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Team Dynamics And The Role Of Positive Team Culture In Sustained Success

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Listen in as Positive Coaching Alliance goes 1-on-1 in interviews with top pro and college players, coaches, executives, and other major sports figures and academics who provide tips, tools, information and inspiration for youth and high school sports coaches, parents and student-athletes.

This 1-on-1 interview features Brian O'Connor (@UVACoachOConnor), who enters his 14th season as Head Coach of University of Virginia Baseball after guiding Virginia to 13 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances. Virginia is one of just five programs in the nation to earn a berth in the NCAA tournament in each of the last 13 seasons. O'Connor's tenure as head coach is highlighted by the Cavaliers’ national championship in 2015, and interestingly, by his team's public recognition from the NCAA for its multi-year Academic Progress Rate scores.

PCA Founder Jim Thompson (@JimThompson18) and O'Connor discuss how to build team culture and what it takes to have prolonged success at the collegiate level. O'Connor also shares thoughts on the leading role that players must take in creating team culture, how coaches can be educational rather than confrontational in teaching accountability, and how teaching sacrifice matters for team dynamics.

Other highlights of the podcast include:

  • O'Connor often puts players in a situation to fail in practice, so they can learn how to positively handle failure in games. O'Connor's methods even include a focus on body language, and how players can use appropriate body language when responding to failure. To O'Connor, players are judged not by failure, but by their ability to respond to it.

  • To O'Connor, the best coaches must have a growth mindset. According to O'Connor, "When you think you have the answer, you're going to get passed by." O'Connor explains how the game is always changing, and encourages coaches to continue adapting at all times.

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