Train Like a Rebel: What L&D Can Learn from Coaching, Bootcamps, and Theater
Is your leadership development stuck in a loop? Steal ideas from these places.
It’s still slide decks and breakout rooms. A few theoretical models. One or two roleplays. A “how did that feel?” debrief. We praise engagement, collect smile sheets, and call it success.
But what if we’re missing the most important part?
What if we stopped designing workshops and started building arenas?
The best leadership development isn’t safe. It’s structured discomfort. It requires people to stretch their thinking, confront their blind spots, and rehearse hard conversations before they happen in real life.
If you want leadership development that actually develops leaders, you need to start stealing from the places where performance really gets forged.
Let’s take a closer look at three unexpected sources: sports coaching, bootcamp training, and the performing arts. Each has something powerful to offer trainers who want to build leaders who are ready for the real world.
1. What Great Coaches Know: Reps Build Confidence
A good coach doesn’t just tell you what to do. They make you do it again until your body learns it.
They don’t say “Great job!” after the first try. They say “Let’s run that again. This time, eyes up, call it out earlier, and use your core.”
In leadership development, we often stop at awareness. But great coaches build performance.
What we can steal:
Micro-drills for key moments.
Instead of one big roleplay at the end, break leadership behaviors into mini-scenarios. Giving feedback, disagreeing with a peer, running a one-on-one. Then drill them—fast, focused, and with feedback.Layered repetitions.
Run the same scenario three times with new constraints each round.
Round 1: Just focus on tone
Round 2: Add time pressure
Round 3: Do it after receiving negative feedbackVisual feedback tools.
Coaches use video. We can, too. Have participants record a 2-minute pitch, meeting open, or tough conversation. Then debrief it with a peer using a checklist or rubric.
Coaches don’t chase clarity. They train capacity.
Leadership isn’t what you know. It’s what you can do under pressure.
2. What Bootcamps Know: Pressure Creates Readiness
Military, fire, and emergency services all train for moments that matter—when stakes are high and thinking gets cloudy.
They don't rely on lectures. They use scenario-based learning, high-stress drills, and structured after-action reviews to build both skill and composure.
What we can steal:
Mission-based simulations.
Give participants real-world tasks with time limits, unclear instructions, or limited information. Let tension rise. Then run an after-action review. What happened? What helped? What hurt?Build resilience through exposure.
Don’t protect learners from tough feedback, conflict, or challenge. Expose them to it and then debrief it. Use curated stress, not chaos.Pre-mortem exercises.
Before launching a leadership initiative or change, ask: “It’s one year later, and it failed. Why?” Let them anticipate risk, navigate uncertainty, and problem-solve in advance.
Bootcamp training doesn’t build experts. It builds readiness.
Your leaders may never face combat. But they will face layoffs, crises, and hard conversations. Train for that.
3. What Theater Knows: Presence Is Power
Actors rehearse before the show, not because they forget the lines, but because performance is about timing, energy, and connection.
Leadership is the same. You can’t “teach” presence in a slide deck. You have to practice being present and give people feedback on how they show up.
What we can steal:
Improv games for agility.
Use “Yes, And…” to build adaptability and listening. Try status games to teach social dynamics. Improv helps leaders react, not just act.Physical warmups.
Start the day with posture drills, breath work, or eye contact activities. Show people how their body language either amplifies or undermines their message.Moment-to-moment coaching.
After a mock presentation or pitch, give feedback like a director would. “Your tone dropped there. Did you notice? That pause was powerful. Use it more.”
Actors learn to engage an audience. Leaders need that skill too. Whether it’s a team meeting or a high-stakes boardroom pitch.
💥 Bonus: Other Fields to Steal From
We’ve only scratched the surface. You could also borrow techniques from:
Stand-up comedy (pacing, timing, vulnerability)
Emergency medicine (triage, communication, calm under fire)
Parenting (patience, clarity, values in action)
Hip-hop and spoken word (authenticity, storytelling, presence)
Martial arts (discipline, humility, focus)
Every field that trains for real performance has something to offer L&D.