It’s interesting how I got into sailing, which was completely accidental. My dad gave me a Sunfish at age 10, which is pretty easy to sail. I was scared to death to capsize it, but my dad wouldn’t allow me to sail on my own until I flipped the boat over then back up. When he showed me how, I realized, “I can do this on my own!”. It was a moment of independence, exactly like when you first learn to ride a bike. At age 11, I was invited to a racing clinic that got me interested in racing. Later that summer, I won one of the biggest regattas in Texas at the time, the Navy Regatta at the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station. At that moment, I realized I’d become as good as everybody else!
That race ignited a lifelong passion, and ever since, I’ve been racing large boats with big crews out in the ocean. I’ve learned countless lessons from sailing that I’ve used in leadership and business –– here are the 5 most valuable.
1. Independence
Sailing taught me early on that I can conquer challenges, and gave me the confidence to take the lead and figure it out. In business, just like on a boat, there needs to be a strong, independent leader in charge, directing and guiding. The more you understand how to accomplish tasks independently, the better you can manage a team that works together effectively.
2. Interdependence
Interdependent teamwork, not just regular teamwork, is paramount. Everyone on your team needs to be on the same page in order to succeed. If one person slips, the whole project is in jeopardy. This is especially true in sailboat racing where someone could get injured. For example, imagine your job is to be in charge of the line that helps keep up the mast. You forget to keep your line taut and the next thing you know, the rig goes down. You’re now out of the race and you may have hurt someone. Depending on the size of the boat, it may have also been an awfully expensive mistake (a million dollars).
3. Recognizing what high performance looks like
Being on a winning team means getting exposure to high performance regularly. A winning team is the outcome of preparation, training, and practice, practice, practice –– in business it is no different. You don’t show up knowing everything, you hone your skill set with time. You learn to evaluate your team and the environment and adapt accordingly. Like I mentioned earlier, this requires a strong leader and an interdependent team working in sync. People can try to describe high performance to you, but until you’ve experienced it for yourself, it’s difficult to fully grasp and attain. Once you have reached that level, however, you’ll always want to perform that way.
4. No one remembers who came in second
Like it was said to Queen Victoria when Britain lost the very first America’s Cup, there is no second place. This rings true in many industries in business where the winner takes all –– there is no prize if you lose a deal or contract, you’ve simply lost the deal. Strive for the win, but do it smartly with an exceptional team and airtight plan. When you get to the finish line, you’ll see that all the hard work, planning, and synchronization has paid off.
5. Resourcefulness
When you’re on the water, things don’t always go well, and you have to be resourceful and figure it out. Sailors have been navigating troubled waters since long before cell phones and GPS. Maybe your rudder breaks or the wind drops, you will have to figure out how to get in on your own. You find you’re also more captive to the environment, more in tune with it, when you need to solve a problem. These types of challenges created wonderful independence for me as a young boy. While it may be scary, once you realize you can do it, your confidence skyrockets and you become increasingly resourceful.
You don’t need to be a competitive sailor to learn and implement these tips — listening and absorbing valuable lessons from mentors and teammates can help you tackle your business in the most effective ways.
We don’t always realize it, but sometimes childhood hobbies and experiences teach us extremely useful lessons in business. In my case, my experience with sailing taught me that I can right a sinking ship, build and depend on an exceptional team, and lead that team with confidence to reach our goal. This is exactly what happened when I became CEO of a regional, $300 million underwriting organization that was nearly insolvent. With the right strategy and team, we were able to right the ship and became a $3.5 billion world leader in just a few years.
Image by Artem Verbo from Unsplash.
