Champions do extra- Keep ‘er Fit

By Gary Wallace

I just finished rereading ‘Legacy’ ‘by James Kerr. The author got exclusive inside access to the most successful sports team in history, the All Blacks.

As Bob Proctor says, ‘If you read a book the second time, you don’t see something in it you didn’t see before, you see something in yourself that wasn’t there before.’

Legacy outlines 15 mantras that All Blacks live by.

Character — Character begins with humility and discipline. Even after a major win, the All Blacks finish their celebrations and “Sweep the Sheds — because no one looks after the All Blacks — the All Blacks looks after themselves.” Don’t be too big to do the small things.

Adapt — Go for the gap. When you are on top of your game, change your game. Four steps to drive change: Make a case for providing a compelling picture of the future, sustain the capability to change and create a credible plan to execute. Culture is subject to learning, growth and decline. This continuous improvement was able to lift the All Blacks to an even better win rate.

Purpose. Understand the purpose for which you are playing. Better people make better All Blacks. Leaders connect personal meaning to a higher purpose to create beliefs and a sense of direction.

Responsibility. Be a leader, not a follower, pass the ball. Create a structure of meaning, a sense of purpose, belonging, teamwork and personal reasonability. Empower the individual by empowering them with the success of the team. Leaders create leaders by passing responsibility, creating ownership, accountability, and trust.

Learn. Leaders are teachers. By finding the 100 things that can be done just one per-cent better, you achieve marginal gain which creates an incremental and cumulative advantage in performance and results.

Whanau. The All Blacks’ stated policy of excluding highly talented prima-donnas.

One of the first steps in developing a high-performance culture is to select a character. Follow the spearhead — birds, as a cyclist, one leads, another follows, another takes the lead, in an endless synchronized supporting system. The strength of the wolf is the pack, the strength of the pack is the wolf.

Expectations. Embrace expectations and aim for the highest cloud. Successful leaders have high internal benchmarks, they set their expectations high, and try to exceed them.

Preparation. Train to win, practice under pressure. Practice with intensity to develop the mindset to win. Intensified training in preparation to win will condition the brain and body to perform under pressure and make peak performance automatic. It helps to develop the mindset of winning.

Pressure. The first stage of learning is silence; the second stage is listening. Know how to manage, deal and embrace pressure. Control your attention. Bad decisions are made because of an inability to handle pressure at the pivotal moment.

Authenticity. Know thyself, keep it real. If you succumb to peer pressure and do things because others want you, you will be cut-off. Be genuine, stay true to yourself and be honest with your environment. Adopting the behaviors and values of others will often conflict with what got you there in the first place.

Sacrifice. Find something you would die for and give your life to it. Do the above and beyond for a cause, activity or mission you believe in. Champions do Extra. Bleed on the field and know that your teammates will do the same for you.

Language. Let your ears listen. Invent a language, sing your world into existence. A system of meaning that everyone understood. A language, vocabulary and a set of believes that bind the group together.

Ritual. Ritualise to Actualise. A culture of continually growing and changing. Inspiring leaders establish rituals to connect their team to its core narrative, using them to reflect, remind, reinforce and reignite their collective identity and purpose.

Whakapapa. Be a Good Ancestor. Plant trees you’ll never see. Connect the past, present, and future. True leaders take responsibility adding to the future. Ensure knowledge transfer.

Legacy. Write your legacy. This is your time. Be purposeful. Add to the ethos, make your mark.

Compelling stuff, and there is even more insight when you delve into the book. One thing that I picked up this time was ‘Champions do more’’.

This just stuck a chord with me the second time reading the book. It’s a simple fact that you must do more to be the best or even to a better version of your current self. For the All Blacks, it was an extra pitch session, doing one more rep in the gym, or doing the extra individual video work. The same principle applies to us. You don’t have to play sport at a high level or even play sport at all to be a champion. Being your own champion will still mean you have to do that bit more. The book also refers to the extra mile of a race where no one is cheering you on.

So, if you want to be a champion, do more – and also read the book.