Andy Reid, Kyle Shanahan and the Bar of Expectation

Building a winning team — whether in football, sales, or an athletics department — starts with selecting the right talent. Discover how it’s done in the NFL on February 22nd at 4pm EST/1pm PST. Only 36 spots left, see more below. 

When you become a head NFL coach, you join a very exclusive club, with high expectations. 

Being one of 32 makes slight improvement difficult to notice. Meanwhile, significant improvement leaves us expecting more, and falling short of a title is cast as a failure. 

Last Sunday, over 120 million people worldwide watched a 44-year-old head coach, Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers, lose his second Super Bowl in the last five years. 

On the other sideline, Kansas City Chiefs Coach Andy Reid, at the tender age of 65, won his third Super Bowl in the last five years. After the win, Reid received all of the praise as a great strategist and leader. Meanwhile, Shanahan left Las Vegas with a narrative of not being able to win the big game, not having what it takes to become a championship-level coach. 

What makes the narrative unfair is 20 years ago, Reid carried the same label Shanahan now holds. During his stint as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, Reid was viewed as a good coach who couldn’t win the big game, who lacked the leadership skills to get over the bar of expectation. 

Reid took the Eagles to numerous NFC title games and one Super Bowl — but failed to win when it mattered most. He left Philadelphia with a 58 win percentage and a label of not being clutch. 

Both men are highly skilled at their jobs. But Reid has withstood the test of time and been able to hurdle the expectation bar, causing people to forget the old narrative. 

Shanahan is left with the noise from outsiders who have never been on a sideline, who have never led a team but for some reason have the power to judge. 

As leaders, parents and team member, we all face expectations, some realistic, some not. 

Because we are achievers, we embrace these, meet the challenges head on, and we know each day the expectations bar is set slightly higher. However, there are times along our path to greatness where we will fall short. 

Ernest Hemingway didn’t perfectly write each day. Picasso didn’t create a masterpiece every time he painted with his brush. Michael Jordan didn’t win every game. 

Our expectations bar is our bar. We set the standard for our level and must ignore the noise. 

Did Reid feel he was a bad coach when he was sent packing from Philadelphia in 2013? No, he knew as long as he kept working at his craft, as long he kept his mind in a curious state, he would hurdle the bar he set for himself. 

Shanahan will do the same as long as he ignores the noise from the fake bar setters.

Expectations are what drive us each day — but they have to be our own. 

Evaluating Talent in the NFL

This special presentation from Michael Lombardi and The Daily Coach Network will explore the NFL Talent Evaluation System developed during his time with the Cleveland Browns and will showcase how to develop your team philosophy, evaluate talent and character, leverage a grading scale, and much more.

Don’t miss your chance to upgrade your hiring process. 

1. Attend Michael Lombardi’s presentation on February 22nd,

2. Incorporate strategies from the NFL into your own hiring process, 

3. Recruit your next superstar.

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