Derek Ingram is the head coach of Canada’s National Amateur and Young Pro Golf Teams, he also coaches and mentors numerous professional golfers, including PGA Tour winners Mackenzie Hughes and Corey Conners.

I caught Derek on a rare week off in Winnipeg, Canada where he lives with his wife and two sons. Derek has coached all over the world and at every level of golf. He’s been recognized with almost every coaching award you can win in Canada, and in 2016 he was selected to coach Canada’s Olympic golf team at the Rio summer games (the first time in over 100 years that golf was included as an Olympic sport).

In this interview, it’s pretty easy to see why Derek is such a trusted and beloved coach to his players. His simple adage that “People don’t care how much you know until they know that you care” (a quote by Theodore Roosevelt) resonates in this interview as his foundational value in coaching. In this episode Derek repeats a few key themes:

• The importance of authenticity to build trust with people. He speaks about how important it is for him to deeply get to know his students– who their family is, what their passions are, and why they’re doing what they are doing.
• Defining what’s important to you as an individual and what success means to you as an individual.
• Find a way to fall in love with the everyday process of what you are doing. Derek describes that even when playing sport day in and day out, which sounds glamorous, the reality is that most days the work is hard and monotonous. He supports his players to fall in love with the day to day work.

Derek is a world-class coach and a really nice man. He’s been a friend, mentor and coach to me since I was a teenager, so I’m thrilled to share this conversation. I hope you enjoy!

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Links to books recommended on the show:

Training Camp: What the Best do Better Than Anyone Else

Chop Wood Carry Water: How to Fall in Love with the Process of Becoming Great