How Long Do You Plan On Staying?
The most poignant question asked on every recruiting visit
Recruiting for Stability and Integrity
After spending hours meeting with parents—going over the school’s academic strengths, introducing them to the leaders of the team, and discussing potential scholarship opportunities, the recruiting visit always seemed to end with one pointed question: “How long do you plan on staying at this school?” I could feel the tension building each time this question was asked. The excitement from the tour, the optimism about their child’s future, all came down to this one concern. It wasn’t just a casual inquiry; it was filled with the unspoken fear that the potential they saw might disappear if I wasn’t there to guide their child. In the world of collegiate coaching, where the average coach changes jobs five times in their career, this was about more than my career, it was about stability. The parents were asking, “Can we trust that this vision will last?” They weren’t just choosing a school; they were deciding if their child’s future would be secure in my hands.
A Moment of Transition and Honesty
I’ll never forget one particular recruiting conversation during my final season. My health was declining, and I knew there was a high probability that I wouldn’t be there the following year. By then, I had already handed over most of my recruiting duties to my assistants so that athletes would start seeing me less as the central figure. But that day, I found myself sitting across from a prospective athlete, their parents, and my assistant coach.
When they asked the inevitable question, “How long do you plan to stay?” I felt its weight more than ever. This wasn’t just another explanation of my leadership philosophy; it was a defining moment. Everything we had developed over the years, everything I stood for, was being put to the test. I had always said that the program wasn’t about me; it was about the principles we had established: honesty, fairness, and accountability that would endure beyond any one leader. But now, with the future uncertain, I had to be completely transparent. I told them the truth: they shouldn’t choose this school based on my presence alone. What mattered were the values and the framework we had put in place. Even if circumstances changed, those ideals would continue to provide the stability their child needed.
Establishing a System of Accountability
That conversation in my office wasn’t just about me, it was about whether the structure we had put together could truly stand on its own. And this wasn’t something that happened overnight. It was something we carefully crafted, layer by layer, starting with clear roles and personal responsibility. At the beginning of each season, we didn’t just focus on the big goals, like which meets we aimed to attend or which athletes were expected to compete. Instead, we mapped out specific growth plans for every individual athlete, not just based on performance metrics but also on behavioral expectations.
Accountability wasn’t top-down; it was embedded in every part of our team. As the head coach, I worked with event coaches to make sure goals were communicated clearly, but it didn’t stop there. Captains took ownership, speaking directly with their groups to ensure each athlete understood how their personal development contributed to the team’s success. This approach wasn’t just about tracking progress, it was about creating a system where shared responsibility became a cornerstone of the team’s foundation.
Nurturing Integrity through Leadership
As a coach, my ultimate goal was to build a program that could thrive without my constant presence. Leadership extends beyond managing resources or guiding athletes in the moment. It’s about fostering an environment that will continue to flourish, even when the leader steps aside. True leadership means ensuring that the team doesn’t rely on one individual, but on the core values we established, fairness, responsibility, and a sense of community, that would endure long after I had left.
This meant that captains, upperclassmen, and staff weren’t just following instructions or meeting short-term goals. They were empowered to carry forward the team's foundational principles. The real test of leadership isn’t found in the leader’s tenure but in the legacy they leave behind, the structure that remains strong after they’ve stepped away. By nurturing leadership at every level and fostering an environment where integrity was a given, we ensured the team's long-term success.
The Legacy of Leadership
The truest measure of leadership isn’t just about leaving something better than you found it; it’s about establishing a foundation so solid, rooted in enduring principles, that success continues even when you are no longer responsible for that team’s future. That’s what it means to lead with integrity and to prepare others to carry the baton forward. The question parents asked during recruiting wasn’t just about my presence, it was about the long-term stability of the team, of their child.
And now, I pose the same question to you that parents always asked me: “How long do you plan to stay?” Are you so intentional with your entrusted time that you’ve considered what will remain when you’re no longer there to support it? Not just financial or material stability, but a lasting framework of ethics, values, and belief.