Rules for Gold Medal Leadership from Olympian Michael Phelps

Since the last installment of this In Search of Leadership series , I have consumed a lot of World Cup soccer (or football) action. Watching the drama unfold during and outside of matches, reminded me of the uncanny parallels between sports and business. And it caused me to recount some of the great lessons I learned about building personal and business success and leadership during my interview with one of the greatest athletes history: Michael Phelps.

With 28 Olympic medals – including 23 gold medals – Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all time. His discipline and work ethic are legendary. He has been a leader and role model for countless other Olympic swimmers and athletes. And his philanthropic work promoting mental and physical well-being is more than admirable.

Yet, it is Phelps' philosophy on what it takes to become a world-class leader that has left an indelible imprint on my own approach to success and leadership in life and the workplace. During our interview, Phelps segmented his leadership philosophy into three key categories -- dream, plan, reach -- referring to these as his personal motto for success.

Dream

Every successful business starts with a vision for what the organization aspires to achieve and the unique value it promises to deliver. Phelps refers to this process as setting your dream. And, in his opinion, if you’re going to dream, dream big.

“You can’t put a limit on anything,” Phelps said. “The more you dream, the farther you get.”

And boy did he dream big; and get far. At an early age, Michael’s coaches saw the potential for him to become not just a good swimmer, but one of the best in the world. Inspired by their confidence, he dreamed of making the Olympic team. At 15, his dream came true when he competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics at Sydney. He made four more Olympic appearances after that and racked up 28 medals — more than any other athlete in history.?

Phelps said he would reinforce his vision and goals by writing them down on paper, and referring to them when he had a setback or needed additional motivation. As business leaders, one of the most important things we can do is paint a clear and compelling vision for our teams. I have personally found that the most compelling visions are those that are aspirational, achievable, and defensible. Together, these three traits inspire employees that the work they are doing is having a positive impact on customers, the market and the world. The confidence that the objective, while requiring hard work, is within reach. And the belief that your company and product set is uniquely positioned to deliver on this vision.

Plan

Success – whether in sports or in business – starts with planning. To inspire people to follow, leaders must create a convincing roadmap to vision attainment. To keep people motivated, leaders must work with the team to collectively define clear milestones to measure and celebrate progress along the way.

Phelps said he set personal goals for each Olympics years in advance. Then he and his long-time coach Bob Bowman established a plan with key milestones to measure progress and preparedness for success leading up to the event. “I had a good sense whether a race was won or lost long before I ever stepped foot on the blocks based on how I was progressing against my [training] plan,” said Phelps.

This insight led to one of the most compelling points of our interview. When I asked Phelps about how he viewed his competitors, he didn't hesitate with his response:

“I didn’t spend time worrying about the competition. It was about me and the clock. If I had a good plan and was making progress against it, I had confidence about how I’d place.”

That’s telling advice for business leaders and teams who spend time obsessing about the competition and reacting to every new feature, price change, or campaign they make. Every business needs to be aware of the competitive landscape and understand how it’s evolving. But, as Phelps summed up, success is more assured for those that have a compelling vision, a sound plan, and are relentlessly measuring their progress against it.

“It really comes down to three things," Phelps told me. "Staying in your lanes, blocking out the noise, and doing what you do best.”?

That focus and confidence is not only what drove Phelps' success, but it's what inspired his teammates and elevated the entire sport. As a leader, displaying confidence in your vision and your plan and ability to achieve it can motivate others immensely and accelerate them to success.

Reach

Dreams don’t just materialize. First, you need to believe they are within reach. Then you need to dedicate yourself to them and the work required to making them a reality.?

At more than one point during our interview, Michael admitted there were days he’d rather have been anywhere but the pool. Yet he showed up – typically training six hours every day – because in his mind, one day off would put him three behind.?

“If you want to be the best, you have to do things that other people aren’t willing to do,” Phelps said. “It’s important to develop a routine. That gave me the discipline I needed to meet my goals and continue to improve.”

Yet, the biggest discipline Phelps developed was turning setbacks into improvement opportunities. He shared the example of qualifying for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games at the age of 15, making Phelps the youngest American ever to do so. When he failed to medal, Phelps was disappointed. But he didn’t dwell on it. Instead, he used that disappointment to set out a success plan and training regimen to win at the Athens Olympic Games four years later, where he not only won six gold and two bronze medals, but also set a new world record in the 400m individual medley.

Phelps’ personal experience offers some vital lessons for business leaders. A compelling vision is nothing without a solid plan. A plan will never materialize if you lack the discipline to execute on it.?And all good leaders know that, despite the best planning, they need to expect setbacks. Like Phelps, the most effective leaders view unplanned setbacks as an opportunity to learn, test, and adopt new tactics and creates an opportunity to reinforce their commitment to the higher vision. Great rules to live by whether in the pool, on the field, or in the board room.