JaMarcus Russell’s Coach

I read with some interest this week that personal coach John Lucas has quit as an advisor to former NFL quarterback Jamarcus Russell.

What interested me was not the actual facts of the situation but more the online reaction. For you non-sports fans, I would point out that Mr. Russell was talented college football player drafted to the NFL and signed to a $40 million contract by the Oakland Raiders. After four unsuccessful seasons, where he was accused of being out of shape, unprepared and a poor leader, he was released and has not played since.

John Lucas is a former NBA player, and drug addict who has turned his life around and now, as a personal coach,  helps young athletes get their careers back on track. Lucas had been working with Russell in Texas.

Apparently, Lucas ‘fired’ Russell this week and has told the young man to leave Texas where Lucas is based.

Of the 60 or so comments I read, many focused on the sad state of Russell’s career, but more than a few reacted to the coaching relationship. Things such as, “If he needed a personal coach, he must have been in bad shape,” or ” Only losers would need a coach.”

I can’t vouch for Mr. Lucas’s  skill, although he has a pretty good track record, but it was a bit dismaying to hear that view of coaching. Does the general public feel that only people in tough situations need help or that coaches are a last-ditch method to get things turned around?

Personal coaches can help anyone with decision making – even coaches need a coach. The list of ways that a personal coach can help a client is endless.

Usually my reaction to situations like this is simply “any publicity is good publicity,” but it would seem that the coaching profession needs a little PR help.

Most of my clients don’t feel they are losers, but that’s not a particularly good sample, since they obviously are already using a coach. But maybe one of the large international coaching organizations needs to do some research to find out what people think about the profession.

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