Gentlemen. This is a football!
May 2, 2012 5 Comments
I have just returned from a morning walk to clear a foggy head and I got a blinding flash of clarity on the walk. My mind was foggy because I was grappling with a large number of interconnected opportunities, constraints, activities and desires. Fortunately for me I was somehow reminded of the story about Vince Lombardi whose legendary line before every training session with his professional, championship winning teams was to hold a football aloft and state, “Gentlemen. This is a football.”
Ladies AND Gentlemen. This is a great philosophy!
He started each season with a back-to-basics review of the rules and how the aim of the game was to get the ball over the line and score MORE points than the opponents did. That really is the NFL in a nutshell. Score some points and when you concede fewer than you score and you will win. Your business has at its core a similar simplicity. We just choose to make it more complicated than that most of the time.
The lesson is simple. Even the best go back-to-basics and do so frequently. It provides clarity and focus.
I will be coaching a client later today. Before I left their office last week I wrote on their whiteboard “Gentlemen. This is a football!” because they don’t currently have that clarity of what their purpose is or what their goals are. I know that they will be keen to find out more about what I meant. This week we’ll address that issue.
Success will have been achieved in my mind when both partners enter the office each day and say something like “Good morning Dave, This is a football!” It won’t be a quick process. The thing about setting your own goals and purpose in life is that there isn’t an equivalent of the NFL to set rules and decide on what is fair. It’s your job to decide the rules and how many points you get for certain milestones. That fact comes with liberty and responsibility in equal measures. Just make sure that in your game of life and business you score some points and concede fewer. That way you win.
So I have a question for you today. What is your equivalent of a football? What is the most basic element of your business? Start there.
For me as a business coach I like to look at it this way. “Good morning world – this is profitable contribution!”
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Observations from a Business Insider 
My football is productivity and engagement. If I managed to get as much, or more, than yesterday, I’m doing well. I want to “score more points” every day for my clients, because once you show them what you can do for them, they’ll expect at least that much from you going forward. If you can consistently perform for them, they will become your fans. I sorely hate to disappoint my fans! Thanks for the great post.
Thanks again Rob. How do you manage to do more each day? Are you talk ing about taking next steps or cranking out more output in terms of volume? I am interested because I can see how a machine can be cranked to do 1001 widgets today and 1002 tomorrow with a slight improvement but I don’t see the same as being possible in my line of work. I can do something today that I didn’t do yesterday but I can’t always do what I did yesterday again plus more. At some point my motivation to perform the same tasks withers and my energy is spent.
What did you mean by your comment if you don’t mind my seeking clarification?
Regards
Rupert
I agree with you that at some point we reach a burn out point or a physical/time constraint. What I mean is that I generally make it a point to meet and raise my clients’ expectations of my performance for them whenever I can. Sometimes I am able to do more than I did for them yesterday, sometimes I break even, but when I falter behind is when I feel that I’ve disappointed my client and myself. I want clients to feel that they can throw challenges at me and not be concerned that I won’t be able to handle them, you know?
I fully understand what you are saying and it is a great philosophy. Kaizan. Constant and never-ending improvement. That’s all great. Where I see people misunderstanding this concept is that they do try to do everything that that did yesterday PLUS more. Instead it would be helpful to work out what of those tasks that you did yesterday can be stopped, sped up, delegated etc to create more room today. It sounds obvious but lots of people don’t stop to “sharpen their saw” as Stephen Covey puts it in the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
Thanks Rob, it sounds like your clients are lucky to have you on their team.
Why thank you sir! I agree with you that often people forget to get rid of the things that bogged them down the previous day, cut the fat, if you will. It shouldn’t be a matter of doing more and more, but doing what you did better and more efficiently so that you CAN do more!. I’m enjoying the blog, thank for writing.