“From skiing to sliding, from hockey to figure skating, Canadian athletes have been honing their game-day routines for months to keep the pressure in check. While the Olympics have begun, the mind games began as many as three years ago.” The Globe and Mail
It seems that any athlete in these Olympics, or at least the ones who say they are committed to winning, always reference their preparation. Lately, on top of the rigorous physical preparation they take on, they are also taking on the mental preparation. And it didn’t just begin a couple of weeks ago. Now athletes embrace the concept of mental preparation being as important as the physical preparation.
I marvel at the amount of time athletes prepare and practice in their pursuit of excellence. Raw talent can only take you so far. To be a leader takes a commitment to the day in and day out preparation and practice. Results sometimes are anticipated 2 to 3 years out and the strategy to get there is well planned and thought through.
Looking inside the doors of business, the concept of preparation is not as frequently practiced. Most of the time business is operating in ‘game mode’ meaning there is lots of action in making things happen. Action is good, however, a lot of the action isn’t thoughtful, it is action for action sake. Here’s some of what I think preparation could look like in business:
*Understanding the real challenges, needs, wants and desires of your end user
*Looking at the gaps in your company, and where you might need to take create new capacities to address these gaps
*Not just fixing a problem, but taking a step back to understand the root cause of the problem and exploring possible solutions, not THE ONE answer
*Gathering feedback from a diverse group of company team members to hear their thinking about problems and challenges the company may face
*Working to impact communication so the whole company is operating from the same values, vision and purpose and have the muscle to support these key areas in all areas of their work
*Taking time to be in different environments and be influenced by these spaces and how you might think about your own business
*Have some fun, be playful, and get to know team members beyond their job title
Business can be much more complex than competing in a sport, however, that makes the need to prepare, prepare, prepare and prepare even more pressing. And while doing so, watch the kind of leadership that emerges!
