The Key to Continued Success

I just finished watching the BCS National Championship where Alabama won it’s 3rd title in four years. Obviously, both teams were talented. Both teams worked hard all season. Both teams come from storied college football programs. But clearly one team was better prepared, better coached, and simply outmatched the other team. I believe the difference between tonights game was leadership.

Needless to say, Nick Saban has created a dynasty in Tuscaloosa. Whether you like Saban or not, you have to admit that he and his coaching staff can take these high school recruits and turn them into champions.

He is an expert at taking talented high school players and making them better. He has the uncanny ability to get his teams in a position to win year after year. But that’s what all great leaders do. They position their teams to win. Regardless of whether it’s the football field, the local church, or the marketplace…the key to winning is leadership. Leaders that win; recruit talented people, equip them to lead, and unleash them to accomplish greater things together then they could do as individuals.

It reminds me of an excerpt from The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork by John Maxwell:

Leadership is like a running head start for the team. Leaders see farther than their teammates. They see things more quickly than their teammates. They know what’s going to happen and can anticipate it. As a result, they get the team moving in the right direction ahead of time and for that reason, the team is in a position to win. The greater the challenge, the greater the need for the many advantages that leadership provides. If you want to win – and keep winning for a long time – train players on the team to become better leaders.

The power of leadership carries over into every field. The business run by good leaders often finds its market niche first and outperforms its rivals, even if the rivals possess greater talent. The non-profit organization headed by strong leaders recruits more people, equips them to lead, and serves a greater number of people as a result.

Look behind the scenes of any great undertaking, and you will always find a strong leader. That’s why I say that the difference between two equally talented teams is leadership.

The key to continued success is to develop each player on your team to become better leaders.