I’d imagine that most football coaches take it for granted that their players want to win above all else. It doesn’t seem to make sense that anyone would put in the grueling effort and the time it takes to be competitive if they weren’t dead-set on winning.

But speaking from personal experience, I know that wasn’t always the truth.

Sure, I wanted to win, and I can honestly say that the majority of my effort at any given time was spent trying to do the best I could to help my team compete, but it wasn’t always 100% in that direction. Sometimes little doubts crept in.

Taking high school football for an example, two separate occasions stand out.

First, when I was playing defense, offense, and special teams; I remember being unsure how would I feel about making a huge play on defense. Say I were to intercept a pass and return it 80 yards for a touchdown.

I then would get one play to rest during the extra point, sprint another 70 yards on the kick-off, and then go back on the field to play safety.

Just thinking about it was exhausting.

Similarly, the high school championship was the obvious goal every season. But going to the championship meant extending practices for another month after the regular season, spending more time practicing in the cold, and skipping the first few weeks of the basketball season.

Ultimately, at any time I would tell you that I would rather win the championship than not. Just like I’d rather get a pick-6 than not.

But as odd as it sounds, there were times of doubt. And football isn’t the type of sport that can be played effectively with any internal doubt.

So why does this matter?

I would bet that my coaches would’ve never imagined that the captain of their team would have these types of thoughts.

Just like I’d imagine that every leader in the business world has team members thinking about things beyond what they would ever guess.

Even when it’s obvious, sometimes it’s worth checking your assumptions.

-Brandon