Leaders: 1 Behavior to Stop & 3 Reasons Why

Over my career, there has been one constant behavior I have seen in leaders. It's predictable, especially when they find themselves in need of motivating their teams. They feel it's a great way to help sell the message and rally the troops. Unfortunately, many of the troops they are trying to motivate become less involved when this behavior is exhibited.

What is it?

Maybe it's the Ra-Ra cheerleading act? Or perhaps it's the adaptation of a popular song around a business cause or initiative?

Nope, although both of those get on my nerves too.

The answer: Sports Analogies.

I thought this was just a "me thing" until I recently when I spoke with three other leaders who, unprovoked, made a comment about the overuse of sports analogies in business. One common thread among the four of us was that we are all in under-represented groups. This could be an irony or could be a commonality among those of us who check out when someone starts down the whole sports theme.

I grew up in a sports family: football, NASCAR, baseball, etc. I never got the allure and yet somehow, I still became fiercely competitive. My brothers and father would try to explain the rules to me and for a time, I tried my hardest to be interested. I felt like I was missing out on something since everyone around me thrived on sports, planning entire days around when a game would be on. Unfortunately, it never stuck.

Please understand, I have watched many documentaries and read many books about coaches or players who elevated their game. I am not denouncing the lessons that can be learned from these types of stories. They are motivating, every once in a while. What I am pleading to stop is the incessant need to relate every move in business to some sport.

Why?

I'm glad you asked. Here are three reasons I can think of to encourage you to broaden your horizons.

The Paradox of Sports

I never really understood my disdain for this practice until recently when a peer of mine pointed something out to me: Most sports teams spend 80-90% practicing and only 10% playing.

In business, how often do you or your teams get the chance to stop doing the day to day business operations and practice to become perfect? Short answer: NOT OFTEN ENOUGH.

On average, employees in the US spend roughly 57 hours of per year training {* }. That sounds like a lot but if you break it down over 2080 working hours a year, that's 2.7% of the time. I would go further to say that much of that training is online webinars etc that are valuable but hardly practical in many of the professional roles in an organization. Think about the last in person training you had and compare your attention and learning from that versus the last web based training. I hate in person trainings but some of the most impactful pivots I have made professionally came from those in person trainings.

The fact is, many sports teams are better aligned and better prepared to succeed on the court or field because their organization spends most of its energy on training and developing the players. They are rigorous in their practices so by the time the game clock begins, they have the knowledge and training to win.

So unless your organization spends 80-90% of the time developing and investing in your "players", I'd suggest finding another story to tout. Perhaps, I don't know, use a business story of a team who beat insurmountable odds similar to the ones you are facing. You might find that nugget of motivation takes root.

It Lacks Inclusion

"Come on Trent, we're at the third down and it's time to make a play."

That was told to me one time early in my career. I don't know if it was my silence or the WTF look on my face that told my manager the message wasn't hitting. I didn't even know what sport a third down was associated with. Rather than quickly giving another example, the manager used the opportunity to get a good laugh out of the team at my ignorance of the rules associated with a game you "played".

Using sports analogies to motivate teams can unintentionally exclude those who don’t connect with sports culture. References like “hitting a home run” or “playing offense” may resonate with some, but they can leave others feeling left out or disconnected if they aren’t familiar with or interested in sports. Many of us in this group rarely make mention of this in fear of further isolation or in my case, ridicule.

Something to also consider: these metaphors often emphasize a competitive mindset, which may not align with everyone’s values or work style. Language focused on winning and competition can reinforce stereotypes and make some team members feel marginalized, particularly in a diverse workplace where collaboration might be more valued. Even though I do not use sports analogies, this is something I have to be very mindful as one of my top traits is competition. I have learned over the years this is a turn off for some on the team.

To create a more inclusive environment, it’s better to use language that everyone can relate to, regardless of their background or interests. Opting for more universal metaphors and inclusive communication can help ensure that all team members feel engaged, valued, and understood.

Over-Simplifies Complexities

Sports analogies can oversimplify the complexities of real-world situations. In sports, the objectives are often clear-cut—win the game or score the most points. However, in business, goals are multifaceted and can involve balancing competing priorities, such as profitability, customer satisfaction, and ethical considerations. By reducing these nuanced objectives to simplistic sports metaphors, leaders risk minimizing the strategic depth required to navigate them effectively.

Sports analogies tend to frame challenges in terms of a binary win-lose outcome, which doesn’t always align with business realities. Many business scenarios involve collaboration with competitors, negotiation, or finding mutually beneficial solutions where there isn’t a clear winner or loser. Relying too heavily on sports metaphors can lead to a mindset that overlooks the importance of these subtler, more collaborative approaches.

Finally, using sports metaphors can narrow thinking by imposing a familiar but limited framework on unique business challenges. Instead of encouraging diverse perspectives and creative problem-solving, these analogies can constrain the team to thinking only in terms of competition and conquest, missing out on more innovative or cooperative strategies that could better address complex business needs.

Conclusion

In wrapping things up, it's clear that while sports analogies have been a go-to for rallying teams, they come with their own set of challenges. They can make the complex world of business seem too simple, unintentionally leave out those who aren't into sports, and fall short of the inclusive language we need in our diverse workplaces today.

Hopefully I will not get a ton of blowback from this. The goal was to encourage leaders to broaden their bucket of motivational repertoire. If you are lacking material, try to dedicate some time to reading about business ventures, biographies, or documentaries to help broaden your... playbook. (See what I did there?)