How Soccer Explains Leadership Podcast The Power of Futsal and Indoor Soccer with Keith Tozer, Commissioner of the Major Arena Soccer League and Hall of Fame Player/Coach
In Episode 175, we are recasting our conversation with Keith Tozer, Commissioner of the Major Arena Soccer League, Coach of the US Futsal National Team, MISL coach and player in five decades, the first-ever pick in the MISL Draft, and a Hall of Famer in multiple hall of fames, who talked with Paul and Phil about what he has learned over the course of his five-decade long career playing and coaching indoor and outdoor soccer and futsal, why all teams should use futsal/indoor soccer as part of their player development, the power of the Geese "V" formation, leading up, his personal why, mentorship, how he has used lessons from soccer in his role as MASL Commissioner. Specifically, Keith discusses:
· His personal story, including how he grew his passion for soccer, particularly indoor and futsal, coaching, and leadership, and how he got to be Commissioner of the MASL – and we inadvertently talked about answers to some possible trivia questions as well (3:58)
· Why he believes that futsal and indoor are critical to training and should be an integral part of development at all levels (8:46)
· His personal why/mission statement and how he is living it out (16:06)
· The power of the Geese "V" formation and what leadership lessons we can learn from it (18:17)
· His defining moment and how it impacted his development (22:46)
· How he navigated the transition to coaching from playing, and his stint as a player/manager, and the leadership lessons he learned on his journey (25:45)
· How he intentionally sought out mentors as a young leader and what he learned from his mentors (32:00)
· The power of leading up (35:31)
· A couple of the best leaders he played or coached with, and what set them apart from the rest (37:10)
· What he would tell the 27-year-old Keith Tozer if he could go back in time (41:25)
· A great story about empowering, servant leadership (43:26)
· How he is using lessons learned from the game of soccer in his role as Commissioner of the MASL (48:07)
· The good, bad, and ugly of US Soccer, how the MASL is helping to move the game forward in the US (49:30)
· How he has used lessons learned from the game in his marriage and parenting (59:57)
· Her recommendations (1:01:06)
Resources and Links from this Episode
· Coaching the Bigger Game Program
· Phil's email for DISC Training
· The Winner Within: A Life Plan for Team Players, by Pat Riley