| The
Hallmarks of Champions
 Whether
you are a sports fan or not, you have to admit that
the 2007
baseball playoffs and World Series games provided
not only great
entertainment, but significant life lessons.
Those
of you who know me, know I am a life-long Yankees
fan, and know
how difficult this is for me to express. However it
is entirely possible that the Red Sox have become
the New Yankees! New York, despite being the highest
paid team in the game, simply could not finish the
job and become World Champions one more time.
There
are several things that came to mind while watching
the 2007 World Series unfold.
The
first take away is the “New Red Sox” sense
of purpose. A few years back, the new team owners
wrote a new mission statement that included the following
words: “We will win multiple world championships.”
Clearly, this has not been forgotten. This attitude
permeates every fiber of the team.
Apparently, those behind the scenes see to it that
the players are continually reminded of this mission
statement.
And
although it did not exactly appear that way to outsiders
in August, it may very well turnout that some of the
strategies employed by the team (resting some key
players, seemingly on the verge of letting a massive
lead in the standings slip by) were brilliant after
all.
This
week we will discuss some of the decisions and strategies
that helped to propel this team into the championships,
and that you can employ in your practice, to propel
you toward success.
As
we discussed yesterday, winning teams like the new
Red Sox make decisions that propel them toward success.
What are some of these winning strategies?
They've
shown focus, energy, and determination - this team
has shown it all. They have displayed built-in, fabulous
redundancy. It seems at least three people cover each
position. Varying replacements for each position resulted
in nearly perfect late season execution. During training,
the team showed adherence to a variety of important
principles, including specificity, focus, determination,
and getting adequate periods of rest. Players were
visibly aware of the mission statement and goals for
the team.
So
what can you learn from their example? There are many
parallels here to professional practice.
 A
professional practice is not unlike a professional
sports team. All members must play well, on a consistent
basis. The rules must be posted. All members of the
team know and follow them. Team members must be aware
of your practice goals and mission. At every opportunity,
Managers and Owners must reiterate the importance
of both the rules and your practice goals.
Training
must be impeccable and all positions must be covered.
This is basic operating strategy for an effective
practice. In order to effectively staff your practice,
redundancy must be built into every position. Management
of behind the scenes processes is crucial to ensuring
efficiency, and ensuring that your team produces fabulous
results.
When there is failure, each failure
is carefully examined and dissected. What lessons
can be learned? What can be done to prevent a repeat
in the future? Practical solutions are then developed
to keep everyone moving forward, focused on the future,
instead of wasting time fixating on the failures of
the past.
Managers must continually meet with
their team players. They must solicit input and feedback.
Good managers value this information from team members
and make every effort to incorporate reasonable suggestions
into the playbook.
Ultimately though, the best decisions
are made and executed by those with significant experience.
This can be a challenge for any team. While watching
the World Series, I was amazed by the number of young
players on this year's Red Sox and Rockies teams.
These young players undoubtedly have the talent, but
may not have the experience to make some of the hard
decisions. And yet, throughout
each game, there are a multitude of decisions that
must be made almost instantly, with no time to spare.
A good manager, whether on the field
or in the office, must have the ability to look at
the big picture, draw upon prior experience in similar
situations, and make effective and rapid decisions.
Just as a single decision might cause the championship
team to lose the World Series, similar decisions in
your office might cause you to lose significant time,
money, growth, and forward momentum.
This is where maturity, focus and
time spent regularly consulting with your own coaches
can produce significant advantages. With each passing
year your effectiveness should and can improve. Have
you noticed that the managers and coaches that are
the most valued have usually been around the game
for many, many years? You too, can become one of these
great managers. All you need is a great coach.
We
invite you to join us on our blog
for continued discussion of these principles.
|
Be
careful about the language you use to write your policies.
One of the most common errors in policy and manual
writing is using too many words to say what you mean.
For example, saying “a fly” is much clearer and more
precise than saying “a small winged insect found in
or near a house”. If you think about it the insect
could be any number of insects – not just a fly. Although
using fancy verbiage can make a manual thicker and
more colorful, it does not make it easier to read
and understand, and it may increase confusion. Brief,
clear, concise communication helps you to avoid confusion
and conflict. It also reduces stress in the office,
since staff will not have to try to guess what you
meant. They will not have to try to interpret your
writing, since its meaning will be clear.