Lessons from the World Cup: when outcomes don’t meet expectations

For me, one of the aspects of sports that I love the most is the passionate support athletes get from their fan’s week in, week out. The scale of excitement and passion is infectious and speaks volumes about the way sports brings people from all backgrounds together.

I’m a huge American football fan, but these past few weeks I’ve been glued to the World Cup. It got me thinking about the build up to what is arguably the largest sporting event across the globe.

Every team has spent the last four years training – physically, mentally, emotionally – for a four-week tournament. After watching teams like the US and England exit, I wondered about the level of expectation these players must carry on their shoulders as they represent their country. What happens when outcomes don’t meet expectations? How do players, teams and even countries respond?

A worldly piece of advice from my #1 mentor

My reflections on this year’s World Cup triggered a personal experience which inspired me to write this article about what happens when outcomes don’t meet expectations.

Early in my professional career, during my first year in a new role that I loved, I had the opportunity to work on several projects with different teams and leaders.?As was customary, at the conclusion of each project, my direct supervisor would provide feedback on my performance based on expectations for my level of experience.?After successfully receiving favorable feedback on earlier projects, I received a less than flattering review. ?In fact, it basically said I didn’t meet expectations.?

I was shocked and disappointed and honestly, angry.?My initial thought was to resist and contest and I saw myself at a crossroads on how to proceed forward with this role.?Fortunately, I chose to seek guidance with one of my mentors – my father.?My father gave me the space to share the experience and he listened to the background and my perspective, after which he offered this advice:

“Son, you can take one of two actions. You can contest and challenge and try to change your supervisor’s mind or you can look in the mirror and be honest with yourself about the feedback you received.?You may not like the answer, but someone has taken the time to give you their feedback of your performance based on their expectations.”

Admittedly, I felt resistance. ?I didn’t immediately decide on option two, but it did provide levity to the situation and helped me focus on how best to move forward.?Needless to say, I decided to take my father’s sage advice.

I made a point to not only ensure I addressed the feedback, but also ensure I worked with the same supervisor again to demonstrate I took their feedback to heart, appreciated their feedback, and demonstrate my improvement.?

Make time for reflection

Outcomes may not always meet expectations.?This doesn’t necessarily equal failure.?To this day I still say that the worst review I received was the best review I received.??The lessons I learned from that experience still resonate today:

• Honest, sincere feedback = someone wants to help you succeed
• Pay it forward and take the time to give feedback = help someone else succeed
• Expectations aren’t just your own but others = understand other’s perspectives
• Be honest with yourself = all of us can improve?

I choose to seek opportunities for improvement and growth – whether my own need to improve or the need to augment teams with different skills or experience.?I’d suggest this would hold true for the 31 teams not crowned World Cup Champion.

Several years later I ran into that supervisor, who had taken an executive role in industry, at a local restaurant.?I made a point to say thank you again as that experience was foundational and has helped inform how I operate as a leader and with my teams for the last 30 years.?

The views reflected in this article are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the views of the global EY organization or its member firms.