Super Bowl victory and lessons learned.

I was in the process of writing a blog entry about leadership the other day but I just couldn't put the word down on the screen in a way that truly expressed what I had in mind. I'm still working on that one so check back latter. I did however over the weekend see what I thought was leadership worth taking note of and I wanted to tell you about it from my perspective.


If you live in Pittsburgh unless you were one of the two or three people in the entire region who was not watching the Super Bowl on Sunday then you saw the same images on television that I did. I remember thinking as I watched all of the hype prior to the game that for all of the times I saw Bill Cowher interviewed I never heard him say “I want to win the Super Bowl”. Instead each time he was questioned about what a Super Bowl victory would do for his record as a head coach he would say that what he really wanted was to be able to hand that trophy to Dan Rooney. He talked about how the players deserved to be here because of all the hard work and effort they had put fourth. He lauded his coaching staff as being one of the best in the NFL. Listening to Bill Cowher talk you would think that he had almost nothing to do with the team being on the verge of winning football's most prized achievement.

I don't know Bill Cowher personally and have never met the man. I know that he works in the very competitive world of professional sports and he holds the top job in an industry where you are judged by results and he is in the “buck stops here” position. When the results are good you are the hero and when they are not you are handed your hat and show the door. Sometimes in the short period of just one season. Those that think corporate America is harsh should try being a head coach in the NFL.

I do know that Bill Cowher would prefer to excel at his chosen profession, you can see that from the passion that he exhibits on the sidelines during a game. I think I am safe in assuming that he “wanted” that Super Bowl trophy because just like the rest of us he is a human being. I can't tell you what is in his heart and mind so I have to judge the man by his words and even more importantly by his actions. Using those two criteria I have formed an opinion of the type of leader that Bill Cowher is.

I think he is a man who leads by example. While you will see the Pittsburgh Steelers jump in the air and hug each other in the end zone when they score a touch down it is because they are happy. They do not taunt the other team or even the other teams fans. When they cross the goal line the thing that happens most of the time is they just drop the ball on the ground. They don't have to gather in a circle and do a little dance. They have more class than that. They are saying “Hey, I've been here before and I'll be here again.” so lets play the game. I think that attitude is something that they get from their head coach.

When asked by reporters what winning the Super Bowl would mean to him Bill Cowher said that he wanted to win so that he could hand Dan Rooney that trophy. I think in this highly competitive world filled with larger than life egos Bill Cowher wanted to be of service to the people who allowed him to pursue his passion doing work that he loved. I also think he has conveyed that idea of service to his players. In an era of big money contracts and super stars and talking about what “I” bring to the game you don't find that in the Steeler locker room. To a man, when team members are interviewed by the media over and over again what you hear from them is the statement “I want to do what I can to help the team”. Those that talk about “I” rather than “we” usually don't last long with the Steelers. Again, I think this is something that is the result of the attitude of their leader.

I think he also set an example in that the day after the big game when he could be in Disney Land or any one of number of high profile places Bill Cowher was sitting in the bleachers at a high school basket ball game watching his daughter play. Again, making a statement. Saying that family is what is important in life and that all things have to be kept in prospective.

I look at Bill Cowher and I continue to pray that God will bless this city and this region with more leaders like him. We have some very good men currently involved in making Pittsburgh a better place to work and live. They are also very active in that all important aspect of life of being leaders by serving their fellow man. Some of them don't get the attention that I think they should but they have taken a lesson from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who while on earth taught us that by serving others we could find peace and fulfillment.

I enjoyed the Super Bowl and I reveled in the win as did the rest of my family and friends. I grew up here and despite not being a huge fan of Pittsburgh winters I still like the area and think it has a lot to offer. I have children and now grand children and I would like to see them grow up here and live productive lives and be happy. In order for that to happen though we are going to have to see change come to the City of Pittsburgh and to the region as a whole. That change is not going to happen without leadership and it needs to come form leaders that understand that leading involves serving.