Principles-to-Adaptation Coaching
Teach the base and non-negotiables, then let performers read the changing field.
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 6
- Confidence
- 97%
Fernandes describes Michael Carrick's coaching as a balance between structure and player responsibility. The manager supplies a foundation, non-negotiable rules, likely spaces, and prepared solutions. The match may then differ from the video: an opponent can change formation, a planned press can stop fitting, or a suggested passing lane can disappear. Players closest to the action must compact the team, read the new pattern, and choose the pass or shot themselves. The leader cannot occupy the performer's mind at the decisive moment. This is guided adaptation rather than unrestricted freedom: decisions remain anchored to shared principles and are reviewed later. The model transfers to dynamic teams, but exact procedures should still govern safety-critical, legal, or regulated tasks where improvisation creates unacceptable risk.
Origin
Fernandes explains Carrick's approach at Manchester United: prepare the foundation, rules, likely spaces, and solutions, then give players responsibility to read changes during the match and make the final decision.
Core principles
- 01Preparation should create a stable base rather than script every moment.
- 02Non-negotiables protect the team when conditions change.
- 03The person closest to the action must own the final decision.
- 04Examples and predicted spaces guide judgement without replacing it.
How to run it
- 1
Build the foundation
Teach the shared shape, priorities, and basic operating logic. Make the stable elements understandable before introducing exceptions.
Pro tip Explain why the base works, not only what it looks like.
Watch out A loose collection of tips is not a foundation.
- 2
Set non-negotiables
Identify the small number of rules that should survive changing conditions. These provide coordination when the original plan no longer fits.
Pro tip Keep the list short enough to recall under pressure.
Watch out Too many non-negotiables recreate a rigid script.
- 3
Map likely patterns
Use examples, video, data, or rehearsal to show where opportunities and risks are likely to appear. Present them as informed expectations rather than guarantees.
Pro tip Include at least one plausible variation from the expected pattern.
Watch out Do not describe a forecast as certainty.
- 4
Assign decision ownership
State which choices the performer must make in real time because the leader cannot see or control every detail. Clarify the boundary of that discretion.
Pro tip Name both the decision and the principle that constrains it.
Watch out Responsibility without authority or preparation is abandonment.
- 5
Adapt from the base
When conditions change, return to the non-negotiables, stabilise the team, and choose the best available action. Preserve coordination while changing the method.
Pro tip Use a simple reset cue the whole team recognises.
Watch out Improvisation should not break safety or regulatory boundaries.
- 6
Review the read
After execution, compare the observed conditions, chosen response, and result. Update preparation without trying to eliminate all future judgement.
Pro tip Review whether the read was sound separately from whether the outcome was lucky.
Watch out Outcome alone cannot show whether the decision process was good.
In the wild
Fernandes says a team may prepare all week for one formation and face another. Carrick's base and non-negotiables let players compact, coordinate, and reach halftime before detailed adjustments, rather than waiting for the manager to direct every movement.
→ The players retain structure while adapting to conditions the original plan did not predict.
A support lead teaches principles for protecting customers, recording evidence, and escalating risk. When an unfamiliar incident appears, the agent chooses a reversible containment step within those rules instead of waiting for a script that does not exist.
→ Frontline judgement resolves the immediate problem without abandoning the team's safeguards.
Common mistakes
Scripting every decision
Fernandes says the manager can show spaces and solutions but cannot choose the final pass or shot from the sideline.
Calling no structure freedom
Carrick's approach begins with a foundation and rules; adaptation is not an absence of coaching.
Judging only by outcome
A good read can fail in execution, while a poor decision can sometimes produce a favourable result.
Is it for you?
Best for
Fast-moving work where frontline performers have better real-time information than the leader.
Not ideal for
Safety-critical or regulated actions that require exact procedures, approvals, or tightly controlled execution.
From the transcript
“He gives you the base. He gives you the foundation.”
“I give you the solutions but might not be there”
“he lets the players read”
From the episode
Bruno Fernandes: Roy Keane Twisted My Words. They Offered Me £200M, I Said No.