would, once again, live for "the huddle" that occurs there.
As a literacy coach whose job expires annually with our funding, I remain cognizant that there is always the possibility of "no tomorrow" in my line of work. That knowledge probably keeps me "present" in this moment--neither looking back nor too far into the future--just working and living in the here and now. This job differs in critical ways from that of a principal, curriculum director, or superintendent. In reality, an evaluator ("boss") cannot authentically enjoy the collegial relationship of a coach--an equal. Nor does an administrator have the time to dedicate to mentoring/coaching on a daily basis. An administrator, like an owner of a team, cares about employees, watches closely for improvement, and has no choice but to press for the win (in education, the test score). When I think about "what else" I might do with my life, I understand Payton's remarks about "the huddle" more and more.
A coach's job is to "huddle up" with colleagues to figure out each "play," as we do our best in each "game." Working in a classroom, everyday is the Super Bowl.
A coach is actually in the arena, daring greatly beside the teacher, "showing up," honoring the vulnerability of herself and her colleagues.
In STITCHES, Anne Lamott likens life to "a patchwork of moments, memories, connections, and stories that I've found help steer me in the direction of answers that will hold, for now and even over time" (page 7). So, too, is instructional coaching; it includes a patchwork of opportunities to work alongside others, facilitating: collaborative meetings, book studies, round table discussions, long- and short-term coaching cycles, workshops, consulting, demonstrating lessons, co-teaching, providing feedback from classes, analyzing data to plan instruction, projecting and co-planning units of study, and individually coaching teachers.
Here is what I know about coaching: when I work 1:1 or with small groups of teachers, I feel a sense of unity through "the huddle"--as Merriam-Webster defines it: "coming closely together to discuss privately." Within that patchwork of duties, there "is no other type of unit or bond" that can replace that felt between teachers or teacher/coach when "in the huddle."
I recently finished Shawn Achor's book, THE HAPPINESS ADVANTAGE. Achor describes the importance of each person's social network. He says:
"If you can raise somebody's level of positivity in the present, then their brain experiences what we now call a happiness advantage, which is your brain at positive performs significantly better than it does at negative, neutral or stressed. Your intelligence rises, your creativity rises, your energy levels rise. In fact, what we've found is that every single business outcome improves. Your brain at positive is 31 percent more productive than your brain at negative, neutral or stressed. If we can find a way of becoming positive in the present,then our brains work even more successfully as we're able to work harder, faster and more intelligently."
Achor goes on to cite studies that show that high levels of social support is as predictive of longevity as regular exercise, while low social support is as damaging as high blood pressure. Now we know why it feels so good to feel positive connections in our lives.
On the best days of coaching, I get to experience this increased "level of positivity" in almost every coaching session with teachers. Brene Brown (in THE GIFTS OF IMPERFECTION) describes courage, compassion, and connection as those gifts:
"I define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship."
I suspect that this is the same energy that Payton Manning feels while in the huddle. He knows he is "daring greatly." He knows that Brene Brown is correct in saying, "To practice courage, compassion, and connection is to look at life and the people around us, and say, 'I’m all in.'" Shawn Achor says, "The greatest predictor of success and happiness at work is social support. And the greatest way to increase social support is to provide it to others." Payton does that; as a coach, I do that, too. Based on Payton's interviews over the years and what I know about myself in my heart, I would say we both feel privileged to be "all in" as we provide support to others. As Anne Lamott says (STITCHES) about searching for meaning, "...I do know it somehow has to do with sticking together as we try to make sense of chaos, and that seems a way to begin." Isn't that what they huddle is: a way to make sense of chaos while being "all in," invested as colleagues with a common goal?
This is why people love Payton so much--when he's your quarterback, you know he's "all in." When he's the quarterback for your team that is playing the Broncos, this is what instills quiet fear in your heart--you know he is "all in."
Payton is living a wholehearted life. Those of us who love our jobs, care to see, hear, and value the people around us, give and receive without judgment, and derive sustenance and strength from our relationships, know his secret to happiness. It's not really the Super Bowl ring (or, in our case, the test scores)--though those are nice. It's really the energy of God--wholehearted goodness--surging between us as we "huddle up" to do our best work.
1hud·dle
verb \ˈhə-dəl\
: to come close together in a group
: to come together to talk about something privately
hud·dledhud·dling
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