Building a Winning Team: 3 Insights from the Olympics

In just two weeks, the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics will begin. Every two years, we marvel at the world’s best athletes as they showcase their strength and artistry in both winter and summer sports. These individuals have dedicated their lives to becoming the best in their countries and the world.

Like many Americans, I'm captivated by the Women’s Gymnastics team. This year's team includes Olympic superstar Simone Biles, 2020 Olympic all-around gold medalist Suni Lee, Olympic floor exercise gold medalist Jade Carey, Olympic team silver medalist Jordan Chiles, and the youngest member of Team USA, 16-year-old Hezly Rivera.

What were you doing at age 16?

Anyway, for today’s newsletter, let's explore the team competition in gymnastics and draw parallels to leadership and team building in business.

Understanding the Team Competition

According to NBC News, "In the qualification round at the Olympics, four gymnasts from each five-member team compete on each apparatus, with the three highest scores counting toward the team total. The top eight teams in qualifications advance to the finals, where three athletes from each team compete on each apparatus and all scores count.”

Coaching Strategies to Excel in Team Competition

Business, like sports, is a team endeavor. The strategies that drive Olympic success in the team competition can also help you achieve your business goals.

1. Recruit the Best Talent

In the Olympics, talent is selected through rigorous trials. In business, it’s about recruitment. To attract top talent, provide your recruitment team and leaders with the best tools: an impressive recruiting process, competitive compensation, and skill-building for managers to become excellent interviewers. Despite the awareness of unconscious bias and behavioral interviewing techniques, many still struggle to excel in this area.

2. Understand Each Team Member’s Strengths

In team competitions, coaches strategically decide who competes on which apparatus. It’s unrealistic to expect every athlete to excel in all areas. Similarly, in business, it’s essential to know your employees beyond their resumes and daily performance. Identify their strengths and assign projects that highlight their best talents. This strategic positioning not only helps individuals excel but also boosts overall team performance and reduces burnout by distributing responsibilities more evenly beyond the high performers.

3. Recognize the Mental Game

The road to the Olympics is fraught with failures, mental pressure, poor performances, and injuries. How coaches handle these obstacles can determine whether setbacks remain minor or derail the team’s success. Coaches play a crucial role in helping athletes recover mentally and move forward. In business, a leader’s response to setbacks is equally critical. Viewing failure as an individual issue and berating the team can be destructive. Instead, compassionate support and thorough post-mortem analysis can help the team rebound and strive for excellence.

Ready to take your team to the next level? Apply these Olympic-inspired strategies and watch your team soar to new heights. Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below, and let's create a community of champions together. Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter for more insights and tips on building a winning team!