by Cathy Sedacca
In the spirit of full disclosure, I must admit that I’ve probably watched more Puppy Bowls than Super Bowls the last several years. But this year, with the big game in our backyard, I definitely paid more attention to both the hoopla surrounding the event and the game itself.
And it got me thinking: What if businesses were run more like professional football teams?
What might that look like?
-
We would be better at celebrating our successes
If businesses were run like an NFL team, we would be better at reveling in our successes.
In football, it’s great catches, strong blocks and terrific game plans that make up the weekly highlight reels.
But it’s not that much different in business. It’s things like pulling-in new clients, helping co-workers succeed and smart strategic planning.
How great would it be to play highlights every Monday morning that captured all of last week’s great moments? More than just fun, it would allow us to pinpoint the things that went well and help us do what it takes to repeat them.
But don’t let the lack of video highlights stop you from recounting your business’ victories, both big and small.
-
We’d be better at learning from our mistakes.
Imagine doing your job in front of a national audience.
Think about receiving endless criticism from fans who fancy themselves experts simply because they’ve watched your every move from their La-Z-Boy while drinking beer and eating buffalo wings.
But Monday-morning quarterbacks, as annoying as they can be, do make it easier to see what things we coulda/shoulda/woulda done, if we had the chance to play the game again.
And while this is probably the worst part about being a professional athlete, the rest of us in the business world could surely benefit from a more consistent review of our mistakes.
We tend to quickly move past our errors to avoid embarrassment and uncomfortable conversations.
But wouldn’t it be better to constructively acknowledge, review and learn from our business mistakes?
Doing so should be viewed as a reflection of strength, not weakness.
-
We would aim for top every year.
The great thing about the NFL is that every team gets to wipe the slate clean in September and start over at 0-0.
Whatever happened last year doesn’t matter. They recruit new and better talent, regroup and make another run at the Super Bowl.
There’s something refreshing and invigorating about a fresh start. And I think more businesses could benefit from a similar outlook and singular focus.
-
We would have more fun.
Sure, it’s hard not to have fun playing a kid’s game for millions of dollars every year.
And NFL players really do enjoy the ride. For evidence, look no further than the many hilarious touchdown celebrations we saw this year—from duck, duck, grey duck to leapfrog.
But there’s no reason all of us can’t engage in a little childlike fun from time to time.
So, whether you’re playing for the Super Bowl or just manufacturing soup bowls, don’t forget to take time for some laughter and joy along the way.
Cathy Sedacca is director of sales and marketing for Sage Business Credit. She partnered with Karen Turnquist to found Sage because she believed they could do what had been done by others, but better. Working closely with clients who share the same vision for their own business is the best part of her job.