So, I was thinking about leadership stuff the other day, specifically getting a group to actually do the work, you know? Reminded me of this whole Keith Dambrot situation I followed for a bit.
I had this little project team at work a while back. Good people, but man, we were sloppy. Missing deadlines, basic errors, just not clicking. Felt like herding cats. I was racking my brain trying to figure out how to tighten things up without being a total jerk.
Then I remembered reading about Keith Dambrot. Yeah, the guy who coached LeBron James way back in high school. But I was thinking more about his time later on, like at Akron or Duquesne. He always struck me as a no-nonsense, fundamentals-first kind of guy. Built programs brick by brick. Not flashy, just solid.
Trying the Dambrot Way
I thought, okay, maybe that’s what we needed. Less fancy talk, more focus on the absolute basics. So, I decided to try a little experiment, my own version of the ‘Dambrot method’, I guess you could call it.
First thing I did was cut out all the extra meetings, the ‘blue sky thinking’ sessions. Waste of time when the foundation is shaky. Instead, we focused purely on the core tasks. Every single day.
- Checked the basics: Did everyone complete their essential checklist?
- Reviewed simple errors: Why did this happen? How do we stop it?
- Kept communication direct: No jargon, just plain talk about what needed doing.
It wasn’t easy. People weren’t used to it. Got some pushback, like, “This feels like school,” or “Aren’t we past this?” I had to stand firm, just kept repeating that we needed to nail the basics before we could run.
Did it Work?
Honestly? It was mixed. We definitely got better at the core stuff. Fewer stupid mistakes, things got done more reliably. That part felt good, solid, like building something real.
But the atmosphere got a bit… tense. Some folks didn’t like the discipline. Felt less creative, maybe? It wasn’t like we suddenly became this super team. It was more like we stopped tripping over our own feet quite so much.
Looking back, I think the Dambrot way, or my interpretation of it, has its place. It’s good for fixing fundamental problems, getting back to basics. But maybe you gotta ease off once things are stable, bring back some of that other stuff. It’s not a magic bullet. Just a tool, you know? A tough one, but sometimes necessary when things are falling apart. It was an interesting practice, trying to apply that kind of focused intensity. Learned a bit about the team, and a bit about myself too.
