CHARACTER
The Go-Giverby Bob Burg and John David Mann

The Coach (George Henshaw)

The Coach (George Henshaw)

Quick Facts

  • Role: Mentor and “high-level executive coach” guiding one protagonist through a high-stakes negotiation
  • First appearance: Chapter 5 (in his office, “the dugout”)
  • Background: Former professional boxer and high school coach turned executive coach to leaders in sports and business
  • Primary settings: His trophy-lined “dugout,” the Juice Caboose, and a breakfast kitchen for kids
  • Key relationships: Gillian Waters (mentee), The Judge—Celia Henshaw (wife and parallel mentor), Elizabeth Bushnell/Mrs. B./Aunt Elle (his own mentor), Jackson Hill (indirect beneficiary of the Henshaws’ partnership)

Who They Are

The Coach (George Henshaw) is the book’s disarming sage—a former fighter who refashions the competitive instinct into a discipline of service and strategic calm. His “Winning Strategy” reframes influence from clever argument to character-driven presence. Meeting Gillian in ordinary places (a juice bar, a community kitchen), he turns grand business questions into simple, repeatable habits that tilt the game toward Collaboration over Competition and Genuine Influence vs. Manipulation. He doesn’t just teach tactics; he trains a mindset where winning means everyone leaves stronger.

Personality & Traits

The Coach embodies what he teaches: warm but incisive, humble yet authoritative, funny without softening the truth. He trims big ideas to essentials—metaphors, five-minute lessons, and rituals you can practice under pressure—so persuasion becomes a discipline rather than a trick.

  • Enthusiastic and welcoming: He greets Gillian like an old teammate—“Gillian Waters! Come in, kid—great to see you!” (Chapter 5)—instantly lowering defenses so real learning can begin.
  • Direct and efficient: He “didn’t waste any time getting down to it” (Chapter 5), modeling the precise, no-fluff clarity he wants Gillian to use in negotiations.
  • Wise and insightful: He reads what people need before they say it, translating complex dynamics into simple distinctions (like manipulation vs. persuasion) that unlock better choices.
  • Humble and grounded: Despite elite clients, he meets in a juice bar, wears sweats, and volunteers at a kids’ breakfast kitchen—his settings reinforce that influence grows from service, not status.
  • Playful and humorous: Light teasing (“crazy old bat,” Chapter 11) and self-deprecation about his “busted schnozz” (Chapter 5) keep tough lessons approachable and human.

Physical Presence

A body that tells his story—compact, tough, and reassuringly solid—mirrors the sturdiness of his advice.

  • “A head shorter than Gillian, built like a fireplug” (Chapter 5)
  • “Close-cropped white hair” and a nose “broken and reset more than once” (Chapter 5)
  • Hands “like a pair of catcher’s mitts” (Chapter 5)
  • Casual dress—khakis, short-sleeve shirts, tennis shoes, or sweats—underscores his unpretentious approach (Chapters 5–6)

Character Journey

The Coach is a steady pole star rather than a transforming hero. His constancy is the point: by staying rooted in his “Winning Strategy,” he creates the psychological safety Gillian needs to risk a new way of winning. He sequences her growth: first reframing “winning” from adversarial to collaborative, then installing the Five Secrets—Breathe, Listen, Smile, Be Gracious, Trust—so persuasion becomes embodied, not merely argued. The kitchen visit converts ideals into muscle memory through service. By the time of the final toast, his partnership with The Judge reveals that his mentoring is part of a larger ecosystem of shared values—the book’s broader The Go-Giver Philosophy of Value Creation. He doesn’t arc; he architects others’ arcs.

Key Relationships

  • Gillian Waters: The heart of the relationship is training, not advice. In crisp, five-minute drills, he rebuilds how Gillian shows up in conflict: calm first (Breathe), curiosity before argument (Listen), warmth as leverage (Smile), generosity as advantage (Be gracious), and confident letting-go (Trust). Their rapport—easy banter, no-nonsense feedback—lets her test new habits in real time.
  • The Judge (Celia Henshaw): Their late reveal as spouses reframes the narrative: two mentors coaching in parallel, aligning complementary principles into one philosophy. Their toast isn’t just celebration; it’s proof that partnership—and not lone-wolf brilliance—powers sustainable influence.
  • Elizabeth Bushnell (Mrs. B. / Aunt Elle): The Coach openly claims Mrs. B. as his mentor (“she started coaching me,” Chapter 11), modeling lifelong teachability. Volunteering together shows their shared thesis: influence scales with service. His teasing warmth signals respect and equality, not irreverence.

Defining Moments

The Coach’s lessons arrive as scenes that double as training modules—each one a behavior he wants Gillian to practice under stress.

  • The First Meeting in “the dugout” (Chapter 5): He draws the line between manipulation and persuasion and flips “winning” from domination to collaboration. Why it matters: it reframes the negotiation’s goal, changing every downstream tactic.
  • The Juice Caboose series (Chapters 6–12): He delivers the Five Secrets of Genuine Influence in snackable sessions.
    • Breathe: Regulate yourself first so the room can regulate with you.
    • Listen: Trade the urge to convince for the power to understand.
    • Smile: Signal safety and goodwill; warmth is strategic, not naive.
    • Be gracious: Turn gratitude and generosity into practical leverage.
    • Trust: Let go of control to invite voluntary alignment. Why it matters: he converts values into repeatable micro-skills that perform under pressure.
  • The Breakfast Kitchen with Mrs. B. (Chapter 11): Service becomes curriculum; Gillian watches influence grounded in gratitude and contribution. Why it matters: generosity stops being theory and becomes process.
  • The Final Toast (Chapter 14): The Coach and The Judge celebrate their mentees and reveal their marriage. Why it matters: the story’s two mentorships resolve into a unified, collaborative philosophy.

Essential Quotes

“Manipulation is about getting someone to do what you want them to. For your reasons. Persuasion is getting someone to do what they want to do, for their reasons.”
— Chapter 5
This is the book’s core distinction. The Coach relocates power from pushing outcomes to aligning desires, making persuasion a service to others’ goals rather than a conquest of their will.

“In sports, winning is about competition, right? In business, winning is about collaboration.”
— Chapter 5
He recodes “winning” to fit the arena. The line validates his fighter past while insisting that grown-up victory requires partners, not opponents—a template for Gillian’s negotiation.

“Manipulation might sometimes win the game, but it never wins the game.”
— Chapter 5
The paradox sticks in your head to make a moral point practical: short-term tricks can score, but they cost trust—so the real game (long-term influence) is lost. He’s teaching time horizons as much as ethics.

“The substance of persuasion, is influence. Genuine influence... And as a dear friend of mine says, the substance of influence is pull. Not push.”
— Chapter 9
Pull reframes power as attraction and permission, not force. The Coach compresses his method into physics: create conditions people want to move toward, and they’ll move themselves.

“If you know why you’re playing the game, then even if you lose, you win. And if you forget why you’re playing? Then even if you win, you lose.”
— Chapter 12
He anchors tactics to purpose. With a clear why, outcomes become feedback rather than verdicts; without it, success empties out. The quote protects Gillian from hollow victories and keeps her aligned with value creation.