When we think about athletics, the sprinter who is likely to come to our mind is Usain Bolt, even a year after he retired from the track. He is widely considered to be the greatest sprinter of all time having won the 100 m, 200 m and 4 × 100 m relay at three consecutive Olympic Games. It is an amazing conversion ratio of 100% that makes him the greatest among the greats!
Being an Indian, I need to give some examples from cricket and am glad to be writing this blog post at a time when Indian cricket is in ascendency for more than a decade. What would be some of the most famous moments in Indian cricket? Lovers of Test cricket will mention the magnificent VVS Laxman Kolkata innings of 281 against Australia in 2001, followers of one day cricket will remember the first World Cup win of 1983 or the last one of 2011 based on the generation they belong, Sachin Tendulkar fans will recollect Sharjah innings from 1998 and MS Dhoni supporters will vouch for his leadership skills citing the inaugural T20 world cup win in 2007. Now, what is common across all these reminiscences? – the RESULT!
Imagine how we will remember the same individuals or events if:
- Usain Bolt missed winning some of these events due to false starts or petty illness like fever, cold or upset stomach.
- Despite Sachin’s genius innings, India failed to cross the finish line in Sharjah 1998 finals as it happened the very next year in a Test match at Chennai
- Sreesanth failed to cling on to Misbah-ul-Haq’s scoop over short fine leg during the T20 finals.
In sports as in any aspect of life, there is always an element of chance or luck that determines the final outcome. So, how does luck work? I found this statement from Garry Kasparov’s “Deep Thinking” about luck to be apt: “In nearly any competitive endeavor, you have to be damned good before luck can be of any use to you at all”.
And I am a believer of this quote by Roald Amundsen, a Norwegian explorer who led the first Antarctic expedition to reach the South Pole in 1911: “Victory awaits him who has everything in order — luck, people call it. Defeat is certain for him who has neglected to take the necessary precautions in time; this is called bad luck”.
When we don’t achieve the best possible results, there is always a reason – I call it an excuse. Some people look outwards and attribute any failure to other people or external factors while they did not do their job well enough BUT readily look inwards to attribute all success to themselves though they did not contribute sufficiently! They forget that people around them will be aware of the reality and will not respect them for such actions. Even if they may get away with such irresponsible behavior in the near term, they will be held accountable in the long term. And the longer they manage to get away, the greater the downfall will be!
Jim Collins in his book “Good to Great” attributes success of organizations to Level 5 leadership and says “Level 5 leaders look out the window to attribute success to factors other than themselves. When things go poorly, however, they look in the mirror and blame themselves, taking full responsibility“.
Overall, I have learnt that:
- Diligent planning and flawless execution are essential to achieve great results.
- When expected results are not delivered, first ask if we have done everything within our control. In my several years of several failures, I was always able to find something that I could have done differently to increase the chances for success. This learning helped me improve and produce better results in future.
- Avoid attributing lack of results to external factors. Though we may feel justified, we will come across as someone unwilling to take responsibility for our outcomes. And multiple such occurrences will lead to our losing respect and trust.
- Many environments today reward effort even when results are not achieved. This will encourage mediocrity and lead to an environment that does not produce required results as people will limit themselves to spending long inefficient hours and expect rewards for the time spent.
- While EFFORTS are important, it is RESULTS that ultimately matters. Appreciate effort but hold people accountable for results!