Physical training and recovery share many similarities with business development. Recovering from ACL surgery is a long road, as is resurrecting a neglected business. I am not so excited to have the experience in the ACL department but it does help with perspective. Here are 8 similarities and parallels that I draw between the two.
- It is about the long haul. With business and training people often want instant results. The problem is that instant results very rarely happen and when they do they tend to plateau pretty quickly. You can build a web site in half an hour these days but it takes months if not years to build traffic to the website. You can change your diet and lose 5 pounds in a week but it is usually water weight and your progress will immediately slow. In both cases newbies often get frustrated and give up when the going gets tough.
- It is all about the foundation. In fitness it is imperative that you build a strong core, start slow and make sure your tendons and connective tissue are keeping up with training, have a solid nutritional foundation that will properly fuel your recovery and get plenty of sleep. Without any one of these components, you are quickly setting yourself up for injury. In business if you move forward without a plan, goal, expectations, KPIs, operating plans, revenue plans, timelines, business structure, and solid legal framework you will quickly find that you are aimlessly drifting. In both cases foundations are key to success and will allow you to reach a much higher pinnacle if properly constructed on the front end. It is also a huge challenge to reconstruct either foundation after the frame is built.
- Slow and steady is the way to go. If you are training for a marathon you have to run a lot and you have to run slow. If you get excited or bored and want to hurry it up, you will either wear yourself out, get hurt, or get disillusioned and quit. Increase your distance 5-10% per week at the most and HOLD BACK the speed and you will eventually get up to 26+ miles. When incubating a business you also need to breathe. Business founders are commonly guilty of burning the midnight oil and working themselves into burnout. There is a mentality in the startup community that embraces work with no regard for self. This is a recipe for disaster and is ultimately unsustainable. Many entrepreneurs start businesses because they are chasing freedom but continue to raise the bar after they have found success. Don’t forget to enjoy the ride and dont forget to pace yourself for the long haul.
- Following a proven plan will get you there every time. There is a reason why there is such a proliferation of business coaching, because it works. These coaches have cracked the code. If you follow one of their programs, if you model successful people you too will find the same success. It often doesn’t even matter which program, there are numerous ways to skin a cat. Not much different in the fitness world. Want to lose weight? Count calories, works every time. Want to add 50lbs to your bench press, there is a proven formula for that too. Successful athletes and business professionals both recognize the value of investing in training.
- Metrics and tracking give you valuable information you need to succeed. Look up heart rate zone training to make major leaps in the fitness department. Take it a step further and get a full panel of blood tests, VO2 max, nutritional deficiencies, etc. and you can fine tune your body and your approach to exercise. Comb through your P&L, scrutinize your Analytics, figure out the lifetime value of your customers and you can develop a plan of attack for your business. Without any of these KPIs you could spend years working in the wrong directions. There is a reason that Google has had such massive success organizing the worlds infomation.
- Repetitions and consistency make all the difference in the world. Miss too many days in a row on your startup or in the gym and you lose momentum; you quickly find yourself back at square one. Fitness and business both involve creativity, visualization and inspiration but the day to day implementation of both can be composed of monotonous tasks that can get old. In both cases you just have to put your nose to the grind stone and do the work.
- To really make progress sometimes you have to sprint, powerlift or go all in and really commit yourself to getting business done. You might have to launch a new product or lock yourself in a cabin until your book is finished. In order to get past the status quo and bust the plateau you have to take some risks. Yes, the sprint is going to hurt, you are going to want to quit but it is that last 10 steps when your heart is pounding out of your chest and your legs are crippled with lactic acid that you really get the results that push you to the next level.
- Once you get to the finish line you usually start thinking about the next adventure. Entrepreneurs are guilty of constantly moving the bar once they have cracked the code. Athletes often get addicted to the challenge and want to up the ante. I don’t see a problem with either case as long as you are taking time to enjoy your victories.
I think it is kind of fun to look at business like this. It gives me confidence in the road ahead. In truth I have seen much more success following a training plan to reach physical goals than I ever had in the business world. But I have also never really followed a proven formula all the way to completion. Taking this transferable model and applying it to almost anything can equal success.
Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed my little comparison. Business and fitness do truly go hand in hand.