Professional sport is one of the biggest industries on the planet. People all over the world tune in every week to watch their favorite sports unfold. As entertaining as sports are, they actually hold some great teaching points and lessons for leaders to learn from. In today’s post, you’ll see a few of the best lessons you can learn from various sports around the world.
Training helps people improve
In every sport throughout the world, teams and individuals will undergo regular training regimes. They spend most of their days between actual competitions or matches training. Why do they do it? To practice and hone their skills, develop new ideas, and just generally improve as athletes.
Naturally, you can apply this to a business very easily. You don’t need to have as rigorous a training regime as a professional sports team, but the idea of training your employees to improve them is one you should take to heart. Find out their strengths and weaknesses, then improve both. It’ll lead to a much better team in the long run.
Pair inexperience with experience
This idea comes from a variety of sports, but it’s perhaps best demonstrated in the world of professional showjumping. Former Puerto Rican showjumper, Freddie Vazquez JR, writes on his website how a well-known rule in the equestrian community is that you never pair an inexperienced rider with an inexperienced horse. Instead, one needs to be experienced, so the other can learn from them.
Applying this rule to the business world is very easy. When you have new employees, make sure they’re paired with experienced ones to help show them the ropes. Never have two inexperienced employees working alone together; you need to help them grow and develop by working closely with experienced mentors.
Keep your star performers happy
Every sports team has at least one player that’s easily better than the rest. They’re not just the best in the team, they’re the best in the whole league. Sometimes, this player is the difference between the team winning and losing games – they carry the team on their back. Consequently, managers and coaches do everything to keep the star performers happy. Why? Because they know that they need these big players on their team to keep performing well.
In business, the same rules apply. You will have talented employees that are the best in the industry. They set the bar so high that other companies are playing catchup. As such, you need to keep them happy. Give them raises, reward their hard work, and ensure they feel appreciated by the business. This keeps them with you for as long as possible, so you don’t lose them to a rival company and suffer a severe setback.
Looking at the world of sport is always a great way to understand how to be better at leading your company. In essence, you need to think like the manager or director of a professional sports team. You’ll be amazed at how applicable some of the lessons from sport are to the business world.