Outcomes Are a Distraction
The Field Review: TFR-025
YouTube is a dangerous place for time. The algorithm knows me so well that I rarely need to search for something—it serves me content I didn’t even know I wanted to watch.
I usually let autoplay run in the background every morning during the fall to keep up with the latest college football & NFL news. Last week, an older documentary from NFL Films popped up in that autogenerated playlist.
Nick Saban: The Greatest College Coach of All Time
It’s linked above, and I recommend giving it a watch. Here’s the quote that really got me thinking about halfway through:
“Outcomes are a distraction. Focusing on the process of what you have to do to get the outcome is the most important thing you need to do.”
Now, let me be clear—I’m a Buckeye for life. I grew up 40 minutes east of Columbus, and I proudly hold two degrees from THE Ohio State University. In this state, we have "That Team Up North" in Ann Arbor, and Alabama might as well be “That Team Down South.” Ohio State and Alabama have dominated their respective conferences over the last decade, both playing their own masterful styles of football.
As an Ohioan, Nick Saban has always seemed like an SEC storybook character—a hero (or villain) Southerners tell their kids about before bedtime.
What I didn’t know was how much depth there is to the man behind the Crimson Tide.
The Man Behind the Machine
Before Nick Saban became one of the greateat coaches in football history, he was just a kid from West Virginia, the son of a gas station owner. His early life wasn’t glamorous—he pumped gas, swept floors, and did what needed to be done at his father’s station. It was a crash course in discipline.
His dad, “Big Nick,” had one rule: do it right, every time.
No shortcuts. No excuses.
That mindset carried Saban through his playing days at Kent State and into the coaching world. His career started as a grind—small programs, assistant gigs (including Ohio State), and a lot of moving around. He was eventually offered head coaching jobs at Toledo, Michigan State, LSU, a brief stint with the Miami Dolphins, and ultimately, Alabama, where he built one of the most dominant dynasties in sports history.
Despite all the titles, trophies, and rings, Saban’s philosophy never changed:
Focus on the process.
Get the little things right, and the big things will take care of themselves.
Goals vs. Outcomes
In an interview with the 21st Century Business Forum, Saban shared an example of the difference between goals and outcomes. He recalled asking one of his receivers what his goals were for the upcoming season. The player answered:
“Catch 50 passes.”
Saban didn’t let him off easy.
"That’s an outcome, not a goal," he told him. “Your goal should be to become a complete player at your position.”
That right there is Saban’s philosophy in a nutshell.
“Process is the definition of what you have to do to accomplish the goals that you have.”
It’s not about counting receptions or racking up stats. It’s about mastering the fundamentals and knowing what you have to do so well that you can react without thinking.
Do that, and the outcomes will follow.
Caught in the Trap of Outcomes
As much as I didn’t want to admit it, Saban’s way of thinking made a lot of sense. And truth be told, I’ve spent more time than I care to admit chasing outcomes.
In my final undergraduate year at Ohio State, my only focus was getting a job. I wasn’t really interested in learning more things, participating in extracurriculars, or even getting good grades in that last semester. All that mattered to me was locking down that first job.
Well… I got it.
But it didn’t take long for the goalpost to move.
Get promoted.
Then: start climbing the ladder.
Then: do something I’m passionate about.
Then: get a better title.
Then: make more money.
Three career moves and an MBA degree later (Ohio State Round II), I’m just now starting to realize that if you’re always looking at the horizon, you’ll always see another goal out there to chase.
The funny part… the distance between you and that horizon will NEVER change no matter how fast or how far you run.
Buck Fever
When I first got into hunting, I’m thankful that I didn’t start with the same mindset I carried at work at that time. I wasn’t expecting immediate results. I was focused solely on learning—how to navigate public land, how to scout and look for sign, how to call, and how to accept coming home empty-handed.
But like any other 20-something, social media messes with your head. When you’re constantly fed a highlight reel of other people’s outdoor success, it’s easy to feel like you’re coming up short, even when you’re just getting started.
I spend a decent amount of time in the woods—not as much as others, but definitely more than the casual hunter. And yet, no leg bands hang from my lanyard and you’ll see no letters from Boone & Crockett next to my shoulder mounts.
I think that’s where ‘Buck Fever’ comes from. When you get so wrapped up in the outcome that you psych yourself out in the moment. You start thinking too much about gripping those antlers, and about what that deer will look like in the back of your truck.
You lose complete sight of the process.
Full transparency, that was me last season. Sitting in a stand, already imagining what I’d say when people ask about the hunt. I was driving myself crazy for a deer I had only seen in person once.
While that obsession ended up paying off in the end, I knew it wasn’t repeatable and I recognized it as the the same trap I fell into at work—thinking too far ahead, measuring my worth by what I can show at the end of the day.
Trusting the Process
It’s not that outcomes don’t matter—they do. But they aren’t everything.
Saban’s advice is simple. Show up, do the work, focus on the details, and let the rest take care of itself.
For me, the first two steps aren’t difficult. I’m not afraid of work, never have been. I'm also an extremely detail-oriented person. I’ve never sent an email before checking it at least four times for spelling errors and strategic exclamation point usage.
The hardest part for me is the waiting.
Waiting for the outcomes to show up. Waiting for the work to pay off. That’s when my mind starts to spiral. I start second-guessing the process, questioning whether I need to make another move, do something else, add another skill to my toolbox, anything that might get me to reach the goal faster. Even though, deep down, I know the result might be waiting just around the next bend in the road.
Call it impatience. Call it ambition. Probably a combination of both. Either way, that’s my greatest challenge.
WHEN will the work pay off?
Saban’s process forces you to sit with the discomfort of not knowing—and ultimately, I think that’s where the growth happens. This is why I’m adding another layer to my own Personal Strategy.
Process teaches you that the outcome might not arrive when you want it to, but that doesn’t mean it’s not coming. You just have to stick with it and trust the work you’ve put in.
Because at the end of the day, success isn’t always something you can force. Sometimes it’s just about showing up, doing your part, and letting time do the rest. And if the payoff doesn’t come today?
Well, there’s always tomorrow.
—
P.S. Roll Tide Go Bucks.
From My Desk:
What I’m Thinking About: It’s crazy to think that we’re already in the end of October. This year has really flown by (as they often do). One of my mowing thoughts earlier this week was 1) how many more times will I have to mow this year; and 2) how do you measure the success of a year? In milestones? In memories? In the number of times you mowed?
What I’m Reading:
I’m still in Chapter 2 of THE BELIEVER: A Year In The Fly Fishing Life by David Coggins. Clearly taking my time with this one…
On Deck for Monday: I’m putting together some actionable thoughts for myself and my professional goals (process-led, not outcomes) for 2025. Sorting out the good ideas from the ones that need to simmer a bit longer.
From The Field Review Archives:
The Field Review is a space for exploring the intersection of work, life, and the great outdoors. It’s about figuring ‘it’ out—whatever your ‘it’ might be.
Every Sunday at 10AM EST, I share ideas, insights, and conversations that help break through the noise, offering a real look at how we can all keep moving forward.
If you have any thoughts, questions, or topics you'd like me to explore in future newsletters, feel free to reach out!
Venture Onward,
Jack
Hey Jack, another banger of an article. As a Bama fan I got to see first hand how Saban impacted the culture at Alabama. Saban took over in 2007 and inherited a fairly ‘soft’ team that wasn’t used to putting in the work that Saban demanded. But he had already won a NC at LSU, so the players bought in, initially. The team played over its heads and was in the Top 10 when it faced #1 LSU late in the year. Bama lost a heartbreaker, and I think the team was expecting a pat on the back, but instead Saban lit into them, told them they gave the game away by not playing hard till the end. For a few of the seniors, that was the last straw, they basically quit on the team, they were sick of Saban fussing at them when the previous coaching staff coddled them. A lot of infighting on the team that week following the LSU loss and the next week, Bama lost to La Monroe in a huge upset. In the off-season, a LOT of those players transfered and Bama went on to go 12-2 the next year and in 2009 won the NC. As Saban would later say, it was about getting the right players on the bus, and in the right seats.
Also about the process, Saban always stressed embracing the process. And I am guilty of this idea of getting distracted by outcomes or at least wanting to see progress along the way in the process. Saban’s motto was Trust the Process, just put in the work and the outcomes will take care of themselves.
One last thing; I love this talk between Kobe and Saban, I love how Kobe embraced and loved the process of doing the work more than the outcome itself, it seems. Kindred spirits, these two:
https://youtu.be/7HkR5uWlIEc?si=Zsfzn5rXN5qvRLKV