{"id":23247,"date":"2024-01-31T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-31T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/?post_type=article&p=23247"},"modified":"2025-12-15T05:11:03","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T05:11:03","slug":"weve-all-been-the-victims-of-buzzwords-on-a-wall-how-the-texas-rangers-refined-their-core-values-in-pursuit-of-who-they-are-and-what-they-represent","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/weve-all-been-the-victims-of-buzzwords-on-a-wall-how-the-texas-rangers-refined-their-core-values-in-pursuit-of-who-they-are-and-what-they-represent\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018We\u2019ve All Been the Victims of Buzzwords on a Wall\u2019 \u2013 How the Texas Rangers Refined their Core Values in Pursuit of Who they Are and What they Represent"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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\n 31 Jan 2024 <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>Articles<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

\u2018We\u2019ve All Been the Victims of Buzzwords on a Wall\u2019 \u2013 How the Texas Rangers Refined their Core Values in Pursuit of Who they Are and What they Represent<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n \n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Category<\/div>\n Leadership & Culture<\/a> <\/div>\n
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https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/weve-all-been-the-victims-of-buzzwords-on-a-wall-how-the-texas-rangers-refined-their-core-values-in-pursuit-of-who-they-are-and-what-they-represent\/<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n\n\n
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Ben Baroody tells us the World Series winners needed to find values that meant something to everyone in the organization.<\/p>\n \n \n \n

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By John Portch with Henry Breckenridge<\/h6>\n
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    Champion teams act and think like champions before they lift the trophy or wear the ring \u2013 and they do it 24\/7.<\/h6>\n<\/li>\n
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    Team values need collective input and meaning or they\u2019re just \u2018words on a wall\u2019.<\/h6>\n<\/li>\n
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    Success doesn\u2019t \u2018root out the weeds\u2019 on its own \u2013 culture needs constant renewal.<\/h6>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Culture often precedes results<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The Texas Rangers\u2019 transformation under General Manager Chris Young and Manager Bruce Bochy saw them go from 102 losses during the 2021 Major League Baseball season to the World Series just two years later. Bochy, for one, could not have enjoyed a more successful first campaign in Arlington.<\/p>\n

    It is tempting to attribute part of the turnaround to the organization\u2019s increased focus on personal development, particularly when Ben Baroody was promoted to Director of Leadership & Organizational Development, Player Enrichment Programs, and Mental Performance in November 2021. But the truth, as he told us himself, is that the groundwork had been laid for years by the staff, coaches and players independently of on-field results.<\/p>\n

    \u201cI\u2019ve been here nine seasons and there have always been a lot of positive elements to our culture,\u201d Baroody told the Leaders Performance Podcast in January.<\/p>\n

    The team did, however, revisit their values in light of that 2021 season. Baroody continued: \u201cIt came down to refining our core values \u2013 who we are and what we represent, how we live out those values \u2013 and [establishing] a belief in what we can accomplish together when everyone has a clear picture of what those priority values are. [Then] it\u2019s easier to embody them and be held accountable to them. We know what matters most and what we are working towards.\u201d<\/p>\n

    The Rangers values include \u201cbe a good teammate\u201d, \u201ccompete with passion\u201d and \u201cdominate the fundamentals\u201d. \u201cOn the surface they seem over-simplified but they mean a lot and can be applicable in a lot of different ways.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Your values need to be reinforced daily<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Too often teams fall prey to the words they stick on the clubhouse wall and the Rangers were no different in the past. \u201cWe\u2019ve been victims of that,\u201d said Baroody. \u201cI think that every organization is.\u201d One solution, he added, is continuous reinforcement \u201cthrough meetings, through presentations, through discussions \u2013 they aren\u2019t just on a wall somewhere \u2013 they are truly part of how we operate, they are included as we constantly evaluate our decision making and in our evaluation of personnel, both players and staff. They are the main component of our performance reviews from a staff standpoint.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Values, when they are perceived as meaningful, can be applied by people on a 24\/7 basis. \u201cYou can boil them down to the most obvious application, but when you think through how you\u2019re structuring your day, how you\u2019re structuring your week, your season, your lifestyle. They can be applied 24 hours a day and we\u2019ve tried to really live them out and not be selective in when we embody them,\u201d Baroody said.<\/p>\n

    They should resonate beyond your sport or competition<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The Rangers\u2019 values are defined by all domains of the organization. \u201cWe all have clarity into what they mean for us personally in our different sub-departments,\u201d said Baroody. The same goes for staff and players. In fact, it is a fundamental development exercise for young players at the Rangers\u2019 minor league affiliates. \u201cWe\u2019ve put it to them to speak amongst themselves, have collaborative discussions, to create the definitions around those [values] and to set forth the behaviors that exemplify those values.\u201d<\/p>\n

    At a staff level, \u201cit comes down to simplicity and clarity in having values that are applicable to everyone in the organization whether you\u2019re a player, whether you\u2019re a scout, whether you\u2019re a coach, whether you\u2019re an analyst \u2013 you know what it means to the organization as a whole.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Even if you\u2019re a non-playing member of staff you\u2019re still \u201cleading with a competitiveness. The communication and collaboration and care you have for others \u2013 that\u2019s how you\u2019re exemplifying being that good teammate.\u201d<\/p>\n

    It doesn\u2019t end with winning<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The process did not end with the Rangers\u2019 World Series victory in November. \u201cIt reinforced we\u2019re on the right track with culture,\u201d said Baroody. However, \u201cas soon as you think you have it figured out, you\u2019re close to being humbled.\u201d The word \u2018culture\u2019, as he explained, has its roots in agricultural cultivation. \u201c[Your culture] has to be cultivated so you\u2019re always going to have to pull some weeds and tend to things, and give it water and give it sunlight. It can\u2019t be stagnant.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Therefore, he does not perceive a hunger issue as the team prepares for Spring Training. \u201cThere\u2019s pride, there\u2019s accomplishment, there have been celebrations, but there\u2019s definitely not been contentment and our focus is on building on 2023 with a competitive focus on 2024 and beyond. And I think that in itself is a good insight into who we are and who we aim to be and what we try to represent.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Listen to the full interview with the Texas Rangers’ Ben Baroody:<\/strong><\/p>\n