Who are you fighting?

While it is extremely rare that I will watch the Larry King Live show, something caught my attention as I was flipping through the channels on a recent night.  He was interviewing the Maloof family.  If you don’t know, and I didn’t either, the Maloof’s are five siblings who are very successful in various business ventures including entertainment and sports.  Now I am not going to profess to know enough about the Maloof’s to comment about them.  What I am going to feature is something they said during their interview.  The question was regarding internal family relations – basically do they fight with each other about business decisions.  One of the brothers quickly responded to the question by stating that they can’t focus on fighting each other because they really need to focus on fighting the competition. 

Wow, that one comment really made me take notice!  “We can’t focus on fighting each other because we have to focus on fighting the competition.”  Clearly that statement is an excellent example of business acumen.  Think back to various projects you might have been a part of.  How many times did your meetings dissolve into bickering or hurt feelings on someone’s part?  People stubbornly dig their heels in and refuse to budge.  It becomes an endless cycle of trying to one-up your peers.  I know it happens because I have been in more than my fair share of those situations.  The organization spins its wheels as various departments have issues with other departments.  Senior management gets involved and now they have issues with each other.  It really is a scene that probably plays out every day in businesses across the world.

Instead, what if we tried to focus less on our personal pride and territories and more on pulling together? We might actually have the time and energy to prepare for the onslaught of outside threats!  Those threats are not just about fighting the competition.  They are about fighting economic conditions, addressing government regulations and legal issues and many more topics that are vital to business acumen. 

As business people we are already doing more with less.  Resources are stretched thin and people are working harder than ever. Why should we add to it?  Stop fighting each other and instead focus on fighting for your business.   Doing that will bring a sense of unity and purpose.  This will not only help the business succeed, it will also help you to succeed.    

While I couldn’t find the actual Larry King Live interview, here is a link to the CNN Larry King Live page: http://larrykinglive.blogs.cnn.com/2010/09/18/tonight-on-larry-king-live-172/

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Are you ready for some accountability?

Inevitably with football season there usually comes an opportunity to discuss how lessons learned in football can translate into the business world. This year is no different and a great example came in the very first weekend of play.

Controversial calls have become somewhat common place in many different sports this year.  The Lions/Bears football game this past Sunday was a perfect example of that! A game official used a rule that most people were probably unaware of to negate a touchdown. The Lions would have won the game had the touchdown stood. What was really striking about this situation was the head coach addressed the media frenzy with a level of accountability that isn’t often seen. It comes through very clearly in the following quote:

“As dramatic and controversial as the play with 24 seconds left might have been, there were 126 other plays from scrimmage that also had an impact on the game. Those plays kept Lions coach Jim Schwartz from pinning the loss on the one play.

"The time I stand up here blaming the officials for a loss is the time I don't have to do this anymore," Schwartz said.”
From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20100912/OPINION03/9120339/1126/rss14#ixzz0zX3KYjIH

The team had plenty of time to win that game – they put themselves in the position where the outcome hinged on one play. That play failed and they lost the game.

Wow, that’s standing up and honestly looking at the teams shortcomings in the entire process. That’s accountability and I really feel that it can be rare in this world. After all, who would want to willingly stand up, in front of their bosses, peers and the world, to state that they didn’t accomplish the goal to no fault but their own? It takes courage and a willingness to be vulnerable to make such an admission. Isn’t it easier to blame your boss, your coworkers, this economy or a host of other reasons? Yes, sometimes there are legitimate, concrete reasons for failures though I would suspect most of the time we, ourselves, have a hand in the process.

What is to be gained by such a pronounced display of accountability? Credibility. Respect. The freedom to become stronger.

Becoming more accountable is not easy.  It is not fun.  At the very least we must become more accountable to ourselves. By understanding our own shortcomings and actively trying to overcome them we will become more accountable. Doing that can only lead to improved business acumen!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”