Show Notes
Mark Sorenson won two world championships by the age of seventeen. But at twenty, despite playing the best tournament of his life, his team lost the final. That heartbreak led to an insight: it doesn’t matter how spectacular you are if you can’t make the people around you better as well.
Mark is one of only two New Zealanders to win world softball titles as both a player and a coach — four golds with the Black Sox, including the only three-peat in the history of the men's game, then World Coach of the Year after taking them back to gold in 2017.
This conversation is almost none of that. It's about what happened in between: the years he tried to lift his team by policing them, and the shift that finally made them follow.
We talk: - The difference between having the title and having people follow you - Why Mark told his own daughter she would never win a trophy while he was coaching - How to hold high standards without humiliating anyone - Being liked versus respected - The honesty gap between team spirit and high performance culture - Why rules without reason carry less weight - When delegating a hard conversation is the strongest thing a leader can do
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A huge thanks to Celebrity Speakers for supporting this episode. If you want to book Mark Sorenson for a keynote and leave your audience hungry for more, visit celebrityspeakers.co.nz Hunger & Heart is brought to you by the Crusaders Leadership Programme™. Whether you're coaching under-5s or a professional team, we all want the same thing: to build cultures of trust, get the best out of our people, and grow players into leaders.
The Crusaders Leadership Programme™ lets you get up close and personal with some of the greatest rugby legends of all time — people like Sir Wayne Smith, Sam Whitelock, and Kieran Read. You'll connect with a global group of ambitious, caring coaches from a range of codes and backgrounds, and most importantly, you'll gain skills and techniques to drive impact and outcomes for your team. The Crusaders Leadership Programme™ is a two-week high-intensity virtual experience. It is delivered exclusively online, accessible from anywhere. Hunger and heart Listeners get 10% off the full price of the program. Use the code HUNGER at checkout. Find out more: crusadersleadership.com
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