In this edition:
1 Question worth asking
How to INTRODUCE it in your team
How to DEVELOP it
How to use RELATIONSHIPS to harness it
Something just for you COACH
WHY this matters
It’s the silent killer in teams and organizations, complacency. The belief of leaders, directors, and coaches that they “know enough already.” So, they stop developing and growing… and their team and organization follow suit. When the cycle of “that’s the way we’ve always done it,” is finally put out to pasture, an organization’s vision and potential can skyrocket. The truth is we’re never done adapting, learning. No one “knows it all.” But we should never stop trying to.
- Coach Castillo
This mindset is stage 5 organizational and team cancer.
Intro
There’s a mindset that sounds productive, even confident…
But actually destroys potential.
It sounds like:
“That’s how we’ve always done it.”
“I already know this.”
“This is just the way it is.”
But here’s the truth:
Knowledge without curiosity is stagnation wearing confidence.
Great leaders don’t think they know it all —
They think like learners first.
Curiosity isn’t a sign of weakness.
It’s a sign of life.
"It's what you learn after you know it all that counts." — John Wooden
Teams led by leaders who demonstrate learning-oriented behaviors (seeking feedback, reflecting, adapting) show higher performance and effectiveness than teams led by leaders who rely mainly on past expertise.
Develop
To be dangerous in leadership — in the best sense — you must:
Always be a student of your craft
Read widely — even outside your comfort zone
Ask questions others hesitate to ask
Unpack why you do what you do (not just what you do)
Challenge old assumptions with fresh data
Test new ideas with humility and intentionality
Leaders who believe they already have the right answer rarely improve the situation.
Leaders who begin with “What am I missing?” open doors others never see.
Action Step:
This week, identify one belief or practice you’ve held onto that might be outdated — and take one small step to rethink or refresh it.
“There is no end to education. It is not that you read a book, pass an examination, and finish with education. The whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning.” — Jiddu Krishnamurti
Leadership development is strongly associated with improved team outcomes, including better decision-making, coordination, and problem-solving under pressure.
Relationships
You don’t grow in isolation —
you grow in connection.
Here’s the hard part:
Relationships reveal blind spots
Feedback illuminates what assumption cannot
Shared perspectives widen your view
Honest confrontation fuels clarity
When you stop learning, your relationships feel it first:
People stop speaking up
Conversations become transactional
Innovation stalls
Leaders who remain hungry for growth cultivate spaces where people can challenge, correct, and elevate them.
Action Step:
Choose two relationships this week — one peer and one direct report — and ask:
“Where do you see my blind spots?”
“What am I missing that I should learn?”
And then listen.
“Wisdom is not a product of schooling but of the lifelong attempt to acquire it.” — Albert Einstein
Teams with highly engaged leadership show significantly higher performance outcomes, including stronger accountability, effort, and commitment from team members.
Just For You Leader
Ask yourself:
Where did I think I “already had the answer” today?
What feedback did I resist — even internally?
Where is my leadership being shaped by habit instead of curiosity?
What new thing should I read, listen to, or learn this week?
If any answer feels uncomfortable —
you found the right place to grow.
Growth begins where comfort ends.
“One learns from books and example only that certain things can be done. Actual learning requires that you do those things.” — Frank Herbert
Leaders who regularly develop new skills and perspectives help teams respond better to change and uncertainty.
These teams show greater resilience, problem-solving ability, and confidence under stress compared to teams with rigid leadership styles.
Why This Matters
The courage to learn isn’t just about skills.
It’s about the people who depend on your leadership.
When leaders stay teachable:
Teams feel seen, heard, and valued
Innovation becomes regular, not accidental
Culture becomes dynamic, not stagnant
Leaders lead with confidence and adaptability
Curiosity sharpens influence. Rigid certainty dulls it.
You don’t serve people by telling them you’ve arrived —
you serve them by showing them you’re still becoming.
I’ve coached a lot of teams over a lot of years. And in soccer, just as in any business or organization, there are tried and true “structures” in the form of formations. For soccer, the 433 has got to be one of the most widely used worldwide. Sometimes it’s all you need…..sometimes. I had a team once that was strong, but we lacked depth in our defensive players. We were nearing the playoffs and to make it through that marathon I had to do something that made my 4 defenders’ lives a little easier and the 433 wasn’t it. So, three weeks before the playoffs, I changed our formation in training and in games. We brought back one of the oldest formations in the game, the “Christmas tree.” The formation is a 4321. I’d been studying it for months. But, I had some special attacking players. So, I told the front 3 to go wherever they wanted to together and cause as much havoc as they could. I gave them creative freedom in a rigid structure. I asked my team to keep learning, to keep adapting, courageously. We went on to win 8 games in a row, including a State Championship that year. Keep growing, keep adapting. We never know it all.
Do you know a coach or friend who’d enjoy this newsletter? Pass it along! Send me an email at [email protected] and I’ll send you a highly effective teammate connection assessment tool!
Coach Castillo’s Challenge of The Week: Ask yourself this hard question - Who do I serve? If the answer is you, you’re not leading. If the answer isn’t you, ask yourself another question. What am I doing to serve them better everyday? When the desire to grow originates in our role of helping others, then we can live out our true leadership and purpose. And that, can set you on fire to be better — for all you lead.
Lead, Live, Play Beautiful
Have A Blessed Week,
