Leadership Lessons in March Madness

March brings hope for warmer days ahead. While winter may still have its grip, in parts of the U.S. the first blooms of colorful spring flowers have emerged. It’s spring break for many schools. And for sports fans, it’s March Madness — a few weeks full of suspense as college basketball teams around the country compete for the national championship. ?

After an amazing Arkansas win over Kansas this weekend, I was inspired by the leadership lessons from the court that apply to our work lives. Here are some key takeaways that stood out to me:

Let your team play: It’s a coach’s responsibility to set the game plan and prepare the team for their big moment, but they don’t play the game. The same should apply outside of the arena — it’s up to leaders across organizations to set a strategy and prepare a clear path forward for your team. Then, let them execute the plan.?Giving the team the tools and confidence to “play” is empowering and enables them to learn, grow and thrive in their roles.?

Provide continuous feedback: There is a lot of action on the sidelines from the coaches (maybe too much sometimes) but that is feedback in action — “Good shot,” “Move your feet,” “Great hustle,” “Pass the ball.” For a leader, open dialogue and honest feedback are critical to developing a strong team. It creates trust, transparency and is important to an employee’s growth and development at any level.?

Learn from your mistakes: There’s one cruel fact about the tournament: Only one team wins the championship. That means everyone else on the court probably made some mistakes along the way that contributed to their loss. No matter how much time we spend preparing and planning, mistakes happen in games and in our work. The true measure of your character is how you respond. Great teams, and great leaders, learn from their mistakes and the experience makes them stronger in the long run.?

Enjoy the moment: It must be truly amazing and daunting to play on a court in front of thousands in the arena and hundreds of thousands on television/streaming with so much on the line. We all can relate to ?pressures of working on a sensitive project or meeting a tight deadline. It can be overwhelming. Personally, I’ve set a goal to find joy every day and believe leaders play an important role in setting this example for their teams. Together, we can all find joy in the moment by creating a culture of belonging, focusing on well-being, listening and celebrating our achievements.?

Those are just some?examples of the leadership lessons we can learn as we continue to watch March Madness. What have been your take-a-ways? Share in the comments and enjoy the rest of the tournament.?