'The Right Way'

It’s the press conference for a new coaching hire, a fresh beginning of sorts for a program now filled with hope and the promise of better years ahead.

Some coaches are pledging to be gritty, others are committed to playing fast. But they all have one thing in common: They’re going to do things “the right way.”

A video montage of recent college basketball hires making this vague declaration has garnered lots of attention on social media this week — and it provides some pivotal lessons for us as leaders.

There is a subtle but stark contrast between doing things right vs. doing the right things.

It’s the difference between tactics and strategy, between leadership and management.

Doing things right is a vision. Doing the right things is a process.

Do all of the coaches in the video understand what they’ve committed to do? Are they dedicated to the two steps of not just stating the value quotient but formulating the strategies to get there?

They have conveyed that doing things "the right way" will be an important hallmark of their program. Living up to it will now be paramount.

Unfortunately, not all of them will likely fulfill their pledge, not because their intentions are bad but because they won't devise the proper methods to achieve their visions.

What we think is the right way often turns out not to be based on time and circumstance. Do they realize this and are they prepared to deviate from their well-intentioned ideas should they have to?

The success within their respective programs will be dependent on three components: leading, managing and coaching.

While “the right way” certainly wets the appetite of players, fans and administrators, the next 24 months will reveal whether the methodology is actually in place to be about what they've preached.