Our First Lead ‘Em Up Team

Aug 14, 2020

It was six-years ago I worked with the Watkins Mill Football Team but during that time, Lead ‘Em Up wasn’t even a thing.  I was still figuring this whole thing out.

It wasn’t until a year after Watkins Mill we launched Lead ‘Em Up and actually “pitched” a coach to hire us to work with their team all season long.

A mutual friend, Alan Stein, connected me to Chris Lun, Head Basketball Coach at Whitman High School in Bethesda, MD.

Coach Lun and I met one day in his classroom at Pyle Middle School and I pitched the idea of Whitman Basketball having a leadership coach on staff and using Lead ‘Em Up.  He loved the idea and jumped on-board.

I was ecstatic. Coach Lun is a State Championship coach who runs an incredible program so for him to see the vision I was casting it helped confirm our vision was something coaches would actually want.

That year was an incredible season.  We went all in with the boys; weekly sessions, on-going text conversations, team dinners, Iron awards and more. The year exceeded my expectations.

The season had the natural roller-coasters; losing streaks mid-season and questioning if leaders would step-up, but with a few weeks left in the season things starting clicking.  We had turned the corner.

The players began taking hold of the team and leading it to another level. The run we made the last few weeks of the season, throughout the playoffs, on our way to a Regional Championship and finally ending up at Xfinity Center for the State Tournament, was absolutely incredible.

Still to this day, that season was one of the best experiences with a team I’ve ever had.

Coach Lun is special. What an honor to work with him and the Whitman program and shout-out to Coach for being the first to help get the ball rolling for Lead ‘Em Up.


We want to provide you a tool to keep your players engaged, growing as leaders and continuing to feel connected to their team/teammates; The 21-Day Leadership Playbook. 

This FREE 21-Day Leadership Playbook is filled with various Lead ‘Em Up exercises, uniquely modified for players to do on their own, as part of a team-wide exercise.

Download your free copy right here! 


Other Posts

Coaches Membership Update Part 5

Coaches Membership Update Part 5

Part 5 of the updates to the Coaches Membership: Customized Exercise Guide, Green Leadership Level, and Top Three Areas to Improve with a Team Leadership Profile.

Coaches Membership Update Part 4

Coaches Membership Update Part 4

Part 4 of the updates to the Coaches Membership is focused on enhancing the ways you can learn the Exercises with options to watch, listen, or read!

Podcasts

Unstuck with Leon Thurston

Unstuck with Leon Thurston

In this episode, the guys are joined by Lead ‘Em Up Regional Coach Leon Thurston. Leon shares his inspiring story and how he has used it to help today’s students and athletes achieve academic and athletic success. The conversation and insights shared by Leon provide a...

Unstuck with Leon Thurston

The Problem with Leadership Councils

Leadership Councils are a good thing, but there’s a problem with them. What could possibly be the issue? In this episode, Adam and Kyle discuss what the problem is, how to avoid it, and what can be done to get the most value out of a leadership council. If your school...

Go for the Gold

Free Exercise