The Foundation for Success
Dear Friends,
I hope all is well with you! As we turn the page on 2008, I want to discuss the highs and lows of Oberlin athletics over the past several months. While some outcomes went our way and others did not, I think it’s always important to attend to the process the enables success. Processes repeated become habits, and good habits lead to victories.
The scoreboards were not always kind to Oberlin this fall. On the one hand, we reveled in the success of sophomore Joanna Johnson, an NCAA All-American in cross country, who went undefeated against Division III competition this season right up to the NCAA Championships. We witnessed the perseverance of senior R.V. Carroll, who gritted his way through a knee injury to set Oberlin’s all-time rushing and scoring marks. We celebrated the steady rise of a volleyball program that won more conference matches this year than the previous seven seasons combined.
On the other hand, we felt the disappointment of a football season that fell shy of the program’s expectations. We hoped for a better season in field hockey and women’s soccer. We watched as our wonderful scholar-athletes gave it their all and sometimes fell short of the outcome they desired.
Most sports fans (myself included) get caught up in outcomes as the final measurement of a team’s success. While I can’t dismiss the importance of competitive success in the overall vision for Oberlin athletics, winning must be the product of our department’s mindful attendance to the right process.
Last year, I asked one of our coaches about goals for that season. This coach responded that the team wanted to finish over .500 and to make the conference tournament, both things that had not been accomplished in several years. Now suppose the team’s best player tore an ACL early in the season and the referee missed crucial call and the ball bounced the wrong way. The team finished a few games below .500 and missed the conference tournament. Did this coach, or this team, not achieve its goals?
Perhaps, but the events that led to this team missing its goals were not entirely within the team’s control. They may have learned all the right things at practice, focused on the fundamentals, toughened themselves mentally, and competed tenaciously. And those are the things most teams need to do for a chance at competitive success.
Similarly, if you are starting a new fitness plan to lose weight, you could set up your goals in one of two ways. You might strive to lose 10 pounds before the end of the year. Or you could set up a system to hit the Stairmaster 30 minutes per day, five days per week and eat a salad every day for lunch. One plan focuses on an outcome goal, the other on process goals.
When a person or team targets outcome goals instead of process goals, they might be tempted to take short cuts in the process to achieve the desired outcome – a consequentialist or “ends justify the means” approach. In the above example, the outcome goal of losing 10 pounds could lead to bulimia, ephedrine abuse, or other unhealthy habits. The process goal, however, creates the proper structure to keep a healthy lifestyle which will likely result in significant weight loss.
This year, the department of athletics and physical education has put more emphasis on the process that leads to positive, sustained outcomes than on the outcomes themselves. While we want to win championships and keep the Oberlin community fit, we must put together the pieces for a top program in the proper way.
When the correct processes become habit, you begin to pay greater attention to the desired outcomes. I think the future of Oberlin athletics, in terms of wins and losses, is very bright and that our campus is growing fitter. Why? Because we are habituating the skills necessary to have success.
I hope 2008 has been kind to you, and that your outlook for 2009 is bright. Happy New Year from the department of athletics and physical education!
Joe Karlgaard
The Delta Lodge Director of Athletics and Physical Education
