Basketball, Officiating, and Lessons on Leadership

One of the first things you learn as a basketball official is that perfection is impossible. The game moves too fast. Angles change in an instant. Ten athletes, two benches, and an emotionally invested crowd all see the same play from different perspectives. Even with training, experience, and preparation, you will miss a call.

Recently, a coach contacted my supervisor to raise concerns about some of my decisions in a game. In reviewing the feedback, one thing became clear: she wasn’t entirely wrong. I did miss a few calls. That reality wasn’t discouraging. It was clarifying.

What struck me most wasn’t the criticism—it was something more subtle.

No one calls a supervisor about the calls an official gets right.

When officials make correct decisions, the reaction is usually silent approval. That’s what we expect. 

There are no emails, no follow-ups, no praise for consistency. Officials are meant to be invisible to the game. When we do our job well, the focus stays on the athletes and the competition. When we don’t, the spotlight finds us immediately.

That dynamic is not unique to officiating.

It’s leadership.

In healthy organizations, leaders are frequently invisible. Systems run. People execute. Problems are anticipated and quietly handled before they become crises. From the outside, it can look effortless—or worse, unremarkable.

But the moment something breaks, leadership becomes highly visible.

A missed deadline. A miscommunication. A poor decision under pressure. Suddenly, attention shifts from outcomes to accountability. Questions get asked. Feedback gets delivered—sometimes constructively, sometimes emotionally.

This is where leadership maturity shows itself.

Immature leaders take silence as insignificance and criticism as a personal attack. Mature leaders understand that invisibility is often a sign that things are working, and criticism—when handled properly—is simply data.

Officiating teaches you quickly that you cannot take feedback personally. If you do, you won’t last.

Every whistle requires decisiveness. Every possession demands focus. If an official dwells on a missed call, they’ll miss the next one. The game doesn’t pause for reflection or regret. It keeps moving, and so must you.

Leadership is no different.

Dwelling on past mistakes clouds judgment. Internalizing criticism erodes confidence. Replaying yesterday’s errors distracts from today’s responsibilities. Leaders who linger too long in self-critique often miss the next opportunity to lead well. Accountability matters. Reflection matters. But so does presence.

One of the healthiest habits in both officiating and leadership is learning after the moment, not during it. We accept feedback. We study signals and mechanics. But we do that work off the court so that, in the game, we can be fully present.

Leaders need the same discipline.

There is a time to assess decisions, to listen carefully, to refine approach and judgment. And there is a time to lead with clarity and confidence. Blurring those moments—over-processing while action is required—undermines effectiveness.

At the end of every game, the question isn’t whether mistakes were made. They were. The real question is whether you learned from them without letting them define you.

Leadership isn’t about being flawless. It’s about being coachable. You acknowledge the missed call. You adjust your positioning. And you get ready for the next play. Because the game is still moving. And leadership—like basketball—always demands readiness for what comes next.