About the book

Eric Schmidt et al. wrote a book about an anomaly. The book tells the story of Bill Campbell who coached in Silicon Valley. Mr. Campbell – the Trillion Dollar Coach, was coaching same time the top management from example Apple and Google.

Larry Page, Steve Jobs, Sheryl Sandberg and of course mr. Schmidt were people who he coached.  How odd? Actually it’s not odd in Silicon Valley to be coaching high-powered people who work for competing tech giants.

What made Bill Campbell so exceptional? Most probably his nature, way of working and talent of helping people to see their potential.

The stories have true value for outsiders of the Silicon Valley system. It helps us to understand the business of Silicon Valley. It can change our way of thinking. And last but least – you can learn from the stories.

Towards the end of the book the writers loses the grip from the reader. Last pages turns into testimonials from the coachees.

What are the key learnings?

Trillion Dollar Coach is about what and how Bill Campbell coached “what were the things he told people to do – and how he coached – what was his approach.”

Key learnings were:

Teams

• “He used coaching to “mold effective people into powerful teams.
• Everything great in the company happened in teams. That was my pitch in the talk: start treating teams, not individuals, as the fundamental building block of the organization.
• When change happens, the priority has to be what is best for the team.”

Managers

• Why do we need managers? “I want someone I can learn from, and someone to break ties.”

Staff meetings

• “Pay close attention to running meetings well; “get the 1:1 right” and “get the staff meeting right” are tops on the list of his most important management principles.”

Board meetings

• “Board meetings fail when the CEO doesn’t own and follow her agenda.
• That agenda should always start with operational updates: the board needs to know how the company is doing.
• That includes financial and sales reports, product status, and metrics around operational rigor (hiring, communications, marketing, support).
• If the board has committees, for example to oversee audit and finance or compensation, have those committees meet ahead of time (in person or via phone or video conference) and present updates at the board meeting.
• The first order of business always needs to be a frank, open, succinct discussion about how the company is performing.

Trust

• “Perhaps the most important currency in a relationship – friendship, romantic, familial, or professional – is trust.”

Skills

• “Many of the other skills of management can be delegated, but not coaching.”

Communications

• Communications is critical to a company’s success. “He frequently coached us to make sure that others in the company understood what we understood.
• Even when you have clearly communicated something, it may take a few times to sink in.
• Repetition doesn’t spoil the prayer”

Walk

• Bill coached walking around their Palo Alto neighborhood.

About trust:

–      Trust means loyalty.

–      Trust means integrity.

–      Trust means discretion.

–      ”Trust doesn’t mean you always agree; in fact, it makes it easier to disagree with someone.”

About stories:

–      “Don’t tell people what to do, tell them stories about why they are doing it.

–      “Bill coached me to tell stories. When people understand the story they can connect to it and figure out what to do.”

About teams. Excellent teams at Google had:

1)   Psychological safety.

2)   The teams had clear goals.

3)   Each role was meaningful.

4)   Members were reliable.

5)   Confident that the team’s mission would make a difference.

The traits of coachability are:

–      Honesty and humility.

–      The willingness to persevere and work hard.

–      A constant openness to learning.

How should we change according to the book?

We should adopt the future formula and ask how they stayed engaged in their careers. The answers should be:

BE CREATIVE.

• “You should be in your most creative time.
• You have wisdom of experience and freedom to apply it where you want.
• Avoid metaphors such as you are on the “back nine.” This denigrates the impact you can have.”

DON’T BE A DILETTANTE.

• “Don’t just do a portfolio of things.
• Whatever you get involved with, have accountability and consequence. Drive it.”

FIND PEOPLE WHO HAVE VITALITY.

• “Surround yourself with them; engage with them. Often they will be younger.”

APPLY YOUR GIFTS.

• “Figure out what you are uniquely good at, what sets you apart.
• And understand the things inside you that give you a sense of purpose.
• Then apply them.”

DON’T WASTE TIME WORRYING ABOUT THE FUTURE.

• “Allow serendipity to play a role.
• Most of the turning points in life cannot be predicted or controlled.”

What should I personally do?

“A big turnoff for Bill was if they were no longer learning. Do they have more answers than questions? That’s a bad sign!”

Summary

The book in six words – “If you’ve been blessed, be a blessing.” Ron Johnson (CEO of JCPenney)