What can Mike Babcock teach us about business

I picked up today’s paper (The StarPhoenix) only a few minutes after I finished my first post for today, July 17 2010. Perhaps the most interesting story in the paper featured Mike Babcock, the current Detroit Red Wings coach and one of the best coaches in the NHL‘s history, who grew up in Saskatoon. (Did I mention that this was not the lead story ???)

I’d encourage you to read the whole story when you find a minute (just click here), but for now here is a little taste: “Few coaches can boast such a diverse portfolio. Yet this may not have happened If he hadn’t led the Lethbridge Pronghorns to the national university championship in 1994, shortly after being fired by the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors.”

Lesson #1: In life and in business you often don’t need more genius. You need less resistance. (Seth Godin writes about this topic in detail in his new book the “Linchpin” – I highly recommend it.) So, pick your own spots – go where you are wanted or valued.

Lesson #2: What’s a flop? If we consult the dictionary:

Flop
Verb
: To fall or lie down heavily and noisily;
Noun: An event that does not accomplish its intended purpose (e.g. “the play was a dismal flop).

Bur if we were to consult Dick Fosbury, would we get the same response?
Didn’t he jumped higher than any man before him by flopping by not fitting in?

Lesson #3: The flop is part of the journey over the top. But don’t take my word for it. Just ask Dick Fosbury. Or Mike Babcock. The choice is truly yours.