Coach G's novel plan: Brittainey Raven
Jan. 15, 2010
Every year, Texas Women’s Basketball coach Gail Goestenkors hand-picks reading selections for all of her student-athletes. Goestenkors carefully connects each one to the individual, choosing books that can educate and inspire -- and impact the Longhorns on the court, and in life. Throughout the season, TexasSports.com will visit with Goestenkors and the Longhorns to learn about the books that were read, and what everyone learned through the process. Going into my last season, I think Coach G really wanted to help me become a better leader for this team. After reading The Heart of a Leader, I learned a lot about leadership strategies from different people, and I had to try and implement them with the team. As a senior, I wanted my leadership role to be stronger. I have to do a better job of taking care of everybody else. It’s not about leading us in scoring, or on the stat sheet, but leading us off the court and in practice. I have to help everybody else work hard and focus by doing those things myself. This book taught me that good leaders are committed to helping everybody win, and that means we all have to be accountable to each other. Brittainey has always been a leader for us. As a sophomore, her teammates elected her as one of the team captains, and they’ve done so for the past three years. They recognize Brittainey’s ability to play and practice very hard, and they also appreciate her attitude. She’s one of the most upbeat and positive people I’ve ever met. With this book, I wanted to help Brittainey recognize some of the leadership qualities that she innately has within herself, and also how to use those traits to influence others in a positive way. As a senior, Brittainey has the ability to not only lead us on the court with points and rebounds, but in every aspect of being a Texas Longhorn.
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