NFL head coach Mike Smith lead one of the most remarkable turnarounds in NFL history. In the season prior to his arrival in 2008, the Atlanta Falcons had a 4–12 record and the franchise had never before achieved back-to-back winning seasons. Under Smith’s leadership, the Falcons earned an 11–5 record in his first season and would go on to become perennial playoff and Super Bowl contenders earning Smith AP Coach of year in 2008 and voted Coach of Year by his peers in 2008, 2010 and 2012. You Win in the Locker Room First draws on the extraordinary experiences of Coach Mike Smith and Jon Gordon—consultant to numerous college and professional teams—to explore the seven powerful principles that any business, school, organization, or sports team can adopt to revitalize their organization. Step by step, the authors outline a strategy for building a thriving organization and provide a practical framework that give leaders the tools they need to create a great culture, lead with the right mindset, create strong relationships, improve teamwork, execute at a higher level, and avoid the pitfalls that sabotage far too many leaders and organizations. In addition to sharing what went right with the Falcons, Smith also transparently shares what went wrong his last two seasons and provides invaluable lessons leaders can take away from his victories, success, failures and mistakes. Whether it’s an executive leadership team of a Fortune 500 company, a sports team, an emergency room team, military team, or a school team successful leaders coach their team and develop, mentor, encourage, and guide them. This not only improves the team, it improves the leaders and their relationships, connections, and organization. You Win in the Locker Room First offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at one of the most pressure packed leadership jobs on the planet and what leaders can learn from these experiences in order to build their own winning team.

We are not positive because life is easy. We are positive because life can be hard. As a leader, you will face numerous obstacles, negativity, and tests. There will be times when it seems as if everything in the world is conspiring against you and your vision seems more like a fantasy than a reality. That’s why positive leadership is essential! Positive leadership is not about fake positivity. It is the real stuff that makes great leaders great. The research is clear. Being a positive leader is not just a nice way to lead. It's the way to lead if you want to build a great culture, unite your organization in the face of adversity, develop a connected and committed team and achieve excellence and superior results. Since writing the mega best seller The Energy Bus, Jon Gordon has worked and consulted with leaders who have transformed their companies, organizations and schools, won national championships and are currently changing the world. He has also interviewed some of the greatest leaders of our time and researched many positive leaders throughout history and discovered their paths to success. In this pioneering book Jon Gordon shares what he has learned and provides a comprehensive framework on positive leadership filled with proven principles, compelling stories, practical ideas and practices that will help anyone become a positive leader. There is a power associated with positive leadership and you can start benefiting yourself and your team with it today.

Great teammates don’t just impact you today; they impact you for the rest of your life. From the moment Jon Gordon heard about George Boiardi and the Hard Hat he was intrigued and captivated. Over the years he visited George’s coaches, attended several “21 Dinners” held in his honor, met his family, talked to his teammates and observed how he inspired all who knew him. The Hard Hat is an unforgettable true story about a selfless, loyal, joyful, hard-working, competitive, and compassionate leader and teammate, the impact he had on his team and program and the lessons we can learn from him. The book features: A True Story about George Boiardi, his Team and their Legacy. 21 Lessons to be a Great Teammate Insights from George’s Teammates and Coaches that Bring the Lessons to Life. 21 Exercises to help you Build a Great Team Infused with practical insights and life changing lessons, The Hard Hat will inspire you to be the best teammate you can be and to build a great team. *100% of author’s royalties go to support the Mario St. George Boiardi Foundation

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 When I was hired as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons in 2008, they had never had back-to-back winning seasons. The team was struggling with consistency and sustainability. I knew the first step I needed to take was to create a winning culture in which every member could thrive and excel. #2 I had to build the Falcons’ culture from the bottom up. I made sure the owner and leaders were an integral part of the process, and I knew that to create a winning team on the field, I needed to involve more than just leadership, players, and staff. #3 The culture of a team is made up of the shared purpose, attitudes, values, goals, practices, and behaviors that define it. Everyone in an organization shapes the culture, and to be successful, you need everyone to be aligned with the same beliefs, expectations, behaviors, and habits. #4 The most important aspect of team sports is the culture, which is created by the leaders and coaches. It is the culture that will determine whether your players perform and execute.

From one of the world’s top performance psychologists—a proven framework for overcoming the primary obstacle to success: fear In more than 20 years helping leaders and athletes reach their true potential, renowned sports psychologist and culture coach Dr. Pippa Grange has found that even the most successful people experience fears of inadequacy. What sets them apart is their ability to pinpoint their fears and “turn down the volume.” In Fear Less, Grange walks you through the process of identifying and facing the fears that manifest in perfectionism, jealousy, self-criticism, and harsh judgment, and replacing those fears with acceptance, purpose, passion, or laughter―to name just a few. And she provides effective fear-management techniques for facing moments of critical pressure, including: Processing – through conscious tactics that bring the mind back to where you want it: the job at hand Distraction – deliberately focusing on other tasks when there’s nothing active to be done about what you actually fear Rationalization – drawing on the actual facts and evidence to talk yourself through the situation Our hidden fears are what make us feel our lives aren’t enough, that prompt us to spend our time worrying about competition, status, and control. Fear is what turns life into a battle, telling us we need to hide our real selves and that we’re not good enough. Fear Less gives you the tools you need to practice your responses to fear in the same way elite athletes train for and perform at a big game―with equally dramatic results. You’ll gain the knowledge and insight you need to change your perspective and move beyond fear to a place of joy, fulfillment, and meaning.

Find out how world-class athletes and leaders survive defeat and come back even stronger—and how you can, too—with the blueprint from the coach who helps set them up for success With apologies to Benjamin Franklin, there are actually three things in life that are certain: Death, taxes, and the fact that sometimes, life will throw you a gut punch. Coach Dar has seen a fair share of calamitous situations in her 25+-year career, from major league players suffering slumps and season-ending injuries to executives floundering professionally and experiencing financial devastation—plus her own setbacks like three strokes before the age of 45 and the loss of both of her parents. As a mental skills coach whose clients have included professional athletes, top CEOs, and world leaders, Coach Dar specializes in helping the best of the best get up and get going again after suffering serious setbacks. In The Art of Bouncing Back, she shares these proven strategies and techniques for the first time ever so you can ensure the obstacles and setbacks you face quickly morph into setups for your next success. You'll discover how to pour a strong emotional foundation, accept feedback (the right way), connect with your "Why-Power," and create your own bounce-back environment. Every chapter provides a blueprint that helps you learn more about yourself, so you can identify the exact pivot you need to push forward, start reframing your setbacks, and cultivate the strength you need to handle future adversity better. Packed with tons of strategies that have proven successful time and time again and exercises to help you achieve the life-changing results her clients see, Coach Dar's The Art of Bouncing Back is exactly what you need to see that the adversity in your life can create opportunities from any setback.