As coaches we all want to win.  We want to win every game, every match, every set, every quarter, every period, every goal, everyday.  We talk about winning with our teams and prepare them to do so.  We set goals as a team and with the individuals on the team to accomplish the main goal of winning.  Winning breeds confidence, hard work, dedication and discipline that can be applied to adult life the sports are done and gone.  But winning at all cost like some coaches do has a much greater cost that impacts people, the organization and attitudes of those involved in the process.  So how does a win at all cost attitude take away from the glory of winning?

1- Winning at all cost places a greater value on the outcome of the sporting event than it does the people playing the game.

2- Winning at all cost doesn’t care who gets trampled or used for their talent in the process.  However, the people that get trampled or used will feel it for a long time.

3-Winning at all cost many times ends up a cluster because the ones that are doing the right things, showing up everyday and working hard often get overlooked for the win at all cost athletic kid who is a pain in the ass.

4- Winning at all cost often puts the safety of the team, coaches and players at risk because of the attitude of whatever it takes.  

5- Winning at all cost often makes the best players decide that they are above the team, do not have to follow the rules or work as hard.

6- Winning at all cost can end up bad as grades, behavior, attitudes, community awareness and other negative things slowly creep into the system and tear it apart piece by piece.  

I took the head coach job of a team one time that was very good, very athletic and the guys on the team had no discipline or thought of anyone but themselves.  Once they left my goal was to be even better than they were, but do it in a positive way that represented the team, school and community in a positive light.  I wanted the kids that wanted to work hard and sacrifice for the greater good.  I wanted a winning program built on trust, hard work, effort, energy and discipline.  I built that program with many average athletes that were willing to put in the work, focus on team goals, do the right things and that was better than any win at all cost team I had ever seen around.