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Life Coach
For many Americans, football is not just a spectator sport; it is a religion. Each Sunday (and Monday night) from September to January, they worship the heroes on the field, they make pilgrimages to legendary stadiums, and they pray for success. In reality, though, football is a business and success is earned. No one knows this better than Brian Billick, the former head coach of the Baltimore Ravens.
Billick, who in 2000 guided the team to its only Super Bowl Championship in the franchise's short history, visited campus in February to speak to student-athletes about life lessons for success. Towering over nearly everyone in the crowd, Billick used examples from his long career in the NFL as well as from more conventional business models, to discuss important components in any successful business venture.
One of his most vivid analogies was a bacon and egg breakfast, in which "the chicken is involved but the pig is totally committed," illustrating the difference between personnel who are team players and those who put their individual success first. In football terms, it's the difference between a Super Bowl champion and a Pro Bowler. Michael McCrary, for example, a defensive end for the Ravens from 1997 to 2002, had fewer sacks during the team's Super Bowl season than in earlier years. According to Billick, the lower numbers were the result of McCrary putting the team goal, a Super Bowl win, above his personal goals. In Billick's words, "McCrary is a real pig."
The same principle applies in the business world. When Billick's daughter felt underappreciated in her job, the coach advised her to make like McCrary—to build up her coworkers and become a team player. "Make it about someone else" was solid advice, as her work ethic and team mentality eventually led to a promotion.
Though devotion to one's team or company can be a bigger advantage than raw talent, a willingness to take risks by thinking outside the box is also key. Billick described a high school quarterback who followed his coach's instructions to the letter and secured a tie, even though he had the perfect shot to win the game, contrasted with a quarterback who ignored the play that was called because he saw a better opportunity to score. While it's important to follow directions both on the football field and in the boardroom, Billick said, it's crucial to understand the ultimate goal and be willing to try new ways of achieving it, even if it means taking a gamble.
"You'll be much happier not dwelling on the 'what ifs,'" Billick said.