The Unplayable Piano

Counterintuitive advice on creative problem solving from TED Talks.

https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_harford_how_messy_problems_can_inspire_creativity?language=en

Team Building: Lessons From Google

Good article from Mark Suster on why some teams at Google work and other don't.  Info applies to ex spouses battling over custody and child support as well as coaching staffs dealing with conflict.  

https://bothsidesofthetable.com/the-importance-of-teams-and-why-the-best-leaders-cultivate-them-8dc931fdb22b#.yko7r1g5l

Rising US Math Scores

Finally some good news on how the US is seeing improvement in high school math scores.  Make it competitive and interesting....who knew...

From The Atlantic.

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/03/the-math-revolution/426855/

The Talent Code

Good book for youth coaches and sports parents titled, "The Talent Code" from Daniel Coyle. 

Counter-intuitive info on how to develop skill sets and very different from the U.S. model of "game speed" practice. 

Useful story on how a banged up tennis school in Moscow (with a single tennis court) has produced more top 20 female tennis players than the entire U.S. tennis system.

http://www.amazon.com/Talent-Code-Greatness-Born-Grown/dp/055380684X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1461424525&sr=8-1&keywords=talent+code

Athletic Director Turn Over Rate

The average annual turn over rate for high school athletic directors is 25-30%.  Not exactly a great way to build an athletic program's continuity. 

AD's walk around with a target on their back when things go wrong.  But as coaches and sports parents we need to remember that AD's are dealing with the leagues, coaching staffs, and parents from every sport offered by the school.  That's a lot of personalities, egos, and pressures to juggle. 

TED Talk: Two Reasons Why Companies Fail

Good TED Talk on how companies struggle to balance short term efficiencies and production vs. long term innovation.  Need both to stay in business today and next year!

The lessons apply to coaching staffs and sports parents managing dynamic relationships and balancing change and growth.

https://www.ted.com/talks/knut_haanaes_two_reasons_companies_fail_and_how_to_avoid_them?language=en