Kent Maxson: Leadership, Culture, and Education-Based Athletics

What is the real purpose of sports? 

In this episode of Uncommon Impact, Nathan Whitaker sits down with Kent Maxson, Athletics Coordinator at the American School Foundation in Mexico City, to discuss leadership, culture, and why athletics should develop people—not just produce victories. 

Drawing from more than two decades of being involved in athletic programs in Qatar, Kenya, Vietnam, and Mexico, Kent shares how moving between cultures has shaped his philosophy of leadership. He explains why trust, active listening, and meaningful relationships create stronger teams than rules alone, and why great coaches measure success by who students become long after the final whistle. 

Whether you lead a business, a school, a team, or a family, this conversation offers practical insights into creating environments where people thrive. 

In this episode:

• Why education-based athletics matters

• Building trust before creating change

• Leading across different cultures

• Why listening is one of a leader's greatest strengths

• Helping people discover answers instead of giving instructions

• Why leadership is bigger than winning

About Nathan Whitaker

Nathan Whitaker is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, former NFL executive, Super Bowl champion, leadership speaker, and executive coach.

Learn more:

https://nathanwhitaker.com

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Uncommon Impact explores the people, experiences, and principles that shape extraordinary leaders and teams.

Transcript

Introduction

Nathan Whitaker 0:05

Today we have Kent Maxson as our guest. Kent is in charge of athletics at the American School Foundation in Mexico City, a school of several thousand students. It is a part of the international school framework, a framework that I didn't even know existed six, seven years ago. I first met Kent several years ago at an international school conference in Bangkok, Thailand, where I was speaking. And we've gotten to know each other more and more over the years, including the last couple of years when he's come over to the United States during breaks for the NIAAA conference and then to visit family. But the NIAAA, the national organization that oversees athletic directors, is one that he's gone to the conference that I've spoken at and we've seen each other. The last two years we've actually tried to see manatees. That was one of his goals. So a couple of years ago we came, you'll hear us talk about it, unsuccessful attempt, but this past year we did have success and saw a ton of manatees in the river. One of the things that I think the international schools do that is interesting, that other schools do more and more, even here in the US, is this focus on education-based athletics. This idea that winning is important, competing is important, and we learn important lessons from that in and of itself, the way we did when I was growing up, but then also a focus on what are we learning in terms of resilience, in terms of character development, in terms of collaboration and team building. And so I think all of us, whether we're in business or education or coaching or whatever our specific fields might be, I think there are always ways in which there's overlap between how we learn to live a life of significance, how we learn leadership, how we learn team building from people in different areas. Kent has over 20 years of experience in the international schools. He's been in Vietnam, Qatar, Kenya, and other places around the United States, in addition to now being in Mexico City. So I thought it was a really interesting conversation. He shared a lot about what he's learned about his journey and then about different cultures, cultures of schools, cultures of countries, and how to navigate some of those things as you build things that are important to you. I hope you enjoy.

Learning leadership by observation

Kent Maxson 2:20

So in my leadership journey, I think, I think back to my very beginning of professionalism, and I think about who shaped me and when you leave university or when you're in university, I don't feel like I had a great experience of this is what leadership is, and this is what it looks like. You learn from who you were coached by or taught by, and you learn from watching those around you who you think know more than you. And so in the beginning of my coaching career, I remember thinking, oh, well, then I need to yell, I need to slam a basketball, I need to stomp my foot in this in this sporting world. And and for me, it took took some time uh to move past, like, hey, my coaching is not a reflection of me, or winning is not a reflection of me, and move moving past that, and then evolving into who should I be watching for leadership and what does that look like? So I think back to like the most impactful beginning of leadership started when I moved to Doha, Qatar, and the athletic director at the school where I was was super experienced, had all sorts of experiences overseas and in the United States, and I just found them to be present but not overbearing. I found them to be supportive and welcoming. Um, they they always had uh an open door, and what stuck out to me was they lived this quote that was in their office, and it in their office they had a sign that said, as long as we don't worry who gets the credit, everybody wins. It may have been more eloquent than that, but that was the gist of it, and he lived that. And that was where I started transitioning from coaching successes about me to what am I doing with relationships? How are we building a culture? How are we going to make something that kids want to be a part of? And so that was really the kickstart for me as far as what's a real leader, what's a real leadership. And I still don't know that anyone was guiding me, it was just more observation. So after my family moved from Qatar, we moved to Nairobi, Kenya, and it was at the International School of Kenya where I started to think team culture should be at your forefront. The product needs to be, everybody wants to be here. It's fun first, we're getting better as people. And so I was there five years, and for me, it was all about team overhauls, and that's where I started thinking about athletics administration and kind of guiding more programs than just the one that I was a part of. So that was that was an eye-opener, and that's also when I started working with the NIAAA and going to NIAAA courses and focusing on education-based athletics, and I think I was able to write my own philosophy. And then you think that's a mindset that I can get on board with. These are like-minded people, so all of a sudden, instead of I might be around one person who's a leader and can model the way, it's you're in a room full of leaders who are committed to the same cause. That was a game changer for me. The last and most ultimate example I have is I recently worked in a school with a with a principal leader who was the ultimate leader I've ever worked with. And I I do honestly try all the time to be walking in their in their ways. They lifted me up on their shoulders and they changed the way that I look at working with others and leading others. They were big into cognitive coaching. And so every time we were together, it was like mentorship, coaching, support, trust, authenticity. Those were the qualities that defined this principal that I worked with, and I'm ever grateful. And so now, you know, as a as an administrator and a leader, my number one goal is that when people walk through my door, coaches, students, parents, they feel like they're the only thing that I'm focused on, and that my goals and my mission are alive in our conversations. And so this leader did that for me. I just try to be a fraction of that because he was so amazing. He made me more confident in my capabilities as a leader.

Nathan Whitaker 6:36

That's great. And talk about an uncommon impact to have somebody who is really delving into mentorship and all the other pieces, which are challenging and time consuming, and sometimes it'd be easier to just do what you got to do and and move on. Let me pick up on a word you talked about. You talked about team culture,

Building team culture

Nathan Whitaker 6:53

which is so important and so critical, but I want to broaden it just a hair. You you hinted a little bit about you know being in Qatar. Am I saying that right?

Kent Maxson 7:02

Yep.

Nathan Whitaker 7:02

All right, and then going to Kenya. And of course, you've been to Asia a couple of times, and now you're back in North America and Mexico. But we we think about, you know, we've got lots of leaders, and I've I'll hear people say, Um, in fact, great, great story where Tony Dungy was approached by an NFL owner who said, uh, can you help me interview for my next head coach? Tony was retired. And the owner said, you know, can you help me interview? Because, you know, I really need to get this right. And Tony said, Well, you know, you're worth, you know, however many billion dollars because of all these businesses you've built, all you're doing is hiring a leader. And the owner said, No, no, no, this is different. Football is different. And Tony said, No, when you hire somebody for your real estate firm, you're hiring a leader. Now they do need to know real estate, maybe, but the same is true in football. You're hiring a leader. So anyway, all that is a long way to say, whether it's in these different countries or in a different field or in education, at its root leadership, I think, is leadership, and the principles carry over and the skills carry over. What are some things you've had to deal with and you've gone, though, to different cultures? Do you keep quiet for a while and figure out how things work in this country or in this school? Or were you able to jump in and say, nope, we're gonna, there's certain non-negotiables we're gonna do, or how do you how do you navigate the idea of a culture?

Kent Maxson 8:18

Yeah, so moving around overseas, and and my wife and I have been doing this for over 20 years, and my kids uh have been along for the journey for 16 years and 13 years. Every time you change cultures, it's not just the country, it's the culture of the school, it's the culture of the people at your school, it's your day-to-day everything. You you are leaving familiarity. And when you do that, you've you've got a lot of growing to do. And so for me, the hardest part is when you leave an international community to go to a new one, you're leaving friends and you're leaving that school community or your social group, and but you're starting over with a language, with housing, with um, I don't know, the school and the city and the country. Everything starts at zero. And so when you arrive, it is it is overwhelming. And and some countries are easier than others. Um, it was easy to move to the Middle East, you know, it was uh everything was just kind of set up in English, and you could just get by in English, and that was no problem. You know, moving to Vietnam, very challenging. Language, written language, chaos in Hanoi, you you name it, it just it's different everywhere. So, you know, changing cultures is is all about limiting your frustrations and asking questions, but it's not that easy the first time you do it. I think, you know, my family, my wife and I, this is our sixth country overseas. So we've we've been doing this a while, and I won't pretend that there aren't frustrations, and I won't pretend that it's always easy, but you do you do get used to it, and you do kind of get an understanding of what are my priorities when I arrive, what are the things that we really need to focus on. And so, in an organization, it's a lot about professional expectations, it's about how do you fit in this new culture because you can only find out so much in interviews, and I think there's a level of humility as well because you have to ask for help. Um, and you know, when you leap somewhere as an administrator or as a person who's been there, you understand everything, and going back to zero in that sense is hard to uh you have to swallow your pride a bit and balance I know how to do this or I don't. Um, so that that's those are all parts of changing cultures, but I think listening and learning and building relationships is at the core of all of it, and that's how you survive when you when you jump from country to country or school to school. And I'm sure even if I was working in the United States, if I was switching school districts, it would probably be similar as well.

Leading through different cultures

Nathan Whitaker 10:58

So I think about sometimes think about you know possibly moving across town, which feels overwhelming. Certainly a little bit different to go from from country to country. Interesting idea, right? Because there are certain, as you talk about, there's certain probably non-negotiables. We're, you know, we're gonna make sure it's fun, we're gonna make sure it's a culture that people want to be, uh a culture within the program that people want to be a part of. But at the same time, coming in with this sense of, I mean, I'm sure there's part of you going, I look, I've been doing this for 20 years, I know what I'm doing. But you have to say, no, I'm at I'm at ground zero and I'm uh I'm starting over and let me let me navigate uh the situation as I as I go.

Kent Maxson 11:37

And it's a balance too, Nathan, because sometimes you want to just jump in and attack something, but you don't want to step on toes, burn bridges, relationships. And so knowing how to navigate things gracefully, and then also knowing where you don't overdo it, and you you know, you lean on others, build trust and ask questions to try and make change over time. And yeah, it's it's uh it's a delicate balance.

Nathan Whitaker 12:05

Yeah. Well, every, you know, the the but the coming back to the whether it's a delicate balance of of moving or a culture or um, you know, so many of these conversations come back to trust and communication. Let

Overcoming challenges overseas

Nathan Whitaker 12:18

me pivot just a tad and um and talk about challenges. So you talked about positive relationships you've had and mentoring experiences, but I'm sure at times there are challenges you've run across, whether they've been personal, professional, or leaders you've experienced. What about that? What about bouncing back and some of the qualities uh that you've picked up on or lessons you've learned?

Kent Maxson 12:40

Yeah, you know, there are times where you talk to people who haven't experienced international teaching or an overseas lifestyle, and it's it might sound very glamorous, but um elements anyway. But you do have you do have those challenges. And I've I've been in a workplace that was toxic where you felt like mistrust was a minefield every day, and you were on eggshells, and you you didn't know when something was gonna come at you, and and that's exhausting and it steals the fun. And that could happen in any workplace, not just in education. So I've been there. Um, my first overseas teaching job was not what I was promised in my interview. And so, upon arrival, there was, you know, I was fresh, fresh out of the United States, there was disappointment, there was confusion, there was wondering am I the issue or is this the way it always is? And so those those things have always been there, just like any workplace. And so for me, I think about like what I've learned. And in these challenging situations, is not everything's gonna be perfect. I have to be flexible. Um, everything's an opportunity. Um, I think it's the The Art of Possibility is a book that I read that just speaks to make the best out of everything and how can you approach things, and that really landed with me. So on my toughest days, whether it's challenges with a student athlete or challenges with an administrator or culture, whatever it is, overseas there are lots of unique situations, and I always think, you know, what's the opportunity in this? And what can I control? What can I not control? And I guess for me, in these challenging situations, I rely on the network of people that I have around the world. I've worked with people on a variety of continents who have also moved to all these different schools, and you know from the NIAAA conferences what how many different places the international ADs are from. I can lean on, I can lean on a hundred people and ask them questions. How do you navigate this at your school? So I guess that's an effort in battling, you know, loneliness, feeling like I'm alone in this international place, and what do I do? I'm I'm grateful for relationships and people to help, and I do believe over time I have developed the confidence that I can navigate these situations. I do have the experience, um, experiences to do that. So there's also some lean inward and and believe that I can do it. But when I when I reflect on all the different challenges that everyone faces, I guess those are the things that come to mind.

Nathan Whitaker 15:24

Yeah. Well, good. Well, some so some sense of gratitude, as you're in it for what you can be grateful for. Maybe it's not everything. Uh and the sense that you can lean on others, and then once you've been through it, you can kind of lean on yourself. And and you may not know the answers, but you know that eventually this too shall pass.

Kent Maxson 15:42

Or you'll figure it out. And that takes time too, just to believe that I can solve this problem. Um, but it is nice to have other people around for sure.

Nathan Whitaker 15:52

Yeah. I keep waiting for the moment where everything's great and there's no more challenges or uh or hard times. But apparently those aren't that's not promised.

Kent Maxson 16:02

It's it's funny, you know, when people ask, how are things in Mexico City? I'll tell them every day is different, no day is the same. And so that means something pops up different every single day. There is there is no perfect day where I can kick my feet up on the desk and I just watch the world go by. So I don't know what that day would be like when there's nothing to worry about or nothing to work on. Yeah.

Nathan Whitaker 16:24

Yeah. Well, maybe that day was when uh was when you came to visit, and uh my wife and I took you manatee uh paddle boarding to to check out manatees. Maybe that was the perfect day where you didn't have to worry about some of this stuff.

Kent Maxson 16:36

Yes, the second time we went.

Nathan Whitaker 16:38

The second time, yes, two years ago, no manatees, last year manatees. Yes, thank you for reminding me of that challenge. You fly all the way to the United States and I can't find a manatee.

Kent Maxson 16:48

Yeah.

Active listening builds trust

Nathan Whitaker 16:49

Well, let me ask you this. Had there been uh in these experiences, the the relationships you've built, were there any habits or disciplines where you picked up from somebody and you said, hey, this is a great thing, and you've something you've incorporated that's been helpful? Or on the converse, right? There are times when I read something and I'm like, oh, that'll be great, and I'll do it for like a week and go, that doesn't fit my style at all, or my cir- circadian rhythm or whatever it is. Uh what about you?

Kent Maxson 17:17

You know what comes to mind first on this question is that when I moved to Mexico City and I oversee competitive athletics, I think I oversee 60 or 65 coaches. And it my number one priority was to build relationships and trust right away. And and to do that, I had to come in and I I had to, I reflected on the leader that I talked about who has impacted me the most. And so the habit that I created was in every interaction, whether it was on the soccer pitch or if it was on the American football field or in the court for basketball or volleyball or tennis upstairs, it was to make that person feel like you're the only person I'm thinking about right now. And what you say with me is landing with me, and I'm receiving it authentically, you know. So I guess active listening is one of the most important things that I learned from uh the principal leader that I think of, and make that person feel like the only person in the room. Um, when I reflect back to that time when I met with that principal regularly, they would leave their desk, leave their computer, create a separate environment for the meeting based on eye contact and body language. So I think those things landed with me and I've carried those with me. And so for me, the idea that everything else can wait is it's something I'm still battling. I'm not perfect at it. I'm impatient when I have a job to do, I want it done, and I want it done now. So when someone walks through my open door, sometimes it's hard to stop what I'm fully invested in. But that's my goal. You know, that's my that's my number one thing. So I guess I want to meet with people, listen, and empower them to talk through concerns or worries and create questions that they find the answers to through some guidance. And and that's my number one goal, be a listener and empower others.

Nathan Whitaker 19:23

Wow. That's great. You know, so often, well, I think for most of us, we're okay-ish at it, right? I mean, I'm I'm kind of, and we both may hear the phone buzzing in my pocket, and so then I'm thinking, all right, you know, should I check that? And you're thinking, all right, is he hearing me anymore? Because his phone's buzzing, or whatever it may be, and and they're just lots of things, or then just kind of zoning off to the other things I was trying to get done. And then on the, you know, so then on one end of the spectrum is is the leader and and what you're working toward of where I'm totally locked in. And then on the other end, which is so uh dispiriting, is when you can tell somebody's looking over your shoulder at like who else is in the room that they can talk to or where do they need to go next. And you realize, and so I find myself in the middle of a sentence going, do I even need to finish this sentence? What am I, yeah, I'm gonna I'm gonna go now. And and so anyway, that's so powerful though, to sit there and lock in on people. What a great habit to pick up on.

Kent Maxson 20:16

Yeah, and it's good you don't stop to check your phone because it's probably me messaging about whatever sports are going on.

Nathan Whitaker 20:22

Right, right. You're the only person who pings me about Iowa State sports. So I've learned to uh try to pull for the Cyclones. And of course,

Creating buy-in through questions

Nathan Whitaker 20:30

my wife reminds me that's where she was born, so I should pull for Iowa State. Um let me ask you just a little bit, we've got a couple minutes left. Just quickly, just a thought about buy-in. So you've come in, you're square zero, you're brand new. There are certain things you want to accomplish over time. So you're listening, you're trying to develop relationships. How do you get buy-in? Or are there times when you decide, you know what, I've got, would you say 65 coaches? Some of these programs you guys have are nuts. So are there certain things where you're like, look, I need all 65 to make sure that we treat the kids appropriately, that the kids are having whatever the non-negotiables are. And then what are the things where you go, you can have some latitude on whether you want to run an attacking offense or a I don't know. I'm just making that up.

Kent Maxson 21:10

Sure. So coming in, you you have an idea of what education-based athletics are, and then you work together with your department to say, here are the things our department stands for, and here's what our athletics department strives for. And but then you have 65 coaches and other people involved, and they are built by their life experiences, and their life experiences are different than yours, and they're I was coached like this experiences, or I have always coached this way experiences. So, why would they, in this environment where people turn over regularly, why would they listen to me as I come in? And that's the challenge is how do I get them to believe that I'm knowledgeable, that I care, I care about them and kids and their program because they're their own. Ownership level is so high for what they commit to and what they lead and teach. So, you know, without going too far back into like relationships matter, trust matters upon arrival. How are you gonna build that? And and I do it through listening and open door. But one of the things I've been doing more and more of this year is with if I see a habit or behavior from a coach, I don't immediately coach them and say, All right, change it, do this. This is better. I'll invite them in and I'll ask questions. And that's the thing is you know, I'll ask, what message do you think that sent to the student? Um, tell me about the goals of this game. Um, you know, how might that be perceived if if you were perceiving that? Or you know, these are these are the types of things where it lands with a lot of coaches, not everybody, but what I'm really trying to do is get them to explore different thoughts instead of being one-track minded. And I do think the best way to do that is to have a vast bank of thoughtful, engaging questions that gets them to think and find their own way forward. That's challenging because, like I said, we can be impatient. We want results and we want things to be done right. We want them to be done the way we want them done. So I work with people who are very um people come in, they say whatever it is, and they say, do this, do this, do this, and that's it. It takes more time, and I think it takes more energy to empower others. But I've had great success already this year. I've had really warm feedback, and um, I think the the warmest things I hear are we're just so glad you're here. We're glad you understand our culture, and not just at the school, but like Mexican culture and us as Mexicans. And it's been it's been a dynamite year for relationships, and it's it's great to be near the end of the school year and be reflecting on that. Um makes makes it feel makes it feel worth it.

Nathan Whitaker 23:59

Just I'm glad to hear that. I'm not surprised. That was part of why I was intrigued to to hear from you, because you're in a brand new situation. Well, you know, got all the experience, but you're in a brand new situation at a huge school. Um, but I think there's so much truth there with the empowering. You know, it's one thing to say you've got to do X, Y, and Z. It's another thing when the person gets there, if they can, if you can talk through it, and if they can, if they get there on their own, it's so much more powerful to have them say, Oh, you know what? I really I think I'd like to do, you know, like you with the act of listening, right? You see that over time and you're like, wow, I want to be the person who gets up from around their desk and is totally locked in, versus you walking in and somebody goes, You need to listen better.

Kent Maxson 24:38

Yeah.

Nathan Whitaker 24:39

But for you to see it and and own it is is different.

Kent Maxson 24:42

It's and I don't and I don't live it perfectly every day, right? But I'm trying and always getting better. And I think that's being realistic and knowing that I have growth opportunities as well is is really important.

Nathan Whitaker 24:54

Well, good. Yeah, we all have room for growth, right? If we and if we don't think that, we're we're fooling ourselves. Hopefully we do. So let

It's bigger than winning

Nathan Whitaker 25:00

me just wrap with this. We've talked about impact and and a little bit about being uncommon. What does uncommon impact mean to you right now is as you sit there in a different spot and and reflecting on a year in Mexico City?

Kent Maxson 25:13

I think the on the uncommon impact that I'm bringing, and and I love the name, by the way. Um it really made me think. But the the uncommon impact that I'm bringing is just the idea that what we do is bigger than winning. It's it's bigger than winning and losing, and the impact we have goes far beyond what kids do in high school. We do, we do have a community that's um winning motivated, championships motivated. And so it doesn't always land that we want to equip kids, student athletes for life beyond this school, beyond university. You know, what they learn now really matters. And so when we're trying to drive home these values, there's a there's a reason. And so that greater purpose, you know, education-based athletics is not about winning or losing, it's about who we become. So I think that's the that's the uncommon impact, is that I'm trying to make change that's systemic or bigger than this school. I'm really trying to change the way that people think and act, and I'm trying to do it through sports. So uh mindset shifts are hard, but that's that's the uncommon impact, I think.

Nathan Whitaker 26:28

Awesome. Awesome. I'm gonna I'm gonna end there. I'm just gonna affirm that though. I I actually had a conversation uh with a head of school at another school in Mexico a week ago. We were talking about this and talking about sports, and he said, you know, I I am not much of a sports person, but I have so many more things I learned as a kid on the sports fields than I ever have applied higher-level mathematics to. And all my teachers told me, no, the math is the important thing, and he said, I've learned so much more about life, even as an academician on the field. So great, great, keep having that impact, and God bless you as you go.

Kent Maxson 27:05

Thanks, Nathan.

Nathan Whitaker 27:05

And thanks so much for taking the time with me. And you're about to start your day, and good luck wrapping up your year, and thanks for your time.

Kent Maxson 27:13

It was a pleasure. My first podcast. I'm glad I did it with you.

Nathan Whitaker 27:17

Awesome. Perfect. Thanks so much.