7 Key Business & Life Principles behind Englands World Cup Semi-Final Run.

You may or might not have heard. England are through to a first soccer World Cup Semi-Final since Italia 90, and the nation has been slowly but surely energised in levels not seen since Euro 96..

The effect of this run has been tremendous! There is euphoria sweeping the nation with song, dance hugs, and celebration. Why? Because we won!

Expect a spike in babies between April and May 2019 and a boost to the economy when Q3 2019 results come out.

Ethnicity and gender have not mattered and generosity has been present everywhere.

People are smiling and actually saying hello to each other ( even in the streets of London!) and many things just do not matter...

Sport has lessons for us to take on board, I suppose it's' how life unfolds just within a set period of time. I have distilled 7 of the key principles behind Englands semi-final run.

Here are the 7 Principles behind England's world cup run.

1. Team & Harmony

One particular highlight has been Gareth's emphasis of 'Team England', this included staying behind at St George's to prepare and making sure the team bonded.

He also left out characters that might have been disruptive to the harmony of the squad.

Everyone that has been called on has delivered and there have been no grumblings or leaks from the squad.

Questions & Thought:

• Am I a purifier or a poisoner in a team situation? Can I play the team game? Who or what are you tolerating in your business right now?

You can't do this alone.

2. Redemption & Resilience.

The picture of Gareth Southgate consoling the Columbian penalty taker shortly after leading England to a first World Cup shootout victory moved me.

When the world collapsed for him in 1996, I cannot imagine that a month has gone by in 22 YEARS where some reference has not been made to that penalty shoot-out miss.

This would have haunted him LONG after the Pizza Hut money ran out.

He also suffered the humiliation of relegation with Middlesbrough and an ignominious exit from a tournament as U21 boss. Furthermore, he got offered a part-time contract as England boss on a pittance of the salary the role commands.

Say what you may about Gareth he has always conducted himself with dignity, even with Big Sam on the sidelines continually going on about the great injustice.

His character and resilience have shown through.

Should we talk about Harry Kane or Jesse Lingard who were on loan at 8 Clubs before making a breakthrough, Or Jordan " Too Short” Pickford, Or Kieran Trippier who was cut from Man City as a kid, worked his way up to warm the bench for Kyle Walker two seasons ago to a semi-final in the World Cup, or Raheem Sterling, vilified before the World Cup, who put in a shift today or Jordan Henderson “ The poor man's Stevie G” doing what Stevie has never done. The list could go on.

Questions & Thought:

• Is it really over? Can I come back? What would happen if I persevere? What have you learnt? Do you have a robust process to build on feedback?

If you can bounce back and keep going, you can go further than you were and take others with you.

3. Reliability & Performance

Ultimately you have to perform. And the team have been doing just that. The players have trusted their manager and the manager has returned the favour.

They are being effective and when they are on the pitch, the get the results because they have performed.

Gareth has picked people who he can rely on and been clear on this from day one.

Questions and Thought:

• Can you be relied on? Can you perform when presented with the opportunity? Do you keep your word to your stakeholders?

If people can rely on you and can perform when they need you too, you too can be part of a winning team.

4. Focused deep belief

Gareth has always believed in his system and backed his principles. This does not win you popularity contests but might just win you the world cup. He has had a quiet belief about the system he plays, the personnel he wanted and how he wanted the team to play.

He also transmits this to his players. He dropped big name players, Including England's record goalscorer and has never deviated from his picks or bowed to pundits opinions.

He transmits this to the players.

Questions and thought:

• If you do not believe your ideas why should anyone else? Do you know what you want with enough clarity to know what you don’t want? Does your vision attract the right team and partners?

Conviction is contagious. Once convicted act with courage.

5. Sacrifice

Something has to give. Statistic show only 180 of 1.5 MILLION kids playing organised youth football make it as Premier league pro that's 0.012%.

Looking at the team, players like Kyle Walker have sacrificed their best position and comfort to play for the team, these players are also away for 6 -8 weeks after a long season to play for their country.

The goalkeepers all train each other and have to sacrifice ego for the good of the team.

Questions and thought:

• You might know what you want to get but are you prepared to give up what you need to give up? Is there a line you have to discontinue in business? Do you have to sacrifice some vanity metrics?

“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit” Harry Truman

6. Humility

The key to this run has been the low profile and the proper respect given to the opposition, the media and players to each other.

Funny how in this tournament, the saying “Pride comes before a fall” has rung so true.

The Germans choked, the Brazilians did not do it either, Messi went missing, Ronaldo couldn’t save Portugal, Suarez did not soar, Neymar embarrassed himself, and the Spanish were caught sleeping.

Gareth has ( had) managed to keep a lid on the expectations and avoid the lofty and unjustified over inflation of England’s talents and ‘right’ to succeed and totally ignoring half a century of senior level underachievement.

Questions and thought:

• Are you over inflating your prowess? Is your Ego running rampant? Are you underestimating your competition?

Being humble is not weak. It's being strong enough to know that you don’t have to boast and you are not better.. or worse than anyone else.

7. Preparation & Hard Work

A meticulous attention to detail has been a hallmark of this England set-up. From Gareth and his team reading a 16 Page dossier on Sweden way back in MAY, practicing penalties ( including the walk) since MARCH and even having the penalty takers on Jordan Pickford bottle.

The careful analysis of Set Pieces has meant that England are well on their way to have scored the most amount of Goals from Set pieces in the history of the World Cup.

This principle is to prepare for the predictable unpredictable..

You know in a 90 minute game. You will get corners, you will get a free kick, you will get throw-ins, and you might get a penalty. This is predictable.

However what is unpredictable is when you will get them, exactly what side of the pitch you will be on and what the set piece will be.

England have clearly done the work on the training pitch and it is reaping dividends.

Questions and thoughts: 

• Are you doing the work required? Are you preparing for the predictable unpredictables in business and in life?

Perfect preparation propels peak performance.

Implement these things today.

Let me know your thoughts, and how you are getting on.

Aaron.

P.s You do not have to wait for England to win to be charitable to your neighbour, be friendly or caring. . Start today.