See It To Seize It: How Florida State’s Leonard Hamilton Used A Ladder, Some Scissors, And A Little Magic To Capture A Title

After the final seconds ticked off the clock in the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center on Saturday night, a mob of Florida State basketball players giddily tossed one another t-shirts and hats. Together, they’d just defeated Boston College to claim the school’s first-ever Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season basketball title, so a little bit of celebrating was in order.

The melee was quickly halted, however, as the public address announcer called everyone’s attention to the spotlighted end of the arena. There, high in the building’s rafters, a banner unfurled, revealing the words, “2020 ACC Champions.” The arena went wild at the sight.

Admission: I was there as a fan to take it all in.

There’s not much to say about the game itself—Florida State jumped on Boston College early with the kind of competitive drive that early made the outcome a foregone conclusion. The Seminoles outplayed the Eagles in statistical categories like shooting, rebounding, scoring, as well as the intangibles like hustle, grit, and energy. It was as if the Noles had seen a vision of their victory.

And in a way, they had.

After the game, as my wife and I celebrated with other fans, I was pulled aside and told a story so fascinating that I jumped on the phone Monday with FSU’s associate head coach Stan Jones to confirm.

“It’s true,” he said.

Here’s the story: during the team’s Friday film session, as an assistant coach was reviewing the game plan for Boston College, head coach Leonard Hamilton came walking down the hallway. Hamilton entered the room and interrupted the meeting, and he was quickly followed by Eric DeCasto, the team’s equipment manager. De Casto was carrying a step ladder.

Hamilton motions for DeCasto to set up the ladder at the front of the room, which he did. Then Hamilton looked at his team.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to stand at the top of a ladder like this before as part of a championship team and cut down the nets,” Hamilton said. “You guys are going to have that opportunity too if you take care of business against Boston College.”

Now, if you’re not a fan of college basketball, you may not know that cutting down the nets is a cherished tradition in the sport, reserved only for those teams who win a championship.

“So,” Hamilton continued, “I want you to come up here and practice.”

Two players volunteered to lead the way, climbing the ladder and snipping off pieces of the net. According to Jones, the rest of the team was energized and fired up by the display.
“We’ve had a theme all year,” Jones said, “that nobody stands up and cheers when you say, ‘We’re number four!’ Coach wanted them to get the message—this is how you stand up and say, ‘We’re number one!’”

Hamilton cemented his message by practicing his own role in the tradition of the net—he looped the freshly severed netting around his neck like a medal, something winning coaches always do. Then he held up four fingers.

“Remember,” Hamilton said. “Nobody cheers for this.”

I’ve studied Greatness for more than three decades, interviewed more than 2,500 athletes, coaches, and leaders in almost every sport imaginable, and I can’t think of a better example of the principle the very best call “Visualizing Victory.” The Great Ones create a mental picture of what their win will look like before the game ever begins. They see themselves playing a flawless match or hitting the winning home run … or making the most important sale in company history.

Coach Hamilton took it to the next level—he didn’t settle for simply visualizing a win, he helped his team visualize how they would celebrate their victory. He created a picture that could sustain his team when they were tired on the court, thinking about giving less than their best. With a picture of cutting down the nets fresh in their mind, the Seminoles players were able to clear the highest hurdle.

There are so many business lessons here, not the least of which is: do you even know what “victory” looks like for your team? What are your people working towards that can inspire them to stay with that vision in the midst of the daily grind?

But secondly, do you know how you’ll celebrate with your team when you get there? It’s one thing to say, “We can do this!” But it’s a totally different thing to say, “This is how we’ll celebrate when it’s done!”

On Monday, Coach Hamilton collected the ACC Coach of the Year award for his work with the Seminoles, and his team will dive headfirst into the ACC Tournament later this week in Greensboro, North Carolina. According to oddsmakers, the Seminoles aren’t picked to win the tournament, but I wouldn’t count them out.

And while I don’t know if coach has any other tricks up his sleeve to fire up his squad, I’m guessing he might not need many.

I have a hunch that his players will be able to borrow from Saturday night’s cutting of the nets (and Friday’s practice!) in order to visualize what they might be doing this Sunday in Greensboro.