Playing a sport can teach you many great skills for achieving success in both a sports career and a business career. The key is to be open to these things and use them to your benefit so that you can grow from them. When I was young I played a few sports that taught me these valuable fundamentals that would serve me in my business career.
You can always get better. It doesn't matter if you're the best in the world at your sport, you can always get better. If you want to be the best then this point should be one of your driving forces. It's the people who think they're the best that usually become rapidly overtaken by someone else who has a better grip on this point. Push yourself. Get to the next level. If you don't think there's another level then create one. But no matter what, if success is your goal then you have to keep getting better no matter how good you think you are.
Play to win. You're not always going to win, but you should always play to win. This leads to many other topics like positive thinking and goal setting, but no matter what, play to win. When one of those times comes that you don't win, be gracious. The worst thing you could be a sore loser, this will brand you as a poor sport and people will not want to be associated with you. Oh yeah, people don't like cocky either, it's a delicate balance.
Hard work is a must. Think about it, in any professional sport it's only the top few that can actually make it to a level where they can make a decent living. As an example, how many kids, teens and adults are playing hockey wanting to be in the NHL? Now, how many players are in the NHL? There's only approximately 700 players in the NHL compared to the hundreds of thousands or more who play hockey and wish they could get to the NHL. The ones who make it know they have to work harder than everyone else. In business or your industry, do you work harder than everyone else? How high on the proverbial ladder do you want to climb? To get to success you have to work harder than everyone else.
You're in charge of you. You're the only person who's going to make you better. There's nowhere else to look but in the mirror when you don't achieve what you set out for. If you want it, then you have to go get it. No one is going to come along, take you by the hand, and guide you to success. Success comes from your own strength, discipline and hard work.
Teamwork. As much as individual performance can earn you a high level of recognition, you're not going to be the best without the help of a team. Moreover, a team that works as a cohesive unit, where everyone knows their role on the team and performs it to the best of their ability. Even golfers have a team, think of how important their caddy is and how well they need to work together. Being able to work in a team is vitally important in sports and business, I can't think of a single business where you work completely on your own, without colleagues, suppliers or customers. Treat everyone like a teammate, helping each other to win.
Here's a thought to leave you with. Professional athletes and people trying to become professional athletes practice many, many hours a week to get better. Do you want to have a successful business career? How much do you practice? How much do you read to expand your mind? How much do you train yourself to be a better leader? How are you improving your communication and people skills? Practice, practice, practice... Your parents and coach told you this all the time when you were young, it's the same for business.
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