The Blog of HARSH BATRA

An entrepreneur's thoughts on business & life

Tag Archives: sport

How many lead your team?

I recently heard one of the senior members of the cricket team we were playing against say -

you know our problem is that we have 5 captains and 5 vice captains.

On hearing that remark everybody in our team cracked up laughing. Unfortunately, more often than not, that is the reality in a number of teams. There is this constant tussle amongst different players on who should lead. Should it be the person who put together the team? Should it be the senior most member of the team? Should it be the best player in the team?

In cricket, decisions need to be made involving batting, bowling and fielding; they need to be made at every point of the game. What I notice in cricket matches now is that the actual decision of the chosen leader actually depends on popular opinion. In some cases the leader is actually garnering team support for his decisions. Both these cases are bad signs!

It is very hard to effectively play as a unit if there isn’t a leader to follow or if the leader cannot get the other members of the team to follow him. Respecting the leader and his decisions irrespective of the outcome is KEY to getting a team to play as a team. If you are playing a team sport, you should ask yourself two questions: Continue reading →

Why running a marathon is like running a business.

Marathon_certificate_3

Not everyone can run a 21kilometer half marathon or a 42 kilometer full marathon. To be able to run such a race you must be mentally and physically ready to take on such a challenge. Running a marathon can be very much like running a business; here’s why:

- Long Term Thinking: A marathon takes hours to finish. You need to pace yourself. The only way you will be able to make it across the finish line is by achieving milestones along the way. If you do not have an idea of how you will do it, chances are that you will struggle along the way and the majority of you will give up. In a marathon, like in business, you need to know your target and set milestones along the way to get there.

- Clear Focus: What are you trying to achieve? You will constantly see people ahead of you, behind you and by your side. During the race, a number of them will run past you and you will run past quite a few too. It is very easy to start running someone else’s race so don’t lose focus on what you are trying to achieve. Are you trying to beat your personal best? Are you just trying to finish the race? Are you trying to be the first across the finish line? Are you trying to see whether you enjoy the process? Each goal requires a different skill set.
Even though competition is an inherent part of the society we live in, don’t let that distract or discourage you. Stay focused. Keep reminding yourself why you are running the race or your own business. Continue reading →