Each team is led by a coach who believes in their players and who pours into them as much knowledge, skill, and opportunity they can. As a business leader, part of your role is coach. You need to embrace that part of your position wholeheartedly. If it doesn’t come naturally to you, don’t worry. Focus on developing your coaching skills and working towards becoming a leader who inspires, motivates, and commands respect.

Too, in sports, a great coaching staff isn’t typically comprised of just one person. Usually there is a crew of coaches, each with their own roles and specialities that help to make the team the best it can be. In business, work to build your coaching staff. If your organization is large enough, find a great COO or Office Manager to team up with. If your firm isn’t there yet, you can still work to build your coaching staff. Start by finding the best player on the team and have them teach the others. For example, identify your most polished intake specialist and have them pour their knowledge into the other team members.

Everyone knows that top teams spend hours and hours practicing their skills for the big moment under the lights. They practice as if they are playing. Teams go over their systems and processes time and time again so that when they are in a game, delivering is second nature. They know what to do because they have done it thousands and thousands of times before. Businesses need to adopt this strategy. There must be time for practice. Practice is where growth really happens. Let’s talk intake again…you do not want a new intake specialist practicing on your potential clients right away, do you? Have them practice with others on their team first to build skills and work out missteps. Schedule time for the intake team to review their procedures and strategies so they are ready when the phone rings. This time needs to be intentionally scheduled out, or it will likely not happen. During practice, have the designated coach review the steps that must be followed on every call. This is a great opportunity for team bonding which is also so important within an organization. You want to be sure everyone shares the same vision!

If every football team played without a playbook, can you imagine the chaos and disaster that would cause on the field? No one would know what to do. If nobody on the field knew what the strategy was, do you think they could win even one game? Probably not! Businesses are the same way. If you want to beat your competition, you need a playbook! Even if you have superstars on your team who are doing things well, they still need a game plan in order to execute the firm’s vision and mission. Creating a playbook will take time, but it will be worth it, in the end, to be sure your team is on the same page and is performing under the same training or processes. In an organization, think of a playbook as the standard operating procedures, best practices, and manuals you develop. These take considerable time and forethought to develop, implement, and ultimately, get right, but it’s a non-negotiable if you want your firm to have a successful season.