Repeated-Mistake Development Loop
Turn recurring errors into focused coaching interventions
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 93%
West approaches games as a scout, especially when watching younger players. He asks whether they are improving and looks for mistakes that appear repeatedly. The loop converts a broad concern into a concrete development target: observe the recurring error, identify the underlying skill or awareness problem, communicate what must improve, and provide someone who can work on it with the player. His examples include repeatedly stepping out of bounds because of footwork and failing to watch the ball because the player's head is not alert and mobile. The framework is useful because it grounds feedback in visible behavior rather than labels such as careless or weak. Progress is then judged by whether the specific mistake becomes less frequent in later performance.
Origin
As an executive and adviser, Jerry West continued attending games as a scout. He watched whether young players improved, flagged mistakes they made repeatedly, and recommended focused help to correct them.
Core principles
- 01Repeated mistakes reveal trainable constraints
- 02Small observable cues can explain larger performance gaps
- 03Feedback should name the behavior that must change
- 04The organization must provide focused support after diagnosis
How to run it
- 1
Watch for Improvement
Observe the person's real performance over time and ask whether important behaviors are getting better.
Pro tip Track the same behavior across several performances.
Watch out Do not diagnose from one bad moment.
- 2
Isolate the Recurrence
Name the exact mistake that keeps appearing and the conditions in which it occurs.
Pro tip Describe what a camera or neutral observer could see.
Watch out Avoid personality labels that cannot guide practice.
- 3
Find the Trainable Cause
Connect the repeated outcome to a specific skill, habit, or awareness gap such as footwork or visual attention.
Watch out The obvious outcome may have more than one cause.
- 4
Communicate the Correction
Tell the person and relevant leader what needs to improve in concrete terms.
Pro tip Pair the correction with the moment or cue that should trigger it.
- 5
Provide Focused Support
Assign a coach, practice, or resource that directly addresses the diagnosed gap, then observe again.
Pro tip Keep the intervention narrow enough to measure.
Watch out Feedback without support can leave the same mistake untouched.
In the wild
West notices that the same player repeatedly steps out of bounds near the sideline and corner three-point area. Instead of calling the player careless, he identifies footwork as the issue and says the player needs focused help to improve it.
→ A vague recurring error becomes a specific coaching target.
A manager notices that one team member repeatedly leaves meetings without recording assigned actions. The manager identifies the missing end-of-meeting capture habit, introduces a two-minute written recap, and reviews the next four meetings for improvement.
→ The observable mistake is addressed with a narrow, testable intervention.
Common mistakes
Giving personality feedback
Calling someone careless does not identify what to practice. Describe the recurring behavior and likely trainable cause.
Correcting an isolated error
One mistake may be noise. Confirm recurrence before designing an intervention.
Diagnosing without support
Pointing out a weakness is incomplete. Connect the person with focused practice or coaching and observe again.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for coaches and managers developing people through repeated observable work.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal for isolated failures caused by one-time conditions outside the performer's control.
From the transcript
“sometimes you see mistakes they make over and over and you point him out to our you know I do to our uh to Lawrence…”
“so you're going to need someone to work with him you need to get better at this you need to get better at this you…”
“how many guys a time do you see guys step out of bound normally it's the same person all the time so it's about footwork”
From the episode
Episode 354: In memory of Jerry West: A Journey of Resilience, Basketball Excellence, and Leadership Wisdom
In memory of Jerry West