If You Want to go Far...

Another great Super Bowl is in the books and congratulations to all the Kansas City Chiefs fans out there celebrating a solid comeback win last night! Word on the street has it that ~19M people will call in sick today as the celebration continues ?? Speaking of football, the big news recently was focused on Tom Brady retiring from football. He has been the prominent winner of Super Bowls throughout his 22 seasons, stacking up 7 Super Bowl victories. But while he has no double been a dominant winner, there has been another professional athlete that casts a much larger shadow. ?Bill Russell .

Bill Russell was an NBA basketball player for the Boston Celtics from 1956-1969, and during that time, he and his teammates pulled together 11 NBA Championships over 13 years, easily becoming the greatest dynasty of any professional sports team in the United States. Individually, he also racked up 5 MVP awards, and was a 12-time NBA all-star (he played 13 seasons). But Bill Russell, one of the greatest players to ever step on a basketball court, was more than a superstar, he was a team-oriented winner.

Within the same era, just like today, the best players on most teams were the ones who would take the game into their own hands and individually ensure the team achieved a win at the end of the game. It’s in this way that Wilt Chamberlain , for example, had his famous 100-point game during the same period of NBA history. ?But Bill was different. Bill earned his success by focusing on team basketball, even when the stakes were high, the game was on the line, and there were only seconds left in some amazing championship games. Now, don’t get me wrong, Bill had some great individual performances but as the saying goes “If you want to go fast, go at it alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Nothing demonstrated this more than the way in which Bill spent the latter part of his career. As a basketball player, Bill was a player coach for the Celtics from 1966-1969 – meaning he both coached the team (1 full-time job that on the very few accomplish at that level) and he played a starting role on the team (another full-time job that only a very select few basketball players achieve). As a human, Bill was an internationally revered civil rights activist, engaging with the most prominent leaders for equal rights and equal treatment while also spending his time off the court advancing the fight, often putting himself in harm’s way. These “we over me” oriented actions, decisions, and commitments cemented Bill’s legacy as a leader, winner, and difference-maker.

We are all at the midpoint of the 1st quarter within 2023, striving hard to accomplish newly set or refreshed goals. Knowing this audience; these are hard, ambitious, and meaningful goals, none of which will be accomplished easily. Also knowing this audience, everyone is on a team of some sort, working together to accomplish great things this quarter, half, and year. These teams coming together in pursuit of those goals is an absolute necessity if success is going to be achieved. Yes - great talent and skill is needed, and yes – we will need to individually deliver strong results. But more importantly, we will need to leverage the collective power of our teams to achieve these ambitious goals and celebrate victory. Just like Bill Russell and that phenomenal dynasty of Boston Celtics that won 11 of 13 championships, we must work tirelessly to invest in the team success to avoid single points of failure, and here are some lessons from Bill on how we can do just that:

Tenacious Innovation - Bill Russell once said, “Commitment separates those who live their dreams from those who live their lives regretting the opportunities they have squandered.” Tenacity and Innovation separately are well respected skills but when they are combined, we encounter difference makers. Difference makers can be individuals or teams, but they are the ones that are so focused on their craft, that they are unable to settle into a status quo. They are the ones that are constantly pushing the envelope of what’s possible in pursuit of the objective. They are the creators of the best practice that the rest of us work to apply. Tenacious Innovation creates opportunities.

Cooperative Collaboration – A phrase I learned on teamwork early was “we are greater than me” and it’s one of the greatest ways to play a bigger role on any given team. This means that the big picture for the team always comes first, then we sort through how we play a bigger role in creating that team success 2nd. Collaboration best occurs when individuals are so focused on the collective goal, that they put aside their pride, egos, and insecurities to help elevate the team. If you want to be inspired on the topic of selflessness, read this article by Matt Trammell, Ed.D. . ?

Responsible Integrity – Integrity is doing what’s right, even when no one will ever know. Feeling a sense of ownership and responsibility to act with integrity is next level stewardship. As Bill acted as a player in the fight for civil rights and fair treatment in the United States, he constantly chose to do what he felt was right, not what was safe or easy. This put his NBA career in challenging positions at times, put his family in harm’s way at times, and certainly put him in the media with negative attention many times. But his responsibility to live a life of integrity was the north star that oriented his decisions. And this created long-term, lifelong successes for Bill, as a player, as a coach, and as a man. Teams must be anchored in responsible integrity to thrive. ?

As we all proceed against our plans and goals this quarter and year, bringing the team mentality to our success has the potential to change the game for each of us. With the right teams, the right values, and the right focus – we can all go far. Together!