A couple weeks ago I ran across a picture of Steelers coach Mike Tomlin from a press conference. His no-smile countenance, close cropped hair, piercing eyes…man he reminded me of someone. But I just couldn’t place him. Then it hit me!
Mike Tomlin and Chef from South Park…are they related! Did the South Park creators use Coach Tomlin as their inspiration in creating Chef?
The potential connection between Tomlin and Chef made me more curious about the Steelers head coach. What is it about the guy who in his second season could guide one of the most decorated NFL franchises to the Super Bowl?
To be fair, I don’t really know much about Tomlin. I’ve seen a few interviews and post-game press conferences — most of what I’ve picked up are in those soundbites. In fact all I’ve read about the guy is what was printed in Friday’s USA Today. So what is it that makes me like a guy who coaches for a team that I don’t care about (afterall, I am still a Raiders fan despite the fact that they have fallen off the face of the NFL earth), other than the fact he resembles the coolest animated character in the history of cartoons?
Quite simply it’s the fact that as far as I can tell his no BS approach is legit and that his players have bought in to how he goes about pus. The USA Today piece actually highlights a few of Tomlin’s favorite quotes, the ones he uses over and over to keep his team focused on winning it all:
“Iron sharpens iron” — pretty self explanatory on this one — I would suggest that the application for everyday life is pretty clear. Challenge yourself everyday.
“More grounded, more humble, more selfless makes us more opportunistic” — this one captures the essence of “team” and getting more people to think this way in their day-to-day pursuits would be a real good thing.
“The time’s coming when we’re going to have to ante up and kick in like men” — sure he pulled this one from a movie (“Glory” starring Denzel Washington), but it hits the beat of accountability and ownership. Again, pretty important concept these days.
“I’ll tolerate you until I can replace you” — A little too “NFL harsh” this one, but it does cut pretty sharply to the point of how important it is to be optimizing your talent at all times. That said, you may want to find a more HR friendly way to convey this one to your team!
Now, if all you did was focus on these quotes in the Tomlin story, you’d easily overlook a couple of his own quotes that really capture why the guy has the impact he does on his team:
“People aren’t very good listeners by nature…Part of being a good communicator is recognizing and understanding that and trying to make the complex simple.” Amen! It’s super easy in today’s world to get lost in data, information overload and the like. Finding a simple way to consistently deliver a message is a valuable skill for leaders.
“I’m not interested in evaluating my performance, and particularly I’m not interested in my players’ evaluations of my performance…I’m paid to evaluate them.” Again, a little “NFL harsh” here, but the essence is there. You can’t get caught up in what people think of you as a manager — you have to stay focused on managing your talent and team in the way that you believe gives you the best chance to achieve your ultimate business goals.
“Every morning when I come to work…I walk past five Lombardis, not five rushing titles.” This is my favorite of his quotes. The only trophy that matters is the one that measures what the team achieves…not the ones that measure what individual players achieve.
So yes, I am a Mike Tomlin fan. My pick Sunday is Steelers 20, Cardinals 17. Now I have to get back to researching this connection he has to Chef?
Originally published on Medium on February 1, 2009. This Substack version is maintained as the canonical archive.