Coach Knight: A Will to Win and Coach K: A Matter of the Heart Case Study

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4. Who is more effective? Why? under what conditions would you hire coach K? coach Knight?

I think for the short-term, coach Knight is more effective, on the other hand, for the long-term coach K is more effective. Coach Knight is a task focus guy, he would use his tough leadership style to force people to perform at their best. He is like a stick, pushing you keep moving forward. But it’s not good for the long-term development. You live under a people who always told you what to do and force you to do that you may lose your own ability to think, just like a machine finish a job without any doubt. If the task is time limited and no contingency impact to the long-term or people in that organization are “lazy”, I will hire coach Knight.

For the long-term, I would rather to hire coach K. His peaceful manner in leadership meets today’s standard in behavior and would be in the favor of most organizations and employees. He encourage and motivate people from their heart, make them self-esteem and self-motivation. Even if the coach left, these people could perform at their best.

5. Think of a time when someone else(manager/coach/teacher/parent) motivated you to perform at your best. Why were they effective? What were some of the characteristics of their effectiveness?

The manager in my internship motivated me all the time. When I begin a job, he would tell me which goal should I achieve and give me some guidance. When I finish the job, he would point out what is good and what is still need to improve. He is effective because he gave me a clear goal and necessary guidance, make me know what to do and how to do the job better. And I think the acknowledgment of my work is also important, it gave me confidence and motivate me to do better.

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