Leadership lessons from a Quarterback.
Quarterback is a decision maker.
American Football sports broadcasters use to mention the importance of a quarterback: Why this position is considered the most valuable player in a roster several times?
I just figure this out judging all positions. Well, the defensive line is given their soul to tackle the quarterback and the secondary need to protect their territory most of the time against the receivers. The offensive line has a tough mission to shield the quarterback and make the whole offensive play happens. The running back courage to confront all the defensive team is terrifying, while the wide receiver must to get away from the defensive secondary, catch the ball and score the touchdown.
What is the conclusion? American Football is one of the hardest sports to play. This is why a franchise/college/school requires a big team of coordinators assisting the head coach and 55 players. It is a more complex sport than Soccer.
However, I understand that a quarterback is the most important player. Even though they don’t need to be physically in shape, which means runs lots and break tackles, it requires from a quarterback player mentality, vision, and a strong arm. He commands the offensive team and throws accurately to the receiver. It demands three seconds average after a snap.
In other words, organizations leaders use to be under pressure dealing with their colleagues (offensive team), the third party (defensive team) and making a decision for the whole company.
How does a quarterback is correlated to a business leader?
Lead the team to a goal.
The quarterback is the head coach’s voice on the field. He announces instructions to achieve the main goal, wins games, through touchdown. The perfect play comes through communication and a leader must do it effectively.
One of the greatest NFL players Peyton Manning leads his crew calling through codes that translate what each player must to do.
Responsibility and maturity.
Most of the time, he becomes the king of the town when it wins. On the other hand, a drastically loss put him against the wall. However, the high pressure requires him to face the press whenever happens after the game. He must be responsible and humble and not blame the others about what happened after a game. A mentally weak player may affect his image with the dressing room and the fans relationship.
Making decisions based on reading situations.
Great leaders are always working with your group to reach an agreement that it is positive for the company. The decision-making process isn’t that easy because the leader must be certain about the consequences. It demands open mind, vision, intelligence and be able to think fast depending on the situation. Quarterbacks aren’t different because they must to read each receiver and throw to the player that he considered the best option. The right leader is for the right people.
He is the man of the team.
I’ll tell you a name and you say what comes to your mind: Dan Marino. Miami Dolphins. Tom Brady. New England Patriots. Aaron Rodgers. Green Bay Packers. Joe Montana. San Francisco 49ers. Eli Manning. New York Giants. Ben Roethlisberger. Pittsburgh Steelers. Good job.
The quarterback uses to be the key figure of a team. There are players connected with the most played franchise and history can’t separate them like Joe Montana and San Francisco 49ers. Consequently, be associated with a big franchise carries a great responsibility and the pressure goes at high levels. That is not different from a large company CEO that needs to work hard, because he needs to care about the organization’s image as he cares himself every single day.
Yes, the quarterback is the most valuable player in American Football because no one is aimed and criticized than him. Nonetheless, all spotlights are above the Franchise Player as well a great corporation leader.
