Each week, Gino
Blefari, CEO of HSF Affiliates LLC, writes a great blog titled “Thoughts on
Leadership." Since each of us is the leader of our own professional real estate
brokerage business, Gino’s thoughts can be a great source of guidance and
inspiration. His latest post—just before the Super Bowl last Sunday—is a
wonderful look at what it means—and what it takes—to be a winner. (By the way,
in case you missed, Peyton DID win!) Here are Gino’s thoughts:
This week my travels find me in Irvine,
CA, where it seems as if the entire state is gearing up to host Super Bowl 50
on Sunday. And while my 49ers didn’t quite make it to the big game, it does
take place right on my home turf, at Levi’s® Stadium in Santa Clara.
If you look at the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers
roster, you’ll know Super Bowl 50 should be an interesting contest of the
league’s two best defenses that pits prodigy quarterback Cam Newton of the
Panthers against veteran quarterback, Peyton Manning of the Broncos. It’s also
an intriguing matchup when you take into account the rumors circulating that
this Super Bowl game might be Peyton’s last. In fact, browse any sports news
website and you’ll be met with a hailstorm of headlines debating this very
question. Will he or won’t he? Would a Broncos win on Sunday change everything?
Well, yes. Because if Peyton does decide
to make this his final appearance on a professional football field, a Super
Bowl win would cement his quarterback legacy in the history of the game. Win
one Super Bowl and you’re good (OK, you’re really, really good) but win two
Super Bowls and you ascend to football greatness. However, there’s an inherent
flaw with this way of thinking, in diluting a years-long career into one single
day battling to become a Super Bowl champion. Is it really fair to reduce
decades of late-night game tape reviews and early morning practices, endless
examples of stunning fourth-quarter wins and incredible, how-did-he-do-that
passes into just a few hours of play?
Vince Lombardi, famed Green Bay Packers
head coach during the 1960s, once perfectly summed up what it means to win.
“Winning is not a sometime thing,” he explained. “It’s an all-time thing. You
don’t win once in a while, you don’t do things right once in a while, you do
them right all the time. Winning is a habit.”
In other words, of course a Super Bowl
win is significant but if it does happen for Peyton, it would be symptomatic of
the hard work and talent he’s put on display not only this Sunday but also
since he first joined the Indianapolis Colts in 1998. Let me tell you this: One
night does not a winner make. Winning, as Lombardi described it, is an
“all-time thing.” You’re not a winner because you score more points than the
other team during a single game; you’re a winner because you made winning a
habit every time you stepped onto the field.
So, what’s the message? Whether Sunday’s
game really is Peyton’s last, there’s a lesson on leadership to be learned in
the attention this decision brings to the true spirit of a winner. As Lombardi
once said, “The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things
that endure. These qualities are so much more important than the events that
occur.
Thanks, Gino—and Vince! “Winning is an
all-time thing!”
David M. Hassler
VP, Professional Development
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