The Highest Level Podcast with Evan Burk

Coach Patrick Murphy is the Head Softball Coach at the University of Alabama. His career accomplishments rank among the very best in college sports, with a career winning percentage of 78%, winning the National Championship in 2012, and leading the Crimson Tide softball team to the NCAA tournament for a remarkable 22 straight years.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks to University of Alabama softball head coach Patrick Murphy about building the culture of his program by prioritizing the PERSON first - athlete second, capturing his players’ hearts with “Affirmation Bags”, and The Power of Tiny Gains in building the team culture.

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and how hidden character traits drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

Tyler Johnson is a mental skills and performance coach and host of the Elev8 Podcast. His primarily focus is working with student-athletes and coaches to elevate attitudes and potential through a focus of strength and balance of mind.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks to Tyler about coach Mark Farley and the rise of the Northern Iowa football program, how leaders can develop team trust, and the intangibles of self in elite leaders and high performers.

Check out Evan’s appearance on the Elev8 podcast that Tyler hosts, and follow Tyler on Instagram and Twitter

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

Hunter Sims is the Director of Athletics at Howard Payne University, where he spent 6 years as an assistant coach, offensive coordinator, and head coach of the school’s football program before his promotion into the AD role.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks to Hunter about appreciating the “invisible paychecks” coaches receive, how he developed his one-year onboarding program to help 1st time head coaches successfully transition into an unfamiliar role, and what he looks for when he’s hiring a head coach to lead one of Howard Payne’s athletic programs.

https://hpusports.com/staff-directory/hunter-sims/142

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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EVAN BURK is an author, speaker, former NFL coach, and podcast host who uses the sports world as his backdrop to engage audiences with thought-provoking lessons of leadership, team-building, and creating championship cultures. Learn more about having Evan come speak to your team by visiting his website, or email him at: evan@coachevanburk.com

Edited and Produced by Mark McDonald. Launch your podcast at  https://yourbusinesspodcast.net

Joan Ryan is the senior media advisor for the San Francisco Giants and the author of the book "Intangibles: Unlocking the Science and Soul of Team Chemistry."

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks to Joan about team chemistry and how it affects performance, why trust among teammates and co-workers is crucial to building great chemistry, and how relationships influence the team dynamics within the locker room.

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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EVAN BURK is an author, speaker, former NFL coach, and podcast host who uses the sports world as his backdrop to engage audiences with thought-provoking lessons of leadership, team-building, and creating championship cultures. Learn more about having Evan come speak to your team by visiting his website, or email him at: evan@coachevanburk.com

Edited and Produced by Mark McDonald. Launch your podcast at  https://yourbusinesspodcast.net

Brian Decker is the Director of Team Development for the Indianapolis Colts and was previously Commander of Special Forces Assessment and Selection for the U.S. military. 

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks to Brian about his model for talent assessment, how character is the bridge between talent and performance, and how the Colts’ see the culture of their team as a competitive advantage. 

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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Buy Evan's book, Finding Intangibles

EVAN BURK is an author, speaker, former NFL coach, and podcast host who uses the sports world as his backdrop to engage audiences with thought-provoking lessons of leadership, team-building, and creating championship cultures. Learn more about having Evan come speak to your team by visiting his website, or email him at: evan@coachevanburk.com

Edited and Produced by Mark McDonald. Launch your podcast at  https://yourbusinesspodcast.net

Kelvin is an 11-year NFL player currently playing for the Arizona Cardinals, and is also a two-time Walter Payton Man of the Year Award nominee for his volunteer and charity work.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks with Kelvin about his success in professional football despite being an “undersized” NFL Offensive Tackle, the great leadership ability of Mike Tomlin and Todd Bowles, and leaving a legacy of serving others in his community.

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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Buy Evan's book, Finding Intangibles

EVAN BURK is an author, speaker, former NFL coach, and podcast host who uses the sports world as his backdrop to engage audiences with thought-provoking lessons of leadership, team-building, and creating championship cultures. Learn more about having Evan come speak to your team by visiting his website, or email him at: evan@coachevanburk.com

Edited and Produced by Mark McDonald. Launch your podcast at  https://yourbusinesspodcast.net

Steve Mellor is a performance coach, former college swim coach , and host of the Career Competitor podcast.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks with Steve about his competitive swim career, his transition to becoming a career and executive coach, and setting a minimum standard to achieve sustained success.

https://careercompetitor.com/

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

--

Buy Evan's book, Finding Intangibles

EVAN BURK is an author, speaker, former NFL coach, and podcast host who uses the sports world as his backdrop to engage audiences with thought-provoking lessons of leadership, team-building, and creating championship cultures. Learn more about having Evan come speak to your team by visiting his website, or email him at: evan@coachevanburk.com

Mitch Ford is a former basketball coach with experience working as an NBA player development coach with the Dallas Mavericks and a Front office assistant with the Charlotte Hornets.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks with Mitch about how a NBA coaching legend helped him get his start in the NBA, working first-hand with great NBA players Dirk Nowitzki and Luka Doncic, and the commonalities among the best cultures in the NBA

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

--

Buy Evan's book, Finding Intangibles

EVAN BURK is an author, speaker, former NFL coach, and podcast host who uses the sports world as his backdrop to engage audiences with thought-provoking lessons of leadership, team-building, and creating championship cultures. Learn more about having Evan come speak to your team by visiting his website, or email him at: evan@coachevanburk.com

Brittni Donaldson is a former NBA assistant coach and data analyst with the Toronto Raptors and currently serves as the Director of Coaching Development for the Hamilton Honey Badgers, and co-founder of Strata Athletics.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks with Brittni about coaching across genders as a female NBA coach, the factors that are ignored when evaluating NBA talent, and winning an NBA championship in 2019 with the Toronto Raptors.

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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Buy Evan's book, Finding Intangibles

EVAN BURK is an author, speaker, former NFL coach, and podcast host who uses the sports world as his backdrop to engage audiences with thought-provoking lessons of leadership, team-building, and creating championship cultures. Learn more about having Evan come speak to your team by visiting his website, or email him at: evan@coachevanburk.com

Alan Stein Jr. is a speaker, author, and performance coach who spent 15 years working with the highest-performing basketball players on the planet, including NBA superstars Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Kobe Bryant.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks with Alan about how he embraced being “the warm-up guy” to set the foundation for his career, how great athletes raise their game by focusing on the basics, and how professional basketball players hone their mental management techniques to sustain their game in basketball and in life.

Buy Alan’s book, Sustain Your Game

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

--

Buy Evan's book, Finding Intangibles

EVAN BURK is an author, speaker, former NFL coach, and podcast host who uses the sports world as his backdrop to engage audiences with thought-provoking lessons of leadership, team-building, and creating championship cultures. Learn more about having Evan come speak to your team by visiting his website, or email him at: evan@coachevanburk.com

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Tune into this episode to hear:

• How does one become a basketball performance coach?
• How performance coaching differs from Strength & Conditioning
• Working with Great NBA players early in their careers
• Starting his career as the “warm up guy”
• “Star where you are” and the value of accepting your role
• Social Media and placing self-worth internally
• Avoiding the comparison game
• How the people that surround you influence your own performance
• Dealing with negativity in your life and having compassion for others
• Alan’s new book, Sustain Your Game

Kevin Eastman is an author, speaker and former NBA coach. Kevin has coached the game at the college and professional levels over a career spanning 35+ years, and recently published his first book, Why The Best Are the Best.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks with Kevin about what he learned working for with Doc Rivers, Kevin Garnett’s “silent work ethic”, the team concept that separated the 2008 Boston Celtics NBA championship team, and the most important components to achieving success in basketball and in life.

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Kevin's book: Why the Best are the Best

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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Tune into this episode to hear:

• Kevin's college coaching career prepared him for coaching in the NBA
• Finding his voice early in his coaching career
• Being a NBA assistant coach and "learning to talk in bullet points"
• What it was like to work for Doc Rivers
• How accountability was established on the Boston Celtics
• The Ingredients of a Championship team - 2008 Boston Celtics
• Adding Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and How the 2008 Celtics team came together so quickly
• Reggie Bullock’s Development over his career
• Getting Players to Understand the Value of Failure
• Values and People: The Keys to Building a Championship Team
• “Coaching is leading in a highly competitive environment - and I want to know how they are doing it.”

Yogi Roth is a storyteller, a Pac-12 Networks college football analyst, former college coach, Award-Winning Filmmaker, Best-Selling Author, World-Traveler and podcast host.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks with Yogi about what he learned working for Pete Carroll at USC, what separates the great athletes he’s worked in his career, and how he elicits a wide-range of emotions through his storytelling.

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Learn more at YogiRoth.com

Yogi's books: From PA to LA, and Win Forever with Pete Carroll

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• How Larry Fitzgerald set himself apart as a college player at Pitt
• What it’s like to work with Pete Carroll
• The common misconception of Pete Carroll
• Adding competitive players and coaches to the USC football team
• How traveling the world shaped Yogi’s worldview
• Yogi’s next chapter as a storyteller and TV football analyst
• Getting his big break on the Red Carpet at the ESPY’s
• Yogi’s next chapter as a storyteller and TV football analyst
• The trait that separate 5-star athletes that have success
• Yogi’s upcoming children’s book release

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The Highest Level was named one of the Best 5 Sports Leadership Podcasts in 2022

Dr. Rick Sessinghaus is a Mental Performance Coach, Author, Speaker, and Flow Trainer for high performance golfers. He has been a mental performance coach for some of the top amateur golfers and teams in college, and is currently the Swing and Mental coach for one of the top golfers in the world, PGA Tour winner Collin Morikawa.

In this conversation, Evan Burk talks with Rick about his coaching journey with top PGA golfer Collin Morikawa, the background and mental makeup that helped separate Collin to become one of the best golfers in the game, and what it takes to master peak performance on and off the golf course.

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Rick's book: Golf: The Ultimate Mind Game

Find Rick on FlowCode Golf Academy + his website

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

In this episode:

• Rick’s journey from swing coach to mental performance coach
• How peak performance at the highest levels of Golf has evolved in recent years
• Rick’s coaching journey with Collin Morikawa
• What separated Collin Morikawa from other golfers his age as an amateur
• The influence of Collin’s parents on his development as a person and a player
• How Rick helped Collin create a 4-5 year plan to become a Division 1 golfer by combining long-term focus with metrics along the way
• The moment of defeat where Rick knew that Collin had a chance to be great
• How Colin Morikawa prepares for the Masters
• The importance of the people that surround you in an individual sport like golf

Share your favorite part and post to your Twitter or IG story and tag me @CoachEvanBurk and @RickSessinghaus so we can see and repost to our profiles and stories.

Episode website: https://www.coachevanburk.com/show-notes/26-rick-sessinghaus

Ryan Larsen is the head football coach at Carnegie Mellon University. Coach Larsen also worked at Indiana University, Wabash, Rhodes College, and Columbia University.

In this conversation, Evan Burk speaks with Ryan about how his elite organizational skills, creating a culture that is all about the team, and how he evaluates both the person and the player in the recruiting process.

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

Josh Boyd is the Assistant General Manager of the Texas Rangers, where he oversees all functions of pro player evaluation and the R & D department. Boyd has been with the Rangers since 2008 serving in roles within Player Personnel and Pro Scouting, and spent 4 seasons as an area scout with the San Diego Padres.

Photo: John Gilchrist (Rotary Club of Park Cities)

In this conversation, Evan Burk speaks with Josh about how he went from a baseball writer to Major League Scout, the skill set makes a good evaluator, and looking at how players deal with success and failure to help judge the character make up of players.

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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Topics Discussed:

• Transition from baseball writer to MLB scout

• Learning as a San Diego Padres scout

• How his thinking changed in understanding of what made players successful

• What makes a successful scout in major league baseball

• How the Organization’s goals and vision feed into the Player Evaluation approach

• Judging whether players have the drive to be great vs. just liking being a ball player

• How a player’s fit within a system factors into team building in baseball

• What are you looking for beyond the game when evaluating players?

• Learning about players with how they handle setbacks, and success

• When to make exceptions and understanding acquisition cost

• What separated the Rangers’ World Series teams from 2010 and 2011

• Where Josh get’s inspiration outside of baseball?

Dickey Simpkins is an NBA Scout, TV Analyst, and 3-time World Champion as a former NBA player. He led Providence College to a Big East title his senior year in college, played on 3 championships teams with 4 Hall of Famers on the late 1990's Chicago Bulls, and has served as an NBA scout for the Charlotte Hornets and currently for the Washington Wizards.

In this conversation, Evan Burk speaks with Dickey about the winning culture on the Chicago Bulls under Phil Jackson, how his daily approach earned the respect of Michael Jordan, and using his playing experiences in his current role as an NBA Scout and TV Analyst.

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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Topics Discussed:

• Standing out at Providence College under Rick Barnes
• The instant change in intensity once Michael Jordan re-joined to the Bulls in 1995
• How Michael Jordan taking ownership for losing to Orlando in the ‘95 Playoffs was a defining moment for winning the next 3 Titles
• How Dickey evolved as a player under Phil Jackson and playing with MJ
• What set the 90’s Bulls’ team culture apart
• “Know Your Role, Embrace your role, and Star in Your Role”
• Being a part of the infamous “Sprewell/Carlesimo Choke” Warriors
• Watching Phil Jackson’s leadership and the unseen things he noticed
• How Phil Jackson managed personalities and egos
• Using his playing experiences in his scouting and evaluation of players
• Understanding how situations impact the success of players

This special edition episode of The Highest Level features a keynote speech I delivered recently at a national leadership conference entitled "The NFL Approach to Building Winning Teams". This speech was the closing keynote at the American Society of Crime Lab Directors national leadership symposium on August 26, 2021 to an audience of leaders and directors in the forensic science community.

In this keynote, I break down the realities of building teams in highly competitive environments and share the 4 elements crucial for any successful organization to create a championship culture, whether in sports, business, or beyond.

If you're interested in having me speak at any upcoming event, please email me at: evan@coachevanburk.com.

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Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

Cody Royle is an author, speaker, podcast host and football coach. He served as the head coach of AFL Team Canada, the men's national program for Australian Rules football, and author of the books "The Tough Stuff" and "Where Others Won't"

In this conversation, Evan Burk speaks with Cody about his work as a coach for head coach's, developing traits on high performing teams, and his podcast and books on people and leadership strategies.

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Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

Coach Mark Richt served as the head football coach for the University of Georgia and the University of Miami, as well as a longtime assistant coach for the Florida State University Seminoles under his mentor, Bobby Bowden where he was part of 2 National Championship teams.

In this conversation, Evan Burk speaks with Coach Richt about learning under Hall of Fame coach Bobby Bowden, impactful relationships with players built on discipline and compassion, and a coach's responsibility to set the example for teaching players how to become a man, husband, and father.

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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Topics Discussed:

• How Howard Schnellenberger set high expectation at the University of Miami

• His 1st job at Florida State and developing confidence as a coach

• Earning Coach Bobby Bowden's trust

• The elevation of the Florida State football program

• How they avoided complacency during FSU's all-time great run

• His mentality going into his 1st head coaching job at Georgia

• The elevation of the Georgia football program

• Building resiliency within the program, with players, and "Finishing the Drill" at Georgia

• How the Georgia program evolved over 15 years

• Returning to his alma mater as head football coach

• Commonalties of the great teams he was a part of

• The importance of getting the buy-in of the players

• Teaching players how to be young men

Coach Matt Doherty served as the head basketball coach for 4 college programs: Notre Dame, his alma mater North Carolina, FAU, and SMU. He played at the University of North Carolina under legendary head coach Dean Smith and is the author of the book "Rebound: From Pain to Passion".

In this conversation, Evan Burk speaks with Coach Doherty about learning under Dean Smith and Roy Williams, the need for every leader to be vulnerable and embrace the truth, and how his book uses his own failures as a coach to teach leadership lessons for any audience.

Get Evan’s book, Finding Intangibles, to learn about how high-performing teams are built and the hidden character traits that drive all elite performers and organizations.

To stay up to date with Evan and The Highest Level podcast, sign up for Evan's leadership newsletter.

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Tune into this episode to hear:

• Playing under Coach Dean Smith at North Carolina

• How Coach Smith held the team accountable to his core values

• Developing as an assistant coach at Davidson and the University of Kansas

• Writing a book to teach through his failures

• The importance of being a lifelong learner

• How George W. Bush handled his days as President of the United States

• Managing change and the 1st 90 days of starting a new role

• Having a “truth teller” on your staff

• Looking for players who can embrace the truth and are open to being coached

• “The Art of Coaching” - Always evolving and adapting to change