Pete Carroll turned 74 two weeks into his first season as the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. That is a pretty wild statement. The Raiders, looking to reset their culture, hired the oldest coach in the NFL. Pete is still youthful, energetic and looks to be ready for at least a few more years at the helm.
Looking back over Carroll’s career, it is interesting to note that most of his highest points have come after his 50th birthday. Carroll took over the USC football program at 50 to rebuild the program and his reputation after being fired by the New England Patriots. At 49, Carroll was recently fired as an NFL head coach for the second time and it would have been easy to see him on the decline. He had seen some major highlights like leading a team to the Super Bowl, but maybe he wasn’t cut out for greatness.
The reasons for Carroll’s legendary career are what make him an incredible model for the modern career. Pete isn’t a prodigy like Sean McVay who reached the heights of their career by age 30. Pete has had ups and downs, but kept growing and learning to flourish after 50.
Pete Wins with People and Builds Culture
The news is currently filled with doomsday stories about AI devastating the job market. Its likely true that there will be a shift in the workforce as AI becomes increasingly adopted, but the greatest skillset that can help someone thrive is the ability to work with people.
Pete Carroll can relate across generations and has been known for his fun, but intense practices since his time at USC. Pete understands how to make the job enjoyable and cultivate positive vibes across the organization. This can be viewed simply as a personality trait, but it seems to be very intentional and thought out. If your job depends on getting peak performance out of dozens of individuals then the most important role of a leader is too keep the culture positive and engage the team.
Even if other coaches are stronger in strategy, no coach is better than Carroll at setting culture. This is likely the #1 reason Carroll is still employed in the NFL when arguably the greatest coach of all time, Bill Belichick, is finishing his career in college.
Pete Keeps Learning and Shifting
This is the most important lesson from Carroll’s career arc, but can be seen across the modern workplace. Change is constant and will catch everyone at times. Changing schemes in NFL offenses that Carroll couldn’t catch up with led to his departure from Seattle, but his ability to shift based on his players is why he is the greatest coach in Seahawks history.
In his early coaching career, Pete was able to turn short stints as the head coach of the Jets and Patriots into a winning college program at USC. Carroll seems to have endless positivity, but for the rest of us it is an encouragement to keep taking lessons as we progress in our career because you never know when you’ll have to pivot.
The biggest way that Carroll has learned to shift is in his ability to relate with the successive generations of players. He has shifted into the prototype modern coach. He doesn’t complain about Gen Z, but seems to genuinely enjoy being around a much younger crowd.
The curious thing will be to see if lessons from his time in Seattle will now pay dividends in his final act in Las Vegas. Based on the past, it wouldn’t be wise to bet against Carroll.
Pete is in Great Physical Shape
This is a big part of what keeps Carroll relevant in my opinion. His trademark energy comes from the fact that he has obviously taken care of himself through the years. He didn’t get burned out and out of shape during his successful run at USC and that has made it possible for his later acts.
Its tough to picture younger people taking anyone as seriously later in their career if they begin to wear down and seem more fragile. There is simply a level of physical strength required to stay in the mix.
I don’t aim to be working 60 hours a week into my early 70s, but I would like to be able to continue doing a career I enjoy into those years if its something that brings joy and purpose. The big lesson is that this needs to be a priority in my 40s and 50s while I’m busy with kids and life in order to have the option that Carroll has. I personally don’t want my lack of energy to force me in any direction later in life.
Pete has Found a Career He Wants to Continue
This is a major personal takeaway from Pete Carroll. I personally think it would be nuts to coach a football team, but its awesome to see a guy in his mid 70s who is still working on his terms. He could totally have hung it up and spent his time golfing, but he wanted to keep doing a job he loves.
There tends to be so much focus on early retirement, but I think that more attention needs to be paid by people to preparing for a potential career extending into later years. This can especially apply to careers like architecture or law where it takes decades to gain expertise and there isn’t a level of physicality that would prevent someone from working into their 70s.
People are getting married, buying homes and having kids later in life and so it kind of makes sense to shift the end of working life later too. We can look at it as a loss or we can approach it like Pete Carroll and embrace the challenge of staying in the game. I am personally challenged to emulate the gum chewing Carroll and fight to stay relevant rather than looking to fade out early.