Success On and Off the Court with Ethan Casson

Last week’s Good Leadership Breakfast was a powerful reminder of why sports can teach us so much about leadership and business. I was honored to have Ethan Casson, CEO of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx, share his insights on healthy accountability and what it means to lead with purpose.

Creating a Culture of Healthy Accountability

This fall, the Breakfast theme is Creating a Culture of Healthy Accountability. From the moment Ethan took the stage, his passion for healthy accountability was evident. As he talked about his role leading both the Timberwolves and the Lynx, he emphasized the importance of setting clear expectations and fostering open communication because it allows healthy accountability to thrive. “People want to know what is expected of them each day,” he emphasized. “They want clarity in their roles, their career trajectory, organization strategy, and the organization’s mission. They need to see where they are going.” This struck a chord with me because it’s at the heart of the Accountability Research Project – in order to have goodness, healthy accountability is the glue that holds it all together. 

What’s unique about Ethan’s leadership is how he sees no difference between the locker room and the board room. For him, the same principles that unite a sports team—accountability, commitment, and trust—should guide how leadership teams operate in the business world. “If the team can talk about it in the locker room, I want it to be transferable to the boardroom – and vice versa,” he explained. This means building a culture where everyone feels accountable not just to themselves but to the entire organization. Whether it’s on the court or in a meeting, individuals need to play their part in the bigger picture.

Ethan’s Success Habits

With every Good Leadership Breakfast speaker, we interview a few of their direct reports to identify their leader’s success habits. A success habit is something a leader repeats over and over, because it really works. Ethan was pleased to know his team shared these three success habits about his leadership: 

1. Infinite mindset: gratitude and opportunity in everything.
2. Pack mentality: we play hard, smart, together.
3. World-class, all the time.

Thank you, Ethan, for sharing your wisdom and reminding us that leadership is about more than the things that you can see on a strategic plan—it’s about leading with purpose, clarity, and an unwavering commitment to excellence. Here’s to creating more cultures of healthy accountability, where goodness pays.

Reserve your spot at the next Good Leadership Breakfast, where I’m excited to be featuring Craig Warren, CEO of Washburn Center for Children. You can do that here.