Did you spend your childhood playing team sports?  Are you secretly wishing you were young enough to still play competitively on a winning team, but have realized that those years have passed? 

“Business Analytics is a Team sport!” 

The skills you learned on the ball field are directly applicable to your goal of winning with Business Analytics.   Here are lessons I learned on the soccer field that I apply to every Business Analytics and Business Intelligence projects. 

“The achievements of an organization are the results of the combined effort of each individual.” – Vince Lombardi

• Players must communicate openly.
• The experience of being on the team for players is contingent not just on the other players, but also on support of the coaches and fans.
• A good coach can make average players into winners by building the team and putting the right players in the right positions.
• All team players but know their role on the team and respect the roles of others.
• A single player can’t win the game.  It takes the entire team!
• Attitude is more important than skill.
• Energy is contagious.
• Practice and discipline are key to success.
• The better you know your team members, the better you will play together.
• You need a game plan that addresses how to overcome the anticipated challenges.
• Time outs are an opportunity to reassess the challenges and adjust your game plan.
• Every team member is responsible for the win or the loss.

“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude. – Thomas Jefferson

It’s time to build your team and play your best game.  With the right attitude, a clear goal and hard work, anything is possible.