Showing posts with label team strategy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label team strategy. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 7, 2017

Champion Football Team Strategies: Lessons You Can Apply to Your Small Business




Small business owners can find inspiration and guidance in many places. Whether you like tackling books for entrepreneurs or watching shows about successful figures, you can learn valuable business lessons through a variety of entertainment channels. In fact, you can even gain leadership insights by watching an NFL team battle its way through the playoffs. Here are some small business strategies that you can learn from a champion football team.


1. Protect the ball


The NFL teams that end up on top are often those that can control the ball and avoid turnovers. After all, when it comes time for the big game, one interception can cost a team the title, as was the case for the Seattle Seahawks in 2015. Instead of sticking to its winning game plan, Seattle took a chance, and it cost the team the championship when the New England Patriots were able to capitalize on their error.

When you dictate the terms and pace of play, you are less vulnerable to risk and have more opportunities to win. The same goes for small business owners and their clients. You should strive to protect your relationship with your best clients at all costs. If your business experiences a downward slump, these core accounts can keep you going until you are able to return to better days.

2. Play as a team

As a small business owner, it is important for you to accept that people make mistakes. The sooner you forgive and move on, the sooner your team can get back to achieving its goals. While it may be difficult for many athletes to accept weakness, you will find that the best teams are ready to support one another when a receiver drops an easy pass or the quarterback misses his wide-open target.

Members of a champion football team are quick to shrug off lapses. This approach keeps confidence levels high and communicates the need for unity above all. Small businesses thrive on the same sense of mutual support. You should strive to project confidence in your employees' abilities and move past mistakes quickly. After all, people can do their best work when they are not held back by the fear of failing.

3. Master the art of preparation


Football is a game in which strong coaches dominate. Those who are prepared to maximize their team's strengths and exploit the opposition's weaknesses tend to win. This makes preparation crucial, especially when it comes time to face the best teams in the playoffs. While you can take pride in your ability to improvise, this skill is no substitute for thorough preparation when you have an important meeting or presentation ahead.

4. Learn from defeat


Great teams are not afraid to look in the mirror after failure, and this approach serves small business owners in the same way. When you find yourself down after losing an account or missing a key deadline, huddle with your staff members and find out what happened. Once you determine what you did wrong and fix it, you can lower your chances of repeating the mistake.


5. Be able to improvise


You have to attack every day, game, or quarter with a solid plan, all the while understanding that your methods and systems should be subject to change. Great coaches have a fallback plan for every calamity that might set in, and the ability to improvise can often make all the difference in the big game. As a business owner, you too should know when to change gears. Have a plan but be nimble enough to adjust it as circumstances change..

As a small business owner, you can learn many things from a champion football team. The next time you encounter a problem at work, try thinking about how your favorite football coach would tackle the situation.