March 2, 2010
Lesson three: Hard work and commitment
The all-time leader in winter medals is Norwegian cross-country legend Bjorn Daehlie, who won eight golds over three Olympics. The first time he tried, Daehlie failed to make Norway’s junior team, but through sheer dedication and hard work, he improved every year – he still holds the record in the VO2 max test, one of the standard fitness tests.
Along similar lines, Canada’s speedskater Cindy Klassen won five medals in Torino, the most of any competitor. She said, “To succeed, every practice has to count, every step, every push on the ice.”
In Vancouver, Apolo Anton Ohno, who is perhaps best known for his appearance on Dancing with the Stars, broke the record for most Olympic medals by an American. Talking about his commitment level, he said, "Every day before you go to sleep ask yourself one question: did you do every single thing you could today to make sure you did your best? It's hard to answer YES every single day."
When it comes to building your business, a constant quest for improvement and a strong work ethic are just as important. Some advisors are attracted to the business by the financial rewards and the prospect of independence – what they don’t always see is the hard work it takes to achieve these.
Lesson four: Taking risks
To win at the Olympics, you can’t afford to play it safe. That’s true of the speed sports like skiing and speed skating – and equally true of sports like figure skating, where in the past athletes such as Germany’s Katerina Witt and Great Britain’s Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean won gold by pushing the artistic limits and taking chances on their program.
The same applies to advisors. To excel, you need to take measured risks – whether it is hiring additional staff earlier rather than later, investing the time to position yourself to attract a key target group for the future, spending the money on a computer solution that will streamline operations in your business or repositioning your business to meet emerging needs. Avoiding risk of any form is a prescription for middle-of-the-pack performance for Olympic athletes – and equally so for advisors.
Lesson five: Resilience
With its focus on sports such as skiing, skating and sliding, the Olympics are replete with stories of remarkable comebacks from horrific injuries.
Perhaps none was more extraordinary than Austrian skier Herman Maier. Known as the “Herminator,” he recovered from a spectacular crash at the 1998 Winter Games to come back and win two golds. Subsequently, a motorcycle accident almost claimed his life – and once again he came back to win.
Vancouver saw many remarkable examples of athletes who overcame adversity.
One of Vancouver’s stars was Norwegian cross country skier Petter Northug who won two golds, including the 50 km race, considered the most grueling event in the winter games. As he began the last leg of the 4x10 kilometer cross country ski relay, Northug found himself in sixth place and apparently out of the running, 37 seconds behind the leaders. Refusing to give up, Northug skied a blazing anchor leg, finishing second overall.
But it was two other skiers who shared the award for the Olympic athletes who showed determination in the face of obstacles.
Canadian figure skater Joannie Rochette was awakened at 6 am the day before skating to be told that her mother, in Vancouver to cheer her on, had died of a heart attack that night. Despite her grief, Rochette maintained her focus and ended up winning a bronze medal.
During the warm up for a qualifying race, Slovenian cross country skier Petra Majdic skied off course and fell down a 10 foot gully, breaking four ribs and puncturing her lung After a visit to the hospital, she competed and qualified. She persisted right through to the finals where she won bronze, attending the medal giving ceremony with a tube in her chest.
Lots of times it will be easy for advisors to get discouraged – in periods of tough markets such as we’ve just been through or when losing a great prospect that you thought you had in the bag.
Or maybe you’ll have a good client leave for a reason beyond your control, perhaps moving to another city or being lured astray by stories from a golfing buddy about great returns from his broker.
Just as Olympic athletes need to work through setbacks to reach their goals, sometimes advisors need to reach deep to bounce back from disappointments.
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