Thursday, October 21, 2004
Thursday, October 21, 2004. The Yankees.
I 'm a Yankee fan, so I watched every game with the Red Sox--exhilerated and then let down. The Yankees were so close...and yet so far.
When the Yankees went up three games to none, I was pleased and commented to my wife how professionally they went about their business. I wasn't worried when they lost game four or even game five in Boston, because I was confident the Bronx Bombers would come through when they moved back to Yankee stadium--afterall, they had crushed the Sox 19 to 8 in Fenway Park, so I was confident they could hit.
But then it happened. The Yankees realized they were vulverable in the two long, extra inning games when they couldn't put the Red Sox away easily. The Yankee batters became frightened; they put a vision of losing in the heads and they became terrified of losing.
That's what happens when you work for a screaming, autocratic, self-absorbed, mean-spirited boss. You could see fear in the Yankee batters' eyes in the last two games. Many of them looked like a frightened deer in the headlights. The Yankee batters weren't afraid of Curt Schilling or Pedro Martinez, they were afraid of their boss, George Steinbrenner. And when you are afraid of losing and play not to lose, inevitably you lose.
Many managers, especially in the media, think fear motivates people and that it's OK to scream at them. But managing by using fear destroys loyalty, dedication, and pride. People hate nasty boss and can't wait to go somewhere else. If they continue to work for a tyrant, resentment builds up and finally seethes through as sullenness. In the last three games of the recent seven-game series, the Yankees looked sullen and scared. They had no joy, no pride, and they played like solem, bored mercanaries.
The Yankee players might even have had a death wish, a subconscious desire to get back at the horrible monster that held them captive with chains of huge salaries and rigid rules like no facial hair.
Think about it, the scruffy, hairy Red Sox were full of joy and pride. They were not afraid of losing, even after being down be three games. Do you think you'd ever see a Yankee break out in a big smile like David Ortiz did when he hit that walk-off home run? Of course, not.--the Yankees have to joy, only fear of losing, fear of the wrath of their check-writing ogre.
Let this be a lesson to managers who think fear motivates people, who have rigid, formal rules like not letting people be scriffy if they want to express their individuality, who think professionalism means being joyless, and who punish people for making mistakes and for failure. Nasty George's total obsession with winning, regardless of the human cost, may well be the reason the Yankees lost.
I 'm a Yankee fan, so I watched every game with the Red Sox--exhilerated and then let down. The Yankees were so close...and yet so far.
When the Yankees went up three games to none, I was pleased and commented to my wife how professionally they went about their business. I wasn't worried when they lost game four or even game five in Boston, because I was confident the Bronx Bombers would come through when they moved back to Yankee stadium--afterall, they had crushed the Sox 19 to 8 in Fenway Park, so I was confident they could hit.
But then it happened. The Yankees realized they were vulverable in the two long, extra inning games when they couldn't put the Red Sox away easily. The Yankee batters became frightened; they put a vision of losing in the heads and they became terrified of losing.
That's what happens when you work for a screaming, autocratic, self-absorbed, mean-spirited boss. You could see fear in the Yankee batters' eyes in the last two games. Many of them looked like a frightened deer in the headlights. The Yankee batters weren't afraid of Curt Schilling or Pedro Martinez, they were afraid of their boss, George Steinbrenner. And when you are afraid of losing and play not to lose, inevitably you lose.
Many managers, especially in the media, think fear motivates people and that it's OK to scream at them. But managing by using fear destroys loyalty, dedication, and pride. People hate nasty boss and can't wait to go somewhere else. If they continue to work for a tyrant, resentment builds up and finally seethes through as sullenness. In the last three games of the recent seven-game series, the Yankees looked sullen and scared. They had no joy, no pride, and they played like solem, bored mercanaries.
The Yankee players might even have had a death wish, a subconscious desire to get back at the horrible monster that held them captive with chains of huge salaries and rigid rules like no facial hair.
Think about it, the scruffy, hairy Red Sox were full of joy and pride. They were not afraid of losing, even after being down be three games. Do you think you'd ever see a Yankee break out in a big smile like David Ortiz did when he hit that walk-off home run? Of course, not.--the Yankees have to joy, only fear of losing, fear of the wrath of their check-writing ogre.
Let this be a lesson to managers who think fear motivates people, who have rigid, formal rules like not letting people be scriffy if they want to express their individuality, who think professionalism means being joyless, and who punish people for making mistakes and for failure. Nasty George's total obsession with winning, regardless of the human cost, may well be the reason the Yankees lost.
Comments:
Post a Comment
