The Game.
Melbourne, January 28, 2018 | Australian Open Final
At 36 years old, Roger Federer stepped onto court at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne for what would become his 20th and final Grand Slam championship. He faced Croatia's Marin Cilic in a match that swung wildly between dominance and desperation.
Federer stormed through the first set 6-2. Cilic then clawed back the second set in a tiebreak. Federer regained control in the third, 6-3 but Cilic refused to surrender, winning the fourth set 6-3 and forcing a decisive fifth.
In the final set, Federer unleashed vintage tennis, winning 6-1.
Roger Federer won 103 career singles titles, including 20 Grand Slam singles titles. He holds the record for most consecutive weeks ranked world No.1 (237) and has a total of 310 weeks at the top spot. He has won 8 Wimbledon titles and 6 ATP Finals.
“Perfection is impossible. In the 1,526 singles matches I played in my career, I won almost 80% of those matches… What percentage of points do you think I won in those matches?
Only 54%.
The truth is, whatever game you play in life, sometimes you’re going to lose. A point, a match, a season, a job, it’s a rollercoaster with many ups and downs.
The best in the world are not the best because they win every point. It’s because they know they lose again and again and have learned how to deal with it.”
The Analysis.
In businesses we have a perspective that ‘losing a point’ is fatal. A strategy that collapses; a competitor that beats you to a launch of a product or service, a bad hire, a poor choice of suppler or a shift in the market overnight.
Amidst the bitterness of defeat, are any of this situations career defining?
Tom Beahon, Co-Founder of Castore, the sports brand that has rivalled Nike and Adidas and was rumoured to be valued around £1bn in 2023, relates to this:
“The biggest thing for me was learning to lose. In sport, it doesn’t matter how good you are, you’re going to lose a lot. And as an entrepreneur, you have to be similarly comfortable with losing.”
“The big distinction I’ve noticed among entrepreneurs isn’t necessarily intellectual - it’s just that we can keep going when things are not going well. It’s relentless perseverance.”
The businesses that continue to compete at the highest-level aren’t just the ones with the best plans or most resources - they're the ones who know how to respond when the outcome isn’t achieved.
They’ve accepted losing is a part of the process, but, double down on the lessons that come with it and respond to the challenge.
As in sport, you will lose in business - that's certain.
The questions is not whether you will win or lose, it is however - how are you going deal with it?
The Reflection.
Have you focused on your response to losing, as rigorously as you've focused your strategy for winning?
Best,
Daniel Holloway
Founder, Sport of Business
P.S. Know someone building a business who thinks like an athlete? Forward this to them. The best performances are by those who understand the game.