Originally published on Thrive Global. 

Did 2018’s World Cup surprise you? Germany, Argentina, Spain and Portugal didn’t come far. France didn’t play well in all the games but won the Cup. The results surprised millions of soccer lovers.

In this article, I will share SIX LESSONS Entrepreneurs can learn from this year’s World Cup:

1. Change is the fuel of survival

The only guarantee in a world of “snap-chat” moments is change. Winners are able to initiate change because they are smart enough to recognize a changing wind and follow its direction. Renowned teams such as The Netherlands and Italy did not evolve their soccer teams’ strategies. Consequently, they failed to qualify for the World Cup. Failing to change welcomes failure. In business, the same rules apply: If you resist the inevitable, you are destined to perish. Kodak was once a pioneer in the age of digital cameras but could not cope with the rapid flow of change.

2. Humility is the key to greatness

The big winners of yesterday will be tomorrow’s losers if their leaders do not learn new algorithms to grow to the next level. The movie giant Blockbuster comes to mind: their business model lost out to new comers for not refreshing its strategy and preparing for competition. Start-ups founded in a basement five to ten years ago, like Uber and Air BnB, are now powerful, multibillion dollar businesses.

3. Effective teams make the difference

In my new book, “First-Class Leadership,” I demonstrate how highly effective teams are built. These teams do not necessarily have elite players. Nor are they too dependent on such individuals when they have them. In fact, depending too much on an elite player may be a gamble and does not guarantee success. Argentina depended too much on Lionel Messi during this year’s World Cup. France bested Argentina 4-3 in the quarter finals. All teams can learn from Belgium and France, even when Belgium came third.

As an entrepreneur and author, I believe that highly effective teams get better results than individual stars do. If you are an entrepreneur and want to make it to the next round, you do not need to rely on individual stars but rather a team of players with complementary skills and who desire to function as a team.

4. Test your strategies, even on the top

Past success is not a predictor of future results. The big losers are often those who do not evolve their success strategies and stay with the old playbook despite an advancing game. This was the case with the German team. Joachim Löw, the German Coach, tested his strategy. While his team did not book convincing results during friendly matches prior to the World Cup, he did not evolve his team to be competitive in the Cup. Blackberry is a comparable example. The tech company that wowed the world in the mid-2000s stayed too long with its “qwerty keyboard.” Apple’s and Samsung’s smartphones embraced a new approach in software and touch screen technology and soon eclipsed Blackberry’s aging approach.

5. Fear of failure can be paralyzing

Teams aspire to grow to a level where they can beat their competition. The truth is that the competition grows as well. If a top team fails to embrace change and evolve, the upcoming teams who do evolve become tomorrow’s threats. Fear of failure can lead to failure. Some sport coaches believe in the adage, “Never change your winning team.” Perhaps Löw and the Argentinian soccer coach, Sampaoli belong to this category. New situations require new approaches.

Fear of failure keeps entrepreneurs hostage. A fear of failure sounds like, “What if I fail and lose everything?” It is important to remember that indecision is more destructive than making poor decisions!

6. Always conduct a reality check

As I’ve covered in my new book First-Class Leadership, the first principle that many great entrepreneurs apply in new situations is conducting a reality check – instead of thinking, guessing and assuming. By checking we consider that we may not know everything and may need to verify facts.

Conclusion

Today’s world of entrepreneurship is a gladiatorial arena. Every battle in business is won using “fit-for-purpose” tactics. Your adversary may not care about who you are or what your reputation is. To prove your merit, employ a forward-looking, evolutionary strategy to win the day. On guard!

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The rise of populism survival of the fittest

Many are still staggered by the fact that Britons chose to leave the EU. And why was Donald Trump elected as the 45^th president of the United States? The endorsements of the elite, and celebrities like Richard Branson, appear to have had no significant effect on the crowd.

As the author of the upcoming book First-Class Leadership, I looked to leadership psychology to understand the reasons behind this. If you influence others to do what you want, you are a leader. John Maxwell also said, “Leadership is influence – nothing more, nothing less.” The populist leaders such as Nigel Farage, Donald Trump, Geert Wilders and Marine Le Pen know how to exert influence. In this article, I focus on several leadership aspects which populist leaders exploit effectively.

Effective communication

Effective communication may be the most important qualification criterion an effective leader should meet. Populists communicate more simply using tangible topics, which address the daily needs and issues ordinary people struggle with. They maximise the use of social media and IT giants, such as Facebook and Google, to connect with their audience. And when you are connected, you exert more influence. Populists tell their target population exactly what they want to hear.

Focusing on what is not working

Populists exploit subjects which are important to their target population, such as jobs, effects of globalisation, and national security. Current leaders, however, seem to be unable to provide understandable answers to counter the populists’ claims. For example, the UK Remain Campaign failed miserably when it came to selling the reasons why Britain should remain in the EU.

Light legacy

As a political leader with history, you make both friends and enemies. Media exposure during the elections is one of the easiest ways to ruin the life of a political leader. All you need to do is publish a damaging rumour which is at least partially true. Follow this with another rumour, which again has an element of truth. The negative publicity generated leads the crowd to start believing there is something wrong with this leader. Take Hillary Clinton and the news about her emails as an example. Unlike well-known leaders with their accompanying history, populists are not burdened by a significant legacy. They do not have as many enemies either. This gives populists the advantage of being able to focus on their own agenda, while the leaders with legacy also need to defend and restore their image.

Focusing on now

Populists cleverly address the most obvious pains the crowd suffers. They focus on the lower tiers of the human needs’ hierarchy as Abraham Maslow addressed in 1943-1954 (physiological, safety, belongingness and love, esteem, self-actualisation and self-transcendence). Focusing on the basic needs (i.e. food, safety, and jobs) pays off when memories of an economic crisis are still fresh. Focusing on the upper tiers of human needs – the focus point of the political elite – works best when most of the target population is unconcerned with basic needs.

Strategically chosen target population

When designing their election campaign, populists home in on the biggest and easiest to manipulate portion of the population. Most Western countries, particularly in Europe, are aging. A percentage of the aging generation is not as skilled as the younger one. They have worked for 30 plus years doing almost the same thing and have limited options. This – eligible to vote – group is worried about their jobs, pensions and (health)insurance. They feel neither heard nor understood by the political elite. Therefore, they tend to be attracted to the populists who say what the aging population wants to hear about job security, halting immigration, and increasing national security.  In June 2016, a majority of Britons aged over 45 voted to leave the EU, rising to 60% of those aged 65 or over. The political elite appear to be disconnected from the aging generation.

Overestimate: a huge mistake for a leader to make

In February 2016, David Cameron, former prime minster of the UK, called for a referendum (which took place on 23 June 2016) about whether Britain should remain in the EU. Brexit was the result. Matteo Renzi, who recently stepped down as Italian prime minister, personalised the constitutional referendum (which took place on 4 December 2016) in Italy by threating to resign if the public voted ‘No’. The majority voted ‘No’. Most recently President Obama personalised his support for Hillary Clinton. He lost too. While the elite overestimate their position in society, populists underestimate themselves; the risks of which are often less than overestimation.

Influence by fear

Leading by fear is what populists do well. By focusing on matters such as immigration and globalisation they instil fear: of becoming jobless and feeling unsafe in your own home. Surprisingly, populists often have no sound plans about how they would fix issues. Astonishingly, nor do the crowd ask for these. They just like what they hear. It was clear right after the referendum that Brexiteers had no idea how to proceed. Donald Trump created a lot of fear. Moreover, he did not offer any concrete plans for how he would actualise his ideas. The elite has failed to manage the fear created by populists both in the UK and the US.

Speaking like the crowd

Unlike the political elite who tend to dress, behave and talk intelligently, populist leaders behave and talk like ordinary people. The psychological impact of this is evident as shown by Robert Cialdini in his book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. Your prospects are more likely to comply with your request if you speak their language. Instead of relying on intelligence and political correctness, populists choose to talk in simple, bold, unfiltered and easy to understand terms, which is language that speaks to the majority.

Conclusion

The populists are warming up to win the battlefield in the Netherlands, France and Germany in 2017. If the elite leaders remain disconnected from the aging crowd, we will surely see a continued rise in populism, an undesirable chapter in modern democracy. It is the survival of the fittest.

About the author

Hamid Safaei is the author of the upcoming book First Class leadership. He is the founder of ImOcean Academy. Hamid is a qualified executive coach helping executives and budding entrepreneurs make breakthroughs. He has led successful business transformations for a number of Fortune Global 500 companies.

“How are you doing today?” you may ask a friend or colleague. “I’m good thanks for asking, yourself?” say, some.  “Very busy nowadays” say, many others. “Busy” may be one of the most heard words in the corporate world. Do you agree? And why is that? If you feel you are a busy person, have you ever asked yourself, why? Have you ever asked yourself how to manage your time and work pressure? I have been in the same shoes. And I am blast I have helped myself and many individuals with solving and dealing with work pressure. Read the following hints.

First of all, take care of yourself 

If you don’t nobody else may take care of you. Learn from the metaphoric security instructions prior to flights. The hosts say, if there is oxygen problem put your own mask first and then that of your baby. I believe this is a very well thought philosophy. If you cannot breathe well yourself, you simply cannot help anybody else with breathing. So, take care of yourself. Start with eating healthy and proper rest.

Be proactive to avoid work pressure

Being proactive is one of most appreciated behavioral codes in the corporate world. When being proactive you initiate often your desired projects. You schedule the meetings yourself or you give instruction to your PA to do so. Believe it or not when you take initiative, you plan as it best suits you. For example, you take into account when you have plans for holidays or when you have a busier schedule. And so you can manage your work pressure.  Therefore, be the first who offers options for a meeting. In this case you offer options that work the best for you. If you receive several options from others, the unwritten rule is, accept one unless you really can’t. There is a difference between what we can do and what we want to. Do you agree?

Get clarity

Clarity is one of the most important factors impacting performance, research has proven. Make sure it is clear for you what you are expected to do. Don’t you understand an assignment, then go to the right person and ask for clarity. How often has the following happened to you? You have done your very best but the results are not as expected. Why is that? In many cases because a clear common understanding of the assignment and the deliverable has been missing when accepting the assignment.

Have a plan

When you need to manage an initiative or finalize an assignment, make sure you have a well thought plan. How to start, where to start, what you need, how you can get what you need, and so on. When you have a plan, you set the plan as it best suits according to your professional judgement. When you don’t have a plan you will become a part of other man’s plan. Having no plans makes you often busier than you really want to be. You will be scheduled according to other ones’ plans which sometimes goes hand in hand with work pressure.

Learn to say No when No is the best

How often has it happened to you? An important stakeholder gives you a ring asking “would you please do this for me by the end of the week?” You reply, “yeah, sure”? Short after you realize having your schedule in mind it is mission impossible to get the assignment done as requested. You feel embarrassed getting back to the requester. As a result, you feel a kind of pressure which you have created yourself. When you can’t meet the expectation just simply say you can’t explaining the reason. Be creative and come with an alternative. For example, “yeah, I’d love to, but not earlier than late next week. Is that OK”?

Schedule to be unscheduled to avoid work pressure

Make sure you have some time every day which is your time and yours only. It is also called scheduling to be unscheduled. I call it breathing time. Leave some 10-15 minutes between your meetings to act mindfully. Even robots need to be unscheduled from time to time. Block some time in your agenda to work as you want to, without pressure and at your speed. You can devote these blocks to matters which need your focus, your brainstorm. Use a part of your unscheduled time to clear up your head, to take a walk, to focus and to practice mindfulness.

Go to the bathroom often, without your smartphone

Go a few times to the bathroom every day and leave your smartphone behind if it is save to do so. If you take your smartphone with you do not start reading your emails and sending text messages while being in bathroom. Bathroom time can also be used as a moment to give your mind a break.

Don’t do the work someone else is hired for

Should I be doing this? is a healthy question. Of course we all have been helped by others someday. So we are supposed to help others when we can. When others (colleagues or reporters) need your help frequently, have them learn how to fish, instead of giving them the fish every time. Help the colleagues learn to do the work instead of doing the work for them. Hire a coach to help them how to use their potential. Do not be a control freak, focus on results and let your reporters work as they want to as long as the delivery is according to the plan and the company codes. Use the coaching and selling styles instead of commanding.

Skip unnecessary meetings to reduce work pressure

How many meetings have you joined which are actually not meant for you? Why am I actually here, what is my role, you may ask yourself. Skip the meetings which are not meant for you. I know a partner from McKinsey. When receiving invitations by which any bell rings, he always asks kindly “Hi there, happy to meet, would you please let me know what we would be talking about? I’d like to get prepared” When not sure just ask: what is the purpose of the meeting?

Read and answer your mails in one go

I spoke with one of my executive clients who received around 500 business emails per day, excluding text messages. He said he considered two slots per day in his agenda to read and answer his emails. He quickly scans his emails on several criteria i.e. subject, urgency, VIP sender and relevance. He forwards the emails to his team members based on subject matter, with the request “would you please pick this up” or “I guess this is for you”. Personally, I put my CCs in a separate box and read them 3x times a week. If I am the person to act, then I take action accordingly. Make sure you do not open several emails simultaneously unless they are interconnected. Sometimes you get involved in an escalation or exiting discussion. Then you close your mailbox and forget to read and answer the read mails again. As result you will receive embarrassing reminders and so work pressure and stress.

When you are free stay free

Manage your work during your work time so that you don’t have to work during your free time. Read another post of mine, 10 tips to enjoy your vacation. When you work during your free time, you cannot rest properly, you cannot spend enough quality time with your beloved ones. As a matter of fact, you may mix up your work and private life. The issues on either side impact the other. After a short while you feel a kind of huge pressure and stressful time. When you are stressful and under pressure, you cannot perform as you want to, or supposed to. So, work pressure and stress  become more and more and so will the private part. As a result, the work pressure and stress may lead to a burnout.

Find out critical success factors

Not everything matters and you cannot be doing things out of which nothing matters. When you have many things on your plate, create a common understanding with your sponsors and stakeholders what is important and what isn’t. Get clarity on the key success factors. Focus on the 20% of the activities or initiatives which represent 80% of your performance or success.  Plan the other 20% during your spare time. Find out when the assignment is succeeded. Remember, there is a very tiny distance between success and failure. If the critical things are well taken care of, you will be successful. If the same things are not well taken care of, you will fail. For example, as a doctor, your operations are only successful when your patient survives. The survival of the patient is the most critical factor in the whole operation process.

Don’t think, but check

Do not keep doing things assuming all goes ok. Do not act all the time based on what you think. Check instead. Have several checkpoints to evaluate if you are on the right path. If there are important factors in your project, or assignment make sure you have absolute clarity on the important factors. You can only be sure of something when you test or check it.

Work smart, play smart

Instead of working hard and playing hard, work and play SMART. Make sure what you do is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time related. So you can’t spend endless time on endless initiatives without a clear road map and predefined deliverable. To me, playing smart means doing things we enjoy the most within the devoted resources (i.e. time and money). For example, you are going to visit Disney Land together with your partner and two kids. When you are watching a movie together with your 6 years old son, please turn off your cell-phone. Be there for your son and watch and enjoy watching so that your son enjoys your company. I spend 3 hours every day with my son (almost 3). Every evening we watch 3x cartoons together (one hour in total), and my son loves this quality time. When you have a conversation of an hour with your partner, don’t reply to the annoying messages coming from all kinds of apps. Be there with all your attention so that you have a fruitful conversation with your partner.

Develop and use your soft skills

Remember, research has proven almost 85% of what we have achieved, is thanks to our soft skills. I believe we have failed in many cases due to our shortcomings in soft skills. So refresh your soft skills such as communication, relationship management, listening and sensitivity. Just ask your stakeholders, your manager, your fellows what they appreciate the most and what  you may avoid when engaged with them. Having proper soft skills reduces work pressure.

Let me learn from you

I am blast that I have many connections from whom I learn every day. Please let me learn from your comments and thoughts too.

Did you like the post? If yes, feel free to follow me by going to my LinkedIn page, click on Follow, the 3^rd choice in the row.

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About the author

Hamid Safaei is the founder of ImOcean Academy. He is a qualified executive coach helping executives and high potentials unleash their potential. Hamid has led successful business transformations for a number of Fortune Global 500.

follow ImOcean Academy on LinkedIn

So, there is a project deadline, or an exam, or your first interview, any of these situations can cause stress. Isn’t it? In general, stress has become a part of our lives. But that part, which never do any good to your health.

Different people respond to stress differently. However, this never means you cannot reduce, or eliminate it. Though there’s no “one size fits all” solution for stress handling, yet if you feel like your life is going out of control, it’s high time, you need to take some actions.

Stress management – is something you need to learn about. While it will teach you some healthier ways to cope with the situation, it will also aid in minimizing the harmful effects of stress in future. Below are listed some astounding methods to keep stress at bay;

Morning Ritual:

Start the process of ‘de-stressing’ as soon as the day begins. This means your morning routine needs to be changed. It will comprise of all set of actions which you take, i.e. from the time you wake up to the time you get ready to start your day. Wake up early. Yes, it might be difficult for some days, but gradually you’ll get into this habit. Welcome the ‘Sun’ and step out of your dwelling. Besides all the necessary activities you do, make sure you keep a special time for meditation. If possible, you can join some centers for this.

And most important- don’t underestimate the value of these morning rituals. Yes, it gives you a perfect start for your day, which is further helpful in creating a powerful momentum in your life.

Exercise Regularly:

This could be a part of the above mentioned point, but it holds a significant place in your stress management plan, and hence, it is added separately. Regular exercises have been a part of all highly successful people across the globe. And before you start running, it is better to clear that it is about all the physical activities which keep your body mentally and physically strong.

Now, if you ask about the ‘right’ exercise, then there’s no such ‘right’ one. You can initially choose any among those hundreds of exercises including weight lifting, cycling, a team sport or just simply a brisk walk. The main aim is to get regular with whatever you choose. You seriously need to find a timeslot for it in your busy schedule, and ensure that you follow it.

As far as the benefits are considered, it cannot be described in words. From great health to maintaining youthfulness, and from enhanced productivity to assured success, it shows significant effects in your life.

Taking Breaks:

To do something great, you need to ‘NOT DO’ anything. Don’t get confused!

For example, you are working on a project constantly, but not getting the desired results. What you do? You keep on trying harder, and harder, isn’t it? That’s good, but not great. This time, try out something different.

Believe it- Taking Breaks and disconnecting from work allows your mind and body rest, and then when you reconnect, it works better. Moreover, it offers a great sense of control over your energy throughout the day.

Planning Ahead:

Is your day planned? No? This might be a reason of greater stress. Setting up a time-based structure and scheduling your days in advance can simplify living.

Planning makes you more productive. The reason is quite known; it helps you getting the most of your day. Being confined by 24 hours each day, it is you and only you, who can work on your structural productivity. Optimizing your day proffers a real progress tracking system for your time and restores the sense of control.

Evening Routine:

Don’t let your evening ruin your day. The routine needs to wind-down process as you move closer to the end of the day, stepping forward to a fantastic night of sleep. You need to incorporate the ability to forget about worries and stresses. Meditation can always be a part of your evening. And the rest includes general advises like- leaving work at work, turning off your electronics, healthy diet, and a sound sleep.

No matter how powerless you are feeling right now, these amazing ways will help you gain control over your emotions, lifestyle, thoughts, and the way you deal with problems. Basically, it is not about changing the stressful situation; it is about changing your reaction towards it!