A Lesson From Sport
How are you progressing towards your goals for this year?
© iStockphoto/Andresr
You’ve probably watched commentators during a break between the periods of a sporting event. They typically discuss what happened during the first half of the game, and they imagine what might be happening in the locker room and how the athletes will play the second half. They might assess who is playing well, review the success of each play, and guess what the players might do or change in the next period to win the event.
Meanwhile, in the locker room, the athletes physically rest, yet they also think about the first half of the game. They might consider what’s going well and whether they’re playing at their best and focusing on the right things. After they’ve assessed what’s happened, they might then think about whether they need to make any changes for the rest of the game to achieve their goal – which is to win.
In short, halftime is a good opportunity to think about where they’ve been, where they’re going, and what adjustments must be made. You can use this same approach in your professional and personal life.
So, take these steps during your “halftime” review to ensure that you stay on course and do what you need to do to achieve your goals.
Step 1: Review what has happened to date
Assess all that has gone into your “play” so far and whether it has helped you toward achieving your goals. Ask yourself the following questions:
- How have I performed so far?
- What have I done that has worked well and contributed to my success?
- What has not worked well?
- What have I focused on, and has this been appropriate for my success?
Step 2: Determine whether adjustments are required
If everything is working fine in the game so far, that’s great – the athletes continue doing what they were doing. However, they may have started the game with one approach that’s not working – therefore, adjustments are necessary to help them increase their chances of winning.
So, once you have a good picture of how you’ve reached this point, analyze this further to determine whether any changes are needed to help you achieve your goal.
Ask yourself the following questions:
- What do I need to do to minimize the negatives?
- What do I need to do to maximize the positives?
- To get back on track, what changes do I need to make in my attitude, my focus, and my approach?
- What mindset is required for me to stay on track and win/achieve my goals?
Step 3: Put it into practice
After the athletes decide which adjustments they must make, they just go out there and do it. Ice hockey players have three periods and get a break between each, football and rugby players have halftime – and coaches sometimes call a time-out to regroup and refocus at critical moments in the game. You might need to identify when your breaks are, so you can review and think about what you need to do differently to achieve your goals.
Key Points
Whether you’re a sports athlete or a corporate athlete, you can use a “halftime" review to assess whether you’re on track to achieve your goals and determine if you need to make any adjustments to improve your chances of “winning.”
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