Moxie: Keep the Right Score

ONE STORY

"When Impact Went Invisible"

In the 1960s, NHL teams—including the dominant Montreal Canadiens—had a problem: They were building rosters and rewarding players based on stats that didn't always lead to wins.

Goals. Assists. Penalty minutes. Easy to track—but incomplete.

The players with the most points weren't always the ones who made the team better. Sometimes, the biggest names disrupted chemistry more than they created momentum.

Teams noticed something frustrating: You could lose with a bench full of stars—and win with players no one talked about.

So the Canadiens asked: What if we tracked how the team performed when each player was on the ice?

They started quietly measuring a stat that didn't yet have a name: +1 if your team scored at even strength or shorthanded while you were out there. -1 if you got scored on.

It wasn't about flash. It was about flow.

Were you helping your team win? Or just helping yourself look good?

By 1967, the NHL made it official—plus-minus became a recorded stat. And wouldn't you know it? The Canadiens won the Stanley Cup that same season. They weren't just playing better—they were measuring better.

Not long after, down in Chapel Hill, Dean Smith wrestled with a similar dilemma. The box score didn't tell him who was making the team better. Some players put up points—but wrecked the rhythm. Others didn't light up the scoreboard—but everything just worked when they were on the floor.

So Smith started measuring. He charted lineups. He tracked possessions. He paid close attention to how the team performed with each player on the court—long before plus-minus was a known metric in basketball.

He didn't need the data to be popular. He needed it to be honest.

That honesty helped him build one of the most consistent, culture-first programs in college basketball history.

Years later, Dean Oliver would formalize these instincts with hard data. He created metrics like Offensive Rating, Defensive Rating, and Adjusted Plus-Minus, helping teams see beyond flash and fame. He gave language to what coaches like Smith already knew: It's not about your stats—it's about your impact.

We like to reward scorers. The loudest voice. The biggest number.

But the Canadiens and Dean Smith remind us: It's not about who gets the credit. It's about who moves the needle.

And when we have the guts to measure what actually matters—to build around contribution instead of clout—we don't just play the game.

We change it.

TWO QUOTES

"If you don’t measure the right thing, you’ll get really good at doing the wrong thing.”
— Clayton Christensen

“Effort is admirable. Impact is essential.”
— Unknown

THREE TAKEAWAYS

1. Who’s on your ice matters.
Not everyone in your life is making your team better. Some people add clarity, courage, and calm. Others drain your energy or cloud your thinking. Your five closest peers are shaping your baseline.

Research shows they influence your habits, risk tolerance, resilience, and even your level of ambition. Be selective. You don’t just need good people—you need the right players in the game with you.

2. Choose inputs that energize your mission.
Not all effort is equal—and not all routines are helpful. Waking up early, journaling, or meditating only matter if they center you. The best routines aren’t just about discipline—they’re about direction.

A walk in silence. A focused morning. One real conversation. A book that meets you at the right moment. The right inputs restore your clarity and momentum. Track how you feel after a routine, not just whether you did it.

3. Track what helps you grow.
What if the most important metrics weren’t visible on the scoreboard?
Try these:

• How present were you in your conversations today?

• Did you return to your values when faced with a hard decision?

• Did you speak up when it mattered—even if it was uncomfortable?

• Did you say no to something misaligned, even if it was popular?

The world may never see those numbers. But you will feel them.
And when you start measuring what matters, you start building momentum that lasts.

MOXIE REFLECTIONS

• Who in your life helps you play better? Who pulls you off your game?

• Are you tracking metrics that actually matter—or just ones that are easy to see?

• What’s one popular input you’ve been doing that might not be helping anymore?

QUICK HITS

THIS WEEK IN HISTORY: April 23, 1951 – Moxie at Age 16
In Farmville, Virginia, 16-year-old Barbara Johns organized a walkout of over 400 students to protest unequal school conditions.
That single act of courage became part of the Brown v. Board of Education case that ended school segregation.

One student. One protest. One turning point in history–powered by Moxie.

PATTERN RECOGNITION : Status Quo Bias
Status quo bias (also known as default bias) is a cognitive bias that causes people to prefer things to stay the same. We treat the current situation as the baseline—and any change from it feels like a risk, even if the change might be better.

The lie: “If it’s familiar, it must be fine.”
The truth: You’re not choosing the best path—you’re choosing the one with the fewest raised eyebrows.

Don’t confuse comfort with alignment. 

MENTAL SKILL OF THE WEEK: Selective Attention
Selective attention is the brain’s ability to focus on what matters and filter out what doesn’t. It helps us prioritize key information and ignore distractions—because we can’t process everything at once.

How to use it: Stop tracking what looks impressive. Start noticing what changes the outcome.

Clarity isn’t about doing more—it’s about seeing what matters.

ONE MORE THING

You are the coach.
You decide who plays.
You choose what gets tracked.
And you set the culture for how progress gets measured.

Let go of popularity.
Let go of appearance.

Pick people and practices that make your team better.