Football! A team leader! One man makes the decisions. The team follows.
I was forty when I took interest in football. Eleven years later, I thought I
understood the game. I was wrong.
I watched a team make an amazing win against an opponent far stronger than
them. Everyone thought it was going to be a slaughter by the stronger team. They (I)
were wrong.
The weaker team was down by fourteen points. Their fans held their heads in
their hands and moaned with grief. The team rallied. Their fan's frowns turned into
smiles and then screams of joy as their quarterback threw a pass to put them into the lead
and to a win.
I watched that game. The team sucked the year before. What changed them?
I figured it was the new quarterback.
The quarterback, the leader of his team, but not "the" team. He calls the play. He
leads his men. It's up to his team to make it happen.
It took eleven years of watching football to learn how it works. The quarterback
looks, sees an open receiver, and passes. There are times when he's under pressure. The
opponent rushes forward. The quarterback knows he is about to be crushed under the
weight of a three-hundred pound monster. He throws the ball to the place he expects his
receiver to be.
They had a plan. He expected his teammates to follow-through. He knows he's
going to be crushed one-way-or-another. He stands, watches the enemy rush in, prepares
for the hit, and launches the ball into space.
Into space!
No one is there, but he knows his teammate will be. It was the plan. They trained
for this moment. The ball spirals through the air. The opponent hits him. He feels his
ribs crack, but not break. His backside hits the ground. He keeps his head up, watches
the receiver dash through coverage and catch the ball. Before his head hits the ground, he
raises his hands in joy.
They won by planning, grueling work, dedication and working together.
A team is a family. They support each other. Each member has a part to play. If
one has to do it all, the team falls apart.
The same can be said for a company. Successful companies have a plan and a
team of employees. The team works together to successfully reach their goal. A team
without a plan or that doesn't work together, fails. The team determines whether their
company will prosper or fail.
It's all about the team.
~ Michael T. Smith ~
<heartsandhumor@gmail.com>
Michael lives in Ohio with his wife Ginny and his stepdaughter's
family. You can see a list of Mike's stories here:
http://tinyurl.com/moud8u And you can get his stories emailed to you
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Michael T. Smith
