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How I Coached This

How I Coached This

By: Nathan Pali
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About this listen

How I Coached This is a leadership and sports podcast about how great coaches, teams, and leaders actually built winning programs—one decision, one system, and one season at a time.

Every championship has a backstory. Every dynasty has turning points. Every great leader has moments they’d coach differently.

This podcast takes you inside the thinking, strategy, and leadership behind elite coaching. Each episode studies legendary coaches, iconic teams, and defining moments from across football, basketball, baseball, soccer, hockey, and beyond, blending sports history, biography, and leadership analysis to answer one simple question:

How did they coach this?

You’ll learn:

  • How coaches designed systems and game plans
  • How leaders adjusted when pressure changed everything
  • How culture was built through daily decisions
  • How motivation and psychology shaped performance
  • How mistakes became breakthroughs
  • How leaders developed talent and future coaches
  • How leadership really works behind the scenes

This isn’t a highlight show or a motivational podcast. It’s a story-driven guide to coaching leadership, decision-making, team culture, and understanding how the best leaders in history thought through problems, adapted strategies, and built sustained success.

If you’re interested in leadership, sports leadership, coaching philosophy, team building, organizational leadership, performance psychology, great coaches, and learning how elite leadership decisions are made in real time — this podcast is for you.

How I Coached This Because every great result starts with a decision.

© 2026 How I Coached This All rights reserved.
Economics Leadership Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • America's Red Scares: Palmer & McCarthy
    Feb 19 2026

    In this episode, we explore the historical context of America's 'Red Scares,' examining the events of 1919 and 1950. We uncover how figures like A. Mitchell Palmer and Joseph McCarthy leveraged fear and suspicion to gain power, ultimately damaging institutions and individual lives.

    Chapters

    00:00 The 1919 Palmer Raids

    00:47 J. Edgar Hoover's Role

    04:33 McCarthyism in 1950

    11:49 Lessons from History

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    11 mins
  • Discipline Beats Motivation: The Nick Saban System
    Jan 25 2026

    Why Saban never relied on speeches, hype, or emotion — and how structure replaced inspiration in building elite performance.

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    16 mins
  • Leadership Failure: Saddam's Paper Tiger Military
    Feb 18 2026

    In this episode, we analyze the catastrophic collapse of the Iraqi army in 1991, highlighting how Saddam Hussein's fear-based leadership led to a culture of misinformation and ultimately, military defeat. We also discuss the crucial role of psychological safety in command structures and how its absence can lead to organizational breakdown.

    Chapters

    00:00 Saddam's Fear-Based Leadership

    00:18 The 'Mother of All Battles' Mindset

    04:05 Fear-Based Command Structure

    06:43 Ground War and Leadership Paralysis

    09:49 The Highway of Death

    13:21 Lack of Mission Command

    17:05 Psychological Safety Checkpoints

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    11 mins
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