This weekend my favorite soccer team, Liverpool, open their new season against Watford (1). The optimism around the club is significant and the expectation for the season among us fans is an improvement on last season's fourth-place finish.
The main reason for this optimism is the club's manager, Jurgen Klopp. This season will be his third with the club and second full campaign as the boss. When he signed, he boasted a considerable reputation; so far in his tenure, he has only proven how well-deserved all the accolades were. Simply put, he's been as good as billed in every aspect of the job.
The most notable thing I've learned from observing him is the effect of his enthusiasm on the culture of the team. I thought I knew what a positive manager looked like. When Klopp showed up, I realized I was wrong. Klopp is to a positive manager what a kind person is to a nice one.
The idea revisits an old comparison, one which reached me at the core when I first heard it. A nice person does not make anything worse. Such a person is pleasant to be around. Being nice is often more than enough.
But a kind person always tries to make a difference. A kind person can handle a difficult moment or uplift a depressed mood. The kind do so by drawing on their compassion or warmth to understand the other, share in their difficulty, and show them the possibilities in moving forward.
Klopp's enthusiasm works the same way. I've seen 'positive' managers- they clap their hands, shout encouragement, and suggest to the media that the next result will be better. But such managers fall short when the going gets really tough. A team down 2-0 doesn't need a smile or some applause; they need someone whose self-confidence and belief is overwhelming. Only with such an inspiring leader in place can a team regularly harness its power to change the inevitable outcome implied in falling behind.
The positivity, enthusiasm, and passion Klopp exudes during each minute of his workday cannot be faked, taught, or learned. He simply has this quality; other managers do not. Every day during his tenure with Liverpool, he has used it to full effect with his team.
It is a quality worth trying to replicate. It's going to manifest differently for me, I think, because I do not have Klopp's natural exuberance or energy. But there are examples in the past of how my example or communication has inspired or motivated others to increase their own efforts and bring out their best for the team.
The key is to make sure I'm not settling. It is easy to be nice instead of kind or positive rather than enthusiastic. Luckily for me, Liverpool is back in action this weekend. And for the next nine months, I'll get a weekly reminder of what it looks like when a manager is applying the fullness of his gifts to get the most out of his team (2).
Footnotes / imagined complaints
1. Soccer?
I like soccer. I may have mentioned this in an earlier post or two.
2. Assuming I can see what goes on, of course!
Sometimes, weird things involving glasses happen during the game.
