Preparing for the Game
When I was in college, studying acting, I was introduced to the book, Zen, and the Art of Tennis. (I looked on Amazon to provide a link. What is there is now just Kindle. I’m not sure that it’s the same book. So, no link.) It is/was a book that is truly written to help elite tennis players with the mental aspects of the game. There is a chapter or two about tennis, itself, but most is about the mental discipline it takes to be in the moment while playing. This works very well for actors.
This article is written by Jonathan Quick, an elite goaltender (more about him here). He has won the Stanley Cup with the LA Kings (twice), a Silver medal in the 2010 Olympics, won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the Playoffs, and has consistently turned in brilliant games.
“In the NHL, 90 percent of the save happens before
the player shoots the puck.” ~Jonathan Quick
Now, you may ask if this post is just about getting you to see that hockey is truly the best sport on the planet. Is it hero worship? Is it all about growing the fanbase for the NHL? No, it’s about business.
The more astute of you may already have seen this. Imagine you are going into a sales meeting. You are about to meet with a prospect whom would be a real game-changer for your company. When do you think the time is right to be preparing? Should you do this off the cuff? Should you, maybe, do some research on the company? Who are you meeting with? Have you found out where their pain is? Now you are catching on: The success of that meeting starts well before you walk in the door.
I don’t profess to be a “sales coach” per se, but I do profess to understand how to grow a business. We write a business plan before we open. Why? To be sure we have prepared for what is coming. We write a job description before we hire someone new. Why? Because we want to be sure we know what we are looking for in our new hire. We research our competition. Why? To be sure when we are asked, “Why you?” we have an answer that is better than whatever comes first into our minds.
Quick talks about being in the right position. He talks about having his feet set before the shot. He doesn’t talk about the thousands of hours it takes to get to a point where all you are doing is making sure you are “set” for the shot. So much of business is about preparation. Sure, we make those last minute decisions and “audibles,” but we do need to be prepared.
I was asked just last night by one of the forwards I play with: “When you see me coming, what are you looking at?” He is trying to figure out what he can do to trick a goalie. I ask other shooters, “When you are coming toward the goal, preparing to make a shot, what are you looking at?” I want to know what I can do to lure a shooter into a bad decision. When we are working in business, it should be a bit less adversarial, but the idea is right:
- What are the pain points of your prospect?
- What are they currently using? How do you stack up?
- What is the process they go through to make this decision?
- Who really makes the decision?
- Is the company in a place where they want to change, or are you fighting to get them to change when they are not really looking for something new?
Take a moment, read the article. Think of his prep in terms of business, sales, and product development. Enjoy the mind of an elite athlete telling you how to sell more widgets!