Two Things I Learned on Tuesday from Joe Girardi
Seems like just yesterday that Joe Girardi was manning the backstop for the late-90s Yankees World Series teams. Now he’s built himself into a successful manager, with over 700 wins and a world championship in eight seasons.
In order to be a good manager, not just the baseball kind, you have to be able to relate to people. The good ones, like Joe, are able to utilize the relationships they build to get the most out of their teams.
So, here are two things Joe Girardi taught me about managing:
Care about your players on both a professional and personal level.
It’s great to have an understanding of what your team can do in the office, but what are their interests outside of work? Sometimes a gap exists between managers and their employees because the boss doesn’t seem “human” enough. Humanize yourself by getting to know your team. They’ll get to know you, too.
Understand your players’ priorities.
Beyond just getting to know your team, have an understanding of their priorities. Knowing that will give you a better sense of what they are capable of, and you will what you need to do to get the most out of them.
