When Frank Zaccari’s professional career took his family to Seattle, his personal interest in women’s volleyball prompted an opportunity for him to get involved with the University of Washington program: the Huskies. In “From the Ashes,” Frank Zaccari discusses in great detail the sequence of events that led to the success of UW volleyball, as noted in the subtitle The Rise of the University of Washington Volleyball Program.
Frank Zaccari was not your typical spectator in what is a spectator sport. From the early days of taking her daughters to the local women’s volleyball competition, she became aware of the dichotomy of skill levels between the institutions involved in the sport. He describes the mismatch of having a PAC-10 team, which is the best volleyball conference in the world, against a mere varsity team as analogous to leading lambs to the slaughter. What makes a team so superior? This question brought Frank Zaccari’s professional problem-solving techniques, used so successfully in business, to life as a sports advocate.
Cleverly and with a minutiae of detail specifically geared toward the UW women’s volleyball team, Zaccari begins his description of the philosophies designed to ultimately lead the UW team to championships. One of his theories, titled the Hedgehog Theory, is when the use of new or different tactics results in continued failure, due to not addressing the problem, as excerpted below:
“The fox is a cunning creature, capable of using a myriad of complex strategies to sneak attack the hedgehog…The hedgehog is a more scruffy creature…spends the day foraging for food and taking care of its home. The fox plots and schemes a complex series of daily attacks, while the hedgehog focuses solely on what it deems important. When the fox leaps to attack, the hedgehog simply rolls into a perfect little ball. It becomes a sphere of sharp spikes, pointing outward at all directions. The fox is forced to retreat and continues to plan and plot his next failure.”
Frank Zaccari points out that it all starts with having the right leader. Someone able to articulate their vision, inspire the group, have great wisdom in selecting the right people for the right tasks, and always stay focused on the “goal.” This is true in sports, life and business.
“From the Ashes” is written for a niche audience, particularly focused on college women’s volleyball competition. In fact, a generous donation from the book sale will be given to the University of Washington volleyball program. The book is packed with details about the players, coaches, and competition histories of UW events and other teams, so in my opinion, the general public may find this book of parallel interest only if one is a devoted fan. to sports. However, for those involved in college sports, From the Ashes becomes required reading and you can apply the themes, strategies, and suggestions to your own life; I truly believe that you will find that they will help you along your journey to success. As legendary coach Vince Lombardi of the Green Bay Packers football team and Phil Jackson of the LA Lakers basketball team would subscribe to the principles presented in “From the Ashes,” Frank Zaccari contains many words of history, reason, and motivation. in his inspiring book. To all the UW women’s volleyball players, we shout out, “POINT! HUSKIES!”
