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Congratulations to Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos—you’ve just climbed the mountain.
Now, the most difficult thing to do will be scaling that mountain twice.
The sports and business greats all know that winning is difficult, but repeating a championship performance is such a challenge that few can tell you how it feels. Think about it, how many champions repeat? Whether it is a team hoisting a championship banner or an organization rising to the top of its industry, even the best teams can be defeated by complacency or an inability to adapt to new circumstances.
The challenge for any winner is remaining consistent, year after year. So how do the great teams in sports and business do it?
In my study of Great Teams, here’s how the best deliver consistent championship performances:
1. The great teams remain hungry.
Many championship winning teams fail to repeat because of distractions. The 1985 Chicago Bears—one of the most storied teams in the history of the NFL—are a testament to this. The team featured Hall Of Famers Walter Payton, Richard Dent, Dan Hampton, Mike Singletary and Head Coach Mike Ditka, went 15-1 (losing only to the Miami Dolphins) and dominated the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX.
The next year the Bears—with much of the same talent returning—were favorites to win the Super Bowl once again. But something was different; the players were all doing endorsements, poster shoots, and cashing-in. Distraction ran high.
As I interviewed Walter Payton for his book “Never Die Easy,” he shared with me that the Bears didn’t enter the 1986-97 season with the same hunger.
“Don, we’d already eaten at the buffet line,” he said to me. “It seemed some of us weren’t as hungry.”
2. Great leaders aren’t complacent or overconfident.
John Wooden—legendary head coach of the 10-time championship winning UCLA Bruins—often said, “Winning takes talent; to repeat takes character.”
Coach Wooden also taught his players that what brought them success in the past won’t guarantee success in the future. On his first championship squad, Coach Wooden didn’t have a player over 6’5” and they played a scrappy zone press defense—but not long thereafter he had the towering Kareem Abdul Jabbar as his superstar and revamped the Bruins offense in order to take advantage of his new competitive edge.
The strategy paid off. Wooden and the Bruins won three championships with Kareem at center (and many more to follow) all because their organization made a habit of never resting on last year’s success.
3. Great teams reject the fear of under-performing.
Even with eight undefeated seasons and ten championship wins under his belt, University of Connecticut women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma still has to deal with the fear of failure from his players. Coach Auriemma combats those fears by challenging his players in positive ways—often through the media—to improve their game and create new skills.
Before his team’s 2009 NCAA title game against Louisville, whom UConn defeated twice during the regular season, Auriemma told reporters, “I don’t know if what we did to them in the first game had any effect on the second game. And what we did to them in the second game, I don’t know that it has any effect on today. These are different environments, different days and different attitudes among the players. I mean, there’s no disputing the fact that we won by a lot both times. But I don’t know what that gets you. You still have to go out and make the shots and stop them.”
Call it reverse psychology, but the message resonated with the Lady Huskies. They realized they weren’t just playing against an over-matched opponent, but the expectations of their head coach—which encouraged them to crush Louisville for a third time to take the 2009 NCAA title.
Leaders, take note: Great Teams maintain success by not falling victim to human nature; they overcome common temptations, resist complacency and nurture a culture that wins consistently. Winners capitalize on new opportunities, adjust game plans and do not settle for what worked last season or year.
The trophy room is not meant to be slept in—so don’t overstay your welcome.
What are some ways you and your professional team have remained consistently successful? Leave me a comment. I’d love to hear about your team culture.
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