Vince Lombardi, the legendary coach of the Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers, would begin each training camp by addressing his players with a football in his hand exclaiming, “Men, this is a football, and this is how we are going to carry our football.”  Sound ridiculous?  It shouldn’t.  Coaching the fundamentals and executing the basics better than anyone else was a Lombardi trademark.  The net results were multiple championships.  Since the tragedy of 9/11, the scandals and mismanagement of companies like Enron, Worldcom and other corporate giants, and the financial economic meltdown from 2008, the pendulum needs to swing back to the side of solid business fundamentals.  Getting back to the ABCs of leading, coaching and developing talent to sustain a winning culture over long periods of time will be paramount in gaining a market edge in a very competitive global climate.

Just as there are laws that govern entropy, gravity and aero-dynamics, there are laws that govern human performance—the actual practice of which allows us to successfully change and grow.  I’ve witnessed too many organizations and their people caught up more in the terminology and acronyms of change, growth and winning, than the actual practice of it.  The biggest challenge for organizations will not be strategy, systems or culture, but changing people’s behavior.  Sound business fundamentals focused towards both the head and heart are the catalyst great organizations, teams and individuals possess to maximize the human potential of their most valuable asset, their people.  I’ll explain these fundamentals in coming blogs.

Be careful of being an authoritarian leader. It doesn’t work.  An authoritarian leader has an approach that favors domination, manipulation, and intimidation; their strength is a huge ego and imbalanced sense of pride. Their viewpoint sees people below them as commodities. Sadly, in the process these leaders will burn out their subordinates to achieve their own goals and to have their objectives met. Unfortunately, it’s a legitimate way to lead, and you can actually get a lot done. These leaders are respected through fear. The problem is their people will never be true followers and they will never love them. Leadership is stifled under the foot of this type of leader and ultimately leadership is taken away.

There are two compelling behaviors that dominate high performers, great leaders, cohesive teams and forward moving organizations.  They are constantly and forever trying to avoid big hazards while simultaneously seeking out big opportunities. And when looking for those big opportunities, they do everything they can, each and every day, to move toward that objective. In football it’s the same idea; 60-minutes to exploit the opportunities and duck the hazards, all while under great duress and pressure.  Watch Peyton Manning or Tom Brady at work.  Each snap they are looking for the hazard (the blitz) while seeking the opportunity (the touchdown).  They do it better than anyone in the game and that’s why they’re the best at their position and their teams consistently win. In business, it’s really no different. Come to work every day with your mindset focused on seeking the day’s big opportunity and avoiding its big hazard.  Clear unwanted junk from your calendar. Determine what will allow you to win, today, and get after it.

I’ve played on teams that were highly talented athletically, but never accomplished much. The reason was we never got along. Or, we didn’t respect each other or we never became friends. We were essentially an organization of selective participants. Individuals concerned about their own thing. It was all about “what’s in it for me” kind of attitude. If it benefits me, I’ll work hard and go after it. If it doesn’t benefit me, I’ll make excuses and criticize quickly. Ultimately, selective participants become cancers and kill the team. The remedy? Building deep personal relationships and getting to know people beyond the surface is the answer. Deeply caring about others is the best way to support them and keep them motivated and moving forward together.

Success begins and ends in your ability to build well-established, trusting relationships. All great teams are founded on strong relationships and solid trust because that is the best way for everyone to move forward. As leaders, we need to step away from our computers and get out of our offices to build the ties-that-bind. The people we are leading deserve that from us. Sadly, we don’t accomplish this as often as we should. Unending meetings, emails and lists-upon-lists seem to occupy our top priorities. We quickly get unbalanced and lose focus of our role as a leader, which is to lead people into a brighter, better future. It will always be about people and the important relationships we build with them.

I was caught off guard recently during a conference call with the CEO of a German-based cardiovascular company.  The call began differently than most.  This is not verbatim, but darn close.  “Tom”, he said with clarity of voice, “It is my great pleasure to finally meet you!  I am thrilled you will be addressing our leaders at our annual conference.  I am so honored you would take the time out of your very busy schedule to speak with me this morning.”  My initial thought was, “I should be saying that to you – you hired me!”  All I know was, it was authentic, honest and sincere and it captured me.  I instantly felt energized, encouraged and engaged.  I love being surprised when I encounter leaders like our cardiovascular CEO.  Why?  Because they play the game differently than most.  They speak with a leader’s voice. They serve rather than be served.  They give rather than get.  They think others first, rather than themselves first.  They make every human transaction count and in the process leave people feeling better about themselves.

We talk often about great teams in sports, and at times, in business.  Yet we don’t often think of the founding fathers of our great nation as one.  This July 4^th would be a good time to honor the ultimate legacy team – the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence.

What kind of men were they?  Twenty-four where Lawyers and Jurists.  Eleven were merchants; nine were farmers and large plantation owners, men of means, well educated.  But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured. They signed and pledged their lives, their fortunes their sacred honor all for a cause bigger than themselves.

Five signers where captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.  Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.  Two lost their sons in the Revolutionary Army, nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution.  These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians.  They were soft-spoken men of means and education.  They had security, but they valued liberty more.  Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged:  “For the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of the Divine Providence of God, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.”

All organizations need to be ready to compete – everyday. To be competitive, we need to be streamlined and fit. Ready to respond with focused actions around important issues; trying to achieve our best every day.  How do we do it? Get rid of low-value activities so you have enough time to focus on what’s important. Walk into meetings and be effective. Have a clear plan of action that says if it’s not moving us forward today, if this is not beneficial right now, let’s get rid of it.

Two compelling behaviors dominate great teams and organizations: they are constantly and forever trying to avoid big hazards while simultaneously looking for big opportunities. And when looking for those big opportunities, they do everything they can, each and every day, to move toward that objective. In football we have 60-minutes to get the job done under great duress and pressure. In business, it’s not much different. Come to work every day with the mindset focused on winning, today.