Comfortable With Myself

Golf isn’t a sport where you typically think about team coaching. Which is why I’ve found myself particularly enamoured with Luke Donald’s approach to the last two Ryder Cups.

Since taking on the captaincy (essentially the head coach) of Team Europe in 2022, Donald has taken the responsibility beyond selecting the players and choosing the playing order.

He has focused on culture.

He has developed teamwork.

He has concerned himself with details.

Watch this 3-minute behind-the-scenes video where Luke takes you inside the team room to explain the extraordinary details they’ve used to bring a new level of meaning to their pursuit:

Above all else, though, Luke Donald has developed himself as a leader.

In a recent podcast, he outlined the lengths he’s gone to in order to better understand himself before he even began talking to the players.

“I think you always have those doubts, those fears. Can I even do it? I’m more of an introvert, is that personality going to be okay as a leader? Do I need to be this extroverted speech maker, motivator? That’s not my personality,” Donald says.

Once Donald knew he was going to be the captain, he was able to rely on elements that had helped him throughout his playing career. “I’ve always done that well in my career; coming up with good, legitimate plans of how to be successful. I think I followed that ethos, and it was an ethos of trying to be comfortable with myself,” he remembers.

One way he tried to understand himself better was to seek out people like Eastwood, who is world-renowned for his human-centred approach to performance.

One exercise that Eastwood put Donald through is called ‘The Compass’, which sets out a series of grounding principles that can anchor any pursuit.

In the interview, Eastwood explains The Compass exercise and gives insight into how you might think about doing it for yourself:

North: What does your vision of success look like? Make it three-dimensional so it’s not just ‘win a trophy’.

(For instance: Donald wanted the players to respect him no matter the result, and for his family to be part of the story of success).

South: Your non-negotiable values. You must hold these so dear that you can look yourself in the mirror and know that you didn’t compromise these.

West: How are you going to take care of yourself given the different rhythms and stressors of your role?

East: What are your growth areas for you to be effective in your role?

For me, if I were to add one thing to the exercise, it would be this question:

Who is your positive charge?

Compasses only work because the North Pole has a positive magnetic charge.

I’ve found most leaders need a positive charge as well, often in the form of someone to help keep them on track and add optimism into their journey.

So, as you go through the exercise, don’t forget to include someone to help keep you accountable and make sure that your compass is pointing in the right direction.

1:1 Coaching with Cody

I’ve opened up two spots for 1:1 coaching with coaches in elite sport.

If you’re interested in working with me, the first step is to get in touch!

You can reply to this email, or head to codyroyle.com to learn more about my approach.