Yesterday I watched my boy play soccer… and his team got SMASHED.
Like, heartbreakingly crushed. Poor little guy was so down it took an icy-pole AND a 5 minute instant dance party to get a smile back on his face.
[the smile before the storm… ]
Looking back, it’s clear to me why he was set up for such a big loss. When I arrived at the oval before the game, I immediately noticed things were in a bit of a shambles.
The kids weren’t warming up.
The nets weren’t out.
There seemed to be no organisation whatsoever.
Hell, some people hadn’t even showed up.
It got worse… usually at the start of a game, the Coach maps out the game on a whiteboard.
Sort of a ‘who goes where, who does what’ mini game play strategy session. But not today.
You see, the coach wasn’t there for this particular game. Instead, a parent took over with coaching duties. But they had no idea what it takes to organise those little kids into a cohesive team.
So when the kids eventually got on the field, they had no idea where they were supposed to stand, or even which direction they were supposed to be kicking the ball.
Talk about a balls-up (pun intended)
No wonder the little ones got their butts kicked by the opposing team.
It got me thinking about the importance of having a Coach. Not just in sport, but in business too.
It’s not just about winning the game. It’s about having someone who shows the leadership needed for things to run as smoothly as possible. To reduce confusion and give team members certainty on what to do.
You see, business advice can come from many different corners.
But just like the parent who stepped in for coaching duties, relying on someone who doesn’t understand the full picture of what needs to happen isn’t going to win you the game.
For instance, lots of business owners I speak to get their business guidance from their accountant.
But you can’t run a business based on looking at a profit-and-loss statement. It will only tell you so much.
Sure, the numbers are important. But there’s far more that goes into a business in terms of strategy, execution, leadership, management, marketing and so on…
Trying to manage a business looking at a P&L statement is like trying to figure out what went wrong after the game has been lost. And without even watching the whole game!
Businesses need a Coach. They need a Captain when the Coach isn’t there. And they definitely need a Game Plan to understand what needs to be done, and when.