The Truth About the Best Talent
Why Clarity & RealTalk™ Matter
Mike Vrabel, the new coach of the six-time Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, was speaking recently and he gave an answer about communication that hit home for me. It’s exactly what I mean when I talk about RealTalk™—direct, candid, honest, and specific conversations.
Vrabel said,
“The communication by me is critical that it is clear, it’s clean, it’s concise, and it’s direct.”
Let’s stop there. Clear, clean, concise, and direct. That’s the gold standard.
As a CEO, your team looks to you for guidance, and if your message is muddled, so is their focus. Think about your last all-hands meeting—did your team walk away knowing exactly what you expect? Or did they leave with more questions than answers?
He continues,
“I’m always going to be honest with a player. They may disagree, but I’m also going to listen to them. I’m going to listen with the intent to understand them and not listen with the intent to respond.”
This is powerful. Being honest doesn’t mean being harsh. It means being direct, even when it’s uncomfortable. But the other half of that equation is listening—really listening. Not formulating your rebuttal while they’re talking, but trying to understand their perspective. As a leader, your job isn’t just to talk; it’s to get the best from your team.
Vrabel also lays down a boundary:
“I’m also going to treat them the same way they treat the team.”
Respect is a two-way street. In startups, you often deal with brilliant individuals who might not always play well with others. It’s your job to set the tone—if someone isn’t aligned with the team’s values, their input doesn’t carry the same weight. Culture isn’t just about perks and sayings on a wall; it’s about holding people accountable to those values.
Then comes the part that really hit home for me:
“Average players want to be left alone… Good players want to be coached, and great players want to be told the truth.”
This is a truth bomb for any CEO. You’re going to have team members who just want to clock in and out, and that’s fine—not everyone will be a superstar. But your best people? They crave feedback. They want to know how to get better. They seek the truth, even when it’s tough to hear.
“Every great player that I’ve been able to coach in the past six years has always come and said, ‘What do I need to do to be better? What do I need to do to be great?’ You tell them, and then they seek the truth, and then their job is to then handle the truth.”
As a CEO, your responsibility is to have as many of these conversations as possible. It’s not just about delivering hard truths—it’s about helping your team handle them, grow from them, and ultimately, excel because of them.
Vrabel’s words are a reminder: honesty and clear communication aren’t just nice-to-haves. They’re non-negotiables for building a strong team and a successful company. RealTalk™ isn’t always easy, but it’s always worth it.
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