Business Lessons from Football

I was on the phone last week with a friend and client, talking about a pending transaction. As a CEO, my client has run a very successful business for over 25 years. He was also a high school football coach.

We were "gaming" our negotiations on a contract when he said, "This is not high school football. In football, you know exactly when you're going to get your butt kicked. Friday night at 7:00 p.m."

After we finished a good laugh, I realized that on one level, he was right. But as I continued to think about football and business strategy, I realized there were deeper parallels between the two.

1.????? Understand the Playing Field

In sports, you know who you are playing, when you are playing, and what to expect. You can train all you want, but if the other team is bigger, stronger, and faster, it's going to be a long night.

In business, the play clock never stops. There are no "time outs". You can never be sure when you're going to get knocked down. It could happen for any reason. A competitor could release a new product, a customer could switch suppliers, an employee could make a poor choice, or external events could take a turn for the worse.

Change is the only constant. Accept that and adapt.

In business, it's dangerous not to evolve. – Jeff Bezos

2.????? Planning Flexibility is the Key to Success

To prepare for a Friday night football game, a coach and his staff study past game films, analyze the key players on the other team, and identify the opposing coach's strategy and play calling. The coach knows his own players, their strengths and weaknesses, and he positions them across the scrimmage line for the strongest advantage.

In business, you can study your competitors and the market data, but there is always something important that you don't know. Maybe one of your key employees is about to leave, or your analysis of your products no longer meets the demands of the consumers.

Remember, a business plan is only as good as the ability to adapt to changing circumstances. As you keep the end goal in mind, expect challenges and adapt.

In preparing for battle, I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable. ?– Dwight D. Eisenhower

3. Resilience and Perseverance Maintain the Momentum

When unexpected challenges arise, that is the time to double down or pivot.

In football, the momentum of the game can carry one team to victory and the other team to defeat. Mental toughness on the field is almost as important as physical attributes of strength, endurance, agility, and speed. The game is often won or lost in the minds of the players. If the team doesn't think they can win, they will lose.

In business, as you execute on the plan, you only have control over so many factors. Resilience and determination continue the momentum toward your goal. The path to get to your final destination may look different from the original plan, but the perseverance towards a clear goal carries your team forward.

Momentum, fueled by resilience and perseverance, is more important to success than the path you travel.

Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts. – Winston Churchill

The Takeaways

On one level, football and business are very different. Football has a defined arena where the game is played. The business arena is more complicated, undefined, and unpredictable.

On a deeper level, however, there are useful parallels.

• Know that the playing field is always in flux;
• Planning flexibility is key; and
• Momentum is more important than the path.

As a CEO, the clarity of your vision, combined with the adaptability of your team, focused on the same goals and determined to achieve success, carries the day.

As Peter Drucker noted, "The best way to predict the future is to create it."

Knowing your business "playing field" is unpredictable, challenges will always appear that require flexibility, and keeping your end goal in mind is how you create the future of your business.