The NFL season started last Thursday and a quick review of multiple games synopsis along with seeing some highlights showed 11 of the 14 games played through Sunday were decided by one score or less. About half of those came down to a big play at the end including last minute touchdown passes, missed kicks, bad snaps, a defensive stop, field goals as time ran out, and a two-point conversion, to win not tie the game.
Football is definitely a team game. Much more than basketball where one hot player can carry a game or baseball where a dominant pitcher is sometimes all it takes. As good as any player is in football it takes others to block, tackle, throw, catch, run, etc.
But it is also a game dependent on individuals. In the Sunday night game, a last second field was missed because of a bad snap. In one game a player mistakenly ran the ball down the field instead of out of bounds, with no time outs, and the clock ran out before a field goal could be attempted. And there were other such incidents.
Teamwork is great in business. At least 80% of the business buyers I’ve met say one of their strengths is building teams. This is important because, not all but, many business owners (especially founders) are not good at teambuilding. Too many owners are:
- Do-it-yourself types
- Autocratic
- Unknowledgeable about delegation (so they just don’t do it)
Every business has teams and those teams are a collection of individuals, many of whom go their own way at their own pace (sometimes it’s like herding cats). Getting individuals to seek the common good is a trait that leads to great businesses.
Changing the culture can make a good business better and struggling business successful. I think it’s great when buyers come in and get people focused on the same destination and on the same track. It’s not a skill to be taken lightly. It’s something sellers should work on to increase the value of their company.
More on teams and their effectiveness in my next post.
“Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.” John Wooden