Anyone a college football fan? My family is! SEC Football to be specific. I read an article in the Wall Street Journal last weekend called What the Rise of Southern Football Says About America (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122843720586081461-email.html). It was an interesting article and it sent me reflecting on this football season. I read the article right before the Florida Gators were going to play Alabama for the SEC Championship and I thought of the now famous press conference after the University of Florida’s first (and only) loss this season. Tim Tebow, the quarterback nicknamed “Superman”, still beat up from the game had this look of resolve on his face, he looked the press in the eyes and told them…well, check it out for yourself – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96vAbtpakLg. He makes a pledge at the end. I am sure that wasn’t the end of it and more stories will emerge now that they are playing for the National Championship. When they went to practice the next day, there was a new level of intensity. This is what sets leaders apart. Tim Tebow stood in front of the nation and took responsibility for the loss that just happened and the intensity that would happen. He stood up for his team, inspired his team and has been leading his team ever since. Remember, he didn’t pick his teammates. He needed to work with the talent, mostly good, he had. This “pledge” and leadership skills have already made him the most-loved Gator of all time and leaders can all learn something from him, that pledge, this season and that loss.
Please share any lessons from this college football leader in the comments section.
I challenge Sales Managers to not settle for underperforming, even now. Inspire your teams, create a new level of intensity, set your sights on a goal and lead the team to achieve that. I had a sales leader tell me yesterday, “advance into oncoming fire”. It’s a military strategy and he was using it to illustrate why his people needed to be proactive right now instead of sitting back, or “retreating” as he described it, waiting for customers to cancel their orders or ask for discounts on signed contracts.
How can you, as a Sales Leader, help your team win NOW? Tim Tebow made a public pledge and then and applied good, old-fashioned hard work and strategy to back it up. How can this be done on a sales team?
